I turned on the air hockey table after breakfast.
It mostly functioned.
B wanted to play, so I swapped out.
Then I helped retrieve the puck whenever it was stuck in the middle.
So far, personalities are playing well together. There are some clashes between Cole and Shane. They have had a few battles of words. B has gotten along with everyone.
Same with Ed.
Evelyn and Tenley stay attached to Kathleen.
Sorry, Stu. The 'Mommy-favoritism' is clear.
It's neat when they all end up playing together.
Have I mentioned Shane loves the water?
Cole popped out for a second to let everyone know he was not going near the water.
Shane keeps trying to coax him over, but Cole refused.
We did decide to go on a morning beach run before lunch.
The goal is always to spend at least an hour a day at the beach. Otherwise, we could have met up at a house anywhere.
Hats and hair curlers were en vogue.
They help keep off the sun. I wear a shirt and some sunscreen, but I stopped bothering making Shane wear anyway.
Usual pattern for the usual pictures.
We set up a base camp. Really, a pile.
The kids run off to play. Shane goes straight for the water.
If there's a lot of digging activity and/or the waves are quiet, Shane will come back to check it out.
While Shane stays mostly in the water, B and Cole switch back and forth between the two.
Evelyn and Tenley stick with the sand.
Previous to Aiden, Matt and Renee would sit and read at the beach for hours.
Post-Aiden, they come for half an hour to get some beach time and then head home.
I play the same game I always play: Vigilance.
Shane has grown increasingly impulsive and fearless. He likes to be battered about by the waves and thinks nothing about going deeper than he can stand.
Therefore, I keep an eye out. I either stay with him or further out to prevent him from passing a certain point.
B is braver than Cole when it comes to the water, but Cole is showing improvement.
They can both wipe out and laugh!
Aiden's neutral on the water from what I can tell. He soaks it in quietly with neither a cry nor squeal.
Matt and Renee expose him to the elements for a bit and then retreat to their shelter from the sand.
Parenting moment: I was cross with Shane for getting sandy after rinsing off for the car. Then I looked down at my own legs.
It takes a while to gear up, pack in, and get to the beach and back. The pool is a much quicker (and cleaner) swimming option. Jama and Ed have climbed a lot of steps this week and even gone for a couple dips.
Pool or beach, the boys use the outdoor shower to rinse off before going back in.
Shane always tries to crank up the heat and the younger boys act like the water and shampoo will scald them.
Indy stays on the periphery unless there's bacon involved.
We don't really have much in the way of structured activities. The kids mostly roam in a pack or play games together.
Electronics hit for everyone's naps.
Though the kids would all love to have them even more.
Matt and Renee don't want to let Aiden watch any TV until he's at least two. They always position him so that his back is to any electronics.
He's on the verge of crawling. Do you see the push-up position?
Shane did and he wanted to coach him!
Aiden loves all the attention.
I think he'll be similar to Shane: Super social.
Aiden got a break from push-up training when Shane wandered off (still full of energy).
Which led to a personal fitness session outside!
Shane had the boys jogging, jumping, and pushing!
Kathleen got a video of the kids and sent it to Megan. She missed B. With the baby due soon, moving, working, and lack of child-care it was a relief Nana and Pop could drive up to pick-up B, but Megan and B are attached.
Cooking duties have been split up between parents but with me being useless. Matt and Renee covered Sunday night. Kathleen and Stu made chicken fajitas for Monday. I did dishes once.
Nana wanted to go crabbing Monday night.
The kids lost interest quickly. None of them had the patience. I didn't think there were any crabs.
Until Nana caught one.
Crabbing became fascinating.
Especially for B and Shane.
I was surprised Nana was A)willing and B)capable of extracting the crab from the net pinch free.
Shane's impulsivity and curiousity risked him getting pinched multiple times.
They put the crab in a bucket of water to let everyone look at it for a bit.
It scurried off into the water later to ooh's and aah's.
Matt was the next to catch something.
After the thrills wore off, there was still the pool.
Cole doesn't want to set foot near the pool for fear that his parents will make him put his face in the water.
Evelyn doesn't want to get her face wet, but she enjoys being near Ka. Tenley seems to lack the fear gene.
B doesn't want to get his face wet, but I can see him swimming with lessons and practice. He's a gross motor skills kid, for sure.
It's been really convenient to have a pool in the front yard.
Beach once. Pool at least once. Swimming practice galore. Shane loves to show off his swimming skills to everyone. He offers to 'teach' the other kids.
Aiden has trained everyone to clap when he claps. There is a video. I will post that another day.
Jama wanted me to teach her and Ed to play Rummy. She's still got the knack.
Patrick arrived while we were playing cards! He drove down solo this year for a couple of nights. He brought a kindle and a 3DS with Pokemon Y. Shane might have mistaken him for young Santa Claus.
Stu and Ka are good about coming up with games for the kids to play.
Stu challenged the kids to hide and seek. "Whoever finds me gets everyone a prize!" Then he sat in the car and read the paper.
The boys walked all over the front yard looking (and failing to) find him. I started to ask some questions to keep them in the front without giving Stu away. I'm pretty sure he was smirking the whole time he read.
Cole was the one who spotted him first. Stu threw some pennies out of the car as their reward.
Unfortunately, the pennies were all lost in the grass. Buzzkill for the boys!
It worked out.
It was not to be, but I wish Megan had made it so that all of the siblings would have gathered. I don't always jump into every conversation, but I like moving around, listening, and being around everyone.
Everyone does a good job of playing a zone defense and keeping kids where they can get help if needed and supervised if near water. I helped replace the crab lines and hung out with the boys on the pier. Shane was swinging his line and smacked himself in the back with a wet, raw chicken, so I made him ditch his shirt.
Nighttime equals electronics time. Even when there are other options, the boys like to snuggle in tight with each other to play whatever's popular. They're a touchy-feely group.
Matt, Patrick, and I played a round of Smallworld after all the kids went to bed. I lost this time. Matt used a dragon to burn out my troll-hole. He couldn't stop laughing before or after.
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