white apples . a blog

goodbye summer

With the much anticipated arrival of our little boy in October, this Fall promises to be one spent cozying up indoors with calming rituals and pumpkin-spiced goodies and the dizzying, disorienting, amazing new addition in our lives. Therefore, one last Summer adventure was in order.

Last weekend, our friend, Craig, invited us to stay at a lovely beach house in Emerald Isle, NC, with his family, his parents, and his sister's family. Juniper finally got to meet Ella and baby Hayden, and Charlie and I had a wonderful time chatting with friends, watching our children play, and enjoying the last bit of Summer by the shore.

Juniper is fearless when it comes to her love of the water. The hurricanes in the Atlantic had churned up the surf quite a bit, resulting in huge waves, strong currents, and rather dangerous swimming conditions. Without warning, Juni would charge toward the waterline, utterly delighting in the waves washing over her face and the currents dragging at her feet. Given how long it took to hoist my very pregnant self up off the sand each time she strayed, we are lucky Gina and Jennifer were there to hang on to her or I'm afraid she would have most certainly been carried out to sea to live with the mer-people.

Our final day there, we visited an area with calm, shallow tidal pools - much safer for our little wanderer and much easier on this mama's water-phobic nerves. Since our return, Juni has been begging to go back to the beach, squealing with delight at any photo of the ocean or the shoreline. Next Summer, little one.

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

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inspired by Amanda Soule. join in on her blog.

let the picnicking begin

Now that the temperatures are sliding down from the high 90s and we're beginning to see a few glimpses of Fall, it is time for long walks outside and picnics in the park and lazing around outside. Fall is my favorite annual visitor and, in my opinion, this is the best time of year to break out the picnic blanket, pack up some just-made cookies, and head to the nearest greenish space to enjoy the cool, crispy air and the sounds of migrating birds.

These are scenes from a recent picnic at Duke Gardens. It was Family Day, so flocks of children took to the park, running here and there, digging in the dirt with sticky popsicle fingers. Juniper loved being in the middle of all the excitement. 

The photo above shows a glimpse of our new picnic blanket that I made just the day before (details at the end of the post) and one of Juni's Ice Cream dresses that I made earlier in the Summer (Oliver + S pattern, Anna Maria Horner Good Folks fabric in tangerine festival with coordinating solid).

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

*** *** ***

inspired by Amanda Soule. join in on her blog.

August Travels, Part 3

Another day at the beach, in pictures.

 

 

 

 

 

      

August Travels, Part 2

The rest of our trip was spent at Charlie's family beach house near Essex, MA. Juniper took to the sea instantly, despite the frigid water temperatures and cool air, two things this Florida girl considers unacceptable for wading of any sort. My daughter, however, loved it, begging to go into the "bath" over and over again, though teeth chattered and lips turned purple. She splashed around in the water and stomped across the sand, gathering all manner of sea treasures and memories. 

While the breezy, cool air, soft sunlight, and much relaxation were completely enjoyable, nothing beats watching your little girl fall in love with the ocean for the very first time.

 

 

  

August Travels, Part 1

Juni and I spent the first part of our New England adventures in Easton, MA, with Amy, Chris, Nolan, and Nina. Juni was thrilled to be reunited with her little buddy, Nina, who is only a few weeks older. Despite much toy-sharing drama, the girls had fun tooling around town, visiting an indoor playground, a kids's concert, and a children's museum. It was great to catch up with old friends, reminisce about our old Atlanta adventures, and watch our kids run around in the backyard.