Santa Rosa Beach, FL - Days 1 & 2

After a whole year of waiting to go back to Florida, the day had finally arrived.  Last Saturday, we boarded a plane and took off for one of our favorite places ever!

The boys sat across from us.  Jackson watched Ernest Goes to Camp...

and even though it was nap time and we brought Lila's pillow pet, she was so excited that it was hard to fall asleep.  She finally gave out around 3:30 and mama got to read a book:)

A few hours later, we arrived at our condo and were greeted by this beautiful rainbow!

Think they were excited?!

We ate some pizza, unpacked a little, put on swimsuits, found our friends and headed down to the beach.  Yay for vacation!

The kids had fun playing in the sand...

jumping the waves...

and even doing the splits.

When the sun went all the way down, we made our way up to the pool.  Night swimming!

These two couldn't have been any happier. 

The next morning we awoke to this gorgeous view of the ocean.  Oh, it is just so good for my soul!

After a quick breakfast, these two surfers were ready to hit the beach.

I love this tutu bikini so much!

Lila, Hayley and Sawyer worked on their sand castles for a little bit.

Presley and Jackson were content to dig big holes and the rest of us just got to relax.  So nice!

A little while later, Jared and Scott played Ladder Ball with

Adam and Price.  It was a great game to have at the beach.  Big and little kids loved playing it all week.

Lila also got to hang out with two of her favorite people - Uncle Scott and Aunt Lyndsie.

Maddie and Jackson worked on their boogie boarding skills quite a bit.  We think Maddie may take up the sport full-time.  She was really good at it!

Our annual Florida sand picture:)

After a good nap, we came back down and got to enjoy the beach with two more of our faves - Gigi and Boom!

Lila asked Boom to take her out and jump the waves.  He was happy to oblige.

The girls loved making sand cupcakes and ice cream cones...

and got a kick out of being transformed into mermaids, too!

As if that wasn't quite enough activity for the day, we decided to go out for dinner.  We snapped a quick family picture and then headed to Bayou Bills.

Bayou Bill, your food was not great and it took FOREVER to get to the table, but at least you had this cool alligator in the foyer. 

And yes, we are still going!  Back at the condos and now the kids were ready to go crab hunting.  They love it!  Our three got their headlights on, had their nets in hand, and literally ran down to the beach.

We found plenty of crabs, and all sizes, too.  This was Gigi's first experience with crab hunting and she was a little bit timid.  Those sucker can run so fast!

By 10:00, our crew was finally tired out.  We got a good night's sleep and were ready for more fun in the sun the next day.  Stay tuned:)

Special Edition of the Bachelor!

Leave it to these three to reinact scenes from The Bachelor!  Totally their idea and they just went all out.  First, the girls chose their party dresses.  Then they put on makeup, picked out high heels and chose the perfect purses, too.  Jackson, aka The Bachelor, donned his fanciest outfit, too--gray corduroy pants, a blue button-down shirt and a matching vest.  Tres chic.

After Jackson had worked very hard to create a romantic scene, he asked the girls to join him.  He made sure we had a tablecloth, fancy glasses, two roses from our front yard and special Sparkling White Grape Juice.  He had to keep it real though, so the Rangers stayed on the T.V. during their cocktail party!

Ever the gentleman--pouring "Bella" some more bubbly.

After a really funny conversation, at which they all discussed their favorite foods, restaurants (J's was Del Frisco's!), and places they'd like to travel (Florida was the girls' pick, NY was Jackson's), it was time for the rose ceremony.  Both Bella and Catherine gave him their very best smiles:)

After a few moments of suspenseful contemplation, the Bachelor had made his decision...

and gave both of them a rose!

Then, in a surprise twist, Jackson took me aside and told me he'd really like to propose to Bella.  I told him that would work, but first, he'd have to tell Catherine that he just had stronger feelings for someone else.  He broke the news to her as gently as possible...

and then got down on bended knee to propose to Bella.  Too funny!

As you can see, she was so happy!

Since things on the Bachelor move at warp speed, they chose to have the wedding right away.  Luckily, we had the perfect wedding dress on hand for Bella to wear:)

Let's hope that Jackson and Bella make it longer than most couples on the Bachelor!  My guess is that they will probably last longer than Desiree and any of her suitors.  Tune in tonight to see the finale! 

Summer Camp, Denison Style

We've done all the standard camps this summer.  J has been to Sports Camp, he and Maddie both went to Vacation Bible School and all three have done Summer Fun Days and Gymnastics Camp.  But this past week we headed north on Wednesday to see what kinds of fun could be had in Denison, Tx.  Turns out, there are all kinds of cool things to do!  The kids swam some laps and did hand stands in the hot tub first.  Then we set up the slip 'n slide and let them have at it.  Lila isn't much of a slider yet, but the other two sure are.

Ready, Set, Go!!

They must have slid at least 45 times.  Thank goodness that well water is cold, because it was hot, hot, hot outside.  Gigi and I almost melted just sitting in the shade.

On day two of camp, we drove over to check out the wildlife at the Raines Ranch.  The teenage cows were so happy to see us, but soon figured out we didn't have any sugar cubes, so they made themselves scarce.

While we waited to pet the horses, the kids practiced plenty of haybale jumping...

and then we took a tour of the ranch on the mule.  Maddie talked Gigi into riding in the back.  Little did she know how much excitement could be had back there!

Jackson practiced his driving skills, even putting safety first by wearing this awesome helmet.  Remember I mentioned a lot of excitement in the back of the mule?  Well, right after we went through the first gate, there was a loud sound and then screams from the back seat.  I turned around to see that both my mom and Maddie had been dumped out (or so I thought)!!  I ran around and found them hanging there, with their feet in the air, but still buckled in!  We had NO idea that the back part of the mule was broken and wasn't locked in.  One of the funniest things I have seen in a long time...I laughed so hard that I cried.  It still makes me laugh out loud!

After getting everyone safely back into our ride, we continued on down the road.  We found out that the older cows are not the least bit scared of us at all!  We also learned that apparantly the llamas and cows are friends.  When we first got there, all 7 or 8 llamas and about 8 cows were just having a nice get-together under this big tree.  Some were swimming, others just eating, but it was really cool.

We tried to stick around long enough for the kids to ride horses, but it's just too dang hot for this pregnant girl!  We headed back to the lake and sought refuge in the water.  So much better.  The kids did some tubing and swimming.  We ended the day with popsicles, on a raft, in the lake.  Doesn't get much better as far as these three are concerned. 

Denison Summer Camp was a huge success!  Maybe next year we can talk Daddy into coming with us.  I just bet he'd love it, too.

Swimming Success!

Lila has completed her summer of swim class and did really, really well.  So much better than we ever expected!  She now is so at ease floating on her back...

Coach Patty doesn't even have to help her at all!

She has also learned how to tread water for 10 seconds at a time.

And was always the first one to jump off the diving board, too!  Congrats, my fearless little mermaid!  You get an A plus for swim class this year.

Wet and Wild!



Even though the old Wet "N Wild in G-town has long since disappeared, we still know how to have some fun in the sun.  The Pointer Sisters joined us at the lake a few weeks ago and all 6 kids had a great time.



After swimming in the lake for a good while, it ws time to break out the tube.  Our kids are getting a little more brave, especially when they ride with Daddo.  Lila even stood up on the tube, but it was too short-lived to get a picture of it!

Since J insists on always staying inside the wake and going a sensible speed, Jared has to find ways to liven things up.

Presley and Teagan, on the other hand, are totally fearless!  They were awesome!

Even though little Temple is not quite two yet, she still thinks she's just as big as the rest.  She tried surfing for herself and even did a little jig to "Little Sally Walker" as her daddy sang it.  Her little booty was shaking back and forth--too cute!!

A few days later, we hung out with more friends at this really great pool. 

Lila did a lot of swimming that night, but took a little breather on top of her dad's shoulders.

Six adults and six kids all in the pool together.  Lots of splashing and laughter, for sure.

After dinner, it was time to break out the water balloons.  These kids were SO excited!  Aunt Hayley is more fun than me, and actually spent an hour filling them all up before we got there.  Thanks, Hayley!

Most of the kids were content to throw them on the ground...but J took aim at Price.  Good thing he took cover!  The fun was over in about 60 seconds, but it was one of their favorite things of the night.

After the water balloon fight, the kids found the swingsets and trampoline.  The big boys played ball with Jackson and had their own version of the Home Run Derby.  We ended the night by letting the kids swim as the sun went down.  It really was the perfect summer night.