Plymouth Rocked!

I think I can speak for everyone when I say that our vacation to Plymouth was beyond awesome!  The house was great.  I found it online several months ago and it would have been difficult to find a more perfect match.  I think the only complaint anyone had all week was that there wasn't central air.  Shelby and I were fine cause we've become sort of used to it from living up here, but all the Texans had a bit of a hard time a couple of days.  Other than that though it was fantastic.  You could see the ocean from several places in the house and it was a short bare footed walk to be on the sand.  With three babies under one year, a super active six year old, two restless bachelors and four couples, there was always something going on almost all day long.  When one baby would get up from a nap, another one would go down.  Some days a couple people took off for the grocery store and didn't return for three or four hours.  Each couple had the opportunity to get away for a little date during the week and take advantage of the grandparents free childcare.  Shelby and I used our day to take Mia out and have some alone time with her.  There is so much to do in Plymouth and one such thing is a pirate ship adventure.  Mia loves pirate stuff and was super excited to get to go out on a pirate adventure.  We searched for stolen treasure, shot water guns at the bad pirate who had taken it, finally got it back, found some fresh lobsters and crabs and got to hold one of each and learn about them and enjoyed being out on the water on a beautiful day.  We even got Mia a cute pink shirt that said "Pirate Girl."  Afterward we took her out for pizza and got her a piece of chocolate on a stick.  

The most amazing part of the whole week had to be the 3rd of July.  I know the 4th is what you would expect me to talk about, but on Manomet Beach it's the 3rd that is the big deal.  There were bonfires all along the beach  tons of people shooting off sweet fireworks, hippies playing bongos and guitars and dancing, sparklers and people of all ages having a great time together.  Shelby was in charge of our fire and it was the longest burning fire on the beach!  Mia had a blast with her friend who was staying next door to us, Nicole.  They were fast friends and spent most of the week playing together at either our house or theirs.  

Lennon had such a good time.  He loved being in a different place and having a huge deck to explore on every day.  He really loves being outside so the beach destination was great for him.  Jackson and Lennon really enjoyed each other too I think.  They were so cute in their little swimsuits that Gaga bought for them.  I felt like for the first time I could get to know Jackson a little better because Lennon was doing so well I didn't have to constantly hold him.  He is such a funny guy.  He's always smiling and laughing and making funny noises to get noticed.  He and Lennon are both very curious about everything.  One day we went to this indoor playground called Imagination Island and all the kids had a good time.  There was tons to investigate and manipulate and the babies and Mia all had a blast!  The men all got bored and went on a little trip to WalMart while the women stayed behind to watch the kiddos.  The best part about the place was that all the babies were free and Mia was just ten bucks.  

We had lots of awesome food and played games at night and generally just hung around the house or the beach and relaxed and enjoyed each other.  One day we went out into town and toured the Mayflower II, a replica of the Mayflower that actually made the voyage from England to Plymouth in the 50's.  It was cool.  Mia and I had toured it a couple of years ago, but it was nice to see it again and to share it with the rest of the family.  It was awesome and we're definitely looking forward to more vacations like it in the future.  Thanks Nana and Papa!  

So, we got back from Plymouth last saturday and everyone except Hillary left on sunday morning.  Hill and Jackson stayed until Wednesday morning and then Dusty came in town for a little visit Thursday night and just left a few hours ago.  In the morning Lennon, Mia and I will be getting on a plane for Atlanta for Kelsey's wedding.  I've had just enough time to unpack, do laundry, clean the house and repack and prepare for our next week of vacation.  Phew!  We're having lots of fun this summer, but it is super busy.  I just can't believe this time next week Kelsey and Bethany will be married!!!