And a few more pics.

I feel terrible that I didn't take any pictures of my side of the family...no pictures of my treasure hunt with Tanner and Kylie, no pictures of our picnic at my folks' that night. In my defense, I was exhausted that day!

All I got was a few pictures from Kylie's very first t-ball practice the night before we left for home. She's the girl in green, and her dad, my BIL Ky, is the coach. These kids could NOT have been any cuter!

When I first started scrapping, I was too much of a photog. A million pictures of every little thing--too many. Now I've gone too far in the other direction--I never have a camera handy when I need it, and I never seem to get pictures of the things I wish I had afterwards. There are so many people I left out of the photo record this visit! And when you only make it home a couple times a year, it feels so much more important to get everything on film. Or on memory card, to be more up-to-date.

I think that's partly why I stopped trying--it all felt so important, I started getting tired of feeling like I needed to have a camera attached to my face all day long. I'm wondering if I need to make a list of the pictures I definitely want during a trip, so I can at least get those, and not feel so bad about missing so much.

More vacation pics.

I seem to only be able to put a few pictures in a post now. Delightful!

Here's a few more pics, me with Miss G:

Todd's dad sailing his boat:

Todd driving the pontoon boat on a gorgeous chilly lake evening:

Me enjoying the sunset boat ride. It's been two years since I've been to the lake in the summer, and I forgot how wonderful it smells and how beautiful it is. It's honestly one of my favorite places on earth. So many happy memories there.

Back home again.

Got home Saturday from a week in Ohio over the Fourth of July. It was so nice in Ohio, I didn't want to come home. It was humid the first few days, but after a day of rain--on the Fourth--it got wonderfully cool. Still sunny, but a cool breeze--I mean, it was really heaven.

I had planned to spend most of the beginning of the week at the lake where Todd's folks live, getting more time in with my SILs and nieces and nephew. But my parents ended up having a few days free, and I spent quite a bit of time with them. It might sound silly for a 35-year-old woman to say, but I quite liked having some "mom and dad" time--having them all to myself. It happens very seldom, and it was really nice! I also had breakfast with a couple of my aunts, my sister and my cousin Janine, did a little shopping with my aunt Carol, and had a treasure hunt with Tanner and Kylie.

It's always hard when we're at home--no matter who I'm spending time with, I feel bad that I'm not spending it with someone else. Even with a week's time, there still wasn't enough time to see everyone I wanted, and to do everything I'd planned.

But it was still great. I hadn't realized how much I miss cornfields, and barns, and gently rolling hills. I honestly wished I didn't have to come back to Newport News.

Some pics:

Angelo, Evelyn and Gianna on my FIL's pontoon boat. I can't believe how big they all look!

Gianna and Angelo playing with balloons inside. The Fourth was so rainy, we had to do a few indoor things with the kids. The balloons kept them busy and happy for a good 45 minutes. Here's Todd showing them how to draw a face on a balloon. Then they deflated it and watched it get tiny!