Chris and Laura come to visit

Chris and Laura (and Brenda too!) came to visit us. It was super fun. Except for the 10 people in a one bedroom house thing. We did lots of things outside of the house, like go to the beach, go to the rodeo, go to the swimming hole, go to the park, and of course, go out to eat.

We had a little birthday celebration for Ben, and this was the treat we had. It was very yummy. Thank you Fourth of July!

The beach was probably the best ever. Ivan and Charlotte actually got in the water, for one of the first times ever. Michael and I got to swim together for once. It was nice having extra adults to help look after the kids. And for being the Fourth of July, it really wasn't as packed as I thought it would be. The only down side to hanging out in the sun all day was the sunburns. Everyone got burned except for me, Charlotte, and Ivan. We had been working on our tans a lot longer. Michael got burned everywhere his farmer's tan wasn't. Even with sunscreen on.

Getting all sunscreened up!

Everybody in the Atlantic Ocean! 

Proof that I was there too. I actually really love being in the water, but pregnancy and ocean makes me seasick. Weird. 

Then there was the sleeping arrangements. We had all the kids in the bedroom. Charlotte and Ivan had their own beds. Jane and Megan slept on an air mattress on top of our box spring. Ben slept on a pile of blankets on the floor. All the adults slept in the living room. I got the couch, Brenda and Michael were on cots, and we moved our mattress from our bed to the floor and that's where Chris and Laura slept. It was cramped. We had to have a clear path to the bathroom for all the littles that would use the potty first thing in the morning, so we blocked off the front door. There was a cot in front of the couch, so between the couch and at the foot of the mattress. The mattress was between the kitchen table and the oven and pushed all the way up to the sink. Another cot was between the kitchen table and the wall, right in front of the door. There was very little walking room. At least there was a little more room in the bedroom.

Playing at the park. 

Peek-a-boo

Ivan and Ben have a love/ hate relationship. 

Michael touched the cover! I'm so proud. 

There really weren't even enough seats in the house for everyone to sit down. It was a little overwhelming. Well, a lot overwhelming for me. We eventually moved the toys into the bedroom and made the kids play with them in there, that way we at least had a little more space. And no matter how much room we made in the house by rearranging things, there was still only one bathroom. That was pretty difficult to work with since there were 3 pregnant ladies and 3 little kids that needed to potty often. Good thing Ivan is comfortable peeing outside!

Watching the Lego Movie. 

This visit was really a lot of fun for us, even if it was a lot more challenging than I thought it would be. You never quite know just how much of a neat freak you are until other people are staying at your house. It was hard to keep my cool sometimes, especially with all the little people spilling drinks (and the puddle of water we found under our couch 3 days after everybody left, PU!, certainly made me feel more justified in asking everyone to put the top on their drinks). It was so fun to see all the cousins playing together and for the once in a lifetime chance for 3 pregnant sisters-in-law to be together. Brenda is in her first trimester, me in my second, and Laura in her third. This is also the second time that Laura and I have been pregnant at the same time, both with boys again. Pretty cool if you ask me. And even cooler when we add in Shaya, Michael's oldest brother's wife, who just had a baby boy in June. I think that technically means we were all pregnant at the same time. And even now, Shaya is in the fourth trimester, haha!

The boys enjoying the swimming hole. We had the chance to go there on Thursday, right when Chris and Laura first arrived. We were waiting for Michael to get off work and for the festivities of the rodeo to start, so we killed some time here. It was very fun, at least until it started to storm. Lightning and water just don't mix, especially in Florida. 

We enjoyed some of the local fun by going out to eat at the Lone Cabbage. It's pretty much in the middle of nowhere, right on the river. We saw a couple gators while we were eating. Michael and Chris both got to try the gator there and the rest of us enjoyed our normal food, like chicken and corndogs.

This is actually at the Village Inn, but we went there too and it should be cataloged, right?

Ivan was having a blast blowing the paper off his straw, something only Dad could teach him. I'm so proud (tear). 

Another fun activity was playing in the ditch. It had rained so much, so hard, and for so long that all the ditches were full of water and it wasn't going anywhere. It was still raining a little bit while we played, but the kids loved it! Charlotte and Ivan just went head first playing in the water. Michael got his boogy board out and started pulling the kids around in it. It was very amusing. Even to the cows, who by the time we were done playing, had all lined up in front of our house and were watching us intently. Good to know we can be just as entertaining to them as they are to us.

See all the cows? They got more and more condensed on that fence the longer we were out there. 

All the preggers in the house. This is what pregnancy really looks like. 

How many pictures do I have of me and Brenda napping on the same couch? We're just meant to be sisters.