Summer Vacation- Lake Sunapee

We spent the second week of our vacation with the Redferns in New Hampshire. It was fun to spend time with Nana and PopPop, as well as getting to visit with Grandma T (or "TEEEEE" as Kaitlyn would yell). We even overlapped for a few days with Uncle Ryan and Lauren early in the week and then Uncle Chris and Aunt Megan (and their Baby Redfern who is due in February!! we can't wait to be an aunt and uncle ourselves :).

Kaitlyn's favorite part of our NH vacation may have been testing out all of Nana's flip flops... here she is trying to make a getaway with some up the stairs.Paul III also spent a lot of time digging in the backyard- he was digging some type of a trench or drain, and it was quite amazing how quickly he could work. PopPop was a great on-site supervisor for this project, and tried to encourage him to dig one on the other side of the stone deck which would help it drain..... somehow that project got tabled to next summer!
Of course Kaitlyn had to help too (at least not in her flip flops!)
We also spent ALOT of time at the beach and in the lake. The water was wonderfully warm (for a New England lake) and the beach wasn't too crowded. The kids became really comfortable in the water this summer. Kaitlyn had a blast 'swimming' with a noodle and would cruise around on her own. Paul liked going out 'deep' with daddy and Uncle Chris with the help of swimmies and a few times just the noodles!
Paul and Uncle Chris exploring 'out really deep'Of course, there was a lot of construction... Paul was into the pipes this year and his uncles (and father) tried repeatedly to make a really neat self-contained water system. Be sure to check Kaitlyn out in the background :)

Monkey see monkey do....

We also got to be with Pop Pop to celebrate his birthday!
The Elmo hats were for the 'kids'- young and old :)
There was also a lot of fun in the driveway- including some stroller rides....

And then back to the beach... Kaitlyn and Aunt Megan had such a fun time swimming!

And of course more building... what you may not be able to see is that Chris is actually sitting in a hole they dug....
This was a silly book reading adventure.... which Kaitlyn wanted to join wearing her silly (and large!) moose pajamas.

Vacation: Stage 2

The weather in Sunapee, NH, has been wonderful- lots of sunshine (even to the point that it was too hot for me to spend all of nap time in the lawnchair in the backyard!) and we've been having a great time. Uncle Ryan and Lauren headed home today (to lots of waves from Kaitlyn and pouting from little Paul) and it was so fun spending time with them.
Lots of bike fixing and riding:
Paul has been the pilot for lots of "airplane rides"- Nana is a great co-pilot and Pop Pop is the 'tower' to clear them for landing:
We've also spent a lot of time at the beach, mostly playing in the sand. Both kids will get in the water to play a bit, but Kaitlyn would much rather sit in a big hole in the beach, dug by Paul:



Paul gave a few haircuts as well:
A family picture before Uncle Ryan and Lauren headed out:

My favorite things to do on vacation

Paul III:
Dig in the sand- at Lake Sunapee, NH
Dig in the sand- at Raquette Lake, NY
Drive the boat (at Raquette Lake, NY)
Eat!! Ice Cream and Birthday Cake (an early treat for mommy) with Gram and BB at Raquette Lake, NY
Make yummy ice cream sandwiches from Oreo Cookie crumbles with Nana
Dig in the sand with Uncle Chris in NH (notice a trend here?)
Kate:
Hang out at the beach (taking after mommy!) in NH.
Sit up on my own (don't you dare lie me on my back... I want to sit up- and will let you hear about it!).
Go for a swim- even though the water was chilly, I did well.
Do standing up exercises with Pop Pop (not pictured, but this one was cute anyway)
Paul Jr. and Leigh Anne:
Spending time with our families (Kate was already asleep on this gorgeous night at Raquette Lake when we went for a post-dinner boat ride)

What I learned on my summer vacation

As a wrap-up from two wonderful weeks of vacation, here is a summary of the important life lessons Paul learned...

That Uncle Ryan (rhy rhy) and Uncle Chris (chee) will always let you win in car races... and steal the last bites of their dinner.

How to make really good macaroni and cheese (nu nu's) with Nanna (check out Paul's cool apron)

BB can teach you how to scoop dirt (dhirt) and rocks (rhocs) with a front end loader (tractor) toy- and then show you with his own tractor.
Driving the boat (bhoat) is tons of fun- possibly Paul's favorite part of the trip! in this picture his is sitting with daddy but saying "boat"

While mommy is trying to set up a family pictureyou can get Gram and BB to sing "wheels on the bus", with hand motions!

When you help Nanna and Pop Pop water the flowers all day, you get to wear ALL of your shoes... since watering your feet is apparently a good thing.