Vacation in Florida

Rich had almost two weeks of vacation, so we decided to drive to Florida for a visit with Rich's step-mom, Julia, and a week at a resort in Lauderdale by the Sea. We took a water taxi around Fort Lauderdale, went fishing, and enjoyed a lot of beach time.

View from our resort.

On the fishing boat - before I got sick. We didn't catch anything worth keeping, but it was a beautiful day.




The skyline of Fort Lauderdale from the water taxi

The Fort Lauderdale Fire Department's boat - complete with red flashing lights!


What we came home to - The largest one made four batches (8 loaves) of zucchini bread!

Laurel, Luke and Leah Time

After Sharon and Ella and Kat and Daniel went home, we had two more days with Laurel's family. Luke loves to help Rich mow the grass. One more time before he had to get on "two planes" to get home...

Luke wanted to see Thomas the Train Engine which was making an appearance in Strasburg, PA, where they actually make the real engines like this one.

He was excited to get tickets to ride the Strasburg Railroad Train.

Leah riding on the train.

A stop at Red Robin for lunch.

And Some Quiet Times

Rich often read to the girls before he left for work in the morning or at bed or naptime. I would get up with the babies so their moms could sleep in a bit. It was wonderful to have that precious time together!

Lots of Activities to keep them all busy!

Rich bought a rather large kiddie pool for the kids to play in. He had a challenge getting it set up for them, but it was worth it - they had a blast!




We took them to Paulus's Farm to see and feed the animals, play on hay bales, and drive the "tractor."













Sparklers and Snaps on the deck...
Hershey Chocolate Ride...
Visit neighborhood playgrounds...


A full house with lots of activity!

Family time in June

Wow! It's been awhile since I posted to our blog. School ended the first week in June and the family began to arrive before I was done with school. Sharon and Carmella were the first to come in. Rich picked them up at noon on Wednesday, June 2, at Harrisburg Airport. Laurel, Luke and Leah flew "on two planes" (as Luke describes it, since they changed planes in Dallas) to BWI where I picked them up on Thursday evening. I worked Friday morning, then devoted all my time to family. Kat and Daniel arrived Friday. We now realize we should have built an 8 or 9 bedroom house!

Our first outing together was to Hershey Gardens and the Butterfly House. We all had a wonderful time exploring.