Family Vacation

We got back yesterday from our family vacation. We went with my in-laws to Atlantic Beach, NC for a week of fun in the sun. The weather was great and we stayed in a fabulous house that was large enough to accomodate all 13 of us pretty comfortably. Now, Pierce did sleep in a bathroom, but he won't remember that. Madelyn also shared a room with her two older cousins and they had a blast together! Three little girls at the ages of 5, 3, and 2 can be pretty entertaining and they can do a fairly good job of entertaining themselves, particularly at 6:00 am. Yes, the girls were up at 6:00 every day. Madelyn usually sleeps until 7:30 or so, and she is worn out! She actually went to sleep in the car on the way home from vacation. She NEVER sleeps in the car.

Madelyn also proved our theory that she is a little dare devil who fears nothing. One afternoon, my sister-in-law and I took the three girls out to the pool. Madelyn had a great time jumping off the side of the pool into the water, and I stood there catching her. She then worked up her nerve to jump in all the way, meaning she put her head under the water. After a bit of time, my mother-in-law brought Pierce out to the pool. Madelyn wanted to go see him so I carried her from the 3-foot deep water to the wading area of the pool. Madelyn played with Pierce for a few mintues, and I suppose she lost interest. I looked up, didn't see Madelyn, asked my mother-in-law where she went, and immediately noticed her at the opposite end of the pool. I yelled out her name, she looked at me, and then she jumped in the pool at the 3 foot end. I don't think I have ever moved as fast in my life, but I swam to the other end of the pool and picked her up from the water. She looked at me and said, "I jumped, Mommy." It didn't even phase her! Meanwhile, my arms and legs are jelly and my heart is exploding out of my chest. She was probably under water for all of 10 seconds, but it was the longest 10 seconds of my life. The scariest part of it all was realizing how quickly it happened. I tried to use this as a teaching moment, explaining that she could only jump in the water when she had the attention of an adult she trusted. It certainly was a good reminder for me.

Other than that episode, things were pretty low-key. JD played some golf and got to have some quality time with the kids. I got some short breaks from the kids and was able to do some shopping and got a manicure and pedicure. I'll post some pics once I have a chance to get some downloaded.