H2O

Summertime in Southern California with family can mean only one thing: lots and lots of time spent in the water! And there's nothing our pool loves more than the summer heat and visiting family... cause that's when it gets played in the most.

Can you say... Photo-Bombed!?!?

Sometimes Allen just likes to sit by himself, get some sun, enjoy a cool refreshing popsicle, and watch everyone else have fun in the pool.

After a very thorough check, it was confirmed that Catalina did NOT in fact have a set of gills... which judging by how much she loved being in the water, was a huge surprise!

William took the loss at putt-putt earlier that week a lot harder than expected... so he was determined to get out and practice, and eventually called in Allen to show him a few pointers.

William & Allen must have bonded big time while swinging the clubs... cause when it came time to hit the pool, they were pretty much inseparable!

"I like it better when you play with me Willy!

My Dad would've dunked me like three times already!"

Warm weather, a refreshing pool, family to talk & play with, and a bunch of things to float on... there really wasn't much more we could've asked for!

The kids loved being in the pool...

which made Allen want to be in it all that much more.

Allen and his pool chauffeur...

two very happy & handsome young men.

Unfortunately, snacks, lunch and drinks were not served to us out by the pool... so we eventually had to get out and head back inside to get our grub on.

Speaking of getting our grub on...

chocolate covered strawberries, Mmmmmm, delish!!!

After a full day in the sun and in the pool... nothing hits the spot like a good meal, a little wine, and some girl talk!

Amazing what a nap can do! Even after an entire day outside in the pool, Allen still found the energy for a little late night racing!  

"Duh, Sofi!  I've got the red Ducati... of course I'm going to win!"

And he didn't dare miss a chance to Skype with his Nino Jorge and show him just how much he loved playing with the airplane he'd sent him.

Of course the pool wasn't the only water the kids got to enjoy while they were here with us. Jei & I took the four kids out on the lake one morning...

...and if you couldn't tell from their faces alone, they were incredibly excited and thrilled to be out on the boat!

With the water being so warm and super smooth... there was no way I wasn't putting on the jacket, the board, grabbing the rope, and showing off a bit for the kids!

Leo's bowl of ice cream, handful of cookies, and two slices of cake he had the night before definitely came into play that morning!

Let's just say I didn't have to twist anyone's arm

to make them get into the water!

I did however, have to twist William's arm to get him to try to wakeboard. He eventually gave in and was a good sport about it... and definitely gave it his best shot, but it just wasn't meant to be.

Getting in the lake and enjoying the water put smiles on the kids' faces for sure... but when I gave each of them a turn behind the wheel of the boat, those smiles turned into perma-grins!!!

It's funny... with Sofia, I practically had to beg, plead, and bribe her to grab some throttle to gitty-up and go...

But with Leo, there was only speed: FAST!

Not so surprising though when you think about it.

As Jei would put it...

He was as happy as a bird with a french fry!

Seeing the kids as happy as they were and thoroughly enjoying being out on the lake with us sure did put incredibly big smiles on our faces!

It obviously wasn't as clear, clean, or blue as the pool water...

but we didn't care, for it made us all very happy!

Setting up the camera to get a shot of us all... on a constantly rocking boat... with no tripod proved to be more difficult than it seemed. But we eventually made it work and managed to get a really good pic.

Of all the fun, exciting, and entertaining things we did while the kids were here... getting out on the lake and having some fun on the boat and in the water was in my opinion the absolute best! And I'm not so sure any of the kids would necessarily disagree. In any event, our short time spent on the lake was well worth the trouble and was one of the best ways I know how to spend a warm summer's morning.

When I first heard that Michele & the kids were coming to visit, I was super excited. But then when I heard exactly how long they were staying, my super excitement dropped down a few notches to concerned excitement... for I couldn't possibly imagine how we would be able to entertain them for such an extended stay. Of course there was absolutely no reason for concern... cause in the end, they pretty much entertained us, and there were more than enough fun activities, events, trips, and outings for all of us to enjoy. Although if you ask Jei, her favorite was spending the afternoons cramped in the living room watching a movie and eating junk food while trying to be quiet while I slept.

To tell you the truth, their so-called extended stay seemed incredibly short! Time flies by when you're having fun... and we definitely had fun... which meant time unquestionably flew by. It was without a doubt one of the hardest goodbyes we've ever had as a family, but their time here visiting was up, and regardless of whether it went by too fast or not, we can honestly say our time together was as much fun as we've ever had. We thank you for visiting us for as long as you did... and pray you come back so we can do it all again soon! (Although next time you guys better bring Jorge along too!) We love you Felix family!