Phillips Phamily Phive: 06.11

Cruisin'

Caught him standing up in his crib the other day:

And today he realized that he could cruise around to FINALLY get those pesky lambs!

Hey, ladies! Come and join the party!

Stop the madness. The boy is 10-months-old today.

And with that, June is gone.

Yesterday, I registered AE for kindergarten.

Stop the madness. Stop the madness.

So tomorrow is July. Let the fourth be with you!

We made a special trip to the "fancy" and "special" YMCA last week with a group of several of us "Y" moms. SJ stayed with a babysitter, so I got to work out while the girls played in the childcare center. Then the girls each took a swimming test to see what kind of skills they have.

Each girl did well on her test: HJ got a red band (I had to be in the water WITH her) and AE got a yellow band (she could go anywhere except the deep lanes by herself).

Oh, what a fun place! The water stays NICE and COLD in this pool because of the circulation from those big fountain thingys.

The slide was serious fun! Even the moms went down.

Might make a weekly trek down to enjoy this one again.

Welcome to Florida! It is hot.

We are doing anything we can to keep cool here. Last week we went with friends to a local beach on the lake which butts up to our neighborhood. SJ and I stayed on a blanket in the shade while all the children played at the water's edge.

The very next day, they issued an amoeba warning. We won't be going back until it cools down (a lot) and we get enough rain.

So, back to the splash pad/bubble fountain. You can smell the chlorine as you approach, so no chances of our brains being eaten by amoeba and dying.

We met the Bishops and a few other friends for a picnic and water time.

SJ screamed when I set him down at the edge of the splash zone. Not ready just yet.

Other ideas for keeping cool here: library, science center, slip and slide, sprinkler, our neighbor's pool, heading north for the summer...

The Beach Trip

For the first time ever (and I mean EVER!) we took a vacation on our own. Just our immediate family. Just Mama, The Daddy and the kids.

Scratch vacation. We took a trip to the beach. :)

Over Memorial Day weekend, we enjoyed the sun and sand and snot. Yes, our little SJ was a trooper with his snotty nose that ran for the entire trip. In those seven days at New Smyrna Beach, he got to experience lots of firsts.

First time in the sand at the beach:

Loved playing with and eating the sand!

First time to see the Atlantic Ocean

First time in the ocean: he wasn't too sure about it.

Watching the waves

Feeling the sand and salt water on his toes

These two had an absolute blast going back and forth between the beach, the baby pool and the big pool.

We stayed in the same condo complex with our good friends the Bishops.

One night we even met up with some other friends in Port Orange at Aunt Catfish's restaurant.

Aunt Catfish's is brilliant because they have a playground out front for the long wait times!

HJ, Brooke and AE

Going down the slide together!

Parker

SJ being a trooper again!

For the first time ever, we were able to put all the big(ger) kids down at one end of the table so the adults could socialize a little easier! All of us parents were so impressed with how well everyone behaved!

At our table were:

four families
19 people total
two sets of twins
7 boys and 4 girls aged 5 and under
two highchairs
lots of fun, laughter and conversation!

Racing to the beach

Just before the sky opened up, the girls and The Daddy took a walk on the ONE morning we had gray skies. Later that afternoon, the sun returned. Every day we were there was ABSOLUTELY gorgeous.

Lots of wildlife on the beach:

AE with her friend, Carter:

HJ getting in on the action:

Our ONE family shot from the whole trip:

It's been a great start to the summer!

On a Walk

Guess who I saw out on a walk the other night?

Friends with a Love for Disney

One of the biggest benefits of moving to Central Florida has got to be that it is the place where all of our friends like to vacation.

Our long-time friends, Will and Susan also have three children and often come to our part of the world to vacation at Disney. This visit afforded us a return trip to the Disney Beach Club. Awesome pool. Awesome conversation. Pool side drinks and ordering in dinner!

The big kids: