I Spy....

I spy a shark.



Click on the picture to see if you can too!

P.S. CoCo, you can comment but cannot participate!

Enjoying the beach...and a sandy self-portrait...

Wow, it's hard to believe it's only been a month since I posted here...It honestly feels much longer than that. Well, we've been at the beach for 3 weeks now, and the kids are certifiably beach bums. Do you think they are excited about hitting the surf?



Banana quickly drew a picture yesterday in a race against the surf. I managed to run to our blanket, grab the camera and snap a couple of pictures before the surf won.



I asked Banana if that was a self-portrait. She said, "No, Mama! That's me!!!" I, of course, busted out laughing. Can you see her dress has polka dots?

Summer Loving!!!

I'm patiently waiting for Spring to arrive. I'm tired of seeing the bare trees and brown grasses. I'm looking forward to scooting around on our Razors and teaching the kids to ride bicycles. The twins and KK got their first bikes with training wheels back in October. Unfortunately, we have not had much riding time.

On this cold blah day in February, I received some much welcomed mail, so much so that I want to wish Spring away (not really, but close). It was our lease agreement for a beach home in the Hamptons this Summer. I wish we could stay the whole Summer, but I'm thrilled that we are staying a little longer than normal.

I grew up in NYC and from the time I was 10yo, my family spent the whole Summer in the Hamptons. We even made the 1.5 hour trip every weekend throughout the school year. That was actually a drag when I was in high school. My parents still have their place there, but unfortunately our family of 5 has outgrown it. We've been fortunate, though, to find reasonable rentals within 5 miles of their home.

So, this is what I'm looking forward to!!!

I received my first blog award From Stilettos to Sneakers. She made my day today!!! I started following her blog because she's a fellow twin mom, and seems to have a close and crazy family like mine. I also like following her sister's blog, Life in a Hampton Zoo, because she lives in one of my favorite places. My family vacations in East Quogue and Hampton Bays every Summer, and she doesn't live too far from there.

There were no rules to follow with this award, and I'm happy to pass it on to a few more beautiful bloggers:

Mom Times Two, because she has a great blog and she's my favorite sister!

I Need a Martini Mom, because she cracks me up all the time!

the hyper homemaker, because she's coaching me to make my organized chaos less chaotic!

Boo and Hooties Mom, because I love the way she showcases her children's projects.

One Fabulous Mom, because she's just fabulous!!!

Thanks, Stilettos, for this nice award.

Our Summer - Part II

For the past 3 Summers (including this one), we have rented a house in the Hamptons for the month of July. The first 2 Summers we were able to rent a ranch home right around the corner from my parents' beach place in East Quogue. We were bummed when we found out the owners had a long-term rental in place this year. It took some scrambling, but we lucked out when we found this cute Cape by the Bay in Hampton Bays.

Me with KK and Tank in front of the house.



The ONLY negative about this house was that it wasn't right around the corner from my parents' place. This place was perfect for us though. I initially was worried about the kids sleeping upstairs while I (& occasionally, Mr. O) slept downstairs. The front and back yards were spacious for the kids to run around. We had a deck and a patio to lounge around on. We had a waterview of the bay, and we were very close to the ocean beach we frolic.

We celebrated Mim's birthday on July 1st at our house. Here she is with KK and LuLu.



We always look forward to the 4th of July BBQ at a family friend's home. The fare is normally the same...lobster tails, london broil, baked potatoes, corn on the cob. The biggest draw is the lobster tails. Well, last year there were no lobster tails...the horror!!! Everyone was stunned, and the poor host still has not heard the end of it. People are still talking about last year even though he redeemed himself by providing the tails this year.

All the kids posing at the party.



We had exceptional weather the 5 weeks we were there. I don't think it even rained more than 3 days. Our days began by packing the cooler with sandwiches, snacks and beverages; lathering up with sunscreen lotions, and heading to Ponquogue Beach.

Mr. O with the kids!!!



Me with Tank and Banana!!!



Cool dudes...the kids with their cousin, Master B!!!



No beach day is complete without having a Marino's Italian Ice. KK especially loved the cherry ice.



Check out Tank on his boogey board...



Tank is somewhere in here...what a scary wipeout!!!



Banana and her lifeguard friend, E!