"Just Keep Swimming"

That's been our motto lately and will be our way of beating the heat this summer.  We have had a few scorcher days already but the weather has actually been really nice overall!  Like yesterday it was hot but there was a nice breeze and it wasn't quite so humid.  We went to our beach neighborhood in the evening yesterday for a little "nighttime adventure" of swimming and pizza and it was so beautiful outside.  A cool breeze was blowing and the boys were having such fun in the pool and we SO did not want to go back to our rental house!

I've taken the boys to swim in the bay a few times, but now that it's hot during the day we haven't been to the beach as much.  Instead we've been swimming in our neighborhood pool, since there's lots of shade for Davis and it's free (we've been really trying to pinch pennies lately with the house building in full swing).  The pool there is really beautiful and we're usually the only ones in there, although we have met two other families there that seem really nice!

And see that beautiful women's pool house there in the back?

And this lush, green vegetation behind the swingset? 

Well, when we pulled up to the pool a few weeks ago this is what the men's poolhouse looked like...

And here's the lush, green vegetation...

This poor, weird-looking turtle is like, "What the hell, people??"

Apparently some yay-hoo was grilling at the pool one weekend and dumped the charcoal from his grill behind the men's poolhouse.  He says he poured water on it, but the coals were still hot enough to burn down the poolhouse and all of the bushes behind it.  Thanks, genius.  Luckily, the other poolhouse was untouched and the palmetto bushes in that area are already growing back.  And last night when we went to the pool we saw that they have torn down the damaged building and are starting to rebuild it.  And the pool is still usable, so that's good! :)

J and E are full-up swimmers now.  We can't believe how quickly they picked it up once they had some good lessons and built up some confidence.  It's so great to be able to just let them go swim on their own and not have to worry about them.  They really, really love it.  We still have them signed up for a few more lessons soon to improve their form and all that, though.  Jumping in is their favorite thing.

Reid is still fearless and will jump in and sink like a brick and come up smiling, but he does really well with these water wings on.  He has a good little doggie-paddle going, too.

Davis usually gets a little dip when we first get there and then chills pretty well in the shade in his bouncy seat.  

I asked Phil if he thought Davis would be okay over there in the corner by the bushes and he answered, "Nobody puts Baby in the corner."  Yes, he did.  :)

Phil and I are even able to relax and enjoy ourselves, which is really great!

The boys were doing a ton of swimming at my parents' house a few weeks ago, too.  E literally stayed in the water from 1:00-6:00 one day, except for getting out for a few minutes to take a few bites of food.  I should have made him get out earlier, though, because he was a bucket of goo at 6:00 when he did get out!  Bloodshot eyes, super exhausted, and the skin was rubbed off on the bottoms of this toes from pushing off the bottom of the pool so much.  But he was having SUCH a good time!

The "Daddy Throw" is also a favorite pool activity.

Or the "Uncle Bill" throw, in cousin Olivia's case.  I love that she calls him "Uncle Bill."  :)

Reid was very proud of himself for putting these goggles on.

Then they slid down and he kept saying over and over, "Uh-oh!  Someting's wong!  Someting's wong!"  Lol.

Just a few other non-swimming pics from my parents' house...

That was actually at our house the night before we left.  My mom was so sweet and offered to drive up and ride back with me to help out on the trip.  Phil had an exercise at work and couldn't come until the next week, so he just drove my mom's car back when he came.  It was so great to have her help and company on the drive.  Thank you, Mom (and Dad for suggesting it)!!  :)

Davis had lots of snuggle time with Popeye...

I drove Becky and Ryan to the airport in Orlando one day and J and I had a lunch date at Ikea after that.  Oh, how I love this sweet little boy...

Personal pizza night at Aunt Leslie's...

I have grown soft in my old age and was cuddling with Davis late one night when he had trouble going back to sleep (instead of letting him cry like I probably would have with the other boys!)...

Worn out from swimming...

Olivia LOVED "Baby Dabis"....

We're going back in a month for Jackson's birthday and we all can't wait!  :)