hot fun in the summertime...

my lack of posts on this blog is no indication of our summer....it has been busy busy busy....and we're having lots of fun along the way! the boys have been in camp 4 mornings a week, and typically we head to the pool in the afternoon. andrew has been doing private swim lessons and has made great improvements this summer!

here are some highlights of our adventures thus far....

CARS 2...

i was able to score 4 tickets to a private screening of CARS 2 the weekend it opened. i'm not sure who was more excited about this....we ALL know how much i heart FREE stuff! in addition to the free tickets, the kids each scored a CARS 2 tshirt, a color changing water bottle and a snack pack for the movie! despite my thinking that the movie was way over their heads, with the whole espionage theme, the boys seemed to really enjoy it. personally, i think CARS was a much better flick!

BEACH WEEK 2011...and the "I DO's"

as is tradition, we headed down to corolla, nc for a week of sun, fun, surf and....a wedding! yes, this year was special, in that, chris and morgan (my sister's bro in law and his now wife) tied the knot while we were there. it made for an extra special vaca! a few other highlights of the trip were...

*climbing the corolla lighthouse

*andrew swimming in the pool on his own

*watching andrew LOVE the ocean and the beach

*the four cousins having a sleepover every night...

and the BIGGEST highlight of the week, was that this was the first year (in 8 years of doing this trip) that neither my sis nor i had to bring a pack-n-play or diapers!!!!

STEVE SONGS...

another summer tradition of ours, is to see steve songs at wolf trap. i believe this was our 4th year! this time we made our way there with neighbors and we ALL had a blast! we almost didn't go, because the forecast was for over 100 degrees....and it is always 10 degrees hotter and stuffier in those good ol' woods! we made it though, with water bottles & fans in tow...and the temps were actually bearable!

STAY TUNED...

with about 4 weeks of summer remaining, we still have several fun things planned, including a trip to baltimore and also the cameron run water park.

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it's ok to be me...

actually, it MORE THAN OK to be me!!!

this is a very recent (as in within the past 48 hours!) self discovery i've made. you see, people always tell me that i'm so self confident and so sure of myself, but inside that has never really been the case. i'm not sure where it came from, but i have ALWAYS been very self conscious of my body. whenever i mention this to a friend, they'll say something along the lines of, "oh please amy. you look great." or "seriously amy? get over yourself!" i'd smile and shy away from the conversation, but inside, i was still feeling icky about myself and my body.

it wasn't until recently, while out celebrating a dear friend's 40th birthday, that something clicked in me. i was the only one there who had not reached the milestone age of 40. i kept listening to these women talk about how they feel that the best part about turning 40, is that they have "arrived." they are finally good with where they are in life, and more importantly, with WHO they are in life. we joked, that i would get there soon enough! well, thankfully that night was an ah-ha moment for me. perhaps i won't even have to wait until i turn 40!

case in point...i NEVER wear a bikini to our community pool. heck, i'm even self conscious when i wear one at the pool/beach on vaca, when the only people i know there are family!!! i'm not sure why, but i am always WAY too self conscious to pull it off. not only that, but i will evaluate the other women (in my head of course), who may be wearing bikinis. i'll think to myself, "if she can do it, so can i"....but alas, i ALWAYS end up in my tankini! it's no doubt that my belly has gotten flabbier over recent years, and that i have stretch marks to boot! i know.....too much info, right!?!? TODAY i decided that these marks and my belly, are ALL MINE! they are ME....they are marks of my accomplishment of carrying and birthing two amazing children! TODAY, i wore my bikini and i felt good about myself!!! i actually stood in the mirror before heading to the pool and said "I am beautiful and I love myself!"

i'm not sure what exactly changed in my mind as i listened to these wonderful women talk about their love for themselves, but i am SO incredibly happy to have been there!!!

i am who i am...and i love me!!!!

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THREE!!!

july 2008 - only a few weeks old

july 2009 - 1 year

june 14, 2010 - 2 years

june 2011

my sweet baby jacob....today you are THREE years old! as i'm typing this, you are lying quietly on the couch watching dora...the baby dino one...it's your favorite. i thought you'd take a nap today, but you are too excited about our trip to the playground this afternoon.

jacob, every day spent with you is one that i will cherish forever. you have such a great personality. you make everyone around you smile and laugh with the funny things you say. just today, you were telling me that the playground at camp wasn't fun. when i asked you why, you said, "because there weren't any animals there." i then asked what kind of animals you would want at the playground and you simply said, "wah wahs (giraffes), ryes (tigers) and gorillas. just those three. that's all i want on the playground with me."

not only are you incredibly funny jacob, but your are very smart too! just this past week, you pretty much mastered the art of peeing and pooping on the toilet...self taught! we didn't even really have to "potty train" you. basically, you put the underwear on and were ready to roll! your fave joke right now is when someone says, "what's under there?" and you get to say "under where...ha ha i said underwear!" when you talk, i sometimes forget that i'm talking to such a young child, because the words that come out of your mouth, sound like those from a 5 year old.

although you and andrew argue like the best of 'em, i can tell that you wholeheartedly love and adore your brother. (ok....note...you just fell asleep on the couch...and you are SO cute!!!)
you say and do pretty much everything andrew says and does. you are definitely the "monkey do" of the family. i can't wait to see the relationship between you and andrew grow over the years! and you are just too cute, the way you say "brothers!"

jacob ellis banocy...i love you with all my heart!!! i hope you never change...please stay the sweet, funny, adorable, handsome, loving, cuddly boy that you are! now...if only i could figure out a way to keep you at age 3!

happy birthday my love!

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