A Week in Wallace

We headed to Wallace, NC to visit Grammy and Grandpa Nick for the 4th of July. Sophie and Jack are always thrilled when an opportunity arises to visit their grandparents. They are finally able to keep it straight that Grammy and Grandpa Nick live in NORTH Carolina, and Oma lives in SOUTH Carolina. Much to their dismay, the drive to North Carolina is almost twice as long as going to Oma's house, which makes it nearly unbearable for Jack, who still has very little concept of time. But, we realize each time that it's worth it to endure the many "Are we there yet?" and "How long until we get there?" inquiries.

Our week was full of fun. On the 4th of July, we went to the pool so the kids could flaunt their swimming skills. That's not the only thing Sophie flaunted. There was a DJ at the pool for a celebratory pool party, and he invited all of the kids to participate in a hula hoop contest. Sophie has always enjoyed hula hooping, but I had no idea how much talent she possessed. She waltzed up to the patio with gusto and stood alongside several girls who were mostly all older than her. My jaw dropped as we watched her move her little hips in the perfect rhythm, keeping the hoop up far longer than anyone else. She was SO proud of herself as the DJ announced, "Clearly we have our winner!". Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera, but here's a token shot of her hula hooping at the Children's Museum in Wilmington later that week



Later that day we had a cookout with some of the neighbors and some long time family friends that have retired in the same subdivision. Check out Jack with his Sparklers. Should we be worried that it looks like he's trying to light a tree on fire??



It's so nice that Wallace is less than an hour from several beaches. We went to Wrightsville Beach on Tuesday. The kids were introduced to Boogie Boarding and loved it!



Wednesday presented Eric and I with a sweet deal. My Mom and Nick offered to take the kids to an early dinner at their club, while Eric and I stayed behind to enjoy a quiet house and a glass of wine before swapping places and heading over to the club for our own night. The kids had a blast, which was expected, as they usually don't find themselves in restaurants much fancier than Chick-Fil-A. Apparently they charmed the pants off of everyone and were well-mannered. Phew!

While Eric and I headed out for some shopping and more beach time the next morning, the kids headed to the Wilmington Children's Museum and out to lunch with Grammy and Grandpa Nick. At one point, Jack got himself a little mixed up with a group of camp kids and even posed for their group picture. Eventually he realized what was happening and yelled "I'm trapped!", at which point Grammy rescued him from the group.


Throughout the week, the "Green Man" in Grammy and Grandpa Nick's garden left little surprises and treats for the kids. Each day they would check and see if there was a treasure to be found. The "magic" of all of this did not seem to wane and both kids are looking forward to their next visit to see if the Green Man takes things to the next level. Maybe some cash in lieu of tootsie rolls?!


On our last evening, despite the blazing temperature and humidity, the kids toasted marshmallows over the fire-pit to make smores. Can't think of a better way to end a great week!