Outer "Space" Banks

We have returned home from an amazing week at the beach.  Having never been to the OBX, I feel so fortunate to have now visited and experienced this amazing part of our country.  Everyday we woke up, ventured to beaches near and far, had ice cream treats, saw seal life, dug in the sand, napped, and enjoyed the sunset.  We even bumped into our good friends the Meitzen Family.  This happened when we ventured to Cape Hatteras National Seashore, and decided to swim in the sound at Salvo.  Needless to say, it was a treat to be with such good, old friends, and Hersh and Havah definitely enjoyed playing together.

We loved driving up and down the beach road, passing favorites such as Farmdog's, the Bonzer Shack, and Goombay's.  Hersh enjoyed playing with Winky Fish (a terracotta fish in a bikini that was on the coffee table in our rental condo), and required a cup of ice water anytime I purchased iced coffee.   He and Jacob swam away many hours in the pool and we all enjoyed learning about the Wright Brothers, or as Hersh says the "Ripe Brothers."  We can't wait until next summer when we return to these beautiful beaches.

Digging in the sand.

We rode the ferris wheel.

 Dancing on the beach:

31 weeks.

Found hipster glasses.

Reading in the car.

Finally passed out in traffic on the way home.

 Currituck Lighthouse:

80 feet up and still going strong.

View from the top.

Ready to climb down.

Kite flying @ Wright Bros.

Proud of the sandcastle he built (and will soon smash).

Aplebaum genes.

Pimlico Sound

Mmmmm...ice cream.

Stormy sky.

Hersh and Havah.

A week away

Yesterday morning we woke up, left our house at 5:41am, and got on the road, Outer "Space" Banks bound.  Fortunately we had no traffic, which we have been told can really be rough if you do encounter it.  Hersh was a champ on the car ride.  We sang along to lots of songs, including IKO IKO, and stopped in VA at a House made of Pancakes.

Upon arrival we checked out a few spots around town and then picked up the keys to our condo in Duck.  We felt as though things were going very smoothly.  That is until we arrived in the condo (which is in an amazing location and is a really nice condo) and began to realize that even though we turned on the A/C the temperature in the condo continued to hover between 85-90.  For a 7 month pregnant woman, this is not an acceptable way to live.  We spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying the beautiful beach and pool, where Hersh made us "lattes" and found crabs (we even saw a school of dolphins feeding along with pelicans).  We also spent the afternoon dealing with the condo's property manager and A/C repairmen.  It was concluded that the A/C is broken and unfixable.  Thus, this morning we will be moving to a different condo, in a different town.  Alas, although this small incident has been inconvenient and not ideal, we feel grateful to be here and are looking forward to a great week.

By the way, Hersh is psyched to be here and has been his usual, excitable, roll with what comes self.  We are so fortunate.  Last night when Jacob and I were discussing various scenarios regarding the A/C condo situation, Hersh turned to us and said, "Blah, blah, blah."  We laughed and said, "Exactly."

Curly Crown

The swing outside our 1st condo

Time is Flying!

Here we are approaching the end of May.  Hersh's last day of school is on Thursday and I finish my school year next week!  I am 29 weeks pregnant, which means I am officially in the 3rd trimester--crazy!  This past weekend Aunt Addie and Uncle Craig came and spent the night with Hersh, which allowed Jacob and I the luxury of a little babymoon.  We stayed at the Mandarin Oriental, ate lots of delicious food, walked around at a leisurely pace, and didn't worry about the time at all.  We are now beginning to prepare for our trip to the Outer (space) Banks, and then to the Catskills.  I expect that June will fly by since we are travelling for 2 out of 4 weeks, and then it's just July before babytime!  Needless to say, this is all a bit surreal.

Hersh is awesome as usual, although definitely exhibiting some 3 year old behavior.  First of all, he moves soooo slowly.  I actually think this is something the irks Jacob a bit more then it irks me.  He is also playing this game that he learned from the older kids at school we he makes a "psshhhh" noise and pretends he is putting out a fire.  He does this ALL THE TIME and it drives me crazy!  I have been working on ignoring the behavior, as the more he knows it bothers me, the more likely he is to do it.  He is also increasingly hilarious, saying things like, "Oh my gosh," and really using his sense of humor.  Just tonight he put on  musical puppet show for us, and the other day he gave a detailed explanation of how he and Jacob were trying to fix a futon in the basement.  The explanation was detailed, included hand gestures, and appropriate sighs to express frustration.  He also often will sing complete songs accompanied by his guitar, and knows all of the Ella Jenkins songs.  Hersh is also excited about the baby, and will often say, "Feel the baby in my stomach kick?"  He'll be a great big brother :)

Jacob and I also went to see Trey Anastasio play with the NSO--it was amazing!  The tickets were a 9th Anniversary present from Rich and Emily.  We are very lucky.

Hugging the baby.

Cpt.  Hersh

Hard at work.

Enjoying a bloody mary.

9 years :)

29 weeks at the Jefferson Memorial.

Modeling my necklace.

BIG smile.

Chillin' w Aunt Mimi.

Talking to the baby.

Hershisms

5/11/2013: We went out to dinner to celebrate Mothers' Day.  Dinner was capped off with chocolate cake.  As we were leaving dinner, Darci said "I love you" to Hersh and me.  With perfect timing, Hersh replied, "I loved the dessert tonight."

Later that same night, as Hersh held an umbrella in a light rain, he said, " Brennan . . . from my school . . . has a Mickey Mouse umbrella.  So . . . you could buy me that."

Is it May already?

Hard to believe, but here we are into the second week of May.  We are glad to have the very fun, birthday month of April behind us.  So far this month we attended Truck Day at Hersh's school and had a visit from Aunt Mimi.  I also spent a weekend on the Jersey Shore visiting with my friends Kate and Laurie.  It was great to be in NJ, although the devastation to the region from Hurricane Sandy is insane.  Even 6 months later it is hard to imagine how some of the towns will recover.

On the home front, we are trying to focus our energy and do all the things that need to get done before baby #2 arrives.  Although we still have roughly 3 months, we are realizing how quickly time passes and how challenging it can be to be productive in the midst of working and having a 3 year old who wants to be involved in everything!

Back of the city bus!

Driving the dump truck!

Enjoying a treat from the ice cream truck with Hannah and Tessa.

Jersey Shore :)

Lovely Ladies.