In the Genes

I have so many pictures of the many faces of Merrick...so I decided that it was time for Tirzah to show off her skills. My kids can make silly faces with the best of them...I suppose they come by it naturally. This week's I Heart Faces contest was funny faces...

...so her decision to work on her smirk came at a good time:

I think she's already pretty good at it so far.

Hooligans' Island

Just wanted to post a slide show of the pictures from our beach trip! It was a great time...but we are glad to be home safe and sound, also. :) Hope that everyone had a great week, and is enjoying this last month of summer!

Good Use

Now that my brother *"Uncle Yi" to Merrick* has moved back to town, Merrick has decided to take advantage of having another big guy around. As if his dad and two grandpa's aren't enough to wrestle with/climb on. :) Merrick can't turn down the chance to do some good extreme sports. :)

Before They Were Stars

This old house doesn't seem like much from this picture, but as some may remember it's the house from the movie "Nights in Rodanthe":

My family is down in the OBX for the week, like we do every summer. There have been many summers before this one, where we have stayed right next to this cottage...before it was famous. *Is that kind of like saying you went to high school with someone who is now a celebrity? Haha* The first beach vacation Billy and I came on as a married couple, we took a walk down to the beach one evening and sat in the sand right next to it. At the time there were people renting it...sad that now its abandoned. Its so close to the water that the sand is being washed out from under it now, and the next big hurricane might just finish it off.

When I got the big idea to go and take pictures of it...for some reason it didn't cross my mind that I wouldn't be the only person wanting to photograph the now-famous old house. I definitely wasn't alone. *the above picture was taken with my cell phone; I'll put up the real pictures once we get home* There were lots of "tourists" wandering around photographing, and lots more people stopped by the side of the road just to take a look. It was interesting to see it again after seeing it in the movie, and as it really is, *kind of banged up from recent storms, and not livable or being rented anymore* as opposed to all fixed up in the movie. This article also has some interesting info about the filming/history of the house if you're interested. :)

Copy Cats

When I was in high school/college, I used to be the only one who would workout when we were on vacation in the OBX. *We come every summer with my mom's family* I got addicted to running my senior year, and everyone thought I'd lost my mind. Now, however, everybody's doing it. :) I am actually feeling a little left out this year, since I'm struggling to crank out a few miles a day 4 weeks post-partum. Today they decided to do an exercise video, and Merrick thought it was so cool that he'd join right in. I like to think I taught them everything they know. ;)