wautoma 2012

the annual wautoma post is here!  for a little look back click here or here. note to self: go back and finish 2011.  the littles officially outnumber the grown ups now and we are ever-so-grateful to have had everyone able to join us this summer.  last year matt's parents put on a beautiful addition to the cabin and we feel so thankful to have the opportunity to take over the joint for one weekend every year.  thanks, k & k!  there is an obscenely long video at the end, so I'll keep the words to a minimum and let the pictures speak for themselves. this year's highlights include:
happy travelers- our three boys were top notch riders. minus a diaper change that warranted an entire wardrobe change for the peanut on our way home, we made it there and back with nary a tear. success.

delicious food - as per our becker family vacations, this year we switched things up and everyone served an entire meal. it's fun to see what everyone comes up with and it makes it so you only have to prep/clean-up one major meal all weekend!

swimming - the air temperature was to.die.for all weekend, subsequently making the water temperature almost unbearable.  the dads were nominated to take the munchkins swimming (you're welcome honey!) and they weren't exactly pleased, but I'm certain that the smiles on the wee ones' faces almost made up for the near hypothermia.

boat rides - the cabin/cottage/lake home (choose your fave) is located on a small no-wake lake in the middle of wisconsin.  as long as the christian camp is not in session, it is super quiet and very peaceful. it also means there is no water skiing, tubing, wake boarding, or speed boats for that matter.  we are all still able to ride on the pontoon together and go for a nice early morning breakfast cruise or pre-dinner turtle watching excursion. a special thank you to the parents who took all the walking/talking tots out for a ride while the rest of us packed up the cars. amazing what can be accomplished when there are no interruptions lovely little ones running around.

optional: actual boat movement


nature hikes - [nerdy teacher alert] I arranged for the little guys to go out on a nature walk to collect special things that could fit in their bags. my teacher voice came on full force as I passed out each labeled bag and gave directions for what should and shouldn't go into their sack. after being out of the classroom since april and not headed back for another year, I was pleasantly surprised that I still had "it" - woo hoo!  alas, a little dinner bell was being rung by my favorite four month old and so I handed over my teacher duties to matt, sarah, and shawn. sarah clearly took her teacher role quite seriously...I'm so proud.  after a little post-walk-we-saw-poison-ivy, hand washing session and some dinner, I took the six oldest out to the deck for craft time.  they all listened and followed directions marvelously...except my own two. isn't that the way it always goes? argh.  the end products turned out more adorable than I could've imagined and, more importantly, they were all so proud of themselves!

slightly insane parents - eight adults, nine kids, need I say more?

binocular story: sarah is taking her turn checking out the man who is fishing out in the middle of the lake in a small boat with two other guys. why is this a sight you ask? he is wearing nothing more than a speedo swim suit. oh and nice of him to stand up and put one foot on the edge of the boat for all to see. I mean, one wouldn't want to get tan lines whilst catching their dinner now would they?

family shots - we somehow got away without a bansemar family photo...how did I allow such nonsense?


trios
we managed to have nine kidlets in little bundles of three and each trio just happens to have one odd gender.  ironic...you'd almost think we planned it that way.  here are just a few of the many attempts at a group shot with each set.
the babies

the middle ones

the big kids

adorable children - and now for one of my favorites of each little in order from oldest to youngest.

in lieu of an entire group shot, here is one of all NINE munchkins sitting still and facing forward (notice I did not say smiling...we don't profess to perform miracles here folks).

and just in case the barrage of photos above are not enough for you, here is a little video I threw together.

Wautoma 2012 from robin kroening on Vimeo.

sisters and sons

my best friend (who happens to be my sister) had her second baby boy, eli, just 15 days after reece was born. this means she is on maternity leave this summer and we are taking full advantage of it.

there have been quite a few days spent letting the big boys play in their backyard while we hang out on the deck with the babies and make sure everyone gets fed at the right time.

the beauty of being at one of our houses is that everyone can lay down for a nice afternoon snooze.
for the big boys,

the babies,

he IS my child!

and (if we're lucky) the mommies too. although, we usually end up with little ones who catch wind of the possible all-house nap and ring their dinner bells. oh well. we both know all too well how quickly these days, weeks, months, and years fly by and we have no problem slowing down and relishing every moment with our sons.