Dog Tricks...

Evan is really good at teaching the dogs tricks! Here are just a few!

This is Gracie doing...Play Dead!

This is Cooper doing...Shake! The shaking back leg is not part of the trick LOL

Meet Mooch!

On Saturday, Bruce and the boys took the boat out of Venice for the day. As usual, they had a great time and this day was no exception! This dolphin followed along side of the boat for quite a while and even let them feed him! How amazing is that??

Back to School...

Jonah headed back to middle school in the 7th grade...a year I so wish that all of my children could completely SKIP!
It's hardest for me to believe that Evan is in the 5th grade! How did that happen? He was sooo excited to have lots of his friends transferred into a new group with him (since at his school, they have the same teachers for three years). And in case you were wondering? He most certainly did get a back to school haircut just last week!
And finally, Isabella went into 2nd grade at a brand new school this year...fortunately Evan already goes to that school too! She was excited to see a few friends from her old elementary school had transferred there as well! It was a tough day for both of us since she hasn't been in school since March, before her spinal tumor surgery, but we both did just fine!
After the kids got to school, Bruce and I packed up the dogs and spent the day on the boat...ALONE! It wa a perfect day on the bay, just cruising around looking for dolphins and stopping for lunch in Gulfport. The dogs seem to really love the boat except for when it's choppy (they jump into Bruce's lap) or if Gracie gets splashed by the spray and she runs to the back of the boat! We've decided that we'll do this again at least once a month!

Jonah's Trip to MD...

A few weeks ago, Bruce went to MD for work, so Jonah tagged along. They met up with Chelsea and Collin for dinner at CarterQue the first night then Bruce drove him up to Finksburg to spend a few days with his very best friend, Payton! They had a great time exploring the woods, playing with Sofie, their dog and going to the creek and sliding on the rock waterfalls Jonah with Payton and his younger brother, Sawyer Apparently the boys picked up right where they left off...just like when I visit Payton's mom!The rest of the week Jonah spent in his old 'hood hanging out with his posse!

Captiva Island...

We've had a pretty quiet summer so when Isabella finally got her brace off, we decided to spend a few days at the South Seas Resort on Captiva Island. It's about a 2 hour drive south of where we live and it was so nice to get away for a while. Bruce and I had been to Sanibel Island a few years ago and visited Captiva, where we completely fell in love with the Gulf coast. We always said we would return and this was the perfect opportunity!

Crossing the causeway to Sanibel Island, then a little farther north to Captiva!

Our first stop was lunch at the original Cheeburger Cheeburger on Sanibel Island!The beach at the resort...we're so spoiled by the powdery white sand beaches on Anna Maria Island (Isabella said the sand here was "dirty" LOL)

Evan had fun taking pictures of the fish nibbling on his toes!

The boys chillaxin' in the hot tub!

The resort had lots of pools, but I think the favorite was H2Whoa because of the water slides!

Where, oh where did my little boy go?Bruce, Evan and Jonah went fishing one night and Jonah caught a 12 inch Redfish!

Isabella loved going to the craft activities they had for kids! She made a cool shell frame one day and painted a coconut another day!

This stingray hung out in the water next to the pool for most of the morning!

The views by the pool were sooooo relaxing!

Weird Weather...

On Monday night, we were all hanging out doing our thing after dinner and suddenly noticed that the sky was ORANGE! The top picture is looking down our street and the bottom one is looking up the street....very strange and kind of scary! If you look closely, you can see Miss Gulch riding on her bicycle!

Spa Day!

Not for me...for the doggies, of course! Cooper and Gracie went for some pampering today andcame home looking really cute! Harley got a major brushing while they were gone, but I didn't snap his pic...as usual, he was snoozing!

A Day on the Water...

Yesterday, Isabella and I drove down to a pier on Lido Key and met up with Bruce and Kelly and the kids. We took a very short (because Isabella isn't allowed to be on the boat yet) to a secluded beach and the kids just swam, hiked and played. Then we floated the boat out to a sandbar and the kids searched for all kinds of creatures. It was soooo nice being back on the boat...even for just a little while!