The End & The Begining

Today is Andy's last day of Residency. Of course, tomorrow he starts his Epilepsy Fellowship at WFU. However, I didn't want this day to go by unnoticed. When you don't move for Fellowship or to a job, there seems to be little closure for residency, at least for me. I have tried to make a big deal about it at our house and the girls have talked about it a lot as a result. I think the girls and I care about today because we have also lived through this time. The fact that we got to celebrate the last "big " call (on our 8th wedding anniversary last week) was a big deal at our house. I know other resident families can relate to the "family residency" idea. Andy was the Chief Resident this year and that is a ton of extra work. I know he won't miss that:) We have done some fun surprises around the house, and other places, but I don't want to give them away in case Andy is not busy with his last day of Consults and checks the blog.

So...Andy we are so proud of you and 4 really hard years. You have done so well and so much. I hope this next step is a really good one and that your job search helps you realize how much you mean to more than just our family! Congrats! We love you!

P.S.: Don't forget to check your car;)

Dad Life

This is for Andy, Dad, and Tom. This may be even funnier than the Sierra commercial, and Tom will appreciate that there is an Odyssey

Dance Camp

The girls went to Dance Camp at Salem Gymnastics last year and had a great time. They were super excited to go again this year. Last year, Joiner just broke down at the performance at the end of the week. I didn't' say anything this year, but she started saying on Monday that she wasn't going to cry this year. I told her to look at me if she was scared or sad and I will give her a "thumbs-up." She did what she said and didn't cry a bit. She actually did everything with a smile and even lead some of the changes in the dance. Carly was very serious as she was trying to get each step just right and she as wonderful. They were so excited at the end. Daddy is on a research month, so he was able to come this year. This is really an impressive camp. It is only 2 hours a day, for 5 days, but the last day has this really elaborate performance with multiple dances and costumes. They even make their own crown and wand.

They call each girl out individually to curtsy, but Daddy didn't get a picture of that. After the roll call, each group performs 3 dances. Here is Joiner in the first dance. Smile On! Carly is behind her making sure she misses nothing

Seated now

Carly doing the motions to "A Whole New World"

Joiner

Carly

Now we are onto Ballet. Joiner is in front and Carly is in the corner

Carly

Joiner running around the circle; Carly is behind her and Ellison is in front

Waiting for the next number

You can see the outfit change

Carly on the left and Joiner in the middle

More spinning

Taking a bow

Now we are tap dancing

I surprised them with flowers last year, but they were counting on them this year. They were both so excited at the end! Joiner would hold hers like a baby and Carly was like a torch!

Posing with Ellison. I don't think she was too into it!

New Bikes

We have had a lot of milestones around our house lately. One of the big ones was getting Carly and Joiner bikes when they passed a milestone we had been promising. We went to several bike stores and toy stores. We went to one local bike shop and found a brand we really liked and that was good for kids who are not on the big side. The great thing is they let you trade them in for bigger bikes with a big discount. Then we asked if they ever had used bikes because they were very expensive. Weirdly, in the used section, they had a pink one and a purple one. A set of twins must have come in and traded in their bikes to our advantage! We were all excited!

On the day we got the bikes, the girls rode from lunch time to nap time, then skipped snack to ride 2 hours until dinner. After dinner, we headed to church to ride in the parking lot while I cleaned up after a big fund raiser that weekend. They all but collapsed when we got home to take baths!

Daddy parked the van at the end of the parking lot so they couldn't go down the hill. You can also see he is just enjoying the view!

Joiner

It's a race

Carly

The man at the bike store asked the girls who would get which color. They both looked at him and said very respectfully, "It doesn't matter." And they were telling the truth. They seem perfectly happy to switch back and forth. I watch them from the kitchen window as they park in the grass and run to each other's bike to swap. We will see if it lasts!

Watch the road!

The Quickest Beach Trip Ever

Andy split his last week of vacation so that we could go to ATL in April and then head to the beach for a few days in June. So last week, we headed to Topsail on Thursday and back home on Saturday. We had a great time, but it was so quick. Our whole family is in need of a trip to the beach each year. We left really early on Thursday, so we could be there right at check-in. We headed straight to the beach.

Seeing the ocean for the first time this year. It always gives you a thrill!

We call the girls Sand Pipers because they spend most of the time running in and out of the waves like the little birds.

Daddy brought a beer with him to hang out!

Now we have moved on to shell collection

This picture is priceless. The girls decided to throw water on us and each other. I love how you can see the water splash!

Carly is clearly loving it!

Daddy is now in on the chase

More running

You can see that even the next day we are still running

Joiner

Making a pretty impressive sand castle

Carly

Joiner

Daddy and his girls. I have a picture like this from every year. I will have to post the succession one day. They get so big so fast!

Jumping the waves with a little help from daddy. Both girls went farther in this year. Carly is more adventurous with the waves. This is Joiner airborne.

Carly getting hammered. She just laughed it off.

See...And look how grown-up she looks!

After we played on the beach on Friday morning, we headed to the pool before lunch. We were determined to squeeze every last drop. Joiner just hopped out of the water at one point and told us she was taking a break and went to lie on a chair!

Mommy and Carly in the pool

Joiner with her new bear on one of our decks

Playing some soccer after nap time

Showing off our shells

Daddy chilling. Even Saturday morning we headed out to the beach at 8am so we could get in a good hour before we had to shower and check-out at 10am. It was worth the rush!

Collecting some last minute shells

Mistletoe's first beach trip. If you had asked me a few years ago if I would pose 8 months prego and in a bathing suit, I would say no way. However, a good friend reminded me that it is good to have pictures of moms too. So here we go!

Another awkward family portrait! Better than nothing!

We came back in and showered and then Andy loaded the van while I cleaned up our things. We had bought the most wonderful cantelope at a stand and I didn't have any way to take the pieces home. Here are the girls trying to help me finish it up!

On the road again! I was thinking we could head over to Emerald Isle to see my good friends on our annual Girl's Weekend, but I soon realized that the shortest beach trip ever was also the most exhausting. We just booked it home for nap time! We have discovered that even though we never give suckers, they make a great car treat! Silence:)