Okay, so admittedly this was not the most relaxing vacation we've ever taken.... trying to finish minor problems with the condo, a little cleaning, Russ' deposition that was supposed to be an hour and took closer to three while I waited with the boys and tried to find things to occupy the time, not to mention 3 burned little hands that resulted in blisters from the sparklers and Russ getting sick after sushi...
Nevertheless, it was still really nice to see Jen, Doug, Dallin and Brooke. It was great to see them getting settled in their new place and let the cousins play. Thanks Jen for watching the kids for SO long during a move and everything! Doug has become the hit of their new neighborhood after playing soccer with all the kids in the street. Jen went outside July 5th only to find all the parents out letting their kids stay up past bedtime because the neighbor kids had all heard Doug still had fireworks to light off. That really was lots of fun! Thanks Jen and Doug! Hopefully the next trip will be even more fun and even relaxing!!!
Thanks to Alice and Louis for letting us stay in their beautiful home in Homestead! We had a great time (about the only really relaxing part) at your house on the 4th. It was so fun to get to know Baylee better - she is so cute! The boys miss you guys & Karma!
Cole and Parker finished swimming lessons a couple of weeks ago. They loved it, of course! Cole has been a little fish practically since the day he was born. Parker, on the other hand, loves playing in the water but has always been seriously distressed when his face gets wet. For the first time this year though, he's been willing to put his head under water with no persuasion from Russ or me. I think it's all thanks to a nice teacher and "dunkaroos!" All the kids in the pool practice against the wall yelling out "One, Two, Dunkaroo!" as they go under the water. Apparantly, it's had an effect on Parker. So, all the afternoons out in the humid florida heat trying to keep Mason and his broken arm out of the pool was all worth it!
Cole's last day of swimming...
Parker's Dunkaroos!
I guess maybe I'm lucky that with three boys this was my first trip to the emergency room. Mason fell off the ladder going up to the little slide in our backyard on Wednesday. He was only on the 2nd rung. He's definitely fallen farther plenty of times, but he must have landed just right. Both bones in his forearm (the radius & ulna?) broke, and when I found him his arm - the part that should be straight - was bent at probably a 60 degree angle. Yes, I panicked... and I was a little (maybe a lot) frantic until Cole was about to cry in the car and I realized it was my job to try and keep it together. Mason was very brave and once he calmed down in the car never made more than a whimper when anyone touched his arm. Unfortunately, being pregnant, I couldn't even go into the room with him to get his x-rays done! About 8 hours later, after being transferred to the children's hospital and getting knocked out while his bones were moved back into place (luckily with Russ who was out of school by then), Mason was finally ready to come home. He's finally starting to feel better after a couple days of Lortab and lots of Motrin. Now, his favorite thing to do is clap or give someone five with his broken arm. Doesn't look too upset about the whole thing now!
Ahhhh! One of the best perks of having kids is having all the tickle torture transferred from me to the kids! Luckily, Cole and Mason LOVE being tickled. Parker isn't much of a fan, only because laughing the slightest bit at any time gives him horrible hiccups, poor kid. Here's a little sample of the fun...
One last chance to play with the cousins (or so we thought). Damon, Allie, and Kyla came over while Krystal and her aunt and cousin finished cleaning the house. They left for their flight right after, but unfortunately missed it (although their luggage made it to Utah), and we got to have another day similar to this one again the next morning. My kids were thrilled! They mention their cousins all the time now and how much they miss them. December seems way too far off for a visit. We'll miss Jeff & Krystal and their family a lot!
