As I was drinking coffee and scrolling through Facebook this morning I ran across one of those “You only have 940 Saturdays between your child’s birth and when they go off to college” posts. It pictured a gorgeous but exhausted new momma snuggling her days old little baby. I get it, y’all, but that stresses me out. There’s nothing wrong with a reminder that time flies fast with little ones under your roof. I need it every now and then, especially this time of year. But today it caused nothing but anxiety. Mommas of older children, do you even remember those newborn days? I guess I kind of do, to a certain extent, but honestly those days are a blur to me. I remember weird things. I’ll never forget sitting all alone on the couch nursing Makgill when he heard thunder for the first time. He was just a couple of weeks old and the most gigantic clap of thunder sounded and rattled the windows on the house. It completely scared him and the cry he gave was so pitiful but soooo sweet. It broke my heart and made me love him even more and of course I started crying because new momma hormones. I also remember the time when he was just a few weeks old and sneezed the biggest booger out and I was honestly scared for a second that part of his brain had just shot through his nose. I remember that Clara Beth’s newborn cheeks were absolutely the softest things I have ever felt, and I remember how she looked in this teeny-tiny, ridiculously expensive pink onesie that I had to have. Her scrawny little stick legs stuck out in the cutest way. I wish I blogged then. Blogging truly helps me remember. I’ve never had the best memory, and I guess putting my thoughts into words and photos triggers something in my brain to help me better hold on to those moments. Therefore, I will now blog our summer so I can look back on it when I’m sitting on my couch all alone after my babies have abandoned me and gone off to pursue their dreams. That paints a pretty depressing picture, doesn’t it? Happy Thursday, y’all! And just so you know in actuality I’m not planning on a ton of depressing mornings after my little birds leave the nest. Because see, I’m going to be left behind with their daddy and that is going to be a time that is nothing short of amazing. But still, today I will blog. For the memories. Also, if you’re a new momma you should blog too. You will thank me when that baby is eleven. =)
Collin and I celebrated FIFTEEN years of marriage back in May. That’s huge, y’all. Or at least it is to us. I love being married to this man. I pray for many many more years of it. We don’t vacation often without Mak and Clara Beth unless it’s work related. You know, the occasional beach or Charleston wedding. We have done a few trips here and there, but mostly when we travel it’s the four of us. But we knew that we wanted to get away for our fifteenth. And I knew the exact spot on this earth that I wanted to go. Back when we were on our honeymoon we swore we would return to that cute cottage on St. John for our fifteenth. Psshhh, y’all, we don’t have that kind of money! Not sure what our precious little newlywed minds were thinking but it was NOT about mortgages and IRAs and providing for those little blessings we would be having over the next few years. But camping? That’s cheap. And we love it. And I knew exactly where I wanted to go. Trouble is, everyone else wants to go here too. This camp site is NEVER available. NEVER. Because it’s Awesome. But then one day I checked out of the blue and it was available! Six glorious days of availability stared at me from my computer screen. I screamed, showed Collin, and he booked it. Grayton Beach State Park. Site #10. If you are a camper put it on your bucket list. It’s right on the water and it is the most perfect spot ever. Don’t take your kids. We sat by the gulf, we read books, we biked twenty miles on 30A several days of the week. We cheered when a rain storm came because it meant nap time in the Airstream. We visited Rosemary and Seaside. We drank tons of coffee and wine. We shopped. We laughed. Oh My Goodness, I haven’t laughed like that in years. We ate really well. A few meals out, but mostly just locally caught seafood that Collin grilled at our campsite. If you head that way go to Goatfeather’s for fresh seafood and grill it yourself every night. Don’t waste time on the restaurants, they aren’t nearly as good. Except for the Great Southern Cafe in Seaside. That one is. And the Airstream cafes. Oh, just plan on eating a lot. And get cake from Modica Market in Seaside. And then bike because Holy Cow those are the biggest slices of cake I’ve ever seen. But by far, the best thing we did that week was have OUR photos done. As you may have noticed, photography is kind of important to us. It’s huge. It’s the only way to hold onto a memory forever in a tangible way. And, yes, we have photos of the two of us. More than the average couple, I’m sure, simply due to the nature of our career. Collin is pretty amazing with the camera remote or timer. All of our family photos are taken by him and we’ve figured out a way to just make it work. But this time he wanted to forget the timer or the remote. He gave me a session with a husband and wife photography team based in Rosemary Beach, Paul and Mecheal Johnson. I can’t tell you how in love I am with these photos! I will absolutely treasure them forever. They are the perfect way to remember one of the best weeks of my life. Here are a few of my favorites.
Just a few weeks after returning from Florida our whole family packed up and headed to Ocean Isle Beach for the fastest week of the year, Cannon Family Beach Week! The older I get the more this week means to me. I love it so much. My family is close. We see each other all of the time, the kids get together to play constantly, and we all eat big meals together made by my mom on a regular basis. We do not need this week in order to reconnect or be closer or anything. Thankfully, due to geography and the fact that we all like each other, we’re a tight group. But it means SO SO much to me that my mom and dad make it a priority to rent a beach house for our whole big gang every year. It’s become a tradition in my kids’ lives and one that I hope continues on into the next generation. Seriously, I hope that one day it’s Andrew and Erin, Reeves and Rebecca, and Collin and I renting houses for our kids and grandkids the same week each summer. {Mom and Dad, you can stay with us. Or you could buy a beach house. That might be a better option, don’t you think? Then we’ll just stay with you!} Reeves says that will never happen. That there will be too many schedules to coordinate at that point. Dream squasher. 😉 But really, I love this week and I’m sad that this year I have next to no photos from it. See, Collin and I worked almost every night of Beach Week this year {making up for the week that we spent in Florida}. Not sure why I didn’t pick up the camera more this year, but I didn’t. Oh Well. Lesson learned for next time. But at the request of my aunt, we did get a big family portrait on the beach. Honestly, I’m not sure that all of us have ever been in a single photo together?! We’ve done my parents and all of the grandkids, but I really think that this is the first photo of all of us. I’m so glad to have it!
This one turned four while we were there! I’m so sad that that the baby of the bunch is four, but it sure is fun to watch her grow up. She got her first American Girl doll. All of the girls were so excited for her!
Mak was excited about the giant rubber band that was holding Kit inside the box. He later got in trouble for shooting it across the room at people.
Tess, looking way too grown with sticker earrings! 
There was a constant Monopoly game going throughout the week.
Her face tells you exactly how she felt about being on the boat. Not a fan.
I think I have this exact photo of Tate kissing Rebecca from every beach trip since he’s been old enough to walk. Boy loves his momma!
The canal was a huge hit this year. Actually, all of Ocean Isle was a huge hit. We loved being back here. For years we have been at Garden City, but after this week we decided that Ocean Isle is our favorite. The canals were the biggest reason for that.
And that’s about it for Beach Week. So much fun, as always! This post is already way too long so I’ll continue more of Summer 2015 in another one!
