Pool time

Love being lazy in the lazy river at our community pool...

Good times!

Cooling off at the Pool

 What do we do during the hot summer days here in Texas?

We go to our community pools... 

We have 14 of them in The Woodlands.

With one summer pass we get to use them all!

This is our favorite!

Love this shot! :) La Class!

Summer Swimming Champion

As previously blogged, Amelie had an awesome summer swimming season.

Her breast stroke was out of this world.

She did very well in the championship meet and even continued to go to regionals and even State!

Her daddy took her down to Corpus Christie with Justine and Clara for the State meet.

She got 1st in both meets in breast stroke!

What a beautiful, strong little athlete!

Splash Town with Cousin Clara!

Clara came to hang out with us for a week. 

This year, since we are having a few visitors that can use some fun cooler stuff to do 

during the very hot Texas summer, 

Amelie and I got season passes for our local water park: Splash Town.

The girls had a lot of fun! 

Clara slept for 2 hours in the shade, because Amelie and her stayed up 

till like 2 am to wait for uncle Mike to come home from work. 

He has been working very long hours...

Amelie on the other hand was like the energiser bunny! 

She kept on going and going.

I went with her in the lazy river where I would try to buck her off my back 

as I was swimming like a dolphin. 

She would hold on to my swimsuit as long as she could...

I did that for what seemed like an hour! 

I definitely got my workout for the day!

Good memories!

The Swim Team Breast Stoke Beast

 Swim Team started again at the end of April.

After school practices, Saturday morning meets.

Justine is actually working this year for the pools again.

 She has been assigned to help with our swim team!

Life has gotten a little more busy.

I don't mind, because I love swim team! 

I've been taking the kids to practices and meets for the past 15 years. 

(Minus one year, the year we moved to Texas.)

I love the benefits and what the kids get from it:

* Team spirit. 

* Keeps them busy during the summer vacation.

* Uses up energy.

Well, not so for our 10-year-old-super-energised-girl.

She can go from a 7 hour swim meet; 7:30am till 3pm, 

to playing for an hour at the pool; 5 to 6pm, 

to a ward picnic 6 to 7:30, 

( all In the texas heat)

to a rollerskating party 7:30 till 10pm!

That day just about killed Mike and I!

* Exercise.

* Endurance & hard work.

* Strength.

* Discipline.

* Learning from great coaches.

* Cheering team mates. 

* Seeing us cheer for them, in a loud way!

(not that they hear us when they are in the middle of a race)

*Self Improvement.

Always stretching one self to beat your own time.

* Healthy good old Competition.

* Family time.

This year Amelie surprised us all by being so close to the pool record in Breast stroke at 18.78 

Pool record in her age group 17.44 including the boys 9-10!

This year she beats them all!

It just happened out of the blue in the 1st meet!

So little, yet a B E A S T in breast stroke!

That girl is all muscle!

Emric is pretty good in Breast too.

Here, she is the fast one in lane 3.

When Mom Forgets & 'Can You sing a song'?

How to make sure mom does not forget to buy the Flippers!

 A couple more were around the house and one on my car door handle.

Do you think I forgot today, like I did yesterday? 

Well, I'm happy to say that Amelie showed up today at her Summer Swim Team practice 

with a set of brand new flippers!

    Car steering wheel                  Coat closet                        Kitchen cabinet

 Toilette door                         Front door                      Garage door

Tonight after we said our family prayer, and read from the scriptures, Mike said out of the blue:

Emric, can you sing a song?

Like a 16 year old boy is going to sing a solo at 10 at night!

I found it so funny! 

Well kinda...
Not really, since at that time of night, I just want everyone to disappear...

 I told Emric he could go to bed.

No need for a bed time serenade...

Just so every one knows we are not a musically sound family,

Well, Alexi is, he can hold a tune and play the guitar beautifully.

Justine was also descent at piano when she was taking lessons. 

Unfortunately we left the piano in Ohio when we moved to Texas. 

So sad...

Boca Catalina - Last Snorkeling Swim

After discovering these beaches on our last night, 

Mike and I decided to come early morning and do some snorkeling one last time,

before we had to catch our plane back to the States... 

The water was just too inviting!

So we got up early and snorkeled from 7:30am till 10:30am.

IT WAS AWESOME!

We then got back to our room and checked out by noon!

There were lots of boats that would stop by and let paying snorkelers in the water for about 30 min. 

I'm so glad we brought our own gear! 

We snorkeled everyday but 3 and for 1 to 2 hours each time, at 3 different spots...

In Aruba you can pretty much get to nice underwater wonders from the beach.

I must say though, nothing will ever be as beautiful as the Great Barrier Reef in Australia!

Unfortunately, in Aruba, a lot of the coral has lost it's color and died from careless divers who step on it.

  
  
 

Some of the fish we saw among many...

An octopus

Lots of Barracudas

Schools of fish of all kind (a favorite)

A sting ray

2 eels

And so much more!

God's creations are Beautiful!

Eagle Beach @ La Cabana Resort

Today we spent the day by our hotel relaxing on the beach.

No where to go, no rush, no responsibilities, no work... 

A book, a magazine, a camera/phone, white warm sand, perfect clear water,

and each-other...

Pure joy, bliss, togetherness and laziness!

“Nothing is a given. Everything is a gift.”

Oh My Heart!

 

Taken with my Galaxy S3 phone and the underwater setting on the Vignette App!
Awesome!

Baby Beach Snorkeling & Mike's New Swim Stroke!

After some wonderful snorkeling for a couple of hours, 

beach relaxing well deserved (especially for Mike)

Mike has been such a trooper trying to keep up with me with his still healing shoulder and knee.

He came up with his own special swim and was all proud of himself when he showed it to me saying: 

"I can keep up with you now!"

Oh how I wish I had a video of it!

It would be worth watching!

It goes like this:

A dolphin kick with a synchronized doggy style arm movement.

It's a good thing that I lead the way otherwise my mask would fill up with sea water from laughing!