Hashtag summer

 So, when we last spoke, it was the eve of a 5-kid playdate, and I was a little apprehensive.

But I didn't need to be because it was great!  Sure, the kids trashed the basement (like, seriously), but they were all so darn happy, and I didn't have to break up the usual supply of fights.

They played in the back yard, played in the basement, and even went to the park to play baseball because Harry told everyone ahead of time to bring their mitts.  I walked to the park with water and popsicles, and they were so cute!  They also loved playing with the water slide-- it kept their attention most of the day.

 I was just basically around to be a lifeguard because Dorothy and Cooper were also playing with the water slide.

 And Beatriz couldn't decide if the water slide scared her or looked delicious, so Ben had to put up a tiny fence to keep her away.  Bonus!  The kids stayed inside the fence like it was a play pen.

 Clean up exhausted Dorothy and her Solo cup full of organic cheese puffs.

 Ben was working late, so it took every last ounce of energy in my body to take everyone to the pool for a seriously half-assed picnic.

 Since Dorothy took a nap, she wasn't going to go to bed before 8 (and it was a 20 minute nap, but it doesn't matter-- if that kid spends any time after lunch with her eyes shut, a 7:00 bedtime is pipe dream), so we stayed almost until pool-closing and took showers there.  As you can see, it was kind of chilly.

The rest of the week was kind of a blur.  We really just hung out.  I went to my office and did some work.

I made cinnamon rolls from scratch while the kids played at the kitchen table.

 The first session of swim lessons ended, and the kids got treats from their teachers.  Dorothy has never experienced a Pixie Stick before, and I swear it made her a little loopy, even though I think the idea of a sugar high is crap.

We have a great children's museum in our town, but we almost never go because it's hard to keep track of everyone and engage them all in activities.  So!  In a moment of genius, I made plan with a friend who has kids Jack and Cooper's age and only took Jack and Cooper.  It was wicked fun, and the kids played for over 2 hours together while we sat around.

 Amazingly, they had the most fun in the 5 and under area where they donned animal vests and played a really involved multi-level game about being pioneers for over an hour.

 And then of course we got ice cream because, I mean, why not?  Hashtag summer.

I am so fat my arms are the size of thighs.

Seriously.

And you know what?  I can't STOP EATING.

Part of me thinks we might have another baby, so I have been reluctant to get my crazy giant eating under control (not sure how to punctuate that but OBVS mean that I eat like a crazy fucking giant (see thigh-arms)).  But then we had so much fun with our kids this weekend, and I realized that I will always have to mourn the last baby no matter which baby that is, and it's great to go out for brunch and do fun things around town with these very kids that we have right now.  Will a baby cramp our styles and strain our budget?  So, anyway, I NEED TO STOP EATING SO MUCH but today I ave had a brat and fries for lunch and nachos and champagne for dinner, so shit.

But, BONUS!  Harry got a FitBit from my parents for his birthday, so I am working so hard to keep up with him.  Which I never will.

Jack!!  LOVES TO VACUUM!  This is obviously a wonderful development.

 Moments after I took this adorable Friday night picture of these fools ordering a garbage dinner from the pool snack shack, they all lost their damn shit at adult swim, and we had to go home, which really sucked because Ben was in Chicago for a memorial service for his speech coach, so I was on my own for bedtime and planned to shower them at the pool and stay super late.  Then, to add insult to injury, I woke up the next day to see that our friends who were at the pool with me when the kids freaked out had a fun smores party after the pool closed that we missed because MELTDOWNS.

 Saturday, we took the kids downtown for brunch, which turned out to be really fun (SO WEIRD), which was the catalyst for rethinking potential baby 5.  Also, WHERE DID MY COLLAR BONE GO?  I haven't been too fat for a collar bone since the 6th grade.

 Dorothy, admiring the ceiling in the capitol rotunda

 which is worth lying on cold dirty marble for:

 WHERE IS MY COLLAR BONE?

 Back on the Terrace!

 Hams, again:

 Thigh arms and hidden collar bone at the pool.

 Have I mentioned that I love the pool?

 Ben took the boys to the PGA tournament by our house

 They were excited to see Brett Favre.

 I LOVE THE POOL SOME MORE.

 We told the kids to dress fancy today.  LOLz for days.

 Lunch!  With iPads!

 Apres-lunch darts.  Like you do.

 Arms the size of legs.  And 3 cute kids

 WATER SLIDE!

 They played outside for over 3 hours!!  WIN!!

 Family nacho and Big Brother night!  An excellent, albeit fattening, tradition.

Cross your fingers for me-- there are 5 10-year-old boys coming over here to hang out all day tomorrow.  Gulp.

Summer. It's pretty great.

I am so tan I look like a California Raisin (there's a dated reference if ever there was one), and I use sunscreen every time I go to the pool.  I am starting to take it personally--like I have too much area to cover for sunscreen to help me.  I definitely need more than a shot glass, that's for sure.

 Cooper had his first tee ball game, and even though it didn't start until 15 minutes before the little kids' bedtime (fuck you, summer activities.  some of us put our kids to bed super early so we can watch bad TV and drink vodka lemonade slushies), we all went to watch, even though we knew that would probably end badly.

 Dorothy just sat in dirt and threw it.

 He was a good batter

 All she wanted to do was run into the park.

 Eventually, she just threw herself in a volleyball court.  I had to take her home when she started eating the sand.

I worked in my office on Tuesday and then woke up in a panic on Wednesday morning because I couldn't find my computer.  I ended up driving a half an hour downtown to look in my office and see if it was there (it was!) and we detoured by the lake for some cute pictures.

 Little hams.

 Nobody fell off the dock?

 She had to sit in ALL the big chairs, not just one

 Things started to deteriorate.

 Harry was really excited about the heart-shaped rock he found at the pool.

 Ben and I had a lovely date night on Wednesday and then veered into the Toys R Us parking lot on the way home to buy everyone a surprise.  Which of course they fought over.

 This little cutie spent the day with us. It was fun to make little toddler meals again.

 And of course, my favorite place:

 Beatrix took a surprise dump in Dorothy's room today, but she got her own plate of breakfast anyway because pancakes are her favorite.

 We had a family Big Brother viewing this morning.  I love that show!

Ah, summer.