4th of July week

We had a ton of fun in VA beach for the 4th of July week. It certainly was a whirlwind of adventure with the Camp Jr from June 23-27, the wedding on June 28th in Delaware, going straight back to BB and Grandad's house on the 30th to see the Dubinski's and then immediately back to work the next Tuesday! And all with a terrible head cold that really knocked me off my feet for about 15 days. But, we are all recovered in the Byrne household (thankfully JB managed to stay healthy) and we really enjoyed our time with family! 

3 generations of Byrne boys on the beach

 Aunt Dwyn adores Jackson and it was so great to see him really get to interact with her this visit. He completely adores her in return....how could you not!? He thought that Joe and Allie were so much fun and loved playing around with silly Uncle Kenny. 

 J is finally content in the stroller again which has made for nice morning walks with Link and J.  Plus at 7.5 mo pregnant it's nice to get moving! 

He is a puzzle guy

Thursday night, we got hit with the edges of a Category 2 hurricane that, thankfully, was much better than predicted. My trusty iPhone woke us up at 1am with reports of tornados touching down in VA beach, so naturally JB rolled back over and went to sleep and I turned on the news downstairs. There was minimal damage to our area and no actual tornadoes (not until the following week, though!). However, all 4th of July plans were postponed until the 5th of July. We still had a great cookout with neighbors while JB took care of various ATV and firework accidents in the ED that evening. 

relaxing on the couch after the 4th of july picnic

 BB and Grandad took Jackson for a sleepover on July 5-6 and I got some much-needed rest to recover from the head cold. In addition, what else do you do with a kid-free weekend but clean baseboards, wash all the linens in the house and generally do a "spring cleaning" day? :) 

 On a gorgeous Friday morning before the World Cup final on the 13th, we went on a walk with Lane and William and ended up at the park where we dug in the mud and played some soccer.  It was one of those days where you need a bath and a nap by 9am! 

July 11th Free Slurpees and the new 7-11 is walkable! 

Finally, just to record some lovely J moments of late:

*Every morning or when he is tired, he runs his hand through my hair

*Each night, he wants JB to "rest" with him in bed before J falls asleep. He puts his left arm under JB's neck and they snuggle together. 

*After his non-productive naps, he is known for exclaiming, "MY NAP WAS GOOD!"

*He loves his big boy bed and we have had a full month with no falls!

*At the zoo last week he looked up at me and asked, "Do you want to talk and be friends?"

*The king of grammar: "Let's play for a couple whiles"; "we will cheer for the soccer mens"; "them is going to the park?"