July and August 2018 Travels and Highlights

There are always so many fun, exciting things that happen throughout the summer and fall. It's hard to keep it all documented.

In our usual fashion, we made a trip up to the Albany, NY area for July 4th week to spend some time with family. Instead of going up for the whole week however, we visited with some of our family vacationing in Virginia Beach for the weekend, came back home for two days of work/school, and then did the 12 hour drive to upstate NY on the 4th itself. Our trip up was relatively quick and the girls did great in the car. I'm always so grateful that Colin can drive starting at 2am. The past few trips we have made just a quick stop around 8am for bathrooms and to change out of pajamas, and have actually gotten to our destination by 12 or 1pm! The girls usually sleep until 7a, so we have only about 4-5 hours of lively entertainment. Food usually takes up a solid hour. Music, storytelling, and chatting takes up about 2 hours, and we sometimes resort to a downloaded episode or two of a TV show on the iPad for the final hour stretch. During non-TV time, the girls often sing, take care of their babies, or engage in conversation with us. Colin tries to get us all to do some storytelling, and we have had some trips where the girls engage. Zoe is still a little young for it, but Rose is able to keep the story going and add new plots.

Happy Zoe singing in the car

Rose singing with her baby

Because the girls' cousins were in Virginia Beach for the week of the 4th, I stayed in NY with the girls for an extra week, working part of the time and taking a lot of time off. During the first few days without the cousins, the girls enjoyed time with their aunts and grandparents. During the second week, I did quite a few day trips with them. One day, we drove the 2 hours each way to just outside Burlington, VT to visit with a college friend who has kids almost the same ages. We found out Zoe is a great chicken catcher. In addition to loving the chickens, the girls also enjoyed playing in a kiddie pool (it was so hot all week!), listening to music, getting ice cream, and just generally playing with friends. We took the ferry across Lake Champlain, which they loved. But, since I didn't have much service during the drive, we listened to Bohemian Rhapsody on repeat about 10 times. Do you know the full song is about 6 minutes?? Both girls love belting out "Mamma Mia, Mamma Mia, Mamma Mia Let me Go!." It was the only song that downloaded in an area of service in northern NY. Thankfully, I left Vermont around 9p, so the trip home was very quiet.

Hanging out in Aunt Karen's neighborhood and showing some sisterly love.

I had been trying to coordinate a day/time to meet my brother, and we ended up making last minute plans to meet on the day after we went to Vermont. Thankfully, we meet between Albany and Worcester, Massachusetts, in Springfield (well, Holyoke technically). There is a cute and inexpensive Merry-Go-Round and a Children's Museum within the same park. We hadn't been to the museum before and were skeptical, but it proved to exceed our expectations. It was perfect for my girls and the relief we needed from the heat. Did I mention we happened to be in NY for a heat wave. And, yes, we are southerners and have to deal with 80-90+ degrees regularly, but we also have a neighborhood pool and everything has central air in the south! And, we go to NY to try and escape the heat! Both girls enjoyed the carousel and the museum, and even got their face painted (Rose's was a little over the top). The best part of course, was getting to hang out with Tio Mark!

Zoe the firefighter

Passed out on the ride home from Holyoke

By Wednesday, our cousins were back and settled from their beach vacation, so we all had a fairly relaxing day at home. The girls' six-year-old cousin is great at entertaining, and Rose in particular really looks up to her. They played all day so I could do some work.k

Our day of relaxation was short and sweet, and we had big plans on Thursday. My sister-in-law drove us up to the Granby Zoo outside of Montreal, Canada! The zoo is much bigger and better than I could have imagined. In the eight-passenger Honda Pilot, we packed the three girls across the middle row and brought my 12-year-old nephew and his friend in the third row. We always take our passports when we visit as we have been known to go up to Canada on many of our trips. The drive was about 4 hours and the kids all did great. They started getting a little hangry approaching the zoo, and I was worried how Zoe would do around nap time. Once everyone was out of the car, given some snacks, and in the zoo, we were all smiles again. I was so excited that our Durham Museum membership gave us half off the zoo, and only regretted I hadn't looked into beforehand to get my niece and nephew in at that price too.

In the zoo, we saw the personalities and ages of the kids shine. The boys went off to do their own thing and the girls packed in the double-seater stroller. Zoe loved the animals in the zoo, and was in element when she got to pet goats, sheep, and pigs. Rose put on her brave face and attitude while hanging out with her older cousin and actually went on the ferris wheel with her cousin by themselves. Zoe went with me and we all really enjoyed getting to see the park from up high. The zoo is actually a zoo, small amusement park, and a water park in one. We didn't spend that much time in the amusement park and I think in another two years the girls would be able to do more things they couldn't yet do (like bumper cars). We ended our day at the waterpark, first in the lazy river and later in some of the pools. Zoe was struggling because she had skipped her nap, and the water was a little too cool/cold for me. The temps weren't quite as high that day, we were farther north, and we got to the water park late in the day. We also watched the "show" they do with the wave pool, which had this skeleton statue chant, eyes light up red, and the chanting builds up to the start of the waves and very forceful fans blowing air straight ahead. The girls were petrified and didn't want to go near it. Zoe was pretty much done with the waterpark after that, and Rose managed to stay with her cousin for another hour while I took Zoe back to ride a couple rides and see a few more animals. After she had another snack, she got a second wind and managed to finish out the day.

Renting a double stroller, which fit all three girls at the Granby Zoo near Montreal

Loving the piggy at the Granby Zoo

Zoe is in her element with the animals

Rose loved how soft the animals were

Riding the carousel in the amusement park

Zoe emerging from a dinosaur egg

The only bummer from the whole day was our adventure trying to get dinner in downtown Granby. They spoke mostly French and told us it might be a bit of a wait, but we decided to stick around anyway. We didn't realize that a bit of a wait would mean a 3-hour dinner process. It didn't take that long to sit down, but it did take a long time to order and even longer to get the food. I must have made about 5 trips to the bathrooms with the girls. Thankfully, they did well considering how long it took. They didn't each that much dinner, and unfortunately, we didn't leave Granby for our 4 hour drive home till well after 9pm!

By Friday, Colin was back from his 4-day work week and the family decided to take a day trip up to Lake George to go out on the boat. We had taken a boat ride on Lake George the first week we were there too, and we joke that Zoe is like her father, who always fell asleep on boat rides! Rose got to try (slow) tubing, and we were able to be on a boat ride while trying to bump our nephew off the tube. Our nephew and my brother-in-law also tried their hand at water skiing. Colin and I opted out, mainly because we both have had on-and-off back issues for a few years now and didn't want to mess anything up before driving back home. The one and only time I tried water skiing I did get up and got to do it a little bit, but waters in upstate NY are a bit cold for my liking. I like the NC beaches in August and September!

Zoe sleeping on the boat ride

On our last day of the trip, we did a small birthday celebration for Colin, whose birthday is July 24. Colin doesn't love celebrating his birthday, but indulges his daughters. And, with our toddlers, every birthday requires cake and balloons. 

Happy Birthday to Colin!

Our trip back to North Carolina was uneventful and the girls did more sleeping because of how tired they were from the trip. We made it back in 10-11 hours and managed to get to the pool to cool off and stretch our bodies the afternoon of our arrival.

Once back, the highlight of the week was finishing out the swim team with final practices, a meet that got rained out, and the swim team banquet. I missed the meet because of work travel, but made it back in time for the awards banquet, and to see Rose get her medal that she'll keep throughout her time on the team. In addition to her 2018 pin, she also received the most improved award. While the coach said she could do freestyle in the beginning and all three strokes by the end, she actually couldn't swim without floaties before she started practicing. She was also the only true four-year-old (2014 birthday) to make the team (notice how much smaller she is than the other kids in her age group). We have been so proud of how far she has come, how much she enjoyed being on the team this year, and her constant work to improve week to week. She halved her time from time trials (50 sec freestyle down to 25sec), and demonstrated her ability to perform all three strokes as they were taught in a matter of eight weeks!

To engage Zoe, we decided to hire one of the coaches to do 30 minute lessons for the girls in August. Rose continued to practice her strokes and Zoe received a little instruction on how to swim, but with only 5-6 lessons, didn't get to swim on her own by the end of the summer. I really think the daily practice, and doing the same thing with other kids (watching others and practicing) was so helpful in getting Rose to swim on her own. Since Zoe has a September birthday, she actually has to wait two more years and will be an older four-year-old when she starts.

Rose and Coach Mary

Rose and Coach Liz

In typical Miller fashion, we celebrated Colin's birthday two more times, once with my mom (whose birthday is July 14) and again at the pool on his actual birthday. In our household, most people get 2-4 birthday celebrations!!

Happy Birthday to Colin #2!

During the rest of July and into August, we spent our weekends at the pool and occasionally trying something new. We went up to the Duke Gardens in Durham one day and I brought my nice camera to take some photos. Rose was in prime form, posing for the camera all afternoon. 

Girls posing at Duke Gardens

Rose the photographer

One of Rose's many poses of the day

Zoe smelling some flowers

This year we made a second trip north in late August for a wedding. My parents flew up to join us and we rented a house near Narragansett. Unlike our trip to NY in July, the weather was not hot. We had the week between the two heat waves, which was probably a good thing since we stayed in a house that didn't have the best air conditioners. Unfortunately, it meant we didn't have idea beach days. Half the week was rainy/foggy/misty, and we did manage to have a couple sunny nice days towards the end of the week. Since we had to check out by 10a Saturday morning, we decided to drive to Albany Friday evening so there would be less for my parents to do Saturday. Of course, Saturday was a great beach day. 

The wedding was the first the girls had been to, and they thoroughly enjoyed it. The did fairly well during the church service (Zoe slept through half of it), and did a lot of dancing early in the evening at the reception. The food was served fairly late and when they finally dimmed the lights and put on the dance music, the girls were pretty ready for bed.

We enjoyed spending the week with family and celebrated Zoe's birthday early with Tio Mark's birthday at the beach. Zoe had her second birthday with the Millers in Albany when we went there Saturday before driving back home. Driving to RI is so much more difficult than Albany, so it was worth it for us to make that extra stop. On the way up to RI, we decided to drive during the day so the girls would be able to play in their first soccer game of the season. Why they start the leagues in mid-late August in NC, I have no idea. It's always so hot! I wish they would start after Labor Day and go through the nice fall weekends in November. Anyhoo...the drive during the day was awful. We caught traffic in DC, which made for a long day. Leaving at noon meant we got to the beach house around 2am. It was good that the first few days were rainy so we could catch up on some sleep, but I would not have minded resting under the umbrella at the beach with warmer temperatures. I shouldn't make it sound so awful. We did get to the beach and enjoy it for 4 of the 5 weekdays. Everyone else went in the water, I'm just the one who is particular. :)

Girls in their wedding attire, ready to go to the reception

All smiles after loading up on appetizers. It was a chilly August day!

Girls Dancing and Running at Beach in RI 

Our final day at the beach, and it's sunny and warm!

Birthday cupcakes at the beach, and shutting it down at 5pm!

Driving back from NY was once again uneventful, and our 2am departure made the trip home quick. Our final week in August was a big one for Colin as it was the end of a chapter for him. After 6 years at the State, he started a new job in September. Colin 2.0 has arrived and I'm glad to see the excitement and determination he's brought!

Colin 2.0 poses on his last day working for the State of NC