Slumming at the beach.

A weeks vacation is something that Kevin or I rarely get. We usually do "vacations" in 3-4 day long weekends, and within the last few years it would always entail a wedding or flying across the country. This year we had an actual weeks vacation at the beach! It was so nice to be with Kevin every day and have no lingering chores or running around to do. The beach we went to was very secluded and had about 100 thrift stores, which seemed so odd to me. When you walked out onto the beach there was no one else around for 100's of yards. So nice. The drive down is always a beast. We stopped three times before we even got an hour away from our home, and the boys pretty much screamed the entire 3 1/2 hours. It is so miserable to me but, Kevin seems to do just fine tuning it out and watching me jump around in the car losing my mind. Our house we rented was one of the nicest homes I have ever stayed in. It was brand new, had crown molding in every inch of the house and had ridiculous light fixtures that you would only see in Restoration Hardware. It was beautiful to say the least. We were seconds from the beach. Maybe a five minutes walk, and when you got to the beach there were no stairs you had to climb to get over the dunes. Just walked right on to the beach. I don't know about you but I hate walking up those stairs and back down them with a beach cart and 15 kids. So this alone made me fall madly in love with this beach.

Jackson loved the waves. He had no interest in anything else except for how far out into the ocean he could get. Brecken was so so. Just like when we went to the beach back in June he was very afraid of the actual water, but not to worry, the day before we came home he seemed to have overcome this and was right in there with Jackson.

We were lucky enough to vacation with one of our favorite families, The Hodsons! They are such a fun family, and their kids are so nice and fun to be around. Since Aaron makes the best bloody mary's I have ever had in my life, I hope we vacation with them again really soon.

Jackson adored their little boy Cole who is 8 years old. However, I think Cole was pretty excited to be going home after getting the Jackson treatment for 7 days. He was constantly in his face trying to sit on top of him and asking him why to every single thing he said. Cole would complain that he couldnt understand Jackson, and I really tried not to just laugh at the two of them. Although I did feel sorry for Cole, his parents assured me that he was getting a taste of his own medicine. They also have a little girl named Callie who is two and is so adorable. If you look at her at anytime of the day she busts out the biggest, most beautiful smile ever in the entire world. It melts you every time.  Brecken sure loved her. Someone actually asked if Brecken and Callie were twins. Ha! And that leaves us with Miranada. She is 9 and is so gorgeous! Her parents are going to have a heart attack someday because this girl, to me, looks like Jessica Alba as a 9 year old. She has the biggest heart as well. She loved the kids and was such a big help. We joked that maybe that is the way to have a third baby is to wait until your oldest is 8 years old.  Beth was the only reason we have ANY pictures at all. We still do not own a camera after the fiasco in Walla Walla. So thank you for providing all the pictures!

As with every "vacation" I was ready to get back home and sleep in my own bed since we were sleeping with the infamous Brecken who loves to wake up at 2-3-5am. Yes and he is 16 months.  I am also the worst person in the world to get bug bites. I swear to you I am not exaggerating when I say I had gotten about 60 bug bites, and I was dying. We had biting flies on the beach one day (which was absolutely horrible and so sad), AND poor Jackson got attacked by fire ants. The only time I can remember getting eaten alive like I did was when we went to Costa Rica back in 2007. It has been about a week, and I'm still not recovered from these horrible bites. We have settled back into our routine here at home however I miss the sound of the waves, late night card games and my bloody mary.

Jackson with the sunset. 

This was an amazing sunset. 

We were thinking about you Barb!! 

He loves her!!

Classic Callie Smile. I love this photo. Brecken absolutely adored the aquarium. 

We got two family pictures on vacation! Whoo Hoo!! 

Ummm who wouldn't want to kiss those lips!! 

 Supervising. 

Okay a few things. #1. Kevin ruins the picture and thinks he is cool. #2. Jackson is off to sea... again. 

We drove our cars onto this ferry! So fun! 

Brecken was obsessed with all birds. 

The twins...really??? :) 

Beautiful Miranda! 

More Pictures

Here are some pictures that I definitely want to share!!

We were in Costco and Brecken would not budge of this bike! I almost got Kevin to say yes to buying it! :)

One of the many HOT HOT HOT days here (107 if you can't read it) and I love that Kevin took this picture while driving 40 mph. Safety first!

Jackson is "acting" like he is sleeping. He likes to act a lot. Cute picture of pop pop and Jack. 

Me and my naked boy! 

I love this picture. Brecken is Jack's little shadow. 

Check out my hat Aunt B! 

Here is Jackson showing off his moves. He always says "Watch, Watch!!" and does this exact same move. 

Who says there is lead in the hose???!

One thing is certain...The O'Hare boys love their pop pop!

Brecken is finally feeding himself. :) 

Washing dishes. He will be a dream of a husband someday. 

Another trip to the winery! 

Landon 

He seems unsure. 

 One of my all time favorite pictures. Molly looks so innocent and I love her shoe selection. 

So handsome!

My friend Natasha gave me a CD with some pictures from Brecken's first birthday! I had to post some of these!

Leah and Landon

Jack's face is absolutely priceless! 

Jackie and Bethany

In The Summertime....

Is it August already? Phew! Between the 4th of July festivities, friends and family coming to visit, and even a wedding in Ohio we have not had much down time.

The 4th of July was fun. We had our annual neighborhood parade with some of our best friends and our children's best friends and spent the afternoon poolside. We ended the night by lighting some cheap fireworks off but just a few before we scared Jack so much that he was in tears. He would however hold a sparkler. He is such an odd ball.

Shanna and me at the parade! Shanna has the cutest pregnant belly!

Look at Caleb's jeep! All the boys were impressed. 

After the parade! Cute cute kids!!

Jack and his sparkler!

Kevin 's parents were so kind to come down and watch the kids overnight while I celebrated the big 30! We stayed at a hotel uptown and had the time of our lives! Me and couple of my girlfriends spent several hours in the hotel getting ready, laughing and taking before mug shots. Everyone made me feel so loved. I was of course embarrassed because I hate any attention, but it felt good at the same time. We met the rest of our gang by 8 PM and probably by 8:12 I was on the dance floor, and then being escorted off because I wouldn't keep my shoes on. My girlfriend Kelly said it was the most fun she has had in years, and her husband chimed in by saying "It felt like he was on Jersey Shore". I don't know if that was good or bad, but I know everyone had a memorable time. And that makes me the most happy. We felt so young, except for when we headed back to the hotel by midnight and headed back home by 9 AM. I missed the kids SO much... :)

Shana, Shanna and I

Chelsea, me and Leah. 

In the hotel drinking wine before the big night! 

It has been years since Kevin and I have been to a concert. Last one being Willy Nelson, and most of us know what happened there. It was a Tuesday night, and my friend Leah watched the boys while Kevin and I made some pretty amazing memories. Between listening to Roger Waters a.k.a. Pink Floyd's The Wall (greatest album ever), watching a ridiculous light show and paying $8.00 per beer, the concert was unbelievable and no punches were thrown. Crazy to think that we will probably never see them again in concert.

Me, Jackie and Paul!

Besides all of the fun activities we have been attending this month Jackson and Brecken are quite the comedians and keep me on my toes. Brecken climbs on everything. On top of tables, the toilet, Ziki. So in short, if it looks interesting he is on top of it. He can climb down the stairs by himself these days, which is heart wrenching but I let him do it for practice. We finally put up a mounted baby gate upstairs, and it has been life changing. And another gate into the laundry room (which is where Ziki's food and litter box reside). This is also life changing, and I don't have to find any more surprises in Ziki's litter like the kid's Home Depot power tools and the remote to the playroom T.V. we thought we lost.  Brecken also is still my human vacuum cleaner. Besides all the crumbs, leaves and debris he ingests daily, he gave me a pile of Ziki's puke. He walked out onto the porch and handed it to me like it was a cookie while smooshing it in his hand. Jackson was more disgusted than I was. He thought it was poop. Brecken is also out of his highchair, and he currently is refusing to sit in his booster. I guess watching Jackson makes him grow up a little faster. This morning when I saw him sitting on the toilet, unrolling toilet paper no less, I imagined he would be pooping in the potty before Jackson. I also walked into Jackson's room the other day and I found a curling iron plugged in no less. Our sockets are supposed to be childproof. I don't know which one did it but I assure you it won't happen again.  Brecken is still my sweet snuggle bug, and today was our first day of weaning him from nursing. It has been a rough day for Brecken, and I feel so sad deep in my gut. Partially because it is probably my last time I will ever nurse and the bond that I have felt by doing so with my boys is unremarkable. But I must stay strong because I am ready to be done, but it is so hard because he fights me.

Jackson is a crack up. His ever-growing personality never ceases to amazes me. I wish you could see the way he crosses his arms and puckers up his lip when he is mad. In fact you can see it in one of the pictures below. It is usually accompanied by a deep scream which is not so cute, but I definitely need to get a video of this before this phase is also over. Whenever Jackson wants something he tells you in a sweet high voice proceeded by shaking his head as if to prompt you to say yes with such happy eyes and a Cheshire cat grin with his lips pierced together. You almost can't help but say yes. His requests are almost always "Can we go to the pool mommy? Can we make cookies mommy?" This is something else we need to get on video. If we say no it's just as comical because he says "ahhhwwww" and has such a sad face and then he asks again. I am SO proud to say that at 3 years old Jackson can tell his left from his right...most of the time. He tells me directions in the car. He is very handy to have around since I am directionally challenged. Since summer started Jack loves to swim. Loves it. We are there every two days so I had to learn or at least be comfortable with taking both boys by myself. Our first day I was thinking this wasn't so bad, but that was until Jackson ran right into the pool without his float on and sunk to the bottom. I turned to pick Brecken up from running in the other direction, and I turned around just in time to watch him step right in like he was a human float. Luckily a mom standing close by picked him up. Needless to say he has learned to have his float on before getting back into the pool. Jackson's other most favorite thing in the world is to ride is tricycle. He calls it his "tricamooty".  It was my $5 find at this year's neighborhood yard sale, and let me tell you...it paid off! He rides it every time he sees it. Whether it is around the car in the garage or in the cul-de-sac, and he is on his big wheel in the house going as fast as he can around corners barely missing Brecken every two seconds. He rides all day long. I can not wait to get him a bike. Soon...we will get one soon.

We have been having a lot of fun this summer and I can't believe in about four weeks we will be back in school! I am looking forward to doing some work around the yard and the cooler weather, but I will miss having Jack around in the mornings.

Kaden and Grayson's Big Birthday Bash!

Super fun roller coaster! Jack, Lera and Molly.