delana, kylah, mandy, lylah and i got away to the quaintest little bed & breakfast in blanco this weekend. we ate and shopped and talked and rested. it was awesome. a great way to celebrate our amazing matriarch. somehow, all i managed to photograph was food*. what does that tell you?
the second half of my spring break this year was spent in beautiful western north carolina with my dad, visiting my grandparents. spring had just started to bloom and, for the most part, we just ate, talked and enjoyed each other's company. i hadn't seen my grandparents in nearly 10 years when we went so it was a super treat of a trip. i posted about their beautiful cottage home and amazingly-creative doll house as well. 
the tulip tree in their neighborhood. 
so pretty. 
granddaddy giving us a presentation about nasa and the space mission. he worked forever as an engineer for nasa in houston and was an integral part of the country's mission to put the first man on the moon.
i recorded parts of his talk, which i need to get uploaded here soon. i die for their virginian accents. 
grandmother, listening intently. 
no telling how many times she's heard this story, but she was as engaged as ever. such a good wife.
one afternoon, we trekked to asheville. 
me and dad.
pretty pink tree. 
another tulip tree. 
forsythia. 
grandmother's crab cake. 
my enormous lobster salad. 
the view from our table. can you see the mountains in the distance? 
sweet grandparents... 
...with their son, my dad. 
grandmother, granddaddy, me and baby lylah.
my nails are painted watermelon pink, i am ready.
*photos of the kids a few days before christmas, and, clearly, before gray's much needed haircut.
we're here!
the first thing we saw were some bottlenose dolphins.
next, sharks!
the coral reef exhibit. such a pretty fish.
ellie pointing at two fish that were "kissing."
a "spikey lobster" and an eel.
walking.
and walking.
random-faced ellie and mommy.
making sure we knew where to go to see shamu.
very intent while watching...
...SHAMU!
next, the water park.
water ballet.
swimming.
wave jumping with papa john.
"hi!"
more waves.
blowing bubbles.
water baby.
sacked out after saying, "i love sea world! i had so much fun!"
"what do you mean do i have a drool problem?"
one of many, many visits to mamo's.
mamo's kitchen. (see those cute grey toms?? one of my christmas gifts from landon.)
from the nye wedding dress party. much fun.
on the way to odessa on new year's day.
he can't escape my picture-taking efforts while buckled in the car.
she's even better at avoiding.
making cornbread at nanny's for new year's day dinner.
caught red-handed: eating mashed potatoes right out of the serving dish.
on the way out to door to see her first movie in the theater (well, since she was a newborn), "the princess & the frog," with mama. she did fairly well. a bit wiggly, but not too bad.
