Wamsted Crazy Beach Week: Making Pizza with Daddy

each night at the beach, a family takes dinner. jay/millie and paul/i (let's be realistic here: Paul and Millie) usually team up to prep dinner for all 25+ people!

this year, we had a little extra help! they were SO serious about pressing out that pizza dough!  everyone working together. but this has to be my favorite picture with Audre Kate looking up at Paul. no telling what she was "saying" but it was clearly important! we had a delicious meal of homemade pizza and salad with brownies and ice cream for dessert.

yumminess!

the "Little" Girls First Day

pretty soon the word little isn't going to apply to these little girls!
they are going to MMO one day a week and started Wednesday. There were literally no tears...from anyone! I think they might have been a little nervous...or confused.

it completely amazes me how much they've grown up even over the past 3 months!

toddlers into little girls.
with personalities (and opinions) abounding...addie was all about taking pictures with them... ...right up until she was done! :) and this just amazes me! such big girls! there was some sweet posing and sweet smiles and then it quickly turned silly when i told Audrey Kate to stand up and apparently she thought i meant for her to put her hands up! the picture i didn't get (because i was laughing so hard!) was when i told her to put her hands down...and she reached down and touched the ground. ;0) just a little bit literal maybe?and not to be outdone, the silly face emerged and left us all laughing!  
happy 1st day of MMO little girls! we love you!

Addie's First Day of K4

Our big girl started K4 this past week. She's doing 3 days at school and 2 days at home. We're doing math and reading and having so much fun here!

She went to school for a one hour Meet and Greet on Wednesday, and then we were out of town Friday. So Monday was her first full day!

I'll be honest with you, i saw tears. big crocodile tears. and they weren't from me! we've developed a bit of anxiety over anything...and everything. last night: tornadoes, gingerbread men, the little boy who wasnt nice to her at the ymca, being sick, that her throat hurts and she's coughing, and gymnastics.

um...can we say avoidance strategies.

Addie was super excited and at the same time my-tummy-hurts nervous.

My mom and I, a bit last minute, pulled together a first day of school dress for each of the girls.

I was pretty pleased with how it turned out! I'm pretty sure my mom's amazing. Just saying.

Audrey Kate was more than willing to lean close to addie and have her picture made. love this picture of them!
anne perry, on the other hand, not so much. 

but i love this. love that he loves her so much. love that she loves him so much.
and when i picked her up, happy as could be. all smiles. so i know tomorrow will be another good day. it's the little girls very first day at MMO. they have the most amazing teachers, addie's 2 year old teachers, and they'll be just fine!

now...if i can only get people to stop asking me what are you going to do with yourself? umm...let me get out my list, and i'll get back to you! ;0)

Wamsted Crazy Beach Week: Treasure Hunt with Papa Ray

the wamsted crazy beach week was about 30 minutes from gulf shores where my dad and step mom live. my dad met us at the hangout, a big tourist place, for a pirates and princess breakfast. we had no idea what we were in for!

about mid way through eating, they announced that the treasure hunt was starting. of course the little girls weren't going to let their big sister go without them!

so my dad held down the ship table while we headed out on a treasure hunt. i could only understand about half of what this guy was saying. something about clues and searching for treasure and it must be here or wild goose chase over there!

finally we found the treasure! everyone got a bag of gold and all the girls got sparkly butterfly rings to go with their wands the princess had already bestowed on them and eye patches they tentatively accepted from the unintelligible pirate!!
and who knew they'd think those gold coins were the greatest thing ever! and what does one do when they get a bag full of gold coins? count them of course!

1...2...3...5...6...7...8...9...10! why yes!

*since then, we've been practicing counting. addie and i will count with anne perry and practically yell the number four before she can continue to five. so far...

1...2...3...5...6! yeah! 

Wamsted Crazy Beach Week: Shucking Corn

each night at the beach someone is in charge of dinner. there are enough couples/adult kids for each night but one. in the past, we've eaten leftovers, but there were no leftovers we could scrounge together for our kiddos this year. might have something to do with the big kid cousins. maybe ;o)

so between uncle ron and uncle dennis and ms gail, we had a shrimp peel feast along with fresh corn and a pull-everything-out-of-the-frig-throw-it-in kinda salad.

so a few of the big kid cousins were sent outside to shuck the corn. since addie was the oldest of the grandkid cousins, she got to stay up later and tag along with cousin graham (also known to her as raham) and cousin timmy!  cousin graham showed her how to peel the corn and pull all the strings off, and she was extraordinarily serious about her job! (no, that is not her drink sitting there!) then the other big kid cousins, travis and duncan, joined in! and between them and this little corn shucker...

the corn was clean in minutes!

Wamsted Crazy Beach Week: Reading

if there's one thing about Wamsteds, it's that they love to read.

books were started and finished at the beach. numerous books, the lengthy, tiny print kind; some by the same person!

and there was no shortage of big people to read to our many little people!

from the great grandparent generation...

to the grandparent/great aunt/uncle geneartion...


to the aunt/uncle mom/dad generation.

some of the oldest of first-cousins-once-removed...

to the oldest of the second generation of cousins-once-removed...

to the youngest of the cousins-once-removed...a mere 12 years older than our addie.

as i scrolled through these, it made me once again thankful for the many people who loved our girls well that week at the beach. we are so blessed to have generations of precious family on all sides of our families. i am so thankful our girls will grow up with such sweet memories of spending time with cousins and aunts and uncles and grandparents. blessed. seriously blessed.