st. george, portraits

Since I did not get a great shot of our family on our LAST beach vacation, I was especially determined to get one this time. But, as photo shoot doesn't top anyone's list of fun things to do on vacation, it got pushed to the very last evening, and even then I wasn't sure it was going to happen. Jonathan saved the day by becoming our photographer, and then Jen, Ben, & co met me for their photo shoot. We had to do our work quickly, both for the sake of the children as well as our later dinner reservations (more about that later!)









The sun had set lower by the time the Johnson's get to the beach, so some of their pictures came out a bit dark. I have since edited them, but am still trying to work out the best tweakings. I'm completely inexperienced at color adjustment & basically am just going by what looks good! This picture & the picture of the couple w/ the kids playing behind them looked pretty great in my picture editing software, but seem quite light when added here.

The Honeymoon Shot -- still in love after 5 years!

I felt particularly proud of this shot. I think I was inspired by one of Kelley's wedding photos. :-) I didn't bring my telephoto lense on the vacation, but that might have given a different effect, with a blurring of the girls in the background. But, I kind of like it as is -- if only I could get the coloring/brightness/saturation/contrast all correct! (Help Renee!)





I'm having trouble posting photos today, but I persevered. There are a few more that you may like to see, & I will try to load tomorrow. Some of this is for Jen, who hasn't seen some of these yet.

Also in an aside, my first day of school was today & it was great! I will miss this summer though. I think it was my best one yet!

i came home with a potty

So, today was the big day for Babies R Us around here. I've been waiting & waiting for a new BRU that's relatively close to us, and close to other things I go to, to open up! I set that as my date for buying Kate her little potty. So, today, opening day, I went & bought 2 potties & potty covers for public toilets! :-) One potty in the house, one in the trunk. I know we're not really to the point of needing the one in the trunk, but I thought I would put my $5 off coupon to good use. Star94 was there to assist BRU in their Grand Opening & were giving away prizes. They had just about used up all of their prizes, so as we were walking towards them, I saw the lady at the booth putting away their prize wheel (as in spin the wheel to find out if you win a water bottle, t-shirt, or a Little Einstein DVD). I didn't really get the significance of her putting away the wheel until afterwards. We walked up to the booth & asked what they were giving away. She offered us a water bottle & I took it. Lydia noticed the Little Einstein Dvd's & saw that THEY had the same one as she did at home. So, she wanted this one for her 'friend Kate.' I told her her to ask the lady. She did. . .and the lady gave it to us! Hurray for cute kids! Having Lydia & Kate with me helped me swing another deal inside, too. I had two $5 off coupons which you aren't supposed to use on the same purchase (or probably the same day), but the cashier let me split my purchases into two transactions & I got to save $10. So, we came away with 2 balloons, some free chick-fil-a coupons, a Little Einstein CD & 2 potties! Yeah Grand Opening!

st. george, on the water!

Although the beach we were staying at was pretty enough, we got the opportunity to visit a barrier island with the clearest, greenest water -- perfect for snorkeling & keeping an eye out of jellyfish! We rented a pontoon, nothing as deluxe as the one we rented on the Lake Nanta., but large enough for quite a group of us. We didn't think that the younger ones would do well on the boat all day, so we decided to the leave the babies at home with some babysitters on shifts. Jen, Lydia, and I went with the boys in the morning, and we had a blast! We didn't actually brave the ocean, but explored the bay at Port St. Joe. (Apparently, pontoons & ocean waves don't make a good match!) The first place we stopped for snorkeling had clear, green water, and although there was a current, it did not feel like you were swimming in the ocean until your face or eyes dipped in. It was so hot, we practically HAD to jump in just to cool down. Lydia did very well, even when we saw fish & jellyfish in the water. Thankfully, since the water was so clear, we were able to avoid any contact with them. The barrier island was beautiful! It would have been an incredibly romantic place to take a long, uninterrupted walk with gorgeous surroundings, but I was hanging with Jen & Lydia & the boys were all exploring the waters surrounding the barrier island.

We had lunch on the boat.

Do you need a flipper, Josh?

Jonathan was the first to find some photo-worthy underwater life. I had never seen or touched a live sand dollar. The texture was a funny - there were little cilia or something all over so, it wasn't smooth. And, the color itself was a bit surprising. Several people thought they remembered that it was illegal to remove sand dollars, so we didn't bring it home.



Andrew found a largish hermit crab & I wanted a picture of it so badly that I swam back to the boat, got the mesh bag that the scuba gear came in, swam back to fetch the creature, and then back to the boat where the camera was! He very obligingly came out of his shell & tried to high tail it off of the boat.


These jelly fish swam slow enough for me to see them, grab my camera, and take a picture. Unfortunately, none of the other fish (shark, stingray, or dolphin, and unidentified swimming fish) obliged us so well.



We got back in the boat & motored down the shore of the barrier island. We got into several large beds of sea oats (I think) & the boys were brave enough to snorkel even after we had seen a shark & stingray in the area! Though our glances were fleeting, it was definitely very cool to see creatures normally seen in the aquarium right next to your boat! The shark was approximately 2 or 3 feet long, so not that big, but still pretty exciting. The sting ray was pretty big, but booked it pretty fast! Lydia got so hot, we had to get in the water, but the girls stayed right by the boat, looking out for sharks, stingrays & jellyfish the whole time! Not relaxing! The water was much deeper, and was much darker because there was seaweed on the ocean floor, so it was harder to keep a good lookout. Thankfully, nothing happened!

This little girl didn't last long on our trip back to the marina.

Our fearless navigator!

Jen kindly thought to take a picture of Josh & I. We had such a great time that day, I would have done it again the next day!


We met Jenny, Lisa, Kate, Lauren, and Grandma at the marina, and then realized that we were going to be too many people to return back in my car. Unbeknownst to us when we had made the shift plan that morning, the power was turned off at the house for a few hours, and so Grandma, Mima, Jenny, and the girls all had to leave the house. We ended up driving home in Lenny & Jenny's 4runner, with Jen riding in the back cargo area! What an adventure! Lisa & Jenny enjoyed their afternoon on the boat with all of the guys.

On our last day, several of us rented jet skis on the ocean for a half-hour. Man! That was so much fun! Josh & I rode together. It was definitely more fun to drive than to ride. I got less water in my face when I drove for two reasons: I didn't drive as fast as Josh & I was further up the jet ski & that helped. That was the major drawback to skiing in the ocean -- the water in the eyes was killer. I think that if we had to do it again, we'd try to rent on the river. There aren't the waves to ride, but you'd have less of the salt stinging the eyes. Even with salt water streaming down my face, it was tons of fun & definitely worth it. Get this, though. Andrew took Jenny with him on his jet ski. And they both survived!

I love going to the beach & hanging out, but it was definitely fun to do some water sports as well. It just gave some variety to the week & was a way for Josh & I to have a lot of fun together. He doesn't get the same kind of kicks & giggles out of reading at the beach as I do.

st. george, good times

The home we rented was quite deluxe. There were 5 bedrooms, 2 of which were HUMONGOUS master suites. Josh, Kate, and I shared a (smaller) room, and things went pretty well. One night she did wake up and start calling for Mom about 3:30AM. In the stupor of sleep I went and got her out of the pack n play and carted her to bed with me, thinking she might fall back to sleep again on me. I put her back in the pnp, but she would have none of it. I was so tired, that even when Josh brought her back into the bed, fully awake & wanting to play, I managed to slip into blissful sleep anyway. He said that they didn't fall back asleep until 4:30. We all woke up at 7:30 in the (queen) bed together. I have to admit, it was pretty sweet to see her sleeping face right next to me in the bed.

First thing every morning, Kate asked to "find Lydia" or "find Lauren." The girls had so much fun just living with each other, and I'm still having to explain that Lydia & Lauren aren't "downtairs," they're at their home! Of course, they also enjoyed playing bumper cars with all of the aunties, mimas, gagies, mom, dad, and all of the loving arms that would "hold me." Fun activities from the indoor playtimes include playing with "tabow" (playdoh), "moofies" (movies), and most impressive of all -- threading "neckaces" with Mima. She even warmed up to her cousins Jofen & Andoo. The sweetest thing happened on one of the last nights. Several months ago, Gagi went to the hospital because she had a lot of chest pain. We prayed for Gagi a lot those two days, and this made a huge impression on Kate. Our ni-ni sing times are often concluded these days with Kate requesting, "pay Gagi." Well, that night, she asked me, all of a sudden, to "pay Jofen" & "pay Andoo." It was so cute! Of course, it's very likely that it is a stall tactic, but I indulge it! Well, until she starts asking for repeats. Then you just MIGHT hear me say, "We already prayed for Gagi." or "We already sang Jesus."

There was also a private pool at the house & we made pretty good use of it. The girls just weren't able to put in hours at the beach. So, several days we stayed at the beach for a few hours & then went back to the pool for lunch & swimming time. There was an outdoor shower that made the beach to pool transition pretty easy.

The girls escaped their parents after being washed in the outdoor shower & made their getaway to the pool. At least we stopped them from getting INTO the pool. :-)

As I already mentioned, Kate couldn't wait to see Lydia every morning. Same was true for Lydia. Jen, Ben, & Lydia's room was opposite ours, so they could hear each other. Here they are watching "Curious."

I love it when they hold hands!

Yawn! I'm still tired!

The girls got to bathe in the master bath -- quite munificent! I also gave the two older girls a shower in the walk-in shower. Man, I need one of those!

Kate was trying to "wash Lydia's body," even while Lydia was swimming. Earlier that day, we caught Lydia trying to ride Kate. I guess it was payback time!

Once again, why do I buy toys?

I just can't get enough of her smile!

Lydia blowing bubbles in the pool. This is a big achievement for her!

I'm coming to get you!

There was a small leak in the pool, so we had to add water every day, much to Lydia's delight! She loved watering the pool. . . & people, too. :-)

One, two, three, (and then she takes a big step she calls a "jump!")

Lydia kept trying to convince me that this was NOT a hammock, but a swing. :-)
These girls are best buds.

st. george, sand & surf

Our house was a little walk from the beach through some jungle & desert, so every day, by the time I got to the ocean, I was ready to dive in! Of course, this was usually because I was strapped down with umbrella, chair, cooler, bag of towels & assorted other goodies, and I might or might not be holding the child as well. Every day at the beach was different. We had super-duper windy day, calm & a smidge hot day, perfect day, huge shallow shelf perfect for wading children day, cool wonderful water quite refreshing day, and one of my favorites, dolphin day! Kate was definitely intimidated by the waves, but she liked to sit at the edge and let the water wash up over her (and mom!). She enjoyed playing with the sand toys, but above all, her favorite beach activity was eating snackies! No sooner would I get everything settled than she would come over and ask for a nakie! I took her out to the deeper ocean twice & she seemed to enjoy it. One day, I even wished that I had brought her floats. It was so calm past the wave breaking point that she could have done some actual swimming. The beach was practically deserted every morning. People didn't seem to come out of their shells until afternoon.

Dolphin-Day -- the very tiny black speck in the middle of the photo . . is a dolphin fin. This is the best picture I got. They were so unpredictable as far as where you would see them next, that this is as good as it got! We must have seen 10 or so on one day, and more like 5 on the second day. On the second day, one was cruising quite close to shore! (like 15 ft) I couldn't figure out if I had been out there, would I have screamed or had some magical swimming with dolphin experience? I did a little research, and I think we were seeing bottlenose dolphins.

Laurie's walking has really taken off. She LOVED walking at the beach!

Grandma made it to the beach three times! I consider this a major feat. It was quite a trek for her, and it was pure determination that got her there and back that many times!

See what I mean by deserted? Next time we do a big beach trip like this -- I want to buy one of those awnings & just leave it up the whole week. (Awning is in left center of pic)

Smooch doing a little bit of mystery reading!

Kate loved scooping & toting sand & water in her toys. I love her little sprig in this picture!

Laurie just wanted to jump into the water, per usual. Lydia came a long way. The first day (pictured below), she wanted her floaties on just in case she fell in the water. The last day (in picture), she was happy to cavort by herself & wanted to feel the waves.

The First Day. Hmm, what do you think? Could I fall in?

Kate hijacked Lydia's little chair & sat up in the shade eating her snacks. What a beach bum!

things I hear

Kate's verbal ability has just exploded over this summer. At the beginning of the summer she was saying a few phrases & words & many of them were quite babyish (tank-a-da, etc). These days you can carry a conversation with her that (for the most part) makes a lot of sense. She also comes up with her own combinations. She talks a lot & practices words a lot. For instance, she typically calls a computer, "puter", but this afternoon, I heard her whisper "com" and then say "puter" loud. She was trying it out!

One of the phrases that isn't that particularly endearing is "no like." She certainly didn't learn THAT from me, but she uses it all of the time. It has a variety of applications beyond its most basic meaning. It can mean she doesn't want something, doesn't want any more of that thing, doesn't like what a certain person is doing, etc. This can make for some frustrating (and amusing) conversations.

Kate: "no like Lydia."
Mommy: "say sorry Lydia."
Kate: "Sorry Lydia."

even funnier.
Kate: "no like nakies." Thinks mom will get after her so quickly follows up with: "sorry nakies"

singing at bedtime.
Kate (requests): Jesus
Mommy: Jesus loves me, this I know.
Kate (interrupts): no like Jesus
Mommy (thinks to herself): Not good!

counting
Mommy: Let's count, Kate.
Kate: one, two three, four, nine, six, eight-nine-ten (she says the last three all together)
Mommy: Kate, can you say FIVE?
Kate: I can't!

She loves patterns in speech. She loves that I say You're welcome when she says Thank you. She loves that I say, I forgive you, when she says sorry. She loves it so much, she can carry on the entire conversation by herself!

Kate: Sorry, momma.
Kate: 'Give you.

Kate: Tank you.
Kate: Welcome!

Kate: Read to me?
Kate: Sure!

And, last but certainly most endearing. . . she says, "Hold you" instead of "Hold me." And, boy, she says that a lot!