Pond Play

You all have given some great feedback regarding your opinions on child rearing in response to All My Strong-Willed Children. Keep it up! In the meantime, I'm taking a break from the heavy topic of discipline to share the last of our Michigan pictures.

Stephen's grandparents (on his dad's side) live on a large amount of property with a pond back behind the house. Grandpa built this pond himself years ago, and several generations of Cases have enjoyed it over the years by swimming there, holding camping outings and countless cook-outs, four-wheeling through the trees around the water, and even holding and attending a few weddings on its banks. I assure it, it's impressively large and really very beautiful. There's even an island, where the weddings usually are, and lots of fish that will nibble your toes. This pond is so very special to my husband and his relatives, and we were happy to share it with our kids this past weekend. Everyone gathered at Grandpa and Grandma's to celebrate their birthdays, and we made a day of play in the sun and sand.

I tell you what, nothing rivals Michigan in the summer.

Perhaps you can tell from these pictures that the boys didn't do much actual swimming. They contented themselves with throwing sand, digging, and wading. They are boys after their mother's heart.

Charlotte joined her brothers for a little while.

And the icing on the cake was getting to pet a frog that their cousin had caught. What better way to wrap up a day?

Ribbit, ribbit!