Day One – Capers Island

LOTS OF NAPPING GOES ON WHILE BOATING!  🙂

Day Two – Isle of Palms

FANCY PANTS!

That beard tickles, Peep!

Oh, Peep!  You taught him about the big pot?!  At least I will know where to look if he goes missing!

It’s all fun and games until someone wants their purple tutu off!

Little lady

Princess Tilly Pearl came home.

She and Heidi have been fast friends.  Wyatt and Tilly are friends but have less patience with each other.  😉

Good snuggles from MiMi

I have tried to avoid posting pics of my kids in diapers over the last few years but this one was just too cute.  We were getting ready for bed.  The kids were telling Tilly good night.  Heidi is wearing her favorite pajamas, her Christmas nightgown.  Wyatt is holding his beloved Buzz, behind his back to keep him away from Tilly, no doubt.  Little Tilly has been with us less than a week and is still figuring out these two new “litter mates”.

So, this Hot Chaos (year 3) was not planned.  As it is we were one mother and one child short because Danielle was due to deliver baby Sadie right around this time.  Nonetheless, part of the crew was in town, it was hot, and it was chaotic (sort of).

Getting a group pic is always a challenge.  Getting five kids to sit still and look at the camera at the same time is virtually impossible.  I think I may have found a possible solution to achieve the best possible pic.  Everyone loves a popsicle and it is handy for getting kids to sit together, maybe even be still! Can’t get them to sit in a line so you can see them all in the picture?  Put a pool noodle on the ground for them to sit on!  Score one: Mommies

Flying chase!

The lookouts, Wyatt and Audrey

Pool time!  YAY!

Bubbles! YAY!

THE GIRLS

Heidi 

Amelia

Audrey

Ella

It was such a nice Father’s Day weekend for Michael that I commented I should get a do-over of Mother’s Day! Nah, just kidding. He deserved it.

That Saturday Michael and Joel took Joel’s son, Kyle, and our dear friend Ryan fishing in a father-son fishing tournament. Ryan’s Dad, Chris, was Michael’s best friend and prime fishing buddy. He passed in a car accident in September and Ryan (8), his brother, Nathaniel (nearly 3), and their mother, Elizabeth, have really become part of our family. It has been healing for Michael, and for us, to have them around and Ryan is turning out to be a pretty good fishing buddy. 🙂

We continued our fellowship with the Toporek and Elsey families that night over a delicious dinner of slow cooked ribs (3 kinds! wet, dry and some with Elizabeth’s yummy tomatillo sauce), green beans, onion rice and salad and pies for desert! It put the Daddies to sleep on the porch and in the end put my kids out with their Daddy! We had a great day!

We finished up the weekend going on our boat with our friends, the Lentsch family. The kids had a great time running around on the beach at Caper’s Island and learning about little crabs from Daddy.

Using the “sprayer phone.”  😉

Now get to fixing that sink!

He’s almost got it!

Put your back into it, Wyatt!

Well, Mike and I knew our sleeping giant would reach his limit of provoking by his sister. It happened today. He bit the snot out of her. I’m sure she had it coming but of course he got in trouble for it. Maybe now she’ll be a little sweeter to him.

Don’t misunderstand. They love each other and have their moments when they snuggle up and hug. They even share sometimes. However, Heidi is a bit of a firebrand and likes to push his buttons. There’s a little lesson for her today, more than one. 🙂

* Pick on someone your own size.
* Do unto others as you would have them do to you.
* Don’t dish out what you can’t take.
* Recognize when “enough is enough.”
* 10 more, I am sure.

These life lessons come at a price, at any age I am realizing.

Little did she know! (August 2010)

That’s a “you know you’re a mom when…” moment if ever.

Michael just fixed me a glass of tea. Heidi looked at him mid pour and said, “Daddy, you hookin’ Mama up?” 🙂

Wyatt “holding” his puppy

Happy boy!

When you want someone to really listen to you, you cup their face in your hands.

Having a heart-to-heart