Pool Party!!

On Saturday we had our big pool party! Andrea had been planning this party since before we even moved in to our house, it was an exciting day. The weather has been kind of terrible lately and almost every afternoon there have been some pretty major downpours. We watched the weather all week and were really worried it'd ruin the party.

We invited a bunch of neighbors and friends over and had a great turn out. There were around 70 people that showed up and a lot of children too. We had considered hiring a lifeguard at one point and in retrospect, it would have been a great idea. There were at least 4-6 rescues of children during the party. Heather, our neighbor, jumped in to the deep end fully clothed and with her iPhone to save one of the little boys. I stayed close at hand around the pool to keep an eye on things, but there were so many kids and so much going on it was tough to really keep track of everything.

I had plans to take pictures during the party, but was preoccupied with hosting and worrying about children drowning so I never got around to it. Thankfully Grandpa and Grandma Vernon took some pictures while they were there (they had to leave early to meet up with their moving company at their new house), or we probably wouldn't have any pictures at all.

Grandpa took this quick video at the beginning of the party.

Andrea went through a lot of considerations on food for the party. We thought about ordering pizza, or doing some food ourselves, but wanted it to be yummy and nice. We ended up going with Heirlooms catering and were very pleased with how it all turned out. They made gourmet macaroni, grilled veggies, salsa bar, guacamole, mini CAB burgers, avocado summer rolls, mini rockin' chicken tacos, Oreo truffles, empinadas, and brownies. They also served the food and drinks: pineapple-strawberry rum runners and cranberry-orange martinis along with beer outside. Everyone I talked to said the food was great, and I thought it was too.

Finally, a couple pictures of my beautiful wife, who put it all together. Great job Andrea!

Pool Complete!

Our pool is finally complete! We have been enjoying it for a couple weeks, but didn't want to post the pictures of it until everything was finally in place. We used Island Pools for the construction and were very happy with the entire process. RD Gray, the owner, was awesome and everything turned out as nice or nicer than we expected. We were originally given a 60 day estimate for the entire pool construction, but from the time the hole was dug to the time it was completed was about 45 days.

It was a very overwhelming process when we look back on all of it. Lots of decisions. Everything was custom with this pool from the size, shape, structure, color, water features, screen, pavers, tile, coping, etc. It's hard to believe that our pool started with this picture. I drew this on our iPad months ago and tweaked it a few times until Andrea liked it. In the end we flipped it, removed the fountain in the spa, and added some more benches, but the overall shape and style is very close to this.

The last couple weeks, we've been getting the landscaping finished, a few minor details fixed, and the pool set up and converted from freshwater to salt water. I took the "final" pics just before we had our neighbors over for a pool party.

We had a walkway put in around the side, which has come in very handy.

We got lots of landscaping put in around the back and sides.

Andrea did an amazing job picking out plants and decorations as well as furniture for the pool. We've got some extra tables and decorations in these pics for our pool party.

Soccer! Giant Alligators first Fall game

Saturday was the first game of the new season for the Giant Alligators! It was neat to get their old team back together. All the same kids are on the team except Corey, who is replaced by a new boy named Evan. Their practice last week was canceled due to rain so the kids had one practice, on Tuesday, and then their game on Saturday.

All the boys looked energized and ready to play. Connor ran really well and wasn't hesitant about getting in the middle of the action. He was pretty sure he scored six goals, but we counted three or four. I got a few of them on video and some of his good defensive plays too, but not everything. 

Grandma Alice came with us to the game.

 

Good job Buster!

Connor puts Paige to bed

It was bedtime for the kids and Andrea and I were exhausted from a long day, sitting on the couch, finally getting a chance to relax. Neither of us wanted to wrestle with Paige to get her to bed. Andrea turned to me and said "I wish I could just snap my fingers and she'd just be in bed."

I thought about it for a second and then turned to Connor and told him that he was in charge of Paige for the night and he needed to get her ready for bed. His eyes lit up, he was excited for the challenge and the responsibility. Andrea and I sat back and enjoyed the show. It wasn't done smoothly or quickly, but Connor got Paige up to her room, got her pajamas on her and then tried to get her in bed. Paige thought it was all very funny and ran away from Connor until I went and told her very sternly to listen to Connor.

I brushed Paige's teeth and then Connor read her some books before finally turning off her lights for the night. Connor is an awesome big brother and I thought it was a very special and fun moment.

Sissy swimming in our pool

Paige had, what we hope, is a big breakthrough in her swimming.  Paige had really been enjoying our pool, but never did anything except splash around in the very shallow areas. We tried doing some work with her in the deeper parts of the pool, but even when we held her she was terrified and wouldn't enjoy it.

This past week, on Tuesday Andrea scheduled and took her to Ms Michelle to get a refresher on her ISR swimming skills. Paige shrieked the entire time, but did fairly well. On Wednesday, Andrea was out in the pool with the kids and she texted me to come out and see my daughter. When I got outside I was impressed to see Paige floating on her back and having a blast. Andrea had finally gotten Paige to do her floating in our pool.

I grabbed my camera and took a bunch of pictures and a couple videos.

 

Great job Sissy and Mommy!

 

Beaches restaurant and Vilano Beach

On Sunday afternoon, we drove out to Beaches Restaurant for a late lunch with some friends. The restaurant was on the water and we sat in the sand by the water. The restaurant was on the inter-coastal waterway, not the ocean, but it was still a neat atmosphere. The kids had fun playing in the water while we waited for our food.

Paige found a cute chair to sit in, but she wasn't in the mood for a picture.

After we ate, everyone went over to Vilano beach for some fun in the ocean. The waves were bigger than at the other beaches we've been to and Connor had a great time jumping in them. He played quite a bit with Colton, who's the same age and also started Kindergarten this year.

At the end of the day he got cold and had to snuggle with Mommy.

Paige played in the sand with Clara's kids most of the time. Danny and Sophia were very good with her and Paige had fun digging in the sand and chasing a ball around the beach.

 Paige liked jumping in the sand with Danny and Sophia.

It was a great time, although it was a bit of a sandy mess when we left!

New buddy Trevor

Connor's got a new buddy that he met at the bus/bus stop. Trevor lives down the street and also recently moved in and started Kindergarten just like Connor. They are so similar and get along very well. They both are even about the same size with the same hair color and complexion. Trevor came over a couple times this past week to play and swim. The boys have had a great time together.

Every day when they get off the bus, they're begging to play together.