What to do when it's 115 degrees outside...

This past weekend, temperatures in Charleston (and all over the country for that matter!) reached into the 100's, and with the heat index made it feel more like 115. How miserable. There isn't much you can do outside with a 2 month old baby in that kind of heat. Or a 20 month old baby, either (as much as she doesn't realize that she really doesn't want to go oussssside!!!)

Our good friends Rob, Gena,their daughter Anneliese and their dog Wallace came down from Charlotte for the weekend to beat the heat... for once, it was hotter in Charlotte than it was here! We spent Saturday morning trying to entertain two toddlers, which was interesting to say the least. Then, we took our first trip to the SC Aquarium with all the kids. I have to say, I wasn't too impressed. We've been there once before when we first moved down here, but it was our first time taking Alli too. There just isn't a whole lot to see.. just a lot of fish, which would've been free for us to look at at a Petsmart store, not $50. Nonetheless, it was nice to get away from the heat and do something different. That evening, we found a babysitter and were able to go out to an adult dinner with Rob and Gena, which was wonderful. It felt like when we were back in college, just the 4 of us. My how things have changed!

Allison & Anneliese, BFF's at the Aquarium

Alli & her baby brother Aiden

Sunday morning I took Alli to the pool while the boys hung out and did whatever it is boys do... I guess Aiden probably slept while daddy watched TV or something... but, anyway, it was good to just have time with Alli again. She has gotten so good at swimming, she knows how to kick and balance and loves playing with her waterproof Pooh bear - which is always a hit with the other kids at the pool too. That afternoon we had a movie date - popcorn and all, and watched Elmo in Grouchland with all the curtains pulled to try to make it dark in the house while it was reaching near record highs and was HOT HOT HOT outside. It was a nice way to wind down and end the weekend.

Aiden has been doing great at getting on his own little routine this weekend too. He kind of just fell into it... having a nap in the morning, nap in the afternoon, sometimes a quick snooze in the late afternoon, then off to bed around 8ish. He even slept 6 hours in a row once! But, last night it was back to every few hours... it's just still sort of unpredictable right now. He is a lot happier these days: he plays, coo's, smiles back at you all the time, and we have stopped giving him his Zantac. He has been doing wonderfully without it. When he cries, Alli says, "baby sad!" and now it seems that she thinks that's his name. She'll walk by him and even if he's not crying she says "Hi Baby Sad!" Dad-E doesn't want that nickname to stick... but it's still funny.

So, hopefully it cools down a little for next weekend, as we celebrate our last weekend of "freedom" before I head back to work...