So we packed up the van ... and I mean PACKED the van ... and headed to the lake with daddy's family. It was also our first time to stay in a hotel with any of the kiddos. Staying in a hotel with three kids under 2 was quite an adventure. And I packed accordingly ... planning for a 3 day stay with no toys, dvd player, fridge, microwave or washer/dryer. It was laughable. We had 2 pack n plays for girls, a big "moses basket" for James, lots of bottles and formula, life jackets, toys, books, snacks and food out the wazoo and enough clothes to last a week. Didn't want anyone to have to run around naked if there were spit ups or spills.
It turned out that chasing two toddlers around a VERY un-childproofed hotel room (with concrete floors, no couch or chairs, sharp marble tables, very fancy decor, etc.) was quite challenging and exhausting. So we didn't last 3 days. Came home the second night. But we had a great time while we were there.
As for James, he did really well on the ride. Better than I expected. I sat in the backseat with him expecting the worst, but he was content or sleeping pretty much the whole ride there and back except for one feeding on the return trip that required a few minute break on side of road so I could take him out of carseat to burp him! I think he enjoyed his rear facing view of his sisters in the back row of the van. They are quite the entertainers. He did well in the hotel, too. He's easy. No lake for him though. Being too little for a life jacket is a deal breaker for me. So he stayed in the hotel with his Jaboo (grandmother) while we played on the lake. I think she was fine with that arrangement.
And the girls loved the lake just as I expected they would. Didn't even mind their life jackets. They enjoyed riding around with the wind blowing their hair and loved swimming with everyone.
We called Madeline the "lake diva" because she HAD to have her hat and sunglasses on at all times, and she liked to lounge in the lake like this ... 
They loved playing in the little boat their aunt bought for them, and they even rode the "tube" behind the boat. 
It was all good until Annabel got bumped off during her second ride with her aunt and cousin. I think she came up a little shaken but she was fine. Scared mommy though!! Nothing like being on the boat and seeing your 22 month old bounce off the tube into the air and then hit the water, especially when she has never even gone under water before. And they even caught a couple of zzzz's on the water.
So our first trip was a success. Unfortunately, as you might of noticed from above, I forgot to take any pics of James!! Took this one on the way home. 
He was a happy camper, and a fun time was had by all.
I did manage to take a 4th of July pic of all the kiddos after we got home. It doesn't compare to last year's pic (which is one of my all time favorite pics of my happy girls) but my three little firecrackers are super cute!
Here is last year's pic. What a difference a year makes!
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