DIY- toilet edition

This weekend we tackled installing our new toilets ourselves. After a bit of an incident in removing the first throne, we sailed right through the process. We have two brand new toilets downstairs and then we refurbished the one that had been in our master for the upstairs. It was a process- for sure- but I am pretty excited with the results. I love new toilets! :) And before you ask- yes, we do have to paint behind the toilets because the old ones were larger than the new ones. Arg!

Biking on the beach

Monday morning we rented bikes so that we could ride them on the beach. I got so tickled because the bike rentals were billed as only for sale for 24 hour time slots and each day was $12. Jackson haggled with the owner and got him to let us use the bikes all afternoon for just $12 for both of us. I was impressed.

We rode for a bit and then Jackson just had to get into the water. He is such a kid at heart- his big grin just melts my heart.
After we turned in our bikes, we headed back to the resort to spend time in the hammocks. Ahh, vacation. I love it.
This photo does not do these kites justice as they were the size of my car and just gorgeous. It was a warm, but windy day and the kites were quite the sight. We enjoyed our bummy beach day before heading to the airport and back home to Indiana. Tear.

Hilton Head and Savannah

Once we finally arrived in Hilton Head, all was well in the world. We woke up Saturday morning and headed to the beach. It was lovely. They had porch swings on and near the beach that I loved to lounge in and watch the waves. From the beach we headed to Harbor Town- a part of Hilton Head- to see its famous golf course and lighthouse.

We saw that you could go up in the lighthouse and decided that $2.50 each was our limit on what we'd pay to go up. We walked into the lobby and the sign said admission was $3.50. I was sad, but I was not going to bust my little budget- ha. The lady behind the counter told us that if we carried some bags up to the top of the lighthouse where the gift shop was, she would knock $1 off the price. I was delighted as it now matched my budget. It was so random and funny. We gladly climbed the stairs to the top, made our delivery and went out for some photos.

You can see the famous 18th hole surrounded by yachts...rough life in these parts. :)

A view of the lighthouse from the ground. It was really pretty cute and neat to see.

That evening we went to a seafood joint for dinner where Jackson ate 18 (yes- 18!) raw oysters on the half shell. Sick! The sunset view was incredible from our table and we loved it.

Can you believe that view? I love it.

Sunday morning we headed to Savannah to do a trolley tour of the city. This steeple is the one shown in the beginning of the Forest Gump movies when the feather floats in. I thought that was neat since the "Feather Song" was played at our wedding and this was our 5th anniversary celebratory trip. Aww. :)

I am OBSESSED with the trees in the South. I love the Spanish Moss that grows on them and makes them look so old and gorgeous. I am totally a Southern Belle at heart- though Jackson scoffs at that notion!

We hopped off the trolley tour at Forsyth Park and took a little stroll so we could see its famous fountain. The park was gorgeous and a real asset to the city, in my opinion.

We got to eat at the famous "Lady & Sons Restaurant" owned by Paula Deen and her boys. The food was OK. It was really buttery and salty and we'd had better. The gift shop was also really proud of their goods, but hey, if she gets away with those prices more power to her.

From Savannah we drove out to Tybee Island to watch the sunset. Tybee is known for its lighthouse so we made another stop to see yet another lighthouse. I have become found of them in my old age, it seems.

I kept this random of photo so that he could see how he generally looks at me- like I am insane. Hmph. I cannot imagine why.

Another view of the lighthouse. It was considerably larger that the one in Harbor Town.

They had another swing on this beach so we sat and watched the waves while we waited for the sun to disappear.

Jackson just has to touch the ocean whenever he can- cold or not!

We thought this log that was washed up on shore was awesome. Enjoying a nice sunset on Tybee Island.

We stopped at Leopold's Ice Cream in Savannah on our way back from Tybee Island to Hilton Head. It is supposedly one of the top 10 ice cream places in the nation. I said supposedly on purpose. It was really pretty lame! While we enjoyed seeing Savannah and doing some shopping, we were happy to head back to the resort and spend some more time in Hilton Head.

Toilets!

I asked for toilets for Christmas and Christmas came early as our new toilets were delivered today. Woo hoo. I worked at Gerber toilets in college so I was especially excited to see that my new thrones were Gerbers. Thanks, Mom & Guy! That delivery guy could NOT believe that these toilets were our Christmas requests. Too funny. :)

Butt Wipes

Imagine our surprise when we walked into a Piggly Wiggly (funny in and of itself) and saw a sign for "butt wipes." We laughed and laughed and I, obviously, had to take a photo. Ohhh Piggly Wiggly.

MacK & Grammy

The best thing about living back at "home" in Fishers is having people available to watch MacKenzie again while we leave. Yep. I meant for that to read like it did. I love escaping this place.
Grammy is still recovering from her foot surgery and had a makeshift bed going on her couch. Little did she know MacKenzie would take that as an invitation to sleep there herself. I thought this was so, so cute.
Grammy's boyfriend came to check in on her and got to play ball with MacKenzie- how lucky!
We got a lot of photos of MacK's adventures with Grammy- look at the pure joy on her face.
All of that ball made her need to take a break...it is a good thing Grammy shares her bed!
I picked MacKenzie up this morning after I voted and she was exhausted. She slept in the sun for most of the afternoon. Thanks for the fun, Grammy! :)

MacKenzie is 5!

Today is our little MacKenzie's 5th birthday! We simply cannot believe that she is already 5 years old! She is the best present ever and brings so much love to our lives. I think we all know what she wants for her birthday...to play ball! :) A big thanks to her Grammy for keeping her (and singing to her!) while we're on our anniversary getaway. Happy birthday, MacKenize. We love you!