Memorial Day Weekend Extravaganza!!!

I like to think I am patriotic. When holidays like Memorial Day and Veteran's Day roll around I think about the sacrifice our veterans have made, from revolutionary times to our current conflicts. Sometimes Thomas and I will watch military movies or documentaries. This memorial day, I also watched videos of the Top 10 patriotic songs (my favorite: God Bless the USA). I definitely find myself teary eyed and I pray for our military families, past and present.

Now, with all that being said, I also really love a good three-day weekend! We decided to make this one an especially eventful one. We kicked off with a Friday trip to Lowe's and the purchase of a new grill. We went to the store expecting to buy a gigantic propane powered monster. Instead, we went back to our roots with a small, charcoal-driven "roundabout".

Thomas decided he was going to plan a special menu. His theme was mint. Chosen in honor of the giant mint patch we have growing in our front walk. We had pork chops with a mint glaze and a wonderful fruit salad topped with a minty mango sauce. And, we ate outside. The kids LOVE eating on the deck. Actually, we all love eating on the deck. It faces east, so it is perfectly situated for an evening meal. We ended with ice cream cones and stayed outside until bedtime.

Saturday morning we went to the beach. We considered it a test-run. It wasn't The Beach, like the Atlantic or Pacific. It was a state park, Chesapeake Bay beach. We had it all to ourselves and the kids were completely enamored. It was a big switch from our first beach trip, where Anna was scared of the sand and wouldn't move from the blanket. We stayed for about 90 minutes with the kids in the water the whole time. We tried to get them to explore the park, but they just weren't interested. Jack was fearless, wading almost up to his neck at times. All three kids had moments where we had to rescue them. I guess turning yourself rightside up is not as intuitive as one would think. I am really glad we are starting swim lessons next week. If nothing else, I want them to learn to turn themselves over when they can touch the ground.

Then, we went to WalMart for some garden supplies and an inflatable kids' pool. We got home in time for lunch (leftover pork chops) and nap time. After nap, it was time for a baseball game. We met with some friends at the Blue Crabs stadium to cheer for our local team and hopefully catch some fireworkds. Unfortunately, we didn't get there in time for the hat giveaway and we didn't make it until the end of the game for the fireworks. But, the kids had a wonderful time. We sat on the lawn and brought chairs and a blanket and we all had a great time.

Sunday was church and family movie night. Monday, we went to a picnic with our church and it was so fun! The kids got to ride horses, eat sno-cones, and play with their friends. Oh, and eat some really good food.

Now, we are having a quiet day in to recover from our wonderful weekend. As the kids get older, it is so much more enjoyable to take them out to do things. It is also funny how our idea of "fun" has changed. Now, watching them have fun and seeing things through their eyes is fun for us. We can't have that kind of action every week. Monday night, the laundry had piled up and the house was a wreck, but it was definitely worth it!