Labor Day Weekend

Someone forgot to tell Abby that yesterday was a holiday. =) For moms, there are no holidays or breaks from work (there are also no holidays for fisherman either and Daddy barely made it home in time to tuck Abby into bed!). But Abby and I enjoyed the day to ourselves anyway. I got a ton of cleaning done which always feels good. Abby spent the day getting into trouble. Over the last few days, she seems to have grown in leaps and bounds in her mobility and curiosity. She pulls herself up on anything now, without the slightest hesitation, which means she also falls down periodically when the rocking chair moves or the empty box doesn't hold up her weight. But she's learning. She pulled herself up on the dishwasher yesterday, which starts a new phase of me being having to be careful that she doesn't grab any sharp objects while I'm loading/unloading the dishwasher. In the picture below, Abby is pointing to the screw - she is currently obsessed with crevices, screws holes, knots in wood, etc.

So, while our actual Labor was pretty noneventful, the day before Abby and I traveled out to Grayland for a barbecue at Kevin's aunt and uncle's. We ate delicious food (including barbecued tuna - yum!), enjoyed some good visiting, and played a couple rounds of croquet. I was the reigning champion from the 4th of July barbecue, but unfortunately I was the first one out this time. Apparently, my win last time was more from luck than skill. ;o)

Kevin's cousin Nathan with his daughter Brooke.


Kevin's Dad working his way out of a "sand trap."

Kevin was finally able to join us around 5:45pm. Abby was very excited to see her Daddy. Too soon, we had to say goodbye to Daddy as we left about an hour later (Abby had only taken a 20 minute nap that day and I didn't want to push it by staying any later). As I drove home, I thought about how strange it was to "visit" with my husband for an hour and then go our separate ways. But that is the life of being married to a fisherman who works an hour and a half away! Thankfully, fishing season will be done soon.

Daddy's Girl.

On our way out of town I couldn't resist pulling down one of the beach approaches for a quick peak at the ocean. Oh, how I love the crashing waves, soft sand, and rolling sand dunes! I wanted so much to get out of the car and take a walk on the beach....but mothers have to make sacrifices and this mother needed to get her baby home to bed! It never ceases to amaze me how infrequently Kevin's family goes down to the beach especially when they live less than a mile away. In fact, Kevin would probably never go to the beach unless I begged and pleaded with him to. I cannot convince him that being on the ocean in a boat surrounded by water is entirely different from standing on the beach gazing out at the ocean waves. =)