Museum Day

Another beautiful day on vacation.  We headed to the National Naval Aviation Museum, with a focus on the Blue Angels.  It was fantastic!

 There were gun boats to maneuver...

 model ships to admire...

 and planes to fly.

Later in the morning, Blue Angel pilots came out for autographs.

The kids each had a poster and/or postcard and got multiple signatures. 

These were some of the pilots we saw flying yesterday while we played on the beach.  Char told one of them that we saw them flying, and the pilot said that yep...he remembered seeing Charlie playing on the beach when he flew over!  Char thought that was pretty cool.

From what we understand, the Blue Angels can not perform this year, nor can they even fly in formation to practice due to government spending cuts.  But seeing even one fly over...they are nothing short of breath-taking.  A couple planes flew over while we were at the museum today and we were so excited to see them.  

Jacob asked a retiree a few questions about joining the navy as an officer after college...Amarin isn't so sure he wants to fly a plane anymore...and Char reminded me that, "No, I'm not flying planes.  Remember, I told you I want to be a crab engineer?"  Ummm...can anyone elaborate on that job?  Jenna has no interest...she wants to be a mommy, and Laura...well...she's the comedian this trip.  As we stood outside, my back to a long line of people waiting for autographs, Laura decided to lift up the back of my skirt.  Yes.  I keep telling myself that I will never, ever see any of those people ever again...except maybe the lady that remembered seeing us at a restaurant a few nights ago...ugh.

Sand, Crabs, and a Video

Sand, sand, everywhere.  I guess that comes with a beach vacation, right?

Several restaurants we visited had outdoor sand pits for the kids to play in while we waited for our table.  One even handed out free buckets and shovels to take.  Kids thought it was great!

 Sand pits, and playgrounds!  Waiting has never been so fun.

 Today, we spent most of our time at the beach.  This beach is on an intercoastal waterway, so the waves aren't so strong and the drop-off nil.  All the kids can wade and wander safely. 

Not to mention, they loved catching the wildlife.  Jacob caught a blue crab who put up quite a little fight.

 The big boys also caught a weird, tiny fish that got itself caught in their net.  Daddy to the rescue.

 Hermit crabs were running for their lives!  I think the kids caught close to 60 of them.  No worries...no crabs were hurt and they all went free...and quickly scattered!

 We gave the crabs a break, and played in the sand.

 Laura cracked us up as she played in the water.  She flipped over, laid down, and looked like she was going to sleep in the water.

 Then she stuck out her tongue and tasted the water.

 She thought this was funny.

And to top it off, we had our own "airshow" while we played.  Fighter jets were flying over, as well as military helicopters and larger planes.  Some even flew in formation.  Hard to see in this photo, but two of them were flying overhead. 

And for your viewing pleasure, I thought I'd share what we hear on a regular basis when Miss Laura can't go swimming when she wants to.  Here she is, staring out the window at the pool.  When I played the video back for her, she thought it was hilarious.  Yeah.

Water Bugs

 We have water bugs, and they won't get out of the water!  

And let me tell you...they crash at rest time and bedtime!

Charlie and Jenna have discovered their "fins" and are swimming all over the shallow end of the pool.  Both of them open their eyes under the water and prefer to not wear goggles...they always end up full of water anyway!  I can't even get them to smile for a picture because they're always submerged!

 Laura LOVES being in her new floatie.  She is kicking her legs, turning in circles, and bobbing all over the place.

 She thinks it's funny to be chauffered through the water, too.

 OK.  So the teenager decided he needed a break with his jazz music...Louis Armstrong to be exact.

Here's a video of our newest swimmer.

A Summer Vacation

And we're off!

Time for a vacation...away from work and school and the everyday "stuff."

We left Friday afternoon, and as you can see, the kids were beside themselves with excitement.

 And that extra rest made bedtime so much easier for mom.  

These girls giggled for a very long time.  My sweet Laura giggled throughout the entire night...waking me several times with belly laughs. What could possibly be that funny in the middle of the night??

 More excitement as we finished our drive on Saturday.

I think they were storing up all their energy for swimming!

 Jacob stayed awake...

 And Laura apparently didn't need an extra nap...even after being awake most of the night partying.  Look Mom.  No glasses.  I threw them where you can't reach them!

Aren't I clever?

 We stopped to stretch our legs and saw a wonderful NASA display.

 We got to our condo and found that it was a corner unit, overlooking the pool.

Laura, loving the water, dashed toward the edge of our balcony and started squealing...loudly...so that those in the pool could hear her.  She wanted to be sure we all knew that she wanted to go swimming NOW!

 Dinner was too funny.  We ate outside on a deck, and if you're in the south, you can expect critters to be out and about, even at restaurants.  A palmetto bug (cockroach) sneaked up between the boards and scared the kids.  Char wouldn't put his feet down for the rest of the meal, and the rest of them watched the floor constantly just in case one came sneaking up on them again.  They couldn't wait to leave and get back to the bug-free condo!  Jacob informed us that he never intends to move south.

 Sunday found us at the beach and then the pool.  I didn't remember my camera at the beach...I did well to remember all the kids.

Char is so happy to be swimming a bit without his floats.

 Finally, after trying for 8 years to find a floatie that would work for Laura, we found one!!  She still needs to be close to us, but weighs enough now to float without us holding her!  Before, she was so light that she would flip all over the place.  She still isn't very bottom-heavy, but her legs are long enough to keep her weighted down and upright.

His Nicknames

You are known by so many nicknames...

Jamie Jr., Bacon, Old Soul, Daydreamer, Absent-Minded Professor, History Buff.

But one nickname you will not have for a long time is...

The Driver.

Keep dreaming, buddy, for at least 2 more years!

A Protest

You can not make me go to summer school.

You can not make me get on that short bus.

You can't fool us, Laura. We know you love school!

Happy Anniversary!

Happy Anniversary, Honey!

19 years seems like such a long time, yet has gone so quickly!

Here's to 19+ more years of love, adventure, and blessings!

Her First Lesson

Jenna has been wanting to learn to play the piano.

So over the summer, Jacob is going to give her lessons.
She is super excited.  During her first lesson, she kept running to the window to inform her siblings and friends outside that she couldn't play right now...she was practicing piano.
 

Lessons may prove a little challenging since most piano books teach kids to use all 10 fingers.

But she's a determined girl, and if she puts her mind to doing something, she will.

Does anyone have any experience with this that would like to share?

Not to mention, having Laura supervise will surely help!

Father's Day 2013

 Fatherhood.

Always growing.

Forever changing.

Embracing moments.

Loving as you go.

We love you, Daddy!

8 Years

It's getting harder and harder to remember how tiny you were.

At 11 months old, and 14 pounds, you were just a wee girl.

So quiet, hated baths, didn't sleep, but loved to be cuddled.

 

 Now...

you sleep.  Thank you, Jesus!!

And you LOVE baths and anything that resembles water-play time.

You are no longer quiet.  You are actually quite loud sometimes.

And you still LOVE to be cuddled.

I don't think you realize how big you're getting, and trying to snuggle up like you did 8 years ago, just doesn't quite work!  You end up with your long legs flying all over the place!

And you continue to have the most beautiful smile...

And your funny antics make us laugh.

 Happy 8th Gotcha Day, Laura Ling Yi.

Thank you for being the trailblazer for future siblings.

We love you so much!

Wired!

 It was time for Laura to get all wired up again.

Her neurologist wanted to measure her seizure activity, check for any changes, and alter medications if needed.

So, off we went to the Children's Hospital again.

We had to visit the "water" on the way through the lobby.

Once again, Laura bent over to splash in it, realized it wasn't actually water, and was not impressed with the whole situation.  This time, Charlie stood further away so he wouldn't get smacked!

Off to the EEG lab to get hooked up to 25 "buttons."

She was good as gold, letting them put the "buttons" where they needed to go.

They attached all the wires to her head and then the monitor, tucked everything into a handy-dandy backpack, and put her in a hair net that looked like medieval chain mail.

 

 She was so good about wearing this contraption all afternoon.

We moved her mattress into our room so we could watch over her...makes us a little nervous having all those wires attached near her neck!

We didn't hear a peep out of her until daddy got up for work.  Then she looked like this.

Pathetic pout, isn't it?

  Pouting didn't last long, and she was like this.

 Thankfully, she only had to be wired for 24 hours.  Her head was getting itchy.  Back we went to the hospital to get her all unhooked.  But the glue they use...oh, the glue.  It works very well to keep the "buttons" attached to her head.  But talk about bed-head and residual glue!

Definitely was in need of a bath, but even that didn't get out all the glue!

So, if you see her, know that she does not have lice.  It's dry glue working its way out of her hair!