Summer Vacation - Day 1 - Setup & Relax

Our campsite for the week at Lincoln State Park.  With the help of the boys we quickly had the camper set up. 

Greg picked out a great campsite.  It was close to everything!  

 After setting up, the boys were ready to have some fun.  They quickly headed down to the beach to swim.  

The water was really warm, however, the air temperature was a little cool.  Great for getting in, but really cold getting out of the water.  Brrr. 

Love the CCC cabin built during the great depression.  The CCC or Civilian Conservation Corps built most of Lincoln State Park -  Lincoln Lake, lakeside shelter, boat rental building and many trails. 

Drying off after a swim. 

 Playing a game of washers.  It was starting to get pretty competitive.

Loved spending our first day of vacation winding down and disconnecting. It was what we all needed!

Boy Scout Lock In - YMCA

No better way to spend a cold Saturday evening in January than with some much needed pool time. Devin and Tate spent the evening swimming, playing all sorts of games, and eating pizza. Fun night out with the scouts. 

Pool Party - Tate's 6th Birthday

Tate picked a Finding Dory themed birthday party.  These cupcakes from The Pacetre where amazing.  They turned out better than I could have expected.  

I can't pick a favorite!

We rented the Princeton Pool for Tate's 6th Birthday Party.  The new pool is so much fun and there is plenty to do for all ages. 

We took a quick family picture before the party started. 

Leyton, Easton, and Tate

Tate was so excited to have his friends come out to celebrate his birthday.  He has been counting down the days for a couple of weeks.  We couldn't have asked for better weather.  

Tate working his way across the Lilly pads.  Definitely a favorite for all the boys.

I pretty sure they all think they are future Ninja Warriors. 

Devin and Lexi taking their turn across the Lilly pads. 

Greg cooling off in the pool.  The water was perfect!

Look at all those cupcakes!

Tate's birthday cupcake.

Waiting to blow out his candles. Cheesing while everyone sang Happy Birthday.

It just doesn't seem possible that he is turning 6.Where has all the time gone?  Where is my baby faced Tate?  He's growing up so quickly and he can't wait to start Kindergarten.

Making a wish and blowing out his candles. 

It took him a couple of tries, but he finally got them all blown out. 

Tate and all his friends enjoying some cupcakes and goldfish. 

Enjoying his huge cupcake!  

Opening presents - He loved this Lego set from Uncle Brad's girlfriend, Heather.  He got all kinds of cool presents from his friends.  He even got some money he can take on vacation.  We was excited about that!

One last photo with friends.

Happy 6th Birthday Tate!  We can't wait to see what this year brings.  

Fourth of July Fun - Boating, Friends, Food, and lots of rain

Our first stop on the boat- The Rock Quarry. Devin was really interested in jumping off some rocks. We found some smaller ledges that all the kids enjoyed jumping off. 

Tate's turn to jump!  

He's so graceful!  

Addy was up next. 

Then Devin showing them how it's done. After this little ledge, we moved to one that was a little higher. 

"CANNONBALL"!

Splash down.

After enjoying the quarry and eating some lunch we found a large cove to go intertubing. Devin and Addy were up first. 

Then Tate took his turn. He does like any crazy rides.

We headed back to the resort, because there was a huge line of storms coming. We did have enough time to enjoy the swimming pool before the rain hit and our dinner reservation. 

We got all cleaned up and ready for dinner. That's when the rain started and never hardly stopped. Devin, Addy, and Tate in front of the water wheel at Patti's. 

Tate was ready to eat one of Patti's famous pork chops!

Devin eagerly waiting some tasty food and amazing dessert. 

Tate and Mom selfies

Mom and Devin selfie. 

The kids at dinner. We had a really enjoyable day and the rain never stopped us from having a good time. 

Hot Weather, Cool Pool

The heat of Summer has finally arrived. We called up our good friends on Soybean Lane whom happen to have a pool. Andrea and Nick didn't have any plans and thought it sounded fun for us to come swimming. We quickly loaded up the kids and golf cart and made the trek to Soybean Lane. 

I'm not sure if Andrea and Nick were prepared for the party the Bane's bring with them everywhere we go.  We rolled up on the golf cart bringing along all sorts of stuff. 

Tate practicing his back swim. 

Can you tell how much they love to swim?  They seem to think that Andrea and Nick's pool is available anytime. If it's hot and it's the weekend, they think we need to be swimming. 

See....this is the type of party we bring when the Bane's roll up. Devin is styling in his bright orange sunglasses, all while wearing his towel like a dress and the speaker on his shoulder circa 1980s. The speaker just isn't quite the same as the giant boombox. Definitely showing my age here.

Devin is still rocking it out and not quite so sure what Tate's up too. He is so animated and has some of the silliest facial expressions. We catch ourselves saying a lot that you never know what Tate might say or do next.