Red, White, & Blue Party!

Our cousins Dean, Jaime, and their kiddos Zane & Peyton have expanded their home, added a pool, and are having a party to celebrate!!!  With the 4th of July right around the corner, this is a Red, White, & Blue party!!!  Kate & Gabe had a blast going between the giant blow up water slides and the pool...so much so that I could only get them to stop long enough for this one picture!

Grant, on the other hand, got loved on by Mommy, Grandma, & Grammy...as we all tried our best to stay cool under the tents!  It was soooo hot today!  We should have brought our bathing suits to swim with the kids!

Grant's serious face...

It was so hot that he didn't want his bottle, so he got to try his first sip of Gatorade.

He wasn't a huge fan, but did drink a little.

And last, but not least, Grant got to have a little playtime with another baby.

These two were so cute looking at each other!  I definitely need to find Grant some friends his own age.  :)

Fun at the Condo

Today is our day to just relax and enjoy our beautiful condo!

Our morning started out slowly and then we headed out to the pool!

After a couple hours, cousin Andrew & WaWa showed up to join in on all the fun!!

Grant and I got in the pool a few times,

but we also enjoyed just relaxing and watching Kate & Gabe from the lounge chair.  :)

While relaxing, these two tiny butterflies came and landed on my foot!

They stayed there for about 2 minutes before flying off...

After several hours at the pool, we went to the condo to dry off and get ready for more fun...tennis!

The kids have never really played before, but had fun learning.

However, it was 100 degrees outside today....so our game of tennis was very short lived!

They look almost ready to play professionally.  :)  Okay, maybe just ready to consider tennis lessons...

Once the heat became too much, we wandered inside and found the game room!

After a morning and afternoon of fun, we went to a local Mexican restaurant...with a face painter!

Kate always enjoys this, but I was shocked that Gabe also wanted his face painted tonight.

Grant didn't get his face painted, but after dinner he was ready for even more fun!

Our final event:  Putt Putt!!!

Our condo balcony looks out over the putt putt course, so the kids and I have been looking forward to playing ever since we arrived.  But, what I should have realized is that any game with Jon's family...even a kids' game...is a competition.  The intensity became too much for Gabe and me so after about 9 holes we decided to break away from the family and just have FUN!  Before we went off on our own, we were able to watch Kate get a Hole In ONE!!!  She is standing at her lucky hole in the picture below.  Great job Kate!!  :)

We had sooo much fun today, but we sure are tired!

Kate put her babies to bed, Gabe snuggled his loveys, and the kids were fast asleep within minutes.

Busch Gardens Williamsburg

We've been looking forward to today all week....Busch Gardens!!!  We debated what to do with Grant, but when Jon's mom offered to keep him for us at the condo, we accepted her offer.  He was able to stay cool and snuggle with Packy all day and we were able to be at the park having a blast from open to close.  It was a great day for everyone!  We missed our little boy though and can't wait to bring him here when he's a little older!

The weather couldn't have been more perfect today....high in the mid 70s!!!  Earlier this week and later this week the highs will reach near 100 degrees!  Anyway, we got our tickets, got situated in the park and figured out what all we want to do today, rode a few kiddie rides, then stopped for lunch and a show.  I was so excited that this place changed their show this year...to Grimm's Fairy Tales!  Kate & Gabe were able to sit on the little mushroom barstools right in front of the stage to eat and watch.

Afterwards, the characters scattered around the restaurant for pictures!

Next to the restaurant:  go-carts!

Gabe still isn't tall enough for the big go-carts, but he had just as much fun on the little ones.

A Family Favorite!!!

Time to Fly!

Walking by this trash can, Jon noticed something a little out of the ordinary...a squirrel!

This little squirrel kept jumping down to get food and then back up to the ledge to eat.  :)  

Next, we decided to let Andrew stay and play with the kids while the rest of us went off to ride roller coasters!!!  Andrew doesn't like to ride, and Kate & Gabe aren't tall enough, so it worked out great!

We left the camera with Andrew so that he could capture some of their fun.  :)

Silly Kids!

Back together again, time to get wet!!!

And while already wet, we might as well get wetter!

Kate & Gabe both think they are too big for Elmo, but they did enjoy a couple rides here.

Just a cool tree on the street...

Making the 48 inch mark, Kate is finally eligible for a real roller coaster.

To say she was excited would be an understatement!! 

Like many theme parks, Busch Gardens offers "parent swap" to help everyone ride without too much wait if you have a younger child in the group.  So, Jon got to ride with Kate first, then I got on next to experience it with her!  And let me tell you, this was a great first roller coaster...two upside down loops and lots of fast drops.  Kate LOVED it!!!  :)

Let's go again!!!

Gabe was disappointed that he couldn't go on Loch Ness with us, but he and I had lots of fun ending the night riding Grover's Alpine Express over and over....until the park closed!!

Kate joined us for the last couple rides too.  :)

At 10:00, the rides were shut down and we were forced to head to the cars....but even that became a fun ride!

 

We had a BLAST today.  We're all exhausted, but it was a fun day.