Gratitude

Not only am I blessed to have two boys, I am blessed to be part of an amazing extended family that will help one another out whenever needed.

We had arranged for my parents to watch the boys while we were in Cabo. Unfortunately, my mother's back pain was getting worse and needed surgery the week before we were due to jet off to Mexico. (Thankfully, her procedure was a huge success and she is relatively pain free! Hooray!) I was a little worried that we would have a difficult time finding substitute child care with short notice especially when everyone has busy Summer plans in full swing.

Connor assured me that we would have to trouble, he had a few ideas up his sleeve. He made a few phone calls and voila- his family came through!

It's hard for me to believe, but I think Nick and Nolan might have had more fun hanging with the fam than we did in Cabo. I say this purely based on the excitement in their voices and the endless stories they keep sharing with us each day.

Their week started off with a four day stay with Aunt Kim and Uncle Ed at the ever popular Cousin's Camp. I believe this is their 7th annual Camp surrounded by all of their cousins on Connor's side. Campfires, paintball matches, swimming, fishing, you name it--they did it! Nolan even told me he got a "third nipple" bruise from one particular paintball adventure. He was beyond thrilled with his new injury. Boys are strange.
Then Aunt Lee and Uncle Terry agreed to take the boys for the next few days... Here they spent almost all of their time perusing the beach in front of their home. They live on the Puget Sound and there are never ending treasures hidden beneath each and every barnacle covered rock. Serious fun for kids in the 10-12 age range! Besides, their aunt Lee provided them with enough food to feed an army and is uber sweet! A short trip on uncle Terry's boat found them at Hope Island... This was Nick's "favorite" part of the whole week. They explored the island with their cousins Madison and Colten. I imagined them looking like Tom Saywer and Huck Finn when they were telling me about their fun day on Hope Island.
They even got to spend a day with Christina and Paul (Connor's cousins) where they played and played 'til the sun came down!
The next installment of fun for the week was spent with their Grandma Pat and Grandpa Joe aboard their lovely boat cruising around the Puget Sound. They were picked up from Lee and Terry's and began their new roles as shipmates. They helped when it was time to dock in the two ports they spent the nights in. The boys got to sleep on the upper deck of the boat out in the fresh air, they LOVED it. They caught some crabs and tried their hand at fishing. I have no doubt they have made memories they will always remember.

I feel blessed to be part of such a wonderful family. Not only did they go out of their way to help Connor and I with our last minute favor, they showed the boys how much they are loved, and made the week away from mom and dad a fun-filled adventure. We really appreciated everyone's help with juggling the boys and all of their STUFF. It was reassuring to know they were in capable and loving hands.

THANK YOU ALL!!!