Bay Lake 2009

We've been home a week, and I just decided tonight that if I don't sit down and sum up our trip I'll probably never do it. So because I'm exhausted and ready for bed, I'm going to let the pictures do most of the talking. I certainly have a ton of pictures so that shouldn't be too difficult.

We were blessed this year to be able to take these very dear friends with us for the first week.
I can't even begin to explain how much fun we had! The Holdhusens are such great friends - their friendship is a giant answer to prayer after moving to KC - and the PERFECT family to have with us at the lake. They're laid-back, FUN, love to laugh, don't mind sharing beds and tight spaces, don't require luxurious accomodations and are just easy to be with. They also have 4 adorable kids, and as you can tell, 3 of them are boys. This means that Brad and Kristin aren't surprised by "boy behavior". They don't get uncomfortable when one of our boys isn't acting perfectly, and they don't get embarrased when their kiddos are less that perfect. We both just "get it" and we can laugh about it together!
I can't forget to mention how much fun it was to have Princess Lauren with us. Surrounded by boys, this girl is such a joy.
And having 3 big brothers, she doesn't mind getting a little dirty.
Our boys had so much fun with the Holdhusen boys. I think all of the kids had a ton of fun. After all, Bay Lake really is a kid's paradise.

Here they are playing paddle tennis...And pretending to play paddle tennis...Watching fireworks...Playing on the beach and in the water...Lots of playing (and wrestling, of course) on the trampoline...Just hanging out...
And, of course, there was lots of boating and tubing...And I can't forget to mention the giant slip & slide because these pictures are just too funny...Yes, those are life jackets wrapped around them like a diaper to "soften the slide" a bit. It still looked quite painful if you ask me!

I wish I had some pictures of our nights AFTER the kids went to bed because that is when the real fun began! We played a ton of games, ate lots of ice cream and s'mores, laughed A LOT and had some great talks. We also killed a mouse and a bat during the week - well, I guess Mike and Brad did. Kristin and I can't take any credit for that, although I'm sure our screaming was supportive and made them feel very manly.

It really was the perfect week, but all good things must come to an end, right?! So the Holdhusens went home on Saturday, and we got to spend another week at the lake. While Michael worked a lot of the time, the boys got to spend time with Mimi & Papa and their aunts and uncles, as well as some older cousins.

Here are some family pics...
The entire Rothwell clan...With Mimi and Papa...

Each of the boys had a great time at the lake. Levi seemed so much older this year and enjoyed the lake more than ever before. He definitely became a fan of tubing.
Although I can't say the same for Ben. Maybe next year.
Levi spent the majority of his time on a boat. It was difficult to get many pictures of Levi because he was too busy, but I was able to get a few. OK, more than just a few...
Levi really loved hanging out with all of his older cousins, especially Stratton. I realized on this vacation that our little boy is growing up.
Ben was hilarious the entire 2 weeks. That kid definitely keeps me shaking my head, wondering what on earth he is doing. He especially enjoyed going potty outside in the bushes. And that has proven to not be such a good idea because it takes a lot longer to get to the potty at home than it does to get to the nearest bush. Let's just say that he hasn't been judging that time very accurately lately.

On land and in the water (where he was most of the time), Ben was quite the little poser this year.


I just love this picture...And this one is definitely one of my very favorites from the entire trip...
And Graham - well, he was Graham. He has turned out to be quite the stubborn little guy. He was all about Mommy on this trip, which is not unusual. It's sweet, but it's also incredibly annoying at times. I'm just being honest.

But how could we not love this little guy to pieces?! He fell in love with ice cream cones. Actually, not so much the cone itself, as he liked to put his entire face down into the cone to get out all of the ice cream without biting into the cone.
Almost every day we walked down the lake to the greatest little ice cream shop. Here we are even on a cold day...
They boys had a great time together, and I was reminded of how special it is that they have each other as constant companions and playmates.
Because after all, it's so much better to have a companion when you walk around with your hand down your pants. I think I'll end with that one.