Swimming or Fetch?

Today after school I took the kids over to see their cousins. Both were very excited to go swimming. I figured they would have a great time! I thought ahead and brought life jackets for the kids in hopes they would be slightly more independent. Caleb jumped off the side a few times to Shain, but mostly stayed on the steps wanting to swim all by himself. He did a great job going under water too. He hasn't mastered swimming in any form. So, even when he tried, he really didn't make it off of the steps without a lot of help

Kendall, on the other hand, hated swimming. She had a panic attack and freaked out each time I took her in the water. I tried just sitting on the steps with her, and that was even too much for her to handle. She has never liked the water. In fact, up until about 4 months ago she would throw a tantrum and become totally panicked getting her hair washed each day. She finally is doing better with that, but I guess the fear is still there. Kendall did have a blast playing fetch with her cousins. She would throw her flip flops into the water and Rachael, Shain, Piper, and Nick would dive after them. It was really nice that they included her, even though she was not swimming. Kendall loved being the center of attention!
Time really crept up on us, and it was 7:00 before we knew it! So, we took the kids out to eat. That would be 7 kids total. We went to Chili's and we had a blast. All 7 of the kids behaved beautifully. I was happily surprised! They were polite and got along well with each other. This Chili's had the kiosks which helped. There were movie trailers and games of them. All of the children took turns playing with it, and it helped keep them busy. Piper was great with my kids. She played the games with both Caleb and Kendall. Kendall has decided that Piper needs to spend the night before they go back to Florida.
It was especially nice to be able see Christian and Shain. They are leaving tomorrow to visit their Mom in California. I haven't seen these boys in a few years, and it was so nice to see how they have matured and grown. They were both so nice to their little cousins. Last night, they were very helpful around the house too. We are really going to miss them. I hope they have a wonderful time in California, and that they come and visit us again soon!