It's Pronounced [loo-is], Y'all

We've had difficulty finding time for a vacation this year. We've cancelled, rescheduled (twice) and also shortened. Total downer. Makes me wonder, what's the longest a family has gone without a vacation? To the best of my knowledge, we never had a summer without a vacation when I was growing up. Ocean City, Deep Creek Lake, Rehoboth Beach, Outer Banks. Most years we'd team-up with aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents. Other years we'd bring a friend.

I have a greater appreciation for it all now. Good thing Ali's driving this ship. :-) To Lewes we go!

This was the first time Kinsley was old enough to play at the beach. She went head first into the sand fun but was understandably apprehensive about the water. It is October, after all.

Alex must have been feeling more adventurous: he was living it up in the water. All he needed was a shovel and bucket. After that, he was good to go. Eventually Kinsley's curiosity got the better of her and we ventured into the water together. She and I went in far enough that I could let her sit on my knee. The water was cold but she didn't mind; she blew bubbles and even splashed some waves over towards her mom and brother.

The highlight of Alex's trip was the Pirate Cruise. They really do a great job engaging the kiddos in pirate adventure. He's been keeping an extra close eye on his bounty but I'm willing to bet that his favorite part was defending the ship via water cannon during the pirate attack.

We lucked-out because there were only a few kids on the cruise. It gave us plenty of room to play and explore. 

While the kids are goin' bananas for beaches and the pirate life, Ali and I are judging a 4-day battle of the baristas. We tried a couple different coffees each morning in search of Lewes's best cup of joe. From Station of Kings to some other place that I don't recall, we both agreed that the First Cup bean at the Bake Shoppe was tops. Bake Shoppe's losing points for other things but they emerge victorious in Battle O' Coffee 2018!

One of the things that keeps us coming back to Lewes are our wonderful Aunt and Uncle. Google seems to think my Aunt/Uncle are Alex & Kinsley's great Aunt/Uncle but that makes my head hurt. So how's about we roll with Grand Aunt/Uncle? Either way, they make us feel welcome even when our circus-on-wheels is in tow!

Fuel for Sleep Deprived Parents

I have front row seats to this amazing moment that's been happening each night for weeks. It happens a few minutes before Alex goes to bed and only lasts for 10 seconds, if I'm lucky.

After his bath, we put Alex in his pajamas and read him a few books. Ali takes Alex to go through the rest of the bedtime routine and I take Kinsley for her bath. Just as I'm finishing her bath, Alex comes out to say, "good night." With Kinsley in my arms, I kneel down to his level.

And then it happens. He gives her the most gentle hug I've ever seen, kisses her on her cheek and then hugs her again. Kinsley smiles right back at him and my heart swells.

I have no idea where he learned it or what compels him to do it. He just does it and it's arguably the best part of my day. And each night, I start looking forward to it all over again.

Kinsley Marie

We've been in a consistent state of change for the past several months. We've taken ownership of the new house in January, Ali's been in the final stages of the pregnancy and I'm 7 months into a fresh career move.

Mid-January to mid-February was a race to get the new house painted. Somewhere between rolling Moonlit Snow on the walls and Stolen Kiss on the ceilings, I started getting next-level excited about becoming a family of four. Before long, the crib was assembled, a take-home outfit (and other clothing) started showing up and the newborn carseats were back for round 2.

As we crept closer and closer to the May 27th due date, we started to wonder if the new baby would steal Uncle Matthew's birthday lime light. It seems like it would have been fun for most everyone. Fun fact: I have Aunts and Grandparents who share (or are very close) to my b-day. Go Capricorns!

Ultimately, however, the doctor had a different plan and we found ourselves heading into the hospital early Monday morning, May 22nd. Finally, we were going to meet the new baby! Obviously, it's impossible to know anything about her personality today, but I will write that she refused to cooperate at every photo opportunity over the last 9+ months.

This being our second time, we're much more confident and comfortable heading in for delivery. It's great to be familiar with the facility, process and have a general understanding of what's happening.

Delivery went exactly as expected. Everyone was in a good mood when baby entered into the world at 10:09am. By 10:28, the doctors and I were posing for pictures with the new baby. I'm happy to see that I've figured out how to wear the mask in a more flattering way.

Baby was back in Ali's arms shortly after the photoshoot was complete. Shortly after that she had her first real-world meal and shortly after that I was making some phone calls like every proud papa would.

Baby weighed-in at 8lbs even and looks beautiful. We could not be happier.

The new baby, Ali and I are spending the days and nights together. I shuttle between home and the hospital in an effort to keep Alex's routine as consistent as possible. It's really nice to have Grammy and Pop-pop to help. And, I can't wait to introduce the new baby to Alex!

We don't have a name picked-out for the new baby yet but we've narrowed it down to three. We like to ask everyone who comes in the room for their opinion. I'm leaning in one direction (and am really happy about it).