Summer Vacations

Ah, summer vacations!  They are not what they used to be like, that's for sure. Our vacations last year were still a breeze with Sienna so young; she practically just slept all the time.  Now with a toddler, our trip to Myrtle Beach and Boston entailed early mornings, (semi)structured days, early dinners and nights in a hotel/condo watching movies.

Myrtle Beach is roughly 3.5 hours away, so not too tough of a drive.  I got to sit in the back and entertain our little munchkin while Joe handled the country roads.  This was our first 2014 getaway and we were excited for some time at the beach!

Who knew a hat could be so fun!

Joe's family owns a vacation condo in MB, so we are pretty lucky to be able to use it every once in a while.  We spent 4 days playing at the beach, swimming in the pool, shopping, seeing aquatic life and exploring the board walk.  We were there in mid-June so the weather was HOT, which meant we hit the beach early in the day.  Needless to say, I didn't come back from this vacation with much of a tan.  We spent more time trying to find shade and stay cool than we did baking in the heat.  My biggest concern was making sure Sienna stayed cool and hydrated, as she loses more salt in her sweat and runs the risk of becoming dehydrated quicker because of it.  This aversion to the sun might have led us to some early happy hours :).

Pool time

Pails on the beach

My world

Those rolls!

Best purchase to date

Our second vacation was a long weekend in Boston, where we got to see old friends, and explore the city we used to live in in a whole new way.  This was Sienna's first flight, and it went fairly well.  While our flight was strategically planned for nap time, Sienna most certainly did not nap.  There was WAY too much stimulation and people watching for her to relax and sleep.  Her favorite activity was sticking her face between the seats peeking through at the people sitting behind us and laughing.  Luckily, we had some friendly passengers around us that played along with her.  She made it through her first flight in a sleepy haze - I put her in the carrier when we got off the plane and she was asleep on me before we made it out of the airport.

Sleepy girl

We made it! And someone was tuckered out

While we spent our time catching up with old friends, Sienna got to make lots of new friends.  We had a blast at the Children's museum and highly recommend it to anyone traveling to Boston with kids.  Sienna and Emilie had so much fun playing with bubbles, dancing, and rolling around golf balls.  Friday we had dinner on the Waterfront where Si got to run around with Cam.  They were too sweet together!  On our walk back to the hotel, we passed the Vertex building.  A building of hope for Si's future!  Saturday Si met Penny and Cassie at the aquarium where they checked out the seals and fishies together.  We then cruised around the city and played at the greenway.  Si loved the fountains and watching the birds.  She's such a lover of animals.

Ready to take on Boston!

Staying hydrated

Bubbles

Friends for over 10 years

Her prize seal 

She  LOVES corn!

Dinner with friends

Vertex!

Cooling off in the fountains

Watching the birds

Hey duck

Boston Common

Chasing the dogs

Four days of fun wore us out.  We probably walked 15 miles, endlessly chased a toddler on a mission to find all of the dogs in the city, and had a great time with friends old and new.  Until next time Boston!

One tired mama