gone fishin'

Last weekend the kids were pulling fish out of the water hand over fist. It was getting so out of control that at one point Tom told them that no one could cast again until he gave the go ahead. It seemed that if their lures touched the water they'd be reeling in a fish.

Drew was pretty excited to be catching some fish. He hadn't caught one since he was Julianna's age. He did have a traumatic event involving a lure stuck in his forehead, just above his eye, last spring...so I can understand the hiatus.

Lily gave this same look when she caught her first big fish.

Julianna is quite proud of her big brother.

And Drew is quite proud to tell Julianna all about it.

This is after things had calmed down. Lily was waiting for another bite.

Drew is checking on his lure here. Thankfully he hadn't caught anything because you'll notice that his pole is laying behind him on the dock.

Tubing!

Lily took her first tube ride of the summer this weekend. At first she was a bit nervous. But she soon was directing Tom with her hand signals and loving that she could get daddy to do whatever she wanted! At one point we had to stop the boat and explain to her that she needed to only give signals she meant, otherwise we might go faster than she wants, or stop when she doesn't really want to stop. She didn't really ever take that advice to heart.

Drew was on the boat with us at first, but he was TERRIFIED! He was worried that he was going to fly right out of the boat if it got going too fast. Finally, we took him back to the cabin and he waved good-bye. As he was headed up the hill to safety he turned back and yelled, "Have fun on your boat ride, Lily!" What a sweet boy! :)

Lily loves the water. I have a feeling I'm going to have to hold her back from starting swim team too early. She began asking when she can swim in her first swim meet months ago. I'm going to hold her off as long as possible. Swim team is a big commitment for her and the entire family. She's going to have to finish all the levels of swimming lessons at the YMCA; plus the new program called "competitive lessons" before joining the team. That way I can hold her off until she's at least 8, maybe 9....right?! .

Lake time

We have been spending a lot of time at the lake this summer. Lily is old enough and a good enough swimmer to be trusted swimming all over the place. The rule is as long as she can see me, and I her, then she's okay.(Her ability to swim all over the lake is the reason there aren't many photographs of her!) Drew has become much more comfortable in the water just in the last few weeks. He's willing to explore along the shallow part of the water close to the beach. He no longer panics when he slips or loses his footing. Julianna is a baby no longer. She is perfectly fine exploring the sand and water with or without me. Although, she's always with me. :) I have found that the life jacket is almost more dangerous for her to wear because she is so small. I make her wear it a lot, but not always. The girl can't move or walk with it on...so, we are flexible with her wearing it.

Anyway, I thought I would share these pictures because the lake is a big reason I have no time to be blogging!!