Hayes Turns 10!

As Hayes was quick to remind us this summer, he does not like to spend his birthday in the car driving back from Ponte Vedra.  Unfortunately for him, that is how much of his 10th birthday was spent!  We did hit the road early with the goal of getting him home in time to enjoy some time outside and time to open presents.  

 

 

He requested donuts for breakfast, Chick-fil-A for lunch and then dinner at Jalisco's for his birthday meals.  We surprised him by inviting his buddy Graham to join us for dinner where Hayes wore the birthday sombrero.   

 

As the case for Ben two weeks prior, I had Hayes complete the birthday questionnaire, and here are his responses: 

Happy 10th Birthday, H!

Ponte Vedra for the 4th

This July in Ponte Vedra, I seemed to have taken a break from picture-taking.  It appears that I largely only took pictures on the 4th of July and mainly in the morning!  As is tradition, we participated in the annual sandcastle contest, with a yellow submarine for an entry.

 

When the judges came around to hear our explanation of our design, Wages played the Beatles' song "Yellow Submarine" and I believe that is what put us in the winning column.  They then awarded the sandcastle the "Most Creative" Award.  Here is the family with the award-winning design. 

Later in the day, when we were getting ready to cookout, I did capture this photo of the kids in front of the house. 

The next night, after watching the US Women's Soccer Team win the World Cup, the summer birthday boys celebrated their birthdays to complete our visit to Ponte Vedra for the 4th!

Ben Turns 7!

Ben's birthday fell in the middle of the week this summer so he spent the day at Westminster camp.  Once he got home, he requested dinner at his favorite restaurant, La Fonda, for a birthday meal of a chicken quesadilla with black beans and rice.  We opened family presents before we left to go eat. 

 

I also had him complete the annual birthday questionnaire.  Here are his seven-year-old responses: 

 

 Happy 7th Birthday, Ben!

Camp Greystone

Eleanor, after attending Camp Greystone's two-week session last year, decided to switch back and go to camp for three weeks this summer.  So, Grandmommy and Granddaddy actually dropped her off at camp on June 1 because Thomas and I were still in Scotland and could not get back in time due to the timing of the wedding we were attending.  She had a ball during her three weeks,

 

and I loved seeing her smiling face as I poured through the few thousand daily pictures the camp posted on their website.  I must admit that I was eager to see her though when it came time for pick-up as we had not seen her since the Friday of Memorial weekend - the longest we had ever gone without seeing each other!  Here are some of the nearly 200 pictures I found of her over the three weeks -

Westminster Camps

This summer after our visit to see Papa in June, the boys each participated in two-week long Westminster Summer Camp sessions.  Ben tried Camp Wildcats this year for the first time. 

 

He requested a change this year after spending two weeks of the last three Junes at the traditional Westminster Summer Camp that takes place largely outdoors.  He chose air conditioned, indoor activities over a full-day of outdoor fun, and I don't blame him.  

 

His cousin Everly joined him at the same session which made it fun for both of them.  All Westminster camps post daily pictures so I was able to locate the boys at different points during their sessions. 

I love this one of Ben licking his chops. 

At Camp Wildcats, they did play water games but never got in a pool. 

Ben loved his time at Camp Wildcats and asked to return.  Unfortunately, he has hit the age ceiling and will have to do different camp next summer.  He's thinking he wants to try Robotics Camp . . .

While Ben attended Camp Wildcats, Hayes returned to Sports Camp for another year.  

 

He stuck with the same two sports as last June - basketball and soccer and has already asked to be signed up again next summer. 

Disney World and a Visit with Papa

The second week of June, while Thomas traveled for work and Eleanor was at camp, the boys and I drove down to Florida to spend the week with Papa.  One of the highlights of the trip was a day at the Magic Kingdom.  We had not been to the park since Ben was a little under two-years-old so we were due for a return visit. 

 

Papa agreed to join us and it was his first time back at WDW he thought in at least 25 years!

We arrived at the park shortly after 8:30 and hit Tomorrowland first.  Papa joined us on Space Mountain, our first ride of the day, and the boys and papa agreed that they didn't need to ride it again when we were done.  I guess we don't have many dare-devils in our family.  Ben and I rode in the race cars together. 

 

Papa didn't join us for that ride so Hayes was by himself.  He ended up not being able to reach the pedals so a WDW worker joined him for the second half of his loop around the track.  

The park was packed as we walked through Fantasyland and decided to return later, with the hope that the crowds would dwindle a little bit and it was on to Frontierland. 

Surprisingly, the highlight of Frontierland was Tom Sawyer's Island.  I can't remember the last time I had ridden the "log raft" over to the island but the boys and especially Hayes liked hiking through the tunnels and caves. 

It wouldn't be a proper trip to WDW if we had forgotten our pin lanyards.  The boys packed theirs from Atlanta, and we were interested to find employees who would trade.  We did make a mental note that fewer Magic Kingdom employees trade pins than what we experienced at Epcot a few years ago when ALL employees wore lanyards with pins. 

As you can see from the pictures (and the boys closed eyes!), the weather held up even though the forecast predicted typical strong afternoon thunderstorms.  We did eventually return to Fantasyland but would only wait in the 45(!!!) minute line for Its a Small World.  Peter Pan's wait was an obscene 90 minutes. 

We had one nice relaxing ride on the People Mover

 

 

after sitting through The Carousel of Progress show and then called it a day.  We were back and having dinner at Long Doggers by 6pm.  It was another magical day in the Magic Kingdom!