Today is the Day.....

Today is the Day that I start to play catch up with this silly blog. There are so many things happening that I've wanted to talk about but of course won't allow myself because I want to be caught up first. I apologize for being such a slacker, there has been good reason.

Ok, so way back in August my brother Shawn and his family came to visit us. It was a blast! It was their first BIG vacation so we wanted to make it really great for them. The boys all counted down the days until they came. It was so fun to watch all the boys play and get along so well. I think they really bonded and made some good memories.
We all went to the Aquarium which is always a hit. I don't have any good pictures of that because my battery died after 2 shots. Bummer! But it was fun. I love when guests are in town, it gives us a really good excuse to eat at Ivar's. Another day we all went to Great Wolf. As many times as we have been there, it still doesn't get old. We love that place and it is so much more fun when you go with another family. After watching Josh be so brave Tate decided he wanted to go on the big slides and loved them. He just needed a little push by someone his own size. We even got Tony to go on the Howlin' Tornado again....surprise surprise....he even liked it. The kids would beg to take turns going down the slides with both Tony and Shawn. They made the rides faster and crazier. It was a blast! We all were completely spent by the time we got home. One day all the boys went outside and got the ride on toys and raced down the hill. They looked like they were having so much fun, totally something I would have done as a kid. They got the hula hoops out and it was hilarious watching them boogie. Mason impressed me the most with how he could do it around his neck. Yes people I even tried it. YIKES!!!
The Steel kids hadn't ever been to the actual ocean before. So we caught a ferry and headed over to Whidbey Island. We drove up to the Lighthouse and was pleasantly surprised to find
Ft. Casey. We spent some time at the beach imagining that we could see straight out into the ocean. The best part of the whole day was Ft. Casey though. The kids had so much fun running like crazy through the whole place. It was a blast and the scenery was absolutely beautiful. We were so sad to see the end of their trip. It is so hard to say goodbye and especially after such a great time. I do have to admit I was relieved when Belle stayed with us though. She sure loves her Uncle Shawn and Aunt Tammy. There were many no's to me and begging for them. It was really great to have the Steel's here and hope they come again. We love them and miss them always!