Maxwell Turns 2: Trucks & Diggers

Maxwell turned 2 on June 9th and we celebrated with a small party at our house. Trucks and "diggers" was the theme. Two of Maxwell's favorite things. It was a low key celebration but I found that it was a lot more enjoyable. I got to watch Maxwell smile and open his gifts instead of running around making sure everything was running smoothly. We even got the event catered so we didn't have to cook. Maxwell got one gift from Ty and I. This GMC Truck. We tried to find a matching Ram Truck like Daddy's but we couldn't find one and so the GMC it is. Scarlett got Maxwell a little green big boy bike. 

I can't believe how big this little guy is getting!! We upgraded his crib to a big boy bed and this time, we were smart and went right for the full size, skipping the twin. You live and learn right? 

I am putting together his big boy room and I will post that on the blog soon. We are so very grateful for 2 years with this little Bubs. Here's to watching him grow many more!

Fitness. What I'm Doing.

I wanted to share some of the workouts that I've been doing. When I started back in February, I had initially begun to put together my very own workout plan. It was a collaboration of all the workouts I had tried over my entire life. It was geared more towards what worked for me and it was ultimately changeable according to what you wanted to accomplish. I really felt that it was something that anyone could do despite having little time. It was a good 6 weeks that I followed this routine and by vacation time, I was feeling really good about what I had accomplished. But then I got sick with all of the sicknesses that Maxwell so graciously brought home from daycare and it was like 3 months that I was down with different ailments. After not working out for a few weeks, I wanted something to kick me back into gear.  I'm still working on putting my other routines together because I really want to share it with you guys.  I think it truly does work and because I've tried SO many different workouts, I know what actually works for me. In the meantime, I wanted to share the workout that I've been doing to get me back into the flow of working out.

Beginning to workout is the hardest part. By week  3 or 4, I'm back into the flow of things and feeling good, but my gosh, that first couple weeks has to be the worst. I found a great 12 week workout program on Instagram and I'm loving it. I get bored easily so this one changes things up enough for me. Not only does it guide me physically but there are great eating habit tips and suggestions along the way as well. I've never tried anything like this before but I'm really enjoying it and feeling progress even in the first 2 weeks. I needed a program that I could follow so that I could snap back into the workout game and not worry about if I'm doing enough. What we (my sister and I) have been doing is called Bikini Body Burn and you can find it HERE. I paid minimal amount of money to buy the workout guide and it's been so helpful in getting my motivation going. I plan to complete this 12 week program and then switch over to my own workout routine that I am continuing to put together as I go through this process. Most of it is done. I just need to get it all down in an organized writing form to share with you. I'm the type of person that needs a strict layout to follow in order to continue working out and eating right diligently. Which is precisely why I turned to another program until I have mine laid down firmly. The reason why I chose this one is because there was so much of what I was already doing incorporated into it. I can't wait to share more with you as we continue our fitness journey. Until then, follow along as we share before/after photos as well as some short video clips of BBB and shortly after, my very own workout routines. 

If you have been looking for something to get you started in the right direction and something that even a busy mother, such as myself can do, I highly suggest doing the Bikini Body Burn 12 week model. Again, you can find that 12 week program here. 

Assateague Island

Wow. It's been awhile since I've gave some input here on the blog. I've been thinking lately and I miss contributing here. I want to make it a habit to come here more often and share words. I have a lot of things that I want to do lately but it seems that time has a way of making things hard. I have so many posts started and not finished. So many photos I want to share that I haven't yet. :( It's a struggle between kids, work, housework, working out and trying to squeeze in some other writing that I've been working on.

I'm making it a mid year resolution to try my best to take a little time and blog more often. We have so many fun and exciting things to share that I must. I see a website revamp coming, some news ads/collaborations and some life/work-out posts coming...

Okay.
Now that I got that off my chest, I'm going to share with you our photos from Assateague and Chincoteague Island. Scarlett turned 6 in May and she has been asking to go see the wild ponies on the beach ever since I told her it was such a thing. So we packed up the SUV and made the 7-8 hour drive to Ocean City MD where we stayed for a few days. We had plans on swimming in our hotel pool, walking the beach and riding bikes on the Boardwalk. But the weather had other plans for us. It was SUCH a cold spring along the east coast this year. When I say cold, I mean we are JUST starting to see 70's now and it's JUNE!!!! It was rainy and cold and not that nice for our little getaway. Thankfully we had a great indoor pool area and the kids still had fun for the first day. We also did get to spend some time on the beach when the rain let up. We took advantage of the sunny days to drive another hour to Chincoteague Island and go on a pony boat tour and then walk the beaches in search of them. And we DID find them! They were all over the Assateague State Park and if I had only known that this was the easiest place to see them then I could have saved us a lot of searching. My dad and step-mother met us there and it was nice to have them walk the beaches with the kids and search for sea shells. My sister came along too, which the kids loved. We let Scarlett choose the activities for a whole day. She chose Horses, tacos, miniature golf, go karts and more horses. Good choices, right? It was a nice family trip that I won't soon forget.

If you ever get the chance to go to Assateague/Chincoteague Island, or if you have a horse lover in the family, I highly suggest going here. We stopped and talked to a park ranger who told us spring time is ideal there. No bugs, less crowd and still not too bad of weather.

The ride from NY was realllllllyyyyyyyy long and I give Ty credit for taking the night shift and driving straight through so the kids could sleep. But it was worth it to see Scarlett's eyes light up when we spotted the mother horses with the new babies only a week or so old. We also got to see dolphins swim right beside us on our boat tour!! Somehow I didn't get any pictures of that but I DID get it on my Snapchat if you happened to see that. Scarlett left a very happy girl and we got to check off more adventures from our list. 

Charleston Part II

If you missed Part I....you can find it HERE.

Day 4:Exploring Downtown Charleston & Shopping 

On Tuesday we went into downtown Charleston to explore some more and do a little shopping. Some locals told us about the best little donut shop called Glaze. So we went in to taste their notorious bacon-topped donut. They didn't disappoint. We were planning on only getting one donut each but ended up getting a whole box of them to snack on later. After we scored some seriously yummy rings of deliciousness, we ate breakfast at a quaint restaurant called Toast. Once we filled our bellies, we wanted to shop a little. King St is the place to be! Everything from Anthropologie and Louis Vuitton to boutiques and antique shops were on this street. We also booked a Carriage Tour and we took a ride around Charleston in a horse-drawn carriage. There are so many companies that do this here. If you go during a busy season, you should make reservations. We learned some fascinating history on this tour. The kids fell asleep, ha ha, but Ty and I enjoyed it. Of course I found the movie theater that The Notebook was filmed at. Check that off the list!
On our way back to Mt. Pleasant, which is where our resort is located, we stopped at Tavern and Table to eat. I had fried deviled eggs and cornbread for starters. I cannot tell you how amazing these were!! Not only was the food awesome but we got to sit outside over the water. I highly recommend this spot also.

Day 5: Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum

On this day, we anticipated some rain in the morning so we decided to do something mostly indoors. We got lucky and this was the only morning we had that had some rain showers on our trip. Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum is the old USS Yorktown (a WWII aircraft carrier) that sits in the harbor, next to the Harbor Resort, and is now a museum. I wasn't too thrilled to do this until we actually got there. It was extremely interesting and I ended up enjoying this a lot, as did the kids. Do this if you visit here with kids or if you are interested in that sort of thing. If you saw my Instagram stories this week, then you know what I'm talking about. We got to explore the entire ship including the captain's area, where the soldiers ate, slept, brushed their teeth and got medical attention or hair cuts. The top wasvwhere the aircrafts were displayed as well as some inside of the ship. There was even simulators and NASA experiences inside. Really cool stuff! You can also do helicopter tours here really inexpensive! I was ALL about doing this but there was a 3 person maximum and we didn't have anyone to watch one of the kids so Ty said he would make it up to me ;) I'll be waiting for that one.
After that we went back to have dinner, swim and hang out in the hot tub at the resort. We roasted marshmallows and made s'mores by the fire pits. We also visited with one of Ty's childhood best friends who moved to this area.

Day 6: Middleton Place, Magnolia Plantation & Gardens and S'mores to End the Day!

On this day we visited 2 more plantations: Middleton Place and Magnolia Plantation and Gardens. All of the plantations are unique in their own way. Magnolia Gardens had miles and miles of land to roam and of course gardens and animals galore including a feeding/petting area. We went in with Scarlett to feed the animals and made sure to stay clear of the peacocks that were in mating season. They tend to be aggressive during this time but so beautiful with their feathers all spread out! We spotted them in the trees all over the plantation. We also took a boat swamp tour and saw more alligators than I cared to see! I was a little freaked out by this but the tour guide explained they hadn't had an alligator attack in Charleston for over 90 years!
 Middleton Place had a lot of historic features and a gorgeous view overlooking the property. In the stable area, you could visit each area where a re-enactor would walk you through what they did their back in the day. Scarlett was amazed with all of that. She helped them smash corn and watched the wood worker carve all sorts of neat items. We decided to do these 2 plantations in one day. We also had it on our agenda to go see Angel Oak Tree, the oldest tree around with quite the presence! But the kids were extremely tired and crabby after the plantations so we skipped this.

Day 7:Beach Day!!

There are quite a few beaches to choose from in this area. Our last day here we chose Isle of Palms Beach. I can't compare them to the others since we only got to see one. Sullivan's Isle is close to Isle of Palms and these 2 beaches are low key, which is why we chose them. On the other side of Charleston are Kiawah Island and Seabrook Island. Also Foley Beach which tends to be more of a mature beach because of all the bars in the vicinity. There is no lack of beautiful beaches in this area. We saw dolphins not far off the shore of the beach and had lunch on the strip before heading back to listen to live music on the rooftop of The Fish House. We had drinks, food and watched the beautiful sun set of the harbor. We spent a few nights up on this amazing rooftop lounge. The kids would dance to the music and sometimes catch their vaca buddies while the grown ups enjoyed cocktails and the ocean views. For our last night, we took a walk around harbor to pick out which yacht we want next ;)

Day 8:Good Bye Charleston!!

We said good-bye to this wonderful place. It was great to explore the history and color of Charleston. We could have spent longer here but we are thankful for a week here. When I got home, I added a few more places to my "Go See" list. Every time I visit a place I've never been, I get this urge to see more...I didn't get a chance to travel much when I was young and so now I'm taking advantage of that. Anyhow, if you are ever looking for a fun place to vacation...Charleston is a great choice!!