Michael Phelps watch out!

Well, I think I am raising future olympians. Caleb insists that we say "Go Michael" and call him Michael Phelps in the pool now. He is swimming like a fish! Sophia is going to opt for the sychronized swim or create a new category of expressive pool moves. She can swim great, but she is more of a" lazy river girl" (like her Mom). Here are some of the earliest home videos of the future gold medalists!

Busch Gardens and Sea World

We had an AMAZING trip to Florida this week! The kids had a great time and so did we! We went to see Busch Gardens, Sea World and took a driving tour of Bo's school (Stetson Law) Campus. Here are some pictures. Thank you so much Gigi and Big Daddy for our trip!! The Busch Gardens crew Sophia couldn't believe how big the manatees were.

Caleb got to touch the stingrays.

All of the landscape was beautiful.

These were some of my favorite flowers.

Sophia feeding the dolphins. She said they felt like rubber :)

Caleb got his face painted and Sophia got a hair braid in Busch Gardens.

Family Quilt

A few weeks ago Sophia asked me to make her a quilt that had all of her family on it. I thought , yay! A new project! So began my very first attempt at quilting. I had no idea where to start but she wanted it pink and brown so I went looking for fabric. Well, a month later and it is done. I have learned a lot and so I think my next quilt will be better but it actually is very cute and I had so much fun making it. The colors look a lot better in person. So, as I am realizing that I am going to be finishing the quilt soon, I think to myself...of course I must make one for Caleb. So I ask him what color he would like his family quilt. Not surprisingly, Caleb informs me that he he wants it "green as Hulk" and wants only Superheroes on his quilt and no family. We are once again reminded where we stand in a three year old's world ... right under Superman.

Azalea Park

Okay so it is that time again...picture time! I always get the kids pictures made in the summer and then again at Christmas, but the last few times I have had them made, I have been unhappy with the pictures. There is either too much above their head or their heads are cut off. I will not say where I get there pictures made, but it is a "innovative" place in Mount Pleasant...I'm sure you catch my drift. So, anyway, I decided to try a more traditional and much cheaper method and take them myself. We took off, in the on and off drizzle, to Azalea Park in Summerville hoping for smiles, great lighting and no rain. Well, I must say I think I should hang a shingle and take appointments because they are so darn cute!!! Well, maybe I am a little biased. Here are some of my favorites. Love you guys!

Happy Fourth!

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!!!! We had a great time celebrating with both of our families at the beach and at our house! We played all day with the Vatters and Victoria and Anabelle who were visiting from Italy. We had a great day on the beach and great food courtesy of my Mom.

Later we went back home and had Tom's family over to do fireworks. His grandmother is home this year too! We had dessert and the "TNT" crew set off tons of great fireworks for us to watch. ...and no one got hurt despite Stevie trying to see how far the Roman candles could ricochet off of the Stop Sign! Anyway, Happy Fourth of July everyone! God Bless the USA!!!!

Folly Fun!

We went to the beach for a mini vacation last week. It was so much fun. The first night was not as wonderful as we planned but still fun. The power went out while Allyson and I WITH FIVE KIDS tried to make the best of it. Talk about a Hot night!! We were all out on the porch and all of the kids who were previously asleep woke up because it was so hot. The power was out from 8:30 to almost 2:00 AM. We sat on the porch drinking juice boxes. The next morning Allyson called me out to look at the porch. Remember all those late party night with beer cans and mess all over the house the next day?? Well, there must have been 25 juice boxes scattered out there. We just laughed at how our partying has changed!! The kids had a great time and no more power problems the rest of the week. Folly has got to be my favorite place in the world...It feels just like home.

Boat Trip

Write it down...we had a relatively uneventful boat outing with my Mom and Dad! The boat ran well, we actually got to drive it out without injuring ourselves or others and we had a minor glitch pulling it onto the trailer but thanks to the other boaters patiently waiting for us to get out of the way, they were able to coach us in! The kids had fun and Big Daddy and Gigi added one more rung to their boating ladder of success!