Summer Vacation!!

We recently rented a home in Oceanside, California, for a week with the Pagano family.  Cousin Nick also joined us, and was a huge help with the kids, not to mention how much Mia loves hanging with him!  We hung out on our beach for a week of long, lazy days.  The kids had a blast playing in the surf, building sand castles and making smores at the nightly camp fires.  While it was certainly a tremendous amount of hard work, it was so enjoyable to see their constant smiles and listen to the laughter and screaming!  We learned that Brandon & Aubrey like to eat sand, and that children can get sand in bodily crevices that you didn't even know existed...  It was an amazing week of quality family time!

Chaos!

No doubt a beach vacation with the kids was just what we needed during a hot Arizona summer!  However, keeping track of all the kids so close to the ocean was definitely a constant challenge..  It sounded something like this, "Where is Brandon? I've got him. Who's got Aubrey? I do. Wait, where is Mia?"  Fun...

Playtime!

The twins were overjoyed to have a private beach in their back yard!  They spent the better part of each day digging in the sand, hosing each other down, and fighting over toys.  Aubrey would skip naps so as not to miss any beach time, and then try to sleep face down in the sand!  Priceless...

Legoland!

During our Cali trip we spent a day at Legoland!  As always, the kids freaked out on rides, face painting, junk food & excitement overload.  This was our first amusement park experience where the twins were old enough to partake, and didn't simply sit in their stroller...  Let's just say it was an exhausting day for Mommy & Daddy, but absolutely worth the effort.  The joy & smiles were awesome!

Cuddles!

Before we spent a week at the beach, Momma & the kids spent a week visiting Aunt Caren & Uncle Pat, and all of their cousins.  They had a blast playing and swimming all week, and were thoroughly exhausted by bed time...  Here are Mia & Aubrey cuddling at bedtime!  It's so sweet to see the bonds forming so that it isn't always just fighting & chaos between the siblings.

Happy 4th of July!

For the 4th of July holiday we joined the Wichansky clan for a few days at the Princess hotel in Scottsdale!  The kids enjoyed long days in the pool and sand box.  We even did a little fishing, and Mia caught 2 cat fish!  She's very serious about her fishing these days...  Unfortunately all of the kids fell apart before sun down, and were sleeping soundly as the fireworks went off.  A very relaxing family getaway!
 

Zonked!

The twins started swimming lessons a few months and have fought it every step of the way!  Finally, over the past week or two they are learning to enjoy the water and actually want to learn to swim...  Both of them are holding their breath and swimming distances under water. In fact, Aubrey got in the pool with Stacy this past weekend and swam for several hours until we had to force her, kicking and screaming, to get out of the pool and rest.  This picture is her about 15 minutes later!  As a side note, look at how long Aubrey's legs are...  It's frightening how quickly these kids are growing!

Big Boy Underpants!

Brandon is endlessly silly!  Besides trying on Momma's bras and shoes, the other day he decided to try on a pair of Daddy's boxers.  Fit like a charm, huh? Look at that sweet little face...  He truly has grown into an amazingly gentle and sweet little boy.  Unlike his twin sister who is absolutely loveable, but a constant terror!

Happy Father's Day!

On Father's Day Mommy got sick and ended up in the hospital.  I know, big surprise for the Lovell family to experience medical drama!  Thankfully Mommy is fine, and was released by that evening.  Grammy & Papa were kind enough to cancel their plans and raced up to Phoenix to help out with the kids.  When Mia woke up and found that Mommy wasn't home, she was very upset that she didn't know where her Father's Day gifts were...  So, instead of pouting, she did the next best thing she could think of and created her own gift!  She filled a gift bag with her very favorite toys, made an incredible card from scratch, and proudly presented the gifts to Daddy!!  She is an unbelievably sweet child...