Beach Family Pictures

Every year, while staying at the beach, we set aside one night during the week for family pictures.

 Getting 17 people to be still, smile, and look in the (semi) same direction--at the same time--is no small task!

My sister B and I usually resort to bribery,  pleading, and even begging in order to get the job done! HA!

But with a trip to the pier promised once everyone was done, the picture taking commenced and went surprisingly well.

Corban, 10 years old

Riley, 7 years old 

 

Hudson, 4 years old

 

 My girls!

Sophie, 4 years old 

and 

Addy-Kate 3 years old

Me and my sweet girls

Daddy and AK

Just the two of us;)

Our family

My AWESOME parents

The kids (minus my brother Steve) with my parents

 

My sweet sisters!

 KK and AK!

Al, Jake, KK, and AK

Family picture night can seem like a chore sometimes, but I'm so thankful that we take the time to do it. Each and every sweet face captured in these photos is so incredibly special to me.

I love this quote...

“A good snapshot keeps a moment from running away.” - Eudora Welty

And I'm so happy to have captured these fleeting moments with the ones I love most!

Sand, Sun, Smiles!!!

We got back last Saturday evening from our annual trip to Surfside Beach, SC. I think, if my math is correct, this was my 25th summer spent at Surfside. I've gone every summer since I was a little girl and the same sweet memories I made growing up, are now the memories my own kids are making. 

Oh, it was SUCH a wonderful week (maybe the BEST one yet)

 filled with contagious laughter, unforgettable moments, and sweet SWEET memories.

 We've created so many wonderful traditions over the years that the anticipation of our trip is almost as much fun as the actual trip itself;)

 And although every year is the same in many ways, the memories made and the time shared each year is unique and special!

So here is my TOP TEN list of memory making moments at Surfside Beach, 2013

Memory Making Moment #1

Each year, as we head out of town, we stop at Quincy's and enjoy a BIG ole' breakfast buffet.

It's the ONE time a year where my kids are allowed to fill up on nothin' but doughnuts, cinnamon rolls, chocolate chip pancakes, french toast, and ICE CREAM (yes ice cream) for breakfast;)

 Memory Making Moment #2

Cousin time!

What a blessing it is to have cousins around who are wonderful playmates and also best friends!!!

Memory Making Moment #3 

Ocean Time!

Of course, the beach is where we spend most of our time while on vacation.

 Around 9am every morning we stake out a spot, set up our tent, and hang out until about 6pm!

All the kids absolutely LOVE the ocean!!! Whether their jumping waves, boogie boarding, or just swimming in the water, they can't seem to get enough. 

 Needless to say we soak up EVERY minute of beach time that we can!

Memory Making Moment #4

 Sand Time!

When the kids aren't in the water, they are playing in the sand.

Digging big holes, building tall castles, or looking for pretty sea shells...the kids LOVE it all!

 Memory Making Moment #5

Spashin' around in the pool!

The kids enjoy the fact that they can go back and forth between the pool and the ocean as much as they like. We usually spend just as much time poolside as we do on the beach.

Memory Making Moment #6

Daddy Time...uninterrupted---and lots of it! 

So special!

Memory Making Moment #7

The Yum Yum Shop!

We visit this ice cream shop every.single.year while at the beach!

 It's a definite family tradition and one we all look forward too.

Memory Making Moment #8

Cruisin' the strip in our cool set of wheels;)

We love discovering new places that we may not have noticed before had we not had been able to just cruise around town on our golf cart;)

Memory Making Moment #9

Building sand creatures is just another one of our family's many traditions. 

My dad built BOTH of these this year and did such a great job!!!

The kids LOVE them!!

Memory Making Moment #10

Family time!!

So many sweet memories made with the people I love the most in this entire world!

Precious moments enjoyed that will indeed last a life-time!  

Happy Faces and Hot Dogs

We had such a fun day today.

 My mom, along with my sister B, and her crew, came over this morning and spent the better part of the day hanging with us at our neighborhood pool. 

 The kids always have a blast playing with their cousins, and B and I spent the morning chatting about our upcoming trip to the beach. It's gonna be such an AWESOME trip this year with our little gang. We can hardly wait!!!

Oh, and since today was "National Hot Dog" day, we decided it would be fun to celebrate together!

We all enjoyed a good ole' grilled hot dog while sitting poolside. 

I can't think of a better way to celebrate than that;)

National Ice Cream Day

 Sunday night, we headed over to my parents house to celebrate National Ice Cream Day! 

 My mom made her famous Frosty's,  and they were absolutely DELICIOUS!!! We had plenty of toppings to go around, and the kids had fun building their own "Frosty Sundae's"!

It was a wet, rainy night out, but that didn't stop the kids from enjoying an evening dip in the pool!

 What a sweet "holiday" to celebrate!!

And what a bummer National Ice Cream day only comes once a year;)

Adventures at the Waterpark!

This truly has been one of the BEST summer's I think we have had yet. 

 Not just because of the stuff we are doing, but because the kids are all (finally) at such great ages. 

 The little ones are really not so little anymore, and the big boys are not only my BEST helpers, but are just fun to hang with! 

 Don't get me wrong, we still have our fair share of meltdowns every now and again, but for the most part everyone is (usually) happy, content, and able to participate in what ever activity it is we are doing that day. 

 Yesterday, we spent the ENTIRE day with sweet friends at Carowinds water park! The kids had a BLAST riding the water slides, jumping some waves, and splashing on the splash grounds. 

 Beatin' the heat, stayin' cool, and havin' FUN= an AWESOME summer day!!

LOVE this quote:

“Summer afternoon—summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.”
--Henry James

and I couldn't agree more;)

Painting with pudding: the summer tradition continues

We spent most of the day at the pool today, but when thunder clouds rolled in and threatened our time in the sun, we decided to head home and continue with our own kind-of fun there! 

And what's more fun than paining with pudding, right?!?! 

This has become a Bruce family summer tradition for several years now, and one my kids look so forward too. 

 We absolutely LOVE doing this and the kids have a blast covering themselves from head to toe in a chocolaty mess! 

 Sweet Addy-Kate wasn't too sure what was going on at first though, and she had a hard time figuring out if this was art, or her afternoon snack;)

 After everyone was thoroughly covered in pudding, it was time to crank on the water and hose everyone down.

 I think everyone had just as much fun getting clean again as they did painting!

...and the summer tradition lives on;)

Uptown fun

Yesterday,  the kids and I spent the morning at one of our very favorite places... Imaginon! We had tickets (thanks to a sweet friend) to see their "Terrific Tuesday" performance.
 It was a really neat hand puppet show and the kids LOVED it!! 

 When the program was over, everyone got a pair of silly eyeballs so they could practice making their own hand puppets at home;)

And since we were already in uptown visiting, we thought it would be fun to meet Daddy for a quick lunch date! Shane's office is only a few blocks away from Imaginon, so the kids and I enjoyed a nice stroll through town as we made our way to his building.
In order to get in to Shane's office, we each have to have temporary ID badges made every time we visit. The kids think its fun getting their picture taken, and love having their own ID tags...just like Daddy.
We decided it would be easier (aka cheaper) to bring our own picnic lunch from home, and we enjoyed eating together  in the lunch room on Shane's floor.

After saying  "goodbye" to Daddy, we headed back onto the streets of town and enjoyed our stroll back to the car. Along the way, we ran into "the balloon man" and he made the kids each a  balloon creation of their choice.

Two crazy hats, two beautiful flowers, and one mighty sword later..our fun day in town was made complete!