Miscellaneous Pool Pics

Some random pool pictures from a few weeks ago...

Queen of the pool...

So happy to be in the pool and hanging on my legs

Kelly loves to swim by herself in her jacket and chases Shelagh around the pool

For the 2 minutes she spent out of the deep end with me and Kelly! 
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Finally, SUN!

The only thing missing from our weekend was Joe (who has been happily golfing in Ireland with his buddies).  Also, if I had had even 30 seconds of free time I might have picked up my camera and gotten pictures, but alas I did not.

We've had

1. FUN & FRIENDSHIP (pool is open and hanging with the pool gangs has begun)
2. COMFORT (thank you, fantastic hot and sunny weather finally)
3. ADVENTURE (van landing on top of Boulder - see previous muffin post - and extraction damage-free!)
4. SLEEP (exhausted children who don't get out of pool ALL day sleep well!)
5. ENTERTAINMENT (go Kung Fu Panda 2 to break the pool time up and give us a quiet and dark reprieve from the intense excitement of the summer beginning)
6. MOMMY-TIME (well planned babysitter during Joe's time away to give me a little Ladies Night at a lovely restaurant in Boston)

Have also discovered...

1. Kelly has 2 top molars that are already poking out on top that I had no idea about.  PRAYING that this explains her newly displayed strong will that is driving me up a wall.  Also, her 5am waking.
2. That not sitting down for 3 days straight b/c I'm chasing Kelly around the pool and trying to get her not to escape and jump in the big pool without me is not good for my feet.
3. That Shelagh is bored of me and after 4 days in the pool, I've only swam with her for 2 minutes one of those days.  BOOOOOO.  We spent a half hour last night snuggled in bed giggling together b/c I feel like I haven't even seen this kid!
4. That Rory, although swimming most capably without his bubble this year, exhausts himself in the water until his behavior has gotten truely rotten.  I was hoping to be able to exert most of my energy with Kelly and not also manning Rory-ville for "bad kid at the pool" crap.  We have instituted a required hourly break time out of the pool for him.  Also, he lost his Leapster for 2 weeks for a) walking out of the bathroom naked, b) yelling at another kid for playing with his torpedos, c) squirting adults in the face with his water gun, and d) screaming in my face for trying to get him to fix items a), b), and c).

Thank God Joe's trip is coming to an end!!  Also, I miss  him.  Next time, he better get International service on his phone so I can complain to him directly and send him pictures of the van on top of a rock.  I guess that's why he didn't get International service on his phone.  Hmmmm...

Art

Shelagh and Rory woke up Saturday morning (while I slept over a delayed wine-tasting party hangover) and decided to be wonderful to each other all day.  Joe said they just sat down and started coloring, handing each other crayons, making suggestions, and just being nice.  It's been awhile.  They came up with some beautiful stuff!

Shelagh's interpretation of the kids in this family as you can tell by the 2 big red heads and the little brunette.  The straws represent the sunset and the grass.  I love that she always makes her hair and Rory's red.  She used to be kind of embarassed about her hair, but she seems to have fully embraced it now.

I don't know if anyone but Mollo will fully appreciate the genius of this drawing by a 5-year old Star Wars fanatic.  The big guy in the middle is a spider droid.  The other guys around it are some Jedi's and some clone troopers - all lovingly labelled by Rory himself.  This kid just LOVES Star Wars and has now gotten all his little friends at school into it too.  Further, most of them, their parents tell me, have not even seen any of the movies yet, but can describe much of them due to Rory's detailed descriptions to them.  That's my boy.

Mary Poppins

Yesterday we went to see Mary Poppins at the Boston Opera House with my mother in law and the big kids. Poor Kelly stayed home with a sitter (although she was perfectly happy to see us off when we left) - good thing b/c she never would have made it through the 3 hours. The show was good - a bit of slow 1st act (Rory was a total pain in the ass despite the 3000 snacks overfilling my bag) followed by a higher energy 2nd act. You don't see tap dancing a lot anymore, but that's what they did for the chimney sweep number. Rory was dancing in place and clapping along at that part. Shelagh was mesmerized the whole time and thrilled to get a little MP umbrella toy on the way out. We had a yummy meal at the Cheesecake Factory in Boston afterwards and then paid the babysitter a fortune for having Kelly for 7+ hours. Pricey day, but worth it.

2 Irish Guys & a Smiling Girl

Missing Kelly!

Rory and his true love - Ketchup

The girls snuggling at dinner

Kids & their Mimi

Curious Creatures Bday Party

Both kids loved it. I , on the other hand, am anticipating nightmares!


Kelly & I with Chomp, the alligator (note the rubber bands around his killer teeth) and Rory holding the Chinchilla.


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Skiing !!

We dropped Kelly off with my mother in law and went skiing at a local mountain with the big kids. It was my first time back skiing in about 9 years. DAMN was I scared. Joe took the kids out while I did the whole rental thing and snuck out alone for my 1st run. I had some guy and his daughter giving me a pep talk up the lift and somehow I managed to make it down quietly and secretly behind Rory and Joe. After 2-3 runs I was able to ski with Rory without Joe sticking close by. By the end of the day, I could ALMOST keep up with Shelagh. She's like Speedy Gonzales zipping all over the place. She's a nut.


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2010 Sledding Fun

We ended up with probably 8-10 inches of snow and LOTS of wind which piled it up nicely. We went sledding on Saturday and the kids went again today. Luckily, our neighbor has a nice little hill and loves to have the kids use it. Kelly loved being outside and was a trooper over an hour later when her cheeks were like little ice cubes. I'm convinced they go out only for the hot chocolate after they get back in. Oh well.

Kelly in the sled & Flashback to Shelagh in the same suit in the same sled...

Flashback to Rory in the same suit in the same sled...

Moms 60th Bowling Party

Who knew my kids would LOVE bowling so much! And, it wasn't just b/c

• Rory was wearing his glow-in-the-dark skull and crossbones shirt - or -
• that there was dance music and disco balls - or -
• that the food of choice was hot dogs, pizza, and huge cups of juice - or -
• that Rory got a kids Yellow bowling ball and Shelagh a Pink one (favorite colors matter a lot in our family) - or -
• I beat Joe in bowling (ok, the bumpers were up for the kids and it worked in my favor - BIG DEAL. Plus, Joe insisted the only reason he lost was b/c his jeans were on the snug side and he didn't have the lunging range of motion he would usually have) - or -
• they got to stay WAY past bedtime (which sucked for us when we tried to get them to bed later)

They've been once before but it was a long time ago. We'll have to go again!

Outside Art Display

Not only did we get a new driveway, we got a new art platform for Shelagh! Perfect for the new sidewalk chalk we got from the picnic last week (which the kids left out and Joe promptly drove over).

Crabbing

We went to a picnic thrown by Joes boss last week in Manchester-by-the-Sea, MA. It was on a nice lawn at a marina/park and was a lovely day. The event finished with the kids crabbing off of the doc. Below is Shelagh holding her string with hot dog tied to the bottom and pulling crabs up. Then they dumped the bucket of crabs out, watched them crawl around and sent them back to the sea. The kids loved it!