Friday Swim Day

This morning was a little cooler than usual so I wondered how many would show up for Friday Swim.
We ended up with 9 moms, 1 dad and close to 30 kids. I didn't do a headcount but that's what I counted in trying to remember who was there....which shouldn't be too hard to do since it was only 4 hours ago but my brain is lacking :)
Anyway it was very fun. I love visiting with the other moms. The kids LOVE playing with their friends. I would have FSD 3x a week if it was up to me. Very fun.

random snapshots from the day

two little puppies sleeping in my bed...we need a bigger bed :)
Lu finding something to do. She's a budding artist.

Last night he beat me (thanks to dad's help) This morning S won but he gave her a run for her money.

Fixing lunch. Both girls like to help in the kitchen.

The picture I most wish I had was tonight we went to the the Whitworth's to can food with Nikko and her family. It was quiet the assembly line. At one point we had powdered milk in the air and all over Russ' shirt. It was pretty funny. ...guess you had to be there.

Fablehaven by Brandon Mull

I got this book to read with E. I thought he'd love it. We started chapter one right on the heels of How to Train Your Dragon and he did not get into it.

I brought it on our trip to Florida and he never had time for it (no surprise). On the drive home I picked it up and read it. I loved it. It transports you into a magical world that is full of delightful surprises and dangerous beings.

H is reading it now, I hope she likes it and after I told bub that I read it he was jealous and now wants to listen. Since we are having much more boring days post trip I think it will have more appeal for him. It's a absolute must read if you have kids who like magical stories. I hope the library has the series so I can find out what happens next :)

The Things They Carried by Tim O Brien

Our ward book club read this some months back, I don't know how they liked it. My mom liked it and kept telling me I should read it. Then S was assigned to read it at school. She did not like it. A couple of days ago I saw it in her room and was between books so I picked it up. I like to read what the girls are assigned but don't always keep up. Anyway I figured I'd give it a shot.

It's a memoir of sorts, it's fiction but he was there and writes about his experiences and remembrances. O'Brien, the author, is a college graduate who got drafted to go to Vietnam. After the war he came home (finished grad school) and is now an author. This is one of his stories. He writes it like a memoir and I suspect it partly is.

I really liked his story telling style. I do not usually like war books. Birth books are more my style, or cook books, or well, many other kinds of books. War books and fix it books and books about politics would be lowest on my list of books I want to read. From time to time I do though. And sometimes I like them. I liked this one. I was happy he survived, and sad when others didn't and I felt like it gave a good description of how things were there, at least for him.

The thing I did not like was the liberal use of the "F" word. I have noticed that in other Vietnam books I have read as well, I am not sure why. I was going to say that maybe it's the nature of war that brings that out in a solider, and I could see why...but I haven't noticed that about other war books (WWI and II come to mind) so maybe there was something different about that particular war. Or maybe since it's closer to our time and people just are not as careful about their language and it was war that is why. What ever the reason I was very surprised that this was required reading for the juniors at S's school last spring. She said when they discussed the book that word never made it into their discussion, nor did the teacher say anything about why it was chosen. Sadly I am not surprised since the girls have also been shown rated "R" movies from time to time in the name of historical accuracy or whatever.

Back to the book, he started out talking about the actual physical things they carried with them. The C rations, and weapons, good luck charms, pictures from home, etc. Then he moved on to the emotional "things", the guilt, fear, hope, beliefs, wishes they carried. He ended with the things they took home with them: some snap shots and dog tags but also ghosts and memories and experiences. This was all woven into a skillfully told story that was relateable.

As a mom I carry a lot of things. For many years I carried a diaper bag with diapers and wipes and snacks and crayons. Sometimes with a little doll or soft book, sometimes with a Jedi knight and a hot wheels car; always with tylenol and keys and a lip gloss on the bottom (in case I ever had time to remember that I was more than "mom"). I carry groceries and laundry baskets and book bags and gym bags. I carry forgotten math assignments to school, sleeping children to bed and $5 in my pocket to pick up girls from dances and buy ice cream on the way home.
I also carry hopes for the children's future and dreams for them and me. Fear about not doing well enough and about how the world is going. I look back on the events of my life and find ghosts and things I'd rather not remember and also many things that have shaped who I am. My experience could not have been more actually different than his but I could still relate. So if you can get past that word I'd recommend it, it was thought provoking and thoughtful.

home front

The problem with going on vacation is you eventually have to come home. And real life is never like vacation. We had a wonderful time, relaxing and playing and being with our family.

Now we are home with sand in every corner and broken things to fix and mail to sort through.

DH is tired. He actually went to bed last night at 10:20 (late enough that we could have watched Iron Chef like I wanted to but that's besides the point). He never goes to bed that early. Having all that fun wears a person out :)

Yesterday we had family cleaning hour. The girls were pretty cheerful about it. The most cheerful was Em, the one girl that doesn't technically belong to me. We unpacked all the suitcases and the girls washed the dog and cars. DH fixed my car (it needed a new battery) and unloaded the box. We scrubbed and then nuked the pool (how does algae grow so fast) and had FHE.

Today we had car stuff to do. Someone (S) got a ticket on the way home from church for having no proof of insurance in her car, after she was pulled over for having expired tags. The nice officer didn't ticket her for that though, which was really kind. So this morning we took her car and the sub to be inspected. Went to our friendly neighborhood State Farm office to pick up proof of insurance, went to the sub court house to register S's car, then we split and S went to the local court house to get her insurance ticket waived and I went to Lowe's to buy new smoke detectors because in a freak occurrence yesterday all ours went off at the same time and made a horrible racket which none of the kids responded to at all, even though it took me a full 20+ minutes to get a ladder out of the garage and haul it around the house pulling down alarms.

Now we meed to start on our summer chores list (you know the closets that need organizing and fans that need dusting)

But first I have to hunt down some MIA library books and try and find the Work and the Glory 3. We have the full set. J is reading them and somehow 3 is missing. People borrow books from us a lot and I don't remember who has it :( Which I know I shouldn't talk because almost 2 years ago I borrowed movies from Joy and I returned (eventually) all but one that some how got lost and I still haven't replaced it :((( Sorry. I really will bring you a new copy...soon.

random pictures

end of the trip

The fourth of July was our last full vacation day. In the morning the boys all went golfing while the girls went to the outlet mall.
After lunch we hit the beach for a last afternoon of soaking in the sun and catching some waves.
Friday night we cooked out then headed over to the Commons to watch Fireworks.

We stayed up late packing/talking.

It was a great week.

Saturday we hit the road early and drove.all.day. Interestingly enough we all made it home close to the same time. We left first and drove drove drove. Nana and Abba took D & G to breakfast (getting rear ended on the way but no one was hurt) then to T&D 's for some Wii and visiting before they went to the airport. Then they headed home. D&G flew to Chicago, had a lay over, flew home. We actually pulled into our driveway as they were collecting their luggage. The Ohio crew got home shortly after that. It's a long travel day no matter how you cut it...but worth it. Everyone had a great time and said they were not ready to leave.

This morning the suburban wouldn't start. I felt very grateful that it didn't have trouble until we were home.

Today we went to church. Tomorrow we'll fix the car.

learning new skills

Lu takes her first ride on a boogie board



Em practices with her new skim board

Gulfarium

Today was Gulfarium day! Yeah. It's small but fun and you can get really close to the animals, and the keepers always have time for a chat :)




We watched the dolphin show where the kids had front row seats around the walkway.
Then the sea lion show (which was my favorite), it was funny.
Third was the inter species show.


We got snacks and watched the keepers feed the sharks and take care of a parasite on one of their tails.


We got to spend a lot of time at the touch tank playing with the animals.

After the Gulfarium we went to Fudpuckers ~ our favorite alligator feeding place/lunch spot!
Emma had the gator:) I had a very delicious crab cake sandwich.

When we got home we went down to the beach and had the loveliest time. It was not very crowded and the kids rode the waves and Dani and I sat with our books. It was perfect.

Tonight we are having KBT #3.

boating

Yesterday while Nana, Lu, Dani and I stayed home and got pedicures, went shopping, ate lunch and then mosied down to the beach in the afternoon to build sand castles the rest of the gang headed out on the boat.
They skied, tubed and zoomed around on the sea doos.
They spotted dolphins. Had a picnic on the sand bar and got burnt :)

Em reported the J should never be allowed to drive a car (based on her reckless and wild behavior on the jet ski :))
They all had a blast!!

last night we did hair. Most every one is sporting new looks.

H's trip to Ohio

H got to spend a week with her grandparents before we came to Florida. She had a super great time!

• King's Island
• Water park
• Shopping with Nana
• Sweet and Sassy
• dinner with Great grandpa
• Dragons Game
• got some new Webkinz
• and the highlight...Kentucky Horse Farm!!!
  

riding the waves ~ 6 year old style

playing on the beach

Big Kahunas

Now, this is the kind of wet that we like:) We had a great, sunny, warm, wet day at the water park. We celebrated E's birthday (again) and had such a fun time!!
I went down my first water slide ever. It was more fun than I had thought it would be. H and I went together. The kids LOVED it soooo much. They went down slides, played in the wave pool, hung out in the lazy river. And we had the perfect ratio of kid to adults. We had 8 adults, 4 teenagers and 3 kids in our party. Perfect. When a little kid needed something there was always someone to help them. Fun day.
Here's Lu and DH catching a quiet chat while resting up for the next adventure.

I don't have many pictures because we were in the water all day.

D&G, J and Em ended up leaving around 3pmish to go play on the beach, which they reported was awesome. I think they played on the skim board a lot and "they're getting the hang of it". I am hoping to see them in action later this week.

After a dinner at Olive Garden we put the kids to bed "early" (8pm) and Nana went to bed (I think she was dehydrated because she felt awful). Diana and Jess and Dalton came over and we played Killer Bunnies. Actually J and Em also went to sleep early, although they played Wii for awhile.

Okay, it's another late night/ busy fun day and I am rambling. I am just trying to keep up with some notes so I'll remember what we did.

DH's storm shots

raining at the Crab Trap
kids catching the rain drops.
We spent a lot of time wet today, just not the kind of wet we expected :)

what do you do when it rains all day?

go to the armament museum
go shopping

go to the movies...

we saw Kung Fu Panda, cute. We went out to eat and looked at missiles and had a good day. Tonight we walked on the beach in the dark.

Tomorrow the sun is supposed to come out :)

Day 2

Today we picked up Dani and Greg at the airport! I am so excited that they will be spending the week with us.
We got home and the weather was lovely so we ate lunch and got everyone sunscreened up and headed down to the beach. We were there 10 minutesish and all of a sudden a huge black cloud came whooshing in and the wind kicked up, umbrella's went flying and the thunder rumbled. Everyone went running for shelter, or I should say all the normal people did. Greg, DH and Em and J stayed. See the black cloud, dark sea and only four people in the ocean. Can you guess who they are?

It rained and stormed for a good half hour, they swam. The rest of us went home. When it cleared up Dani and H headed back and they got to spend a little more time on the beach.

After dinner we made banana's foster for dessert. It was yummy. The crepes didn't turn out as good as normal but I think once we covered it with ice cream and bananas and caramel and chocolate and cool whip you couldn't tell :)

We made it!

We drove all day and hit some traffic but made it last night. Tom and Diana were kind enough to let us crash at their house for the night. The kids were excited to arrive and couldn't wait to hit the beach.
First thing this morning we headed out into the sun. The weather was perfect. When we got to the beach there were purple and orange flags up, meaning dangerous marine life and medium waves. It turned out to be jellies. We braved the water anyway and got a few little stings but nothing too bad and everyone thought it was worth it (for the record I did not get stung). Emma caught one and we put it in a bucket to watch it swim around.

Lu built sandcastles and played in the waves. She loved it.
Brother learned to body surf!

After the beach morning we went and met H and Nana and Abba. We missed her while she was gone, and I think she missed us but she had a pretty good time with her grandparents and was spoiled rotten :)

We got to our beach house, which is beautiful! and then Nana and I headed out to Wal mart for supplies, which was crazy busy.

Abba and DH took the littles swimming and Em and J went to the beach where they saw a shark in the water and instead of choosing to get out they followed it!

After dinner we played Killer Bunnies with Diana and Jess and Em. Emma won!

Day one was a success. Jellies, sharks and bunnies all in one day :)

(also some Wii time)

you know you're from TX when

you consider a 12 hour drive a short day's trip! We're off!

Tagged

I've Been Tagged
by my real life friend Robin:)

Whats his name? That's a secret, but for here I call him DH

How long have you been together? 10 years 5 months

How long did you date? We dated for a couple months then got engaged. We were engaged for 4 months. We still date every week.

How old is he? 38

Who eats more? Umm, I think him but he burns it up way better than me. Maybe me, I am kind of fluffy...I don't know.

Who said I love you first? I don't remember, probably him.

Who is taller? Him, by a foot.

Who sings better? Him

Who is smarter? I would have to say him. He's real smart. I am "smarter" in some things but mostly it's him.

Who does he laundry? Me

Who pays the bills? He does. I always did before we got together but he has a lot of complicated things he likes to do. And that's fine.

Who sleeps on the right side? Me

Who mows the lawn? He does. I don't really like yard work and he loves it. I think he'd like more help, especially with this huge old yard we have but mostly he does it himself.

Who cooks dinner? Me. From time to time he will man the grill. After I buy the meat, prepare the meat and hand him a plate :)

Who drives? Mostly him, although I like to.

Who is more stubborn? Sadly we are both kind of stubborn, in different ways. If I had to pick a winner I'd say him.

Who kissed who first? Him, that one I remember :)

Who proposed? Him.We were at his baptism and it was over. We were standing around visiting with friends and family when he said "I need to talk to you" and took me down the hall way. I was thinking "oh no! it's been 5 minutes and he's already having second thoughts...what should I say??" Then he got down on one knee and pulled out a box with a ring and proposed. I was shocked but said yes and here we are.

Who has more friends? It's probably a tie. He is really social and loves to be with people. I have so many kids and a friendly husband and responsibilities at church and with school and ....that I end up with friends. He's probably more social than I am though. I don't mind being quietly alone.

Who is more sensitive? Him

Who has more sibling? Me. I have 4 sisters and 2 bothers. He's an only.

Who wears the pants? He does.

I tag Maggie, (I'd like to hear more about her life, not just the books she reads :) ), Chel and Angela.