Day #2 at the beach

I woke to this...

Started the day by taking Erin to the pool downstairs.

The rest of the day was spent out in the sand, sun and water.

The late afternoon thunderstorm rolling in.

Brendan (above and below) snorkeling. Yes, I had my camera out in the water with me.

Tony snorkeling.

Zaye relaxing on the float.

And then back to the pool with Erin.

And then about 10pm we all went out for a night time stroll along the beach.

Fraggle Rock

After a day of sun and fun yesterday we all sat together in the living room of the condo and watched the first couple of episodes of Fraggle Rock (I bought the entire collection for my dad for Father's Day). Erin and Sean love it. Bren couldn't care less. I loved that show when it came out in the 80's, and it's even better now. I enjoyed sharing it with my kiddos, and we (except Bren) are excited to watch the rest of the episodes.

Day #1 at the beach

It's been a nice relaxing day. The kids have enjoyed the pool and the beach, and the sunset was as beautiful as always.

Zaye walking to the water from the condo.

It never fails...we always see the dolphins around sunset.

Tony and Bren finding shells in the water.

Tony, Zaye, Bren and Erin swimming in the pool.

The beautiful Gulf of Mexico sunset.

Get away

The kiddos and I are staying at St. Petersburg Beach for the next four days. My dad and Jeanne rented a condo for us right on the beach, and we'll get to play and relax. I needed this.

The view from our balcony.

Skater girl

In her pretty dress, and skateboarding.

I finally found them!

Shoes that will fit Sean!

Do you think they have them in colors other than red?

Swimming

I've been taking Erin to the pool at the YMCA every other day or so, and she loves it. My girl never gets tired of swimming. On this particular day Bren and Sean came with us. Bren swam with Erin, but Sean sat on the side of the pool texting (and being goofy).

The search begins

Over the past week I have begun my search for medical schools that I am interested in attending. I'm getting so excited. The next 6-8 months are going to be busy. Aside from regular classes I'll be preparing for and taking the MCAT, continuing to research medical schools, and starting the interview process at potential schools. I'm looking forward to it all.

Chestnut Park

Tony and I took the kiddos to one of the local parks today. Tony and Bren fished for a little bit while Sean, Erin, Maddox and I walked the trail looking for animals and plants.

Maddox reaching for a lizard...he almost got it!

On our way to the playground we saw a group of deer, including a sweet little baby. He/she was hopping all over the place just like Bambi when he was little.

After we played at the playground for a little bit, and with everyone getting "sweaty" (Maddox's terminology), we finally headed home.

Tony chased Brendan down and tickled him.

My sweet baby boy.

So happy to see this face

I love seeing this smile right here in my house.

Happy 5th birthday to Laura!

Happy birthday to you,

Happy birthday to you,

Happy birthday sweet Laura,

Happy birthday to you.

I miss you, and I hope you have a wonderful day today you rock star!

(1st three photos are from 2008, and the 4th is from her birthday party this past weekend)

In a hotel in Georgia

**Without going into too much detail I will just say that I needed to go get the boys, and we are home safe and sound. The boys are so happy to be back home, and I'm even happier. I'm going to just leave it at that. Thank you for everyone that emailed or contacted me otherwise with positive thoughts after reading the initial post. I needed it!***

I've been on the road since 3:30 yesterday afternoon, and it's now 1:17am. I'm in a hotel in Macon, Georgia with Sean and Bren (on our way back to Tampa). We are going to sleep for 4-5 hours and then get back on the road to home. Why, you ask? They were supposed to fly home on August 11th, right? Yeah, that's a whole story for another time when I'm not exhausted. Let's just say that yesterday at 2:00pm I didn't know that I would be starting a 14 hour drive either.

Good night.