name that baby!

Let's play another game of "name that baby". I found some old beach pictures of the boys (well, not really that old, since they are only 5 and 3).

Lazy? Days of Summer

The phrase "lazy days of summer" certainly does not apply to our family these days. As we wrapped up summer last week (yes, you read that right), we worked hard on construction of our promised Pirate Ship. I don't think these pictures do justice to the many hours of sweat that Derrick and I put into the project. We spent the first part of the summer researching and drawing plans and finally set our first four posts last Sunday afternoon. The square part of the ship was fairly easy, with the decking installed by Tuesday; the challenge came when we decided that the front of the ship should come in at an angle. It took a good four hours on Wednesday just to set those two posts! The decking for the upper level went quickly again on Thursday and Friday. We spent Saturday on the railing and Monday fashioning the ladders and trap door.

Ultimately, it was Derrick's perseverance that completed the ship on time. He awoke early on Tuesday morning to string the last rope railing before leaving for his first day of school at 7:15.

Summer is officially over around here, with Derrick starting school yesterday and Scott starting next week. We even celebrated Labor Day on Monday, since that marks the traditional end of summer.

Here we are after setting the first four posts. We were installing the support beams.

The boys were a big help, although they tired easily.


Amanda spent many of her awake hours last week in the swing (i.e. - negelectamatic).




Scott, Andrew and our neighbor, Jonathan, enjoyed lunch today on the finished product. Actually, only stage 1 is finished. Scott is recycling aluminum cans to save money for a mast and wheel. He also wants a fireman pole on the back side (in lieu of a pirate plank).

By the way, we have named our ship the "S.F. S.A.L.A.D." - Seuser, Farley, Scott, Andrew, Leslie, Amanda, Derrick. Isn't she a beauty!

Oh, and as if there weren't enough chaos last week, we also had a new roof installed on our house. There was hammering all over the place (beginning at 6:30 AM!) Yes, that man is talking on his cell phone on our roof. He certainly is more sure footed than I am!

more beach pictures!

I uploaded these pictures days ago, but am just getting around to putting in my comments and posting them. Sorry about the delay. I'll write another posting to tell why I've spent more time outside than at the computer for the last couple of days.

So, here is a sampling of the best pictures from our beach trip two weeks ago. My brother and his family were able to come for a few days and we stayed for the week with my parents. It was wonderful and relaxing.

This is perhaps my favorite of the bunch. What a sweet little girl!


Scott and Derrick spent most of their time exploring all of the rocks and crevices. They found many "treasures," including driftwood, sea shells, and weathered rocks. They also loved looking at the wildlife, especially the shark that our neighbors caught.

Early in the trip we discussed with Scott how fun it would be to catch a crab and dissect it, but the crabbing equipment was too expensive for just one crab and we decided the little bit of meat that you actually get is not worth the effort. Scott was disappointed. On Wednesday, my Mom and I were walking on the beach and a crab "caught" a fisherman's pole. He was about to throw it back and we asked for it. That night, Scott got his crab lesson and we each enjoyed a tiny morsel of the meat (after Derrick spent 30 minutes dissecting it.)


Reese and Charlie are now 18 months and so cute. They loved playing in the sand and covering themselves with it. It was quite a sight.


I just couldn't resist more pictures of these cuties.





We spent one day playing at a little water park and I love this picture of Andrew. He spent the entire time by the water cannons. He would run to the cannon and yell "Fire the cannon." Then, he would turn it on and shoot anybody who happened to be in its path. It was hilarious.


Would you believe it, but we found a pirate treasure map while we were there! We followed the map and found the treasure hidden under the front porch. What luck! The kids were thrilled.





Arrrrrggg matey! The chest was full of great treasures. (By the way...isn't the chest beautiful. Derrick made it with scrap wood that he salvaged from an old bookshelf one of his co-teachers was throwing away.)



Meal times were especially exciting, since the house was definitely not designed for six kids under the age of six. The three older kids sat on barstools. I spent the entire meal worried that one was going to fall off.

Amanda also had an interesting set up. I brought our Bumbo seat with a tray to use as her highchair. Well, she quickly figured out how to arch her back, flip the tray off and get out. It was useless and food ended up everywhere. Derrick had the bright idea to, instead, put her food INSIDE the Bumbo seat. It became her food trough. The funny thing was that we would shake the box of Cheerios and she would crawl toward it, just like Farley when we feed him.




I love this picture of Callie and the boys. When my Mom took it, they were walking toward a bunch of trash cans. I was so excited for an opportunity to use my new photo editing software. Poof...gone! I think I still need some practice, but the edit wasn't bad for my first try.



Finally, here is a picture of my beautiful baby wearing an outfit that Nana bought for Scott's first trip to the beach in 2004. Andrew wore it at the beach in 2006 and now Amanda is wearing it. So special. :)

Home from the Beach

We spent a glorious, relaxing week at the beach last week. One of my goals while there was to get a good family picture. So, I carefully looked in our closets for the best options for clothes and packed white shirts and khakis for everyone in a separate bag. The afternoon of the pictures we all showered and I even spent time drying my hair and ironing my skirt.

Ha! After all that effort, what was the best family photo in my camera? The picture below taken the first night we were there (July 4th) after we walked several miles and were about to head to bed. We are all sticky with salt, sand and Popsicles.



Here are some of the "white" pictures so you can judge for yourself: