Mini Photo Shoot

We had a little photo shoot over the 4th of July. We were at Larry and Jan's house (Mike's Uncle and Aunt.) They had a wooden duck that the kids were fascinated with. The duck made it into most of the pictures. I didn't get one picture where they're all looking. Oh well. We had fun!

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th of July! Ok, I'm a few weeks late. We spent the holiday in Chamberlain with Mike's family. Mike's Dad's side of the family gathers every 4th for boating, swimming, and fireworks. It was kind of interesting this year because of how high the Missouri River is. There are campgrounds completely under water. You can also barely see the top of stop signs. We still went out on the boat and did some tubing and went for a nice ride.

It seemed like we ate non-stop. Everyone brings a dish to share, so there is food galore. I feel like I put on 10 pounds over the weekend!

The kids really got into the fireworks this year. They loved the sparklers. We went through the entire pack in about 20 minutes. They also enjoyed watching the fireworks being set off.

Mike and I headed back to Sioux Falls on Monday evening because he had to work on Tuesday. We missed the Chamberlain firework show, which is always good. The kids went with Grandpa and Grandma to watch the fireworks.

We left the kids in Chamberlain for four days. I was missing them like crazy by the end! They did really well being away from us. They went to the pool, did some fishing, and played a lot outside. It was a nice break but the house was way too quiet. It was amazing how clean it stayed though!

I'm sure Uncle Mark was just thrilled about picking up a naked kid. Mike's family isn't used to being around so many naked people.

My three have their grandparents wrapped around their tiny fingers, especially Grandpa!

Lake Okoboji

I finally got around to posting the rest of our family reunion pictures. We hung out at the lake for awhile on Sunday. The water was so cold. A couple of the kids got in and played but that was it! The kids had fun playing with each other!

They all helped bury Janai in the sand. I think Janai had fun too!

My cousin's (Missy) daugher. Her name is Angel. Does she not have the best hair? Missy says they are constantly having people stop and ask about her hair.

Ethan was brave to get in the water. It was freezing!

She Said What?

The kids are always fighting over who gets to sit by me, who gets to sit on my lap, stand by me etc. One day, in the midst of a fight, Mike gave me a huge hug and said, "my sexy mommy" as he tried to keep the kids away from me. (Yeah, I know. He doesn't really watch what he says in front of the kids.)

From that day forward, the kids walk around saying, "my sexy mommy." (Ethan says, "my check-off mommy", Mia says, "my secky mommy", and Riley says, "my sex-if mommy.") They get in arguments with each other and I hear them say it over and over. Mike and I laugh when they say it. I guess it's funny because they have no idea what it means.

Well, the kids have started saying it about other people. The other day, Mia went up to Grandma Andrea and said, "my sexy Grandma." I think I saw her blush a little. It was funny. Mia also went up to Aunt Sarah and said, "my sexy Sarah." Sarah was happy she made the club.

Yesterday, Mia came up to me and said, "my secky Julie." Julie is her teacher. My mouth about hit the floor. I really really hope she doesn't say that to her. I'm guessing Julie wouldn't understand what she was saying. Mike will be explaining that one to her if she figures it out!

Hanging Out at the Lodge

My aunt and uncle arranged for us to rent a lodge in Lake Okoboji for the day on Sunday. It was so nice! It was right on the lake and there were walking trails right by it. We gathered, visited, and ate a ton of food. Some of us played games and some went down by the lake.

The kids had fun running all over the place. It was pretty stressful trying to keep track of them all. There were 11 little kids in total, so we all pitched in and helped watch them. I think the adults were relieved when it was time to head back to the hotel.

Here are some more running pictures. Does anyone else's kids run with their mouths open?

Earlier in the day, the kids were running around and out of the corner of my eye, I see this elderly lady completely staring at something. I look and, sure enough, she was staring at Ethan. He was peeing on a tree with his pants around his ankles. I pretended I didn't know him.