I have to say, I enjoy Facebook on days like these. It was filled with friends and family posting their pictures of the kids on their first day of school. I, of course, added to our yearly ritual as well. Thankfully, I'm not getting groans from the kids yet, but I'm sure they are coming.
Last week was our last hurrah. We went to the state fair, ate lots of food, went to back-to-school night to drop off school supplies, Trevor forgot his, baseball practice then headed out to the lake for the only time all summer our family of four was there. Thankfully, thankfully, THANKFULLY we got gorgeous weather both Friday and Saturday we were there. We were able to be lazy and gradually enjoy waking up and walking around, and then the four of us went on a boat ride for the afternoon. The kids stopped and jumped into the lake at three spots, and since the lake has not gotten rain for a while, the algae had started to bloom. It is a river/creek fed man-made lake, so at least it doesn't have completely still water, but it was still bad on shorelines. Saturday, we got to say happy birthday to a very fun girl, and visit with my cousins kids. Again, THANKFULLY the weather was spectacular, so the kids played for hours in the water, went on a pontoon ride, and then got showered and changed for dinner. After dinner, the kids got a little more time to play, girls on the ping pong table with Russ, and Trevor and JJ played their video games. Then, they played a baseball game before ending on charades. Gwen requests that every time.
We came back on Sunday, and it wasn't very good weather anyway. We had a fun birthday celebration to get to! First birthdays are always fun, mostly because the kid has no idea what they are getting into, but seem to understand that for some reason it has to do with them. It was a great evening.
Monday, I spent the entire day getting ready for today. Grocery shopping, whoops, I forgot one thing, so I had to go back a second time. Major laundry to make sure all the right clothes were washed (more for the girl than anything). All the darn paperwork that needs to be turned back in to the school. Making the kids fill out their lunch wishes for the first month of school. It took all day, but it all got done.
Then today: Gwen was excited for the day, and found out the night before that Trevor said he was nervous. At first, that shocked me, but the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. He's hitting that age where he really cares about what other people think of him. Its not so much anymore about doing the work. He has no issues with that. His words about being nervous were something about how he was afraid the new kids would be mean to him. I made him make sense of that thought by asking him what he would feel in the reverse situation. I told him I had been a new kid and I was more worried than anything because I thought that everyone would have already made their friends. He was also sad to see the summer go, but I think that is normal. Thankfully neither kid was up late with nerves or excitement. I remember 4th grade was the year I was up past 2am on the first day of school because of my nerves. In the morning, Trevor didn't want to get up, but that's him not wanting to get moving. He was up. Gwen was not up, but was good getting moving, again because she was so excited.
We decided to walk to school, and while protesting at first, Gwen made it, and she told me that she did not want to walk home. I figured I could accommodate because she would be exhausted and probably not willing to walk back. Trevor was out the door and running to school. Guess those nerves wore off! We got to school in plenty of time. I asked Gwen if she wanted me to walk her to class, and at first she said no. I told her that I would say good bye to her at the office, and then she said she wanted me to walk her to class. I was fine with that. She found her hook and took out her stuff, and seemed very confident to walk right into class. She said good-bye with a giant smile on her face. I'm pretty sure she didn't see me choking up. But I took a deep breath and moved over to Trevor's room. I saw him going 100 miles and hour with a fellow classmate from last year. No worries from him.
So I had a whole day to myself. I treated myself to dinner with a friend at Crave. I had a salad and dessert and didn't have to keep checking the clock! It was amazing! I filled the rest of my day with little things. And quickly it was time to get the kids. I met them in the front area, and Trevor was good, but Gwen was on the fritz. She was SO crabby and I could tell hungry, thirsty and exhausted. Now, she would never admit it, but immediately she was yelling at me that she didn't want to walk home. I explained that I brought the car, but that wasn't good enough. She couldn't even walk to the car. *scream scream* *whine whine* I asked her to talk about her day and she didn't want to. So I asked Trevor. Then she wanted to. We got home and she wanted to eat something sweet. I had her finish her lunch. It wasn't as uneaten as I thought it would be, but after she had eaten, it helped a bit. She had homework to do, but didn't seem like she wanted to do it. Anyway, bottom line, Gwen was tired, Trevor said he had a great day and was all smiles. He really enjoys how often he rotates classes for different subjects. They have about a third of their class as not being in their last year's class. That is nice.
So for now, we will plod ahead to get into some sort of routine. I have some big events to plan for in the coming weeks already, and I don't know how I'm going to pull them off. We shall see.
Showing posts with label summer activities. Show all posts
Showing posts with label summer activities. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
The Summer? The End
Well, I won't dwell on the fact that there are some things about the summer that weren't exactly perfect: Namely the weather and the fact that labor day weekend is the first time all summer that we as a family will be traveling to the cabin. Yikes. But no, instead I choose to remember the great times we had this summer. These last two weeks were done in style. We had a few days of nothing on the schedule so the kids could just hang out at the house. But mostly we had to pack in all the things we wanted to make sure we did before the summer was done. I look at the list, and thankfully we did all the things we had to do, but did not do things we could do when it was winter. Last week, the big event was Valleyfair. It was a hot day, unlike last year, so we spent a few hours in the water park. Gwen was happy in the splash pad, and going around the lazy river. That's up my speed to at this point. Trevor went on all the roller coasters this year, and even the giant swing. Next year, he'll have to try Steel Venom when it is not closed for repairs and maybe the Power Tower. New for him this year was Wild Thing. To which he said, "was that supposed to be fast?" Good for him. He should ride those coasters while he can!
This week, we went to a friend's pool one day and the State Fair today. Both gave us some great memories. It was a hot day today, but luckily a friend gave us a great free giveaway and I never knew how many places had free water, as long as you had your own container. We ate everything we could, and barring any investigation by CPS due to lack of nutrition today, I think we had a great one! Cheese curds, mini doughnuts, frozen grapes, milk shakes, french fries (a LOT), chocolate chip cookies, lemonade, Icees, beer (for the adults), a giant pickle for Trevor, and there could have been more. We visited the Twins shop, the skyride, agriculture building, the cows, pigs, horses, sheep, giant slide, butterfly building (Gwen lasted 3 minutes because she couldn't take the things flying in the room), the maze, trampoline, and tried to stay in the shade as much as possible. Did I mention it was hot? Thankfully they had a lot of "mist-ers" out spraying people or blowing a fan with a mist-er on it. It was very nice. And we lasted 8+ hours. Gwen had a few piggy back rides, but really she did great walking around. No big complaints. Lots of smiles and good times! That was really the theme to the summer. Lots of smiles and great times!
This summer the family got to visit Dr. Johnson and family in South Dakota. The kids were excited to be in a new state for them. It was a lot of fun to see so many fireworks on the 4th of July. We got out to play golf on the small par 3 course by our house. I did not golf much at all this summer, but we had lots of fun other places. We visited the city pool a few times and had some great weather and not so great crowds. I was happy about that! Trevor got to camp and I didn't have to do anything except bring him to the place. He did not come home with a million mosquito bites, and he wants to do it again next year, so I'd say a success! There was a lot of baseball played, by both kids and I'm sure it will ramp up from here. Even Russ got in on the action when his Twin's Fantasy camp reunion game was played last weekend at Target Field. Trevor got to really see him pitch and pitched himself on the very mound that the Twins also pitch off of. It was a great experience for everyone!
Although Trevor says he's not happy that summer vacation is coming to a close, I think there is a part of him that will be happy to see his classmates again. He knows that with summer ending, comes winter and cold and says he doesn't like the cold. We'll see. Next summer will be here again before you know it. And with the kids having little tastes of fun things to do in the summer, I know we'll be doing a lot more of this summer, in the future summers. But for now, I too am happy for school to be starting. I love that I'm going to have time to volunteer more at the kids' school, and get a better idea of what I can do with my time having them at school. So we'll see what this next change brings. Hopefully lots more fun to come!
This week, we went to a friend's pool one day and the State Fair today. Both gave us some great memories. It was a hot day today, but luckily a friend gave us a great free giveaway and I never knew how many places had free water, as long as you had your own container. We ate everything we could, and barring any investigation by CPS due to lack of nutrition today, I think we had a great one! Cheese curds, mini doughnuts, frozen grapes, milk shakes, french fries (a LOT), chocolate chip cookies, lemonade, Icees, beer (for the adults), a giant pickle for Trevor, and there could have been more. We visited the Twins shop, the skyride, agriculture building, the cows, pigs, horses, sheep, giant slide, butterfly building (Gwen lasted 3 minutes because she couldn't take the things flying in the room), the maze, trampoline, and tried to stay in the shade as much as possible. Did I mention it was hot? Thankfully they had a lot of "mist-ers" out spraying people or blowing a fan with a mist-er on it. It was very nice. And we lasted 8+ hours. Gwen had a few piggy back rides, but really she did great walking around. No big complaints. Lots of smiles and good times! That was really the theme to the summer. Lots of smiles and great times!
This summer the family got to visit Dr. Johnson and family in South Dakota. The kids were excited to be in a new state for them. It was a lot of fun to see so many fireworks on the 4th of July. We got out to play golf on the small par 3 course by our house. I did not golf much at all this summer, but we had lots of fun other places. We visited the city pool a few times and had some great weather and not so great crowds. I was happy about that! Trevor got to camp and I didn't have to do anything except bring him to the place. He did not come home with a million mosquito bites, and he wants to do it again next year, so I'd say a success! There was a lot of baseball played, by both kids and I'm sure it will ramp up from here. Even Russ got in on the action when his Twin's Fantasy camp reunion game was played last weekend at Target Field. Trevor got to really see him pitch and pitched himself on the very mound that the Twins also pitch off of. It was a great experience for everyone!
Although Trevor says he's not happy that summer vacation is coming to a close, I think there is a part of him that will be happy to see his classmates again. He knows that with summer ending, comes winter and cold and says he doesn't like the cold. We'll see. Next summer will be here again before you know it. And with the kids having little tastes of fun things to do in the summer, I know we'll be doing a lot more of this summer, in the future summers. But for now, I too am happy for school to be starting. I love that I'm going to have time to volunteer more at the kids' school, and get a better idea of what I can do with my time having them at school. So we'll see what this next change brings. Hopefully lots more fun to come!
Friday, August 2, 2013
One month to go
We have one month left of Summer vacation. This month will be remarkably less busy than the other two months. Baseball is done for both kids. Gwen was happy to be done playing with the boys. She did really well and I think it really helped her get a feel for being pitched to. She can usually get a hit, and did the last few games of her season. Trevor wrapped up his season just two weeks ago. Unfortunately they didn't get any hardware, but played their hearts out. He was a bit disappointed that he didn't get to pitch in the playoff games, but his last game, he played 1st base the entire time, and I have a feeling that is where his calling is. The kid knows the rules of the game and loves getting the opposing players out because they turn the wrong way off of first base.
Last week we had their team party at a local park. It really was good to get together one last time with these people. I hope to have the same experience this year at hockey. I only wish it would be under warmer circumstances.
Also this week, the kids were for the first time in Camp Kota. I had heard good things about it, but decided that this year both kids would try it out. I had thought it would be a great fit for Trevor, but not sure about Gwen. Turns out she loved it, and was very upset that she wasn't old enough to do the overnight outdoor camping experience that Trevor did. Although Trevor had a cold all week, he still made it through and said he wants to do it again next year. That week was the most time I had by myself all summer, and will be for the rest of the summer as well. So count that as a win for everyone!
We have already gone to get the kids school supplies, so we are well on our way to being ready for school. There are a few family or group activities that we have yet to cross off our annual summer list of things to do.
Oh...one thing I do have to document. Gwen had her end of the season golf event a few Fridays ago. Although Trevor was not in golf league this year, I asked and he could come to the event if he wanted. They play a few games and such, so he said he would come along. I honestly don't know what had gotten into Gwen but right away she started whining and yelling at me. Before finishing the first game, I explained that if she did it again, we were going home. Sure enough, she continued, so that meant we were going home. Once she realized that I was serious, an all out temper tantrum ensued. She was on the ground kicking and screaming. Trevor was looking at her dumbfounded. I know the entire golf course was looking over at us. I finally got her to walk, although she did not stop screaming. Trevor thought we were just going to move to the next game, but I explained to him that we were done. So home we came, and after she had calmed down, I think she too didn't know where that came from. I know kids do things like that, and I know it does happen a lot in the 2-3 year old range, but I'm trying to think of a time where she EVER did something like this before and I can't. She can usually calm herself down to the point of at least quietly pouting somewhere. Regardless, that day was shot for things to do. So we just hung out at home.
So here's hoping for the last month of summer to be actually summer like! Cheers!
Last week we had their team party at a local park. It really was good to get together one last time with these people. I hope to have the same experience this year at hockey. I only wish it would be under warmer circumstances.
Also this week, the kids were for the first time in Camp Kota. I had heard good things about it, but decided that this year both kids would try it out. I had thought it would be a great fit for Trevor, but not sure about Gwen. Turns out she loved it, and was very upset that she wasn't old enough to do the overnight outdoor camping experience that Trevor did. Although Trevor had a cold all week, he still made it through and said he wants to do it again next year. That week was the most time I had by myself all summer, and will be for the rest of the summer as well. So count that as a win for everyone!
We have already gone to get the kids school supplies, so we are well on our way to being ready for school. There are a few family or group activities that we have yet to cross off our annual summer list of things to do.
Oh...one thing I do have to document. Gwen had her end of the season golf event a few Fridays ago. Although Trevor was not in golf league this year, I asked and he could come to the event if he wanted. They play a few games and such, so he said he would come along. I honestly don't know what had gotten into Gwen but right away she started whining and yelling at me. Before finishing the first game, I explained that if she did it again, we were going home. Sure enough, she continued, so that meant we were going home. Once she realized that I was serious, an all out temper tantrum ensued. She was on the ground kicking and screaming. Trevor was looking at her dumbfounded. I know the entire golf course was looking over at us. I finally got her to walk, although she did not stop screaming. Trevor thought we were just going to move to the next game, but I explained to him that we were done. So home we came, and after she had calmed down, I think she too didn't know where that came from. I know kids do things like that, and I know it does happen a lot in the 2-3 year old range, but I'm trying to think of a time where she EVER did something like this before and I can't. She can usually calm herself down to the point of at least quietly pouting somewhere. Regardless, that day was shot for things to do. So we just hung out at home.
So here's hoping for the last month of summer to be actually summer like! Cheers!
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
Summers are just so crazy!
Here we are, under 50 days before school starts, and there has been so much filling up our time. We had thought to be done with baseball by now, but Trevor's team is in playoff mode. They have their first playoff game tomorrow, and could be done for the season, but are hoping to win it to move on to next week. Gwen finished up her season last week and got a very nice medal to commemorate her year as a baseball player.
Due to baseball, our 4th of July was quite short. We decided to head out to South Dakota on the 4th, and stayed two days before going back on Saturday. We were able to see Derek and Kyrsten's new place and enjoy some family time and great food!
Trevor finished his first round of hockey clinics last week and he seems to have had a good time doing it. There were a bunch of kids that he knew so he could have some fun with them. Previously, we have done clinics where most of the kids were from around the metro - Edina, Savage, etc. So I think that was fun for him to play with his pals.
Gwen has been doing lots of "camps". Mostly gymnastics, but one week was an American Girl Doll camp. She was in heaven! She had things to give to her doll and things that she got to do to herself. She had a PJ party day dressing up like her doll and a spa day so she could have cucumber slices on her eyes while she relaxed and had her nails done. She has had a few classes where she knew the girls going in, but she quickly makes new friends if she doesn't know anyone. She found a girl from her school but not in her grade and they became fast friends because of their common background.
Last weekend I was able to golf for the first time in Minnesota this year with my dad, Russ, and Trevor. It was a warm day, and very sunny. Honestly, it was perfect. I did not play perfect, but I missed my golf! It is one of those things that really jump starts my happiness, so I didn't have to go to hot yoga that week. I may be able to play a few more rounds this summer, but next summer, I'm going to have to use a way to go during the mornings since the kids will be in school. Unless there is still snow on the ground. Maybe then I'll rethink my idea.....
We saw the movie Monster's University last weekend too. That was a fun show. Pixar does all their movies so well. And it wasn't too scary for Gwen either. New experience #2 for the week was heading to the local aquatic center. They have two large water slides, one that Gwen cannot ride yet, two diving boards, a smaller water slide into the deep water, and then lots of zero depth fun for younger kids with a play/slide climbing structure. It was another perfect day that I had with the kids. The weather was hot, the timing was great. We went around 2pm so the first wave of people had headed back home, and the crowd just thinned out from there. Gwen was slightly nervous in that she thought she was going to have to wear a life jacket, but when I told her that in the slides, you can stand up and not be under water, she was happy. The kids lasted over 2 1/2 hours. 1/2 hour longer than I had hoped, but I was not complaining. Again, lots of happy sun and warmth for me!
Both kids are taking their camps at the same place so they have gotten to ride the bus which gives me a full 3 hours of freedom. I've finally felt like I was catching up with all those things I wanted to start in the summer. Only took me half of the summer to start them. Maybe it'll be easier next year. Uh huh....
Our week concludes with our first summer trip to the lake. Hoping there is more sunny/warm weather in our future. I'll take sunny over warm....but it will be nice to be there! Here we come!!!
Due to baseball, our 4th of July was quite short. We decided to head out to South Dakota on the 4th, and stayed two days before going back on Saturday. We were able to see Derek and Kyrsten's new place and enjoy some family time and great food!
Trevor finished his first round of hockey clinics last week and he seems to have had a good time doing it. There were a bunch of kids that he knew so he could have some fun with them. Previously, we have done clinics where most of the kids were from around the metro - Edina, Savage, etc. So I think that was fun for him to play with his pals.
Gwen has been doing lots of "camps". Mostly gymnastics, but one week was an American Girl Doll camp. She was in heaven! She had things to give to her doll and things that she got to do to herself. She had a PJ party day dressing up like her doll and a spa day so she could have cucumber slices on her eyes while she relaxed and had her nails done. She has had a few classes where she knew the girls going in, but she quickly makes new friends if she doesn't know anyone. She found a girl from her school but not in her grade and they became fast friends because of their common background.
Last weekend I was able to golf for the first time in Minnesota this year with my dad, Russ, and Trevor. It was a warm day, and very sunny. Honestly, it was perfect. I did not play perfect, but I missed my golf! It is one of those things that really jump starts my happiness, so I didn't have to go to hot yoga that week. I may be able to play a few more rounds this summer, but next summer, I'm going to have to use a way to go during the mornings since the kids will be in school. Unless there is still snow on the ground. Maybe then I'll rethink my idea.....
We saw the movie Monster's University last weekend too. That was a fun show. Pixar does all their movies so well. And it wasn't too scary for Gwen either. New experience #2 for the week was heading to the local aquatic center. They have two large water slides, one that Gwen cannot ride yet, two diving boards, a smaller water slide into the deep water, and then lots of zero depth fun for younger kids with a play/slide climbing structure. It was another perfect day that I had with the kids. The weather was hot, the timing was great. We went around 2pm so the first wave of people had headed back home, and the crowd just thinned out from there. Gwen was slightly nervous in that she thought she was going to have to wear a life jacket, but when I told her that in the slides, you can stand up and not be under water, she was happy. The kids lasted over 2 1/2 hours. 1/2 hour longer than I had hoped, but I was not complaining. Again, lots of happy sun and warmth for me!
Both kids are taking their camps at the same place so they have gotten to ride the bus which gives me a full 3 hours of freedom. I've finally felt like I was catching up with all those things I wanted to start in the summer. Only took me half of the summer to start them. Maybe it'll be easier next year. Uh huh....
Our week concludes with our first summer trip to the lake. Hoping there is more sunny/warm weather in our future. I'll take sunny over warm....but it will be nice to be there! Here we come!!!
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
A beautiful end and a wonderful beginning
Thursday was HOT. We spent the afternoon at a family friend's pool. Everyone was getting ready for their back-to-school meeting the teachers evening. So it was a great way to close out the summer with friends. The kids did very well playing together. As the kids get older it gets easier and easier to relax and not worry about them. I love my mom friends and know that these friendships will be around for a long time. Of the group that was at the pool, there are 6 families and none of us go to the same elementary school. I've told a few of my friends that I think it works out REALLY well. At least from my perspective. My kids think it is a huge treat to be able to see these friends as opposed to seeing them every day at school as well. I hope it continues into their teens!
So we made it to back-to-school night and unloaded the school supplies, met the new teachers, the kids saw their school friends, and I tried to keep it all together organizationally. There is so much to try to keep track of and get ready for our first PTA meeting. So not only did I play the part of parent, I also had to help with the PTA stuff too.
As soon as Friday rolled around, we were off to the lake for a beautiful weekend of sun, water, golf, and fun family times. The weather was nice and warm for me, although not warm enough for me to want to go swimming....but I was able to watch the kids if they did want to swim.
Apparently, it was the weekend for Trevor to grow well beyond his years because he drove the boat by himself, could have been offered an alcoholic drink (which he could never drink if it was any form of carbonation...he tried it again and could not drink it), and then was asked to go behind the bar and serve a drink or two. What got me was that Trevor didn't ask for ANY of it. People were just willing to give it to him. The kid already thinks he is the coolest thing out there, and I have no idea if it is possible, but if so his head grew even larger that weekend.
I wanted to drive back home from the lake on Sunday instead of Monday so the kids could have two nights of sleeping in their beds, so we started back after dinner...around 6:15. Gwen was so exhausted that she slept the whole way home and all the way until the next morning, around 6:30 and she was happily playing in her room until my required 7:00am time. Trevor was ready to fall asleep before we got home at 8:30 but made it upstairs and asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
And on the final day of our summer vacation, we were blessed with the arrival of becoming an aunt, uncle, and cousin to the newest Johnson boy. I dropped Russ off at the hospital where he was delivered a few hours after we were back in town so he got to meet little Adam right away. The kids love him and are excited to watch him grow. I couldn't think of a better way to end our summer vacation than with the start of a new life in the family.
So we made it to back-to-school night and unloaded the school supplies, met the new teachers, the kids saw their school friends, and I tried to keep it all together organizationally. There is so much to try to keep track of and get ready for our first PTA meeting. So not only did I play the part of parent, I also had to help with the PTA stuff too.
As soon as Friday rolled around, we were off to the lake for a beautiful weekend of sun, water, golf, and fun family times. The weather was nice and warm for me, although not warm enough for me to want to go swimming....but I was able to watch the kids if they did want to swim.
Apparently, it was the weekend for Trevor to grow well beyond his years because he drove the boat by himself, could have been offered an alcoholic drink (which he could never drink if it was any form of carbonation...he tried it again and could not drink it), and then was asked to go behind the bar and serve a drink or two. What got me was that Trevor didn't ask for ANY of it. People were just willing to give it to him. The kid already thinks he is the coolest thing out there, and I have no idea if it is possible, but if so his head grew even larger that weekend.
I wanted to drive back home from the lake on Sunday instead of Monday so the kids could have two nights of sleeping in their beds, so we started back after dinner...around 6:15. Gwen was so exhausted that she slept the whole way home and all the way until the next morning, around 6:30 and she was happily playing in her room until my required 7:00am time. Trevor was ready to fall asleep before we got home at 8:30 but made it upstairs and asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
And on the final day of our summer vacation, we were blessed with the arrival of becoming an aunt, uncle, and cousin to the newest Johnson boy. I dropped Russ off at the hospital where he was delivered a few hours after we were back in town so he got to meet little Adam right away. The kids love him and are excited to watch him grow. I couldn't think of a better way to end our summer vacation than with the start of a new life in the family.
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
State Fair...and we are READY!
Of course, here we are, end of the summer and HAD to get those last few things off the to-do list for the summer. Well, it's not like you could do the State Fair during any other part of the year. So last Friday, we went to the State Fair. Russ was able to come with us this time, and we got to stay for a fair amount of time (pun intended). I think I need to get a bit more familiar with where our favorite spots are before I go next time, because I didn't plan it all out very well.
We did the animal barns as well as grabbed milkshakes outside the cow barn. First thing into the fair, Gwen was hungry (at 10am) and decided on....a hot dog. Trevor then wanted one too. So at least we started out without the kids being hungry. We got them through until the milkshakes. After the milkshakes, we went on to the jumping trampolines. That has been an annual event. I don't know if it was because we had been to Valleyfair earlier in the week or not, but there was only one ride that the kids wanted to go on, and it was in the Kidway, so we didn't even buy tickets for it.
Russ and the kids went on two rides of the Giant Slide, where Trevor was a little frustrated that he didn't go as fast as Gwen and Russ in their race, but it was a good lesson in what develops speed in a slide. So from there, we went by the agriculture building which was right near the Skyride. We took a round-trip ride before Russ had to head back home. After the ride, we went to the food building to grab some cheese curds. The kids enjoyed the fair cheese curds. At this point, it was afternoon and getting REALLY hot in the sun. There was enough shade where we went to stay cool and I knew we had to go over to the Twins tent. Unfortunately, there wasn't any shade there. Gwen wanted to do the jumping house and Trevor saw they were doing a home run contest with an inflatable fence. I think the height was 7ft tall. The distance was maybe 25 feet from where the kids were hitting the ball. They had pretend bases and the pitcher was one of the workers. They had wiffle balls and thin plastic bats. I knew Trevor was pumped. He had 4 chances, and as he was up the 4th time, Gwen was melting down....literally and emotionally. I was able to watch him bat, and the first 2 times he hit well enough to get on base but not over the fence. One time, he popped out to first base. Finally, luckily his last time, he hit one over the fence. Obviously he knew this really meant nothing as there was no prize, the event cost no money to enter, but the grin on his face was priceless. This boy loves baseball.
After the Twins area, it was time to head back to the other side of the fair, where our car was parked. So we walked, being in the shade as much as possible. We were home by 3, able to rest and cool down.
So on to this week....today (Wednesday) was the day that I made sure to get our school-related to-dos done. I double-checked the supply list and we are set. Both kids needed haircuts. Both kids needed a first-day-of-school outfit. And if we had time, I needed a few things at Target. So when I told Trevor the list of things we needed to do, I knew he wasn't going to be super keen on shopping for clothes (yep, he's my son). But I knew I would be able to at least let him take care of the items he needed to get if I gave him a list and a size. I was right. So I hung around with Gwen and let her roam to see what she wanted to get.
I heard Trevor ask the salesperson if they had Ninjago t-shirts and she was a bit puzzled. I knew they didn't. The shirt that he did pick out I think was a result of being forced to pick one. He tried it on, and it was too big for him. So we put it back and I told him we would check out Target. He wasn't really thrilled with that idea, but when I told him we had other things to pick up anyway, he was ok with it. Gwen found a nice shirt and skirt so we were off.
We went into Target and split off again. I told him to look for his t-shirt and Gwen and I went to the shoes. Gwen's biggest thing lately is that she is proud to say she has changed her first favorite color from pink to purple. So now clothes and in this case shoes, she is on the lookout for anything purple. And we found some purple shoes. That's done. Moving back to where Trevor was, he had found a t-shirt but I didn't recognize the character on the front. I directed him to the character t-shirts and wow...there was a Ninjago shirt. Only his size left so it worked out perfectly. He will feel all cool and excited for anyone to ask him about his shirt and Gwen will look pretty in her new clothes. Mission accomplished. Went over and got haircuts for the kids, lunch, and we are done. Everything is set. We have a pool gathering tomorrow, dropping off the school supplies, and to the cabin for the weekend! That will be all that's left of the summer vacation! This mom is glad school is coming....the kids and I need our schedule back!
We did the animal barns as well as grabbed milkshakes outside the cow barn. First thing into the fair, Gwen was hungry (at 10am) and decided on....a hot dog. Trevor then wanted one too. So at least we started out without the kids being hungry. We got them through until the milkshakes. After the milkshakes, we went on to the jumping trampolines. That has been an annual event. I don't know if it was because we had been to Valleyfair earlier in the week or not, but there was only one ride that the kids wanted to go on, and it was in the Kidway, so we didn't even buy tickets for it.
Russ and the kids went on two rides of the Giant Slide, where Trevor was a little frustrated that he didn't go as fast as Gwen and Russ in their race, but it was a good lesson in what develops speed in a slide. So from there, we went by the agriculture building which was right near the Skyride. We took a round-trip ride before Russ had to head back home. After the ride, we went to the food building to grab some cheese curds. The kids enjoyed the fair cheese curds. At this point, it was afternoon and getting REALLY hot in the sun. There was enough shade where we went to stay cool and I knew we had to go over to the Twins tent. Unfortunately, there wasn't any shade there. Gwen wanted to do the jumping house and Trevor saw they were doing a home run contest with an inflatable fence. I think the height was 7ft tall. The distance was maybe 25 feet from where the kids were hitting the ball. They had pretend bases and the pitcher was one of the workers. They had wiffle balls and thin plastic bats. I knew Trevor was pumped. He had 4 chances, and as he was up the 4th time, Gwen was melting down....literally and emotionally. I was able to watch him bat, and the first 2 times he hit well enough to get on base but not over the fence. One time, he popped out to first base. Finally, luckily his last time, he hit one over the fence. Obviously he knew this really meant nothing as there was no prize, the event cost no money to enter, but the grin on his face was priceless. This boy loves baseball.
After the Twins area, it was time to head back to the other side of the fair, where our car was parked. So we walked, being in the shade as much as possible. We were home by 3, able to rest and cool down.
So on to this week....today (Wednesday) was the day that I made sure to get our school-related to-dos done. I double-checked the supply list and we are set. Both kids needed haircuts. Both kids needed a first-day-of-school outfit. And if we had time, I needed a few things at Target. So when I told Trevor the list of things we needed to do, I knew he wasn't going to be super keen on shopping for clothes (yep, he's my son). But I knew I would be able to at least let him take care of the items he needed to get if I gave him a list and a size. I was right. So I hung around with Gwen and let her roam to see what she wanted to get.
I heard Trevor ask the salesperson if they had Ninjago t-shirts and she was a bit puzzled. I knew they didn't. The shirt that he did pick out I think was a result of being forced to pick one. He tried it on, and it was too big for him. So we put it back and I told him we would check out Target. He wasn't really thrilled with that idea, but when I told him we had other things to pick up anyway, he was ok with it. Gwen found a nice shirt and skirt so we were off.
We went into Target and split off again. I told him to look for his t-shirt and Gwen and I went to the shoes. Gwen's biggest thing lately is that she is proud to say she has changed her first favorite color from pink to purple. So now clothes and in this case shoes, she is on the lookout for anything purple. And we found some purple shoes. That's done. Moving back to where Trevor was, he had found a t-shirt but I didn't recognize the character on the front. I directed him to the character t-shirts and wow...there was a Ninjago shirt. Only his size left so it worked out perfectly. He will feel all cool and excited for anyone to ask him about his shirt and Gwen will look pretty in her new clothes. Mission accomplished. Went over and got haircuts for the kids, lunch, and we are done. Everything is set. We have a pool gathering tomorrow, dropping off the school supplies, and to the cabin for the weekend! That will be all that's left of the summer vacation! This mom is glad school is coming....the kids and I need our schedule back!
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Valleyfair...like Mall of America...except outdoors
Seeing as how the kids have never been before, I tried to explain it to them, but it just didn't work. They kept trying to figure it out..thinking with "fair" in the name, it was like the County Fair they went to a few weeks ago. Sort of...but not really. They had just been to the Mall of America Nickelodeon Universe a few weeks ago...sort of like that...but bigger...and outdoors....but not really either. Valleyfair has a water park in it and rides that really get you wet.
We have seen it as we have driven into Shakopee, but just some outlines of rollercoasters, and I don't even know for sure that Gwen would know what she was looking at. So we went, all packed and ready before the park even opened that day. They had just changed to a later opening time that week of 10am. So we heard the fanfare and musical opening ceremony that they do. Not exactly worth coming out to see, but bringing Brian, and how far I remember having to drive to get out there when that was where we lived, it was just ODD.
I cannot remember the exact year that I had been there last...but I know I had ridden on Wild Thing roller coaster. Since then, they had gotten Renegade and Steel Venom. I believe that puts their total to 6. We walked through from the front and worked our way around. We hit the old time cars since that was right at the entrance...looked at the Wave for a bit because that can be interesting to kids. Gwen got a big splash right where she was standing and she wasn't very happy about that. But at least the kids had their swim gear on so it would dry quick.
We tried to convince Trevor to go on the Corkscrew roller coaster first since it was the first one we came across, but he couldn't do it. So we went on the ferris wheel instead. That way we could see the whole park and tell which roller coasters were the highest. At that point, he was willing to go on High Roller. Gwen and I hung out in the Camp Snoopy part of the park...it took over for the Berenstein Bears park. There were a few nice rides for her and I could see when the boys came around on the coaster. Trevor said it was awesome. Unfortunately, a few minutes later, Brian found out he lost his phone. I thought FOR SURE that meant it flew out of his pocket and was gone forever. He went back to the ride and they said that they found it and just returned it to the front gate area lost and found. Thank goodness!
Brian headed up to the front and we rounded the park to the Mouse roller coaster. I thought Gwen could pass for 44 inches, but we got to the front and they said no go. She had a bit of a fit and Trevor decided to go on it anyway. So we kept walking and at that point I remembered Thunder Canyon....oh it had been forever. Unfortunately, it was another ride that Gwen couldn't go on, so I braved it with Trevor. The sun had started to go behind clouds and rain was off in the distance, so I knew we had to get it done soon. Of course I had to sit in the wettest part of the ride. Didn't help that there was an added bonus of people could pay 25 cents to squirt water out of a shooter at the riders. I got a good chunk of that one too...since it was Gwen and Brian aiming right at us.
Before coming over to Thunder Canyon, we were going to try Wild Thing, but Trevor couldn't do it. After Thunder Canyon, since we were right by Excalibur, I told him it was his only chance...he couldn't say later. So he did it. I think he gets so amped up and nervous right before the ride, it is hard to enjoy it until it is over. But he did it, without complaint...said it was a little bumpy, which was why I didn't care to go on it.
We went back to the sports bar place to eat and sat down for a good chunk of time when the radar started to look iffy. But we still got out and rode on one last ride called wheel of fortune before we noticed all the rides were shut down due to lightning. So we took off for a playland type place over by camp snoopy. I thought we might head out, but the weather didn't ever really get that bad. Plus I knew it was going to lighten up again and they were going to re-open the rides. We moved over to the arcade for a change of pace and when we saw the rides starting up again, Trevor REALLY wanted to go on the High Roller again. So he did..and Gwen went on a few of her favorite Snoopy Rides. This is primarily where the Snoopy character would hang out so Gwen got quite a few Snoopy hugs which I know made her day.
So after Trevor's coaster, I REALLY wanted to get on Renegade before we left. We walked over and Trevor and I rode on it first. It wasn't really what I was expecting. But Trevor liked it and immediately went on it again with Brian. After that is when he started going on the water tube/slide ride. At this point in the day, I knew we were not going to make it to the water park, because of how late it was and how cold it was for me. Poor Brian got soaked. But I think he enjoyed it too....
So by this time Trevor agreed to try the corkscrew again...because the drop on that one is way lower than Excalibur was...and I told him it was very smooth. Yep...he did it and loved it. So that made 4 out of the 6. We made it back to the entrance area, and then the boys had to go on the Wave ride. Crazy kids....if they weren't wet before, they were drenched now. And they have this "family drier" where you pay $5 for 3 minutes of drying. Um what? Trevor thought if he got wet enough I would buy that. Nope. Here's your towel. Let's go on the Enterprise to dry you off. So we did.
Gwen really wanted to get her face painted, but I said no because we were going to go mini golfing. But when we went to the park, it was closed for the season. Brian got to try out Steel Venom (no thanks for me...and Trevor also said no) and then the boys rode on the go karts. So I took Gwen to get her face painted.
We got a quick dinner before leaving the park "officially" less than 30 minutes from closing. That. is. insane. Who does that? I'm pretty sure Brian wasn't expecting that sort of day. I wonder if he'll come back to do it again some other time. Until then though...Gwen needs to grow another inch and Trevor needs to get just a little more guts to go on those two other coasters he has a slight fear of. But for now, it is another check off of the to-do list this summer. Only 12 more days of summer vacation! But who's counting ;-)
We have seen it as we have driven into Shakopee, but just some outlines of rollercoasters, and I don't even know for sure that Gwen would know what she was looking at. So we went, all packed and ready before the park even opened that day. They had just changed to a later opening time that week of 10am. So we heard the fanfare and musical opening ceremony that they do. Not exactly worth coming out to see, but bringing Brian, and how far I remember having to drive to get out there when that was where we lived, it was just ODD.
I cannot remember the exact year that I had been there last...but I know I had ridden on Wild Thing roller coaster. Since then, they had gotten Renegade and Steel Venom. I believe that puts their total to 6. We walked through from the front and worked our way around. We hit the old time cars since that was right at the entrance...looked at the Wave for a bit because that can be interesting to kids. Gwen got a big splash right where she was standing and she wasn't very happy about that. But at least the kids had their swim gear on so it would dry quick.
We tried to convince Trevor to go on the Corkscrew roller coaster first since it was the first one we came across, but he couldn't do it. So we went on the ferris wheel instead. That way we could see the whole park and tell which roller coasters were the highest. At that point, he was willing to go on High Roller. Gwen and I hung out in the Camp Snoopy part of the park...it took over for the Berenstein Bears park. There were a few nice rides for her and I could see when the boys came around on the coaster. Trevor said it was awesome. Unfortunately, a few minutes later, Brian found out he lost his phone. I thought FOR SURE that meant it flew out of his pocket and was gone forever. He went back to the ride and they said that they found it and just returned it to the front gate area lost and found. Thank goodness!
Brian headed up to the front and we rounded the park to the Mouse roller coaster. I thought Gwen could pass for 44 inches, but we got to the front and they said no go. She had a bit of a fit and Trevor decided to go on it anyway. So we kept walking and at that point I remembered Thunder Canyon....oh it had been forever. Unfortunately, it was another ride that Gwen couldn't go on, so I braved it with Trevor. The sun had started to go behind clouds and rain was off in the distance, so I knew we had to get it done soon. Of course I had to sit in the wettest part of the ride. Didn't help that there was an added bonus of people could pay 25 cents to squirt water out of a shooter at the riders. I got a good chunk of that one too...since it was Gwen and Brian aiming right at us.
Before coming over to Thunder Canyon, we were going to try Wild Thing, but Trevor couldn't do it. After Thunder Canyon, since we were right by Excalibur, I told him it was his only chance...he couldn't say later. So he did it. I think he gets so amped up and nervous right before the ride, it is hard to enjoy it until it is over. But he did it, without complaint...said it was a little bumpy, which was why I didn't care to go on it.
We went back to the sports bar place to eat and sat down for a good chunk of time when the radar started to look iffy. But we still got out and rode on one last ride called wheel of fortune before we noticed all the rides were shut down due to lightning. So we took off for a playland type place over by camp snoopy. I thought we might head out, but the weather didn't ever really get that bad. Plus I knew it was going to lighten up again and they were going to re-open the rides. We moved over to the arcade for a change of pace and when we saw the rides starting up again, Trevor REALLY wanted to go on the High Roller again. So he did..and Gwen went on a few of her favorite Snoopy Rides. This is primarily where the Snoopy character would hang out so Gwen got quite a few Snoopy hugs which I know made her day.
So after Trevor's coaster, I REALLY wanted to get on Renegade before we left. We walked over and Trevor and I rode on it first. It wasn't really what I was expecting. But Trevor liked it and immediately went on it again with Brian. After that is when he started going on the water tube/slide ride. At this point in the day, I knew we were not going to make it to the water park, because of how late it was and how cold it was for me. Poor Brian got soaked. But I think he enjoyed it too....
So by this time Trevor agreed to try the corkscrew again...because the drop on that one is way lower than Excalibur was...and I told him it was very smooth. Yep...he did it and loved it. So that made 4 out of the 6. We made it back to the entrance area, and then the boys had to go on the Wave ride. Crazy kids....if they weren't wet before, they were drenched now. And they have this "family drier" where you pay $5 for 3 minutes of drying. Um what? Trevor thought if he got wet enough I would buy that. Nope. Here's your towel. Let's go on the Enterprise to dry you off. So we did.
Gwen really wanted to get her face painted, but I said no because we were going to go mini golfing. But when we went to the park, it was closed for the season. Brian got to try out Steel Venom (no thanks for me...and Trevor also said no) and then the boys rode on the go karts. So I took Gwen to get her face painted.
We got a quick dinner before leaving the park "officially" less than 30 minutes from closing. That. is. insane. Who does that? I'm pretty sure Brian wasn't expecting that sort of day. I wonder if he'll come back to do it again some other time. Until then though...Gwen needs to grow another inch and Trevor needs to get just a little more guts to go on those two other coasters he has a slight fear of. But for now, it is another check off of the to-do list this summer. Only 12 more days of summer vacation! But who's counting ;-)
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Finally seems like we have a few minutes
Although every week Trevor could go to the parks, and next week is the last week of the session, I've decided to have him around because he has an afternoon hockey practice all week. Things are finally coming together...and yes it took all summer to get this organized. We are scheduled to go back to school shopping tomorrow, and if all goes well we will see the new Diary of a Wimpy Kid movie at an early (cheap) showing.
Today I took Gwen in to get her shots updated so that she could enter Kindergarten in September. I told her late last week that today would be the day, and while she seemed to be a bit fixated on it and mentioned it at least once a day, she did pretty good. I remember when Trevor had to get them, I had to physically hold him down and one other nurse had to come in to also hold him down because of the fight he put up. Gwen reminded me a lot of myself. She braced herself, and looked away. She cried, and was out of sorts, but she recovered well. She doesn't like to remember it and gets sad if she even thinks that she will ever have to do it again. Even though we have told her it is another 7-8 years off.
I also registered her for her dance class next year. I've started Trevor thinking about all his activities for next year....chess, swimming, piano, and yes he already wants to know more about baseball. He was willing to forgo summer camps next year until I explained that it doesn't take any more time during the day, they are all evening and weekend games or practices. I think he was a bit surprised by that.
New for this school year, our church is offering Wednesday evening religion classes. It is pretty neat that most activities don't meet on Wednesdays because of the assumption that so many churches do hold religion classes for kids. Our elementary school also doesn't want parent meetings during that time either for that reason.
So starting to switch gears while still having enough days in the summer to plan to get a few more things checked off the list of summer activities is what we have in store. 27 more days! I think we'll be ready when it comes. And very excited!
Today I took Gwen in to get her shots updated so that she could enter Kindergarten in September. I told her late last week that today would be the day, and while she seemed to be a bit fixated on it and mentioned it at least once a day, she did pretty good. I remember when Trevor had to get them, I had to physically hold him down and one other nurse had to come in to also hold him down because of the fight he put up. Gwen reminded me a lot of myself. She braced herself, and looked away. She cried, and was out of sorts, but she recovered well. She doesn't like to remember it and gets sad if she even thinks that she will ever have to do it again. Even though we have told her it is another 7-8 years off.
I also registered her for her dance class next year. I've started Trevor thinking about all his activities for next year....chess, swimming, piano, and yes he already wants to know more about baseball. He was willing to forgo summer camps next year until I explained that it doesn't take any more time during the day, they are all evening and weekend games or practices. I think he was a bit surprised by that.
New for this school year, our church is offering Wednesday evening religion classes. It is pretty neat that most activities don't meet on Wednesdays because of the assumption that so many churches do hold religion classes for kids. Our elementary school also doesn't want parent meetings during that time either for that reason.
So starting to switch gears while still having enough days in the summer to plan to get a few more things checked off the list of summer activities is what we have in store. 27 more days! I think we'll be ready when it comes. And very excited!
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Trophies and medals, medals and trophies
It was the week of trophies and medals here at our household. This will be one of the few posts that I use photos in. I wish I was more visually gifted, but I just have no idea how that all looks good. I depend on others to design anything that requires designing. Give me numbers and I can organize them all.
So here we go...the post of the pictures of trophies and medals...Kind of interesting since it is going on at a world setting that other medals are being given as well: ;-)
Gwen took off her medal before I could take the picture, but she was happy to show me her trophy that she got.
Trevor decided not to show off his trophy but I did get a nice picture of his medal. Trevor's trophy was for him being in his second year of 5 hole league. Next year, if he chooses, he will be in 9 hole league. I was able to watch him play his 5 holes and he did very well. He scored a 38. I know he still enjoys to get out and play with either Russ or me or our family. It is so nice to be able to share a common love for a sport we can all play.
The club took this picture of Gwen and posted it on their website as they do for any member hole in ones, but I didn't know to look for it. Russ was counting her score as I had Trevor for the morning. She told me she got a hole in one, but you can tell she is also pretty pleased someone wanted to pose her picture for the shot.
So it was a weekend of medals and trophies for our family. Now starts the countdown to back to school.....
So here we go...the post of the pictures of trophies and medals...Kind of interesting since it is going on at a world setting that other medals are being given as well: ;-)
Gwen took off her medal before I could take the picture, but she was happy to show me her trophy that she got.Trevor decided not to show off his trophy but I did get a nice picture of his medal. Trevor's trophy was for him being in his second year of 5 hole league. Next year, if he chooses, he will be in 9 hole league. I was able to watch him play his 5 holes and he did very well. He scored a 38. I know he still enjoys to get out and play with either Russ or me or our family. It is so nice to be able to share a common love for a sport we can all play. 
The club took this picture of Gwen and posted it on their website as they do for any member hole in ones, but I didn't know to look for it. Russ was counting her score as I had Trevor for the morning. She told me she got a hole in one, but you can tell she is also pretty pleased someone wanted to pose her picture for the shot.
So that was pretty much Friday last week. Trevor had a week long swimming camp which he enjoyed for 3 of his 4 days, but for some reason on the last day he said he didn't want to do it. We've been having to deal with a lot of wanting not to fulfill a lot of commitments. Unless it is baseball. Trevor started his season ending tournament last Thursday. If he won, his team would have had the week off until last weekend, but they lost, so they had to play Tuesday and won, to get to Thursday, and won to play on the weekend. They won on Saturday, so played for the 3rd place on Sunday. Unfortunately, no one could get any hits during the game so they had to settle for 4th place. 4th place earned Trevor his 11th trophy.
Monday, July 23, 2012
Another two weeks by
There goes another two weeks of summer vacation. This week Trevor has his swim camp which he has been looking forward to for a while. But I forgot to mention and add to it the take on two weeks ago where both of the kids were at an art camp. Gwen was at Princess, Ballet, Tea party camp and Trevor was doing fun with clay. Although I dropped them both off at the local middle school, they had to take a bus over to the Art center. I'm pretty sure both kids were really excited by the bus ride, but Gwen might have been a little bit nervous about it too.
Trevor came off the bus every day very clay-filled. It was pretty cute. I'm glad he had a good time with it. Because they fired the clay in the kiln, I have not been able to see any of the projects yet. But Trevor said that he made a plate, a mug, a cat head, Mario, and got to paint them all. He also mentioned that he took orders from his classmates so he did some Garfield and Odie figures.
Gwen came off the bus every day with projects that she and her class did as well. The first day she had a crown, the next she had a wand, the next a tu-tu, and the last was a yarn wig for Rapunzel's hair. They had a tea party on Friday and I had Gwen skip Golf that day so she could go to the tea party. They had cookies that they frosted...I forgot to ask her if she actually had tea! She had a great time and I'm glad she got to do that. I bet she'd do it again next year.
Last week, we didn't have any activities scheduled because Russ had his annual golf tournament at our club. I was going to take the kids down to the lake earlier in the week, but Trevor had a playoff baseball game on Thursday night. We had some friends over on Wednesday, and Trevor went to the park Monday and Thursday, and both kids were at the Childrens' Museum on Tuesday. We headed down to the lake Friday morning. Gwen got to swim and Trevor got his baseball game in with Bubba before we went to the Stone's Throw for dinner. We had big plans for Saturday, but when rain happened for most of the morning, we scrapped them. Both kids did got to swim again once the clouds broke up in the afternoon. So then we went to the roller rink for dinner. We were planning on a hopping time afterwards...or maybe a skating time....haha. But Gwen fell asleep at the table. Literally. So we had to go back and drop her off. All that swimming really does her in. But Trevor was geared up to go so we headed back close to 7:30. Megan, Ellie and Addie all met us there to also go skating. Trevor tried on his new rollerblades. They will take some getting used to, but he did pretty well on them. He didn't win the limbo, but I still gave him a sundae. I'm glad he likes to do it.
Sunday, we got up and decided to take our first real boat ride of the season. It was sunny and warm so we quick took advantage. The kids got to jump into the creek from the boat many times and I got some sun and warmth. We headed back in the early afternoon and Gwen slept the whole way home. It was good to be back and good to have Russ at home for another week so we are all set to get stuff done.....or are we?
Trevor came off the bus every day very clay-filled. It was pretty cute. I'm glad he had a good time with it. Because they fired the clay in the kiln, I have not been able to see any of the projects yet. But Trevor said that he made a plate, a mug, a cat head, Mario, and got to paint them all. He also mentioned that he took orders from his classmates so he did some Garfield and Odie figures.
Gwen came off the bus every day with projects that she and her class did as well. The first day she had a crown, the next she had a wand, the next a tu-tu, and the last was a yarn wig for Rapunzel's hair. They had a tea party on Friday and I had Gwen skip Golf that day so she could go to the tea party. They had cookies that they frosted...I forgot to ask her if she actually had tea! She had a great time and I'm glad she got to do that. I bet she'd do it again next year.
Last week, we didn't have any activities scheduled because Russ had his annual golf tournament at our club. I was going to take the kids down to the lake earlier in the week, but Trevor had a playoff baseball game on Thursday night. We had some friends over on Wednesday, and Trevor went to the park Monday and Thursday, and both kids were at the Childrens' Museum on Tuesday. We headed down to the lake Friday morning. Gwen got to swim and Trevor got his baseball game in with Bubba before we went to the Stone's Throw for dinner. We had big plans for Saturday, but when rain happened for most of the morning, we scrapped them. Both kids did got to swim again once the clouds broke up in the afternoon. So then we went to the roller rink for dinner. We were planning on a hopping time afterwards...or maybe a skating time....haha. But Gwen fell asleep at the table. Literally. So we had to go back and drop her off. All that swimming really does her in. But Trevor was geared up to go so we headed back close to 7:30. Megan, Ellie and Addie all met us there to also go skating. Trevor tried on his new rollerblades. They will take some getting used to, but he did pretty well on them. He didn't win the limbo, but I still gave him a sundae. I'm glad he likes to do it.
Sunday, we got up and decided to take our first real boat ride of the season. It was sunny and warm so we quick took advantage. The kids got to jump into the creek from the boat many times and I got some sun and warmth. We headed back in the early afternoon and Gwen slept the whole way home. It was good to be back and good to have Russ at home for another week so we are all set to get stuff done.....or are we?
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
After June comes July
The changing of the months are always a relatively big event at our house. Not like "Lets have a PARTY" event, but the kids know when it is time to turn their respective calendars. Yes, I did say calendars...because they both have two. One in their room and one in the kitchen. The one in the kitchen gets written on, although I have moved my calendar stuff to the phone/computer because we have needed to use it when we are out of the house and it doesn't help to only have it written on the stationary one. So anyway, it was time to turn the calendars, and Gwen squealed with delight, "June was so much FUN! I'm excited for July!"
She was right, June was packed with fun stuff and it has already been a banner summer with doing so much stuff that the kids have been able to enjoy. Even though Gwen is already talking about how she is looking forward to September when school starts again, she loves to find out that she has a random playdate with a friend, or a birthday party, or a trip up to the lake. There have been a bunch of chances to go swimming both in pools and at the lake. We've been golfing, once as a 4some, but a bunch more times as a 3some with other family. Baseball games have been fun for both kids because Trevor's team is winning most of their games, and Gwen has always been able to find a friend to play around with. Gwen has been really enjoying her weekly camps, both VBS and gymnastics. Next week is princess ballet teaparty camp. Trevor has clay camp as well.
The last week in June we also went on a last minute trip out to Canterbury horse racing for Kevin's birthday. I had heard from my hairdresser who had worked there for a summer that it was a great place for kids. We happened to go on Buck night, so everything was really inexpensive although they didn't have all the kids games up and running. Both kids got SUCH a kick out of being so close to the races. Trevor loved to pick a horse and cheer for it before the race started to test his guessing ability. He got one right, and we only stayed for 3 races. There were 5 more after we left. It was a beautiful night and there were a lot of kids there. But it wasn't so overwhelming so that we were bothered by another group or bothering anyone else. I know at some point Russ wants to get out there to see what it is all about, and it may not be with the kids, but it was nice to know what it was about and have the kids have a good time too.
So we are now into July, and have two more birthdays this month, more trips to the lake, finishing up baseball and some more camps for the kids. We are looking into going to Valleyfair to see how the kids like that. I'm pretty sure that will be a big hit with both kids because Trevor loves roller coasters and Gwen would go on them if she was tall enough, so we'll have to find some thrill rides for her. It will be another fun month, I'm sure. Although busy, I really think this summer is what fun is all about when you are a kid. Getting outside, enjoying the weather, and doing things you can only do when school is out.
On a different note, yesterday, I decided I needed to clean the floors on the main level. That meant 4 different areas. I explained it to the kids, and without any screens, they kept themselves busy together for 4 hours. They might have had a disagreement, but it was one they solved on their own. It was amazing. I think it happened because we haven't been bored yet, and we almost needed a day at home to just have fun on our own. Hopefully the kids can remember how to keep doing this because I foresee a lot of tasks getting done with the occupying of their time together. I guess we'll see!
She was right, June was packed with fun stuff and it has already been a banner summer with doing so much stuff that the kids have been able to enjoy. Even though Gwen is already talking about how she is looking forward to September when school starts again, she loves to find out that she has a random playdate with a friend, or a birthday party, or a trip up to the lake. There have been a bunch of chances to go swimming both in pools and at the lake. We've been golfing, once as a 4some, but a bunch more times as a 3some with other family. Baseball games have been fun for both kids because Trevor's team is winning most of their games, and Gwen has always been able to find a friend to play around with. Gwen has been really enjoying her weekly camps, both VBS and gymnastics. Next week is princess ballet teaparty camp. Trevor has clay camp as well.
The last week in June we also went on a last minute trip out to Canterbury horse racing for Kevin's birthday. I had heard from my hairdresser who had worked there for a summer that it was a great place for kids. We happened to go on Buck night, so everything was really inexpensive although they didn't have all the kids games up and running. Both kids got SUCH a kick out of being so close to the races. Trevor loved to pick a horse and cheer for it before the race started to test his guessing ability. He got one right, and we only stayed for 3 races. There were 5 more after we left. It was a beautiful night and there were a lot of kids there. But it wasn't so overwhelming so that we were bothered by another group or bothering anyone else. I know at some point Russ wants to get out there to see what it is all about, and it may not be with the kids, but it was nice to know what it was about and have the kids have a good time too.
So we are now into July, and have two more birthdays this month, more trips to the lake, finishing up baseball and some more camps for the kids. We are looking into going to Valleyfair to see how the kids like that. I'm pretty sure that will be a big hit with both kids because Trevor loves roller coasters and Gwen would go on them if she was tall enough, so we'll have to find some thrill rides for her. It will be another fun month, I'm sure. Although busy, I really think this summer is what fun is all about when you are a kid. Getting outside, enjoying the weather, and doing things you can only do when school is out.
On a different note, yesterday, I decided I needed to clean the floors on the main level. That meant 4 different areas. I explained it to the kids, and without any screens, they kept themselves busy together for 4 hours. They might have had a disagreement, but it was one they solved on their own. It was amazing. I think it happened because we haven't been bored yet, and we almost needed a day at home to just have fun on our own. Hopefully the kids can remember how to keep doing this because I foresee a lot of tasks getting done with the occupying of their time together. I guess we'll see!
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Summer....already two weeks done
Whoops....I don't even know if I have done a post about the end of the school year for both of the kids. I feel like I might have talked about it in some form. If not here's a condensed version: Trevor has been talking about school being done for a while and how excited he is for summer vacation. We don't have any big plans, but he is still excited for it. We got his report card and no real surprises, but still some good things to work on, perhaps over the summer if we can, and wasn't any surprise for next year as his teacher is the only teacher for 3rd grade in the gifted and talented group. We have heard good things about her from this year's graduating class as it was her first year in the school this year. As far as Gwen's Kindergarten class, we did get a letter stating the name of her PM class teacher switching to a male teacher. I'm excited that she is in the afternoon class and excited to see how neat this teacher is. She is very excited to tell anyone listening that she is starting Kindergarten at the same school Trevor is at. I haven't exactly told her that she is going to have to go in this summer to get her immunizations up to date, but I figure we can put that off another few weeks to avoid that constant fear a bit longer.
So we are already two weeks into the summer vacation. The first week is VBS at Trevor's old preschool. Both kids had a great time and got to hang out with some of their favorite friends. Fridays also are, for the first 8 weeks, the kids' golf lessons. I think Trevor thought with his increased ability in baseball from last year, he assumed that he'd be so much better in golf this year. Since both sports are played at the same time, I think his swing for golf needs a little more time to adjust between golf and baseball. But I do give Trevor credit, he has been wanting to get out and play as much golf as he can. Last weekend for Father's Day, he played his usual 5 hole league game, then wanted to play 18 on Saturday (but we all got to go to the par 3 course nearby our house and played only 9 and had a BLAST), followed by almost another full 18 on Sunday. We got rained out...or thundered out and finished the 16th hole. He does finally have over 100 yrds distance with his 3 wood and wants to get a driver. I would bet we can take care of that by the end of the season. Because Gwen isn't in a "hole" league this year, she hasn't gotten a chance to get out on the course yet. So when we played on Saturday, she was able to play for the first time. She kept sinking her puts and saying "hole in one". I'm glad she is not getting too frustrated while playing. She just hits the ball when she can and we teach her more of the etiquette of golf rather than swinging and such. And of course Trevor is always on the lookout for either a beverage cart or water stops. Sunday he had two snickers bars, a can of lemonade, a hot dog, and water stops along the way. I'm pretty sure the treats alone make him want to come back. But hey, you get your practice any way you can!
This week, for activities, we had Trevor doing a hockey clinic and Gwen doing gymnastics. OH was Gwen in heaven. She was finally able to have a fun gymnastics class for a whole week (ok, well actually except for Friday, we skip it to go to golf). She loved telling me all the different apparatus she got to try out, and that she was learning how to do a cartwheel. THAT was what she was looking forward to the most. Today she was telling me she learned the different positions...pike position, tuck, and straddle. They also were swinging on the bar and doing some tricks with a stuffed (I assume) caterpillar. I think based on what she told me I'm going to also sign her up for another week in a later session. Even if they do the same things, I know she will love to try to get better at all the stuff she learned. Plus they have a fun recess time as well where they get to play on the recess equipment, and eat their snack. I'm so glad she had a great experience.
With hockey for Trevor, he was in a skills clinic where they learned and practiced drills to become better skaters. Probably not the most fun week, but very necessary to keep Trevor "on his skates" in the off season. He looked to be one of the youngest kids the group, but they still regrouped them when working on drills so they had them working on different things by ability. He also just got a different size skate that seemed better for him as well, so hopefully he can skate that much better this year as well.
This weekend we are off to the lake! Hopefully the weather will hold and it will be nice enough to hang out at the beach! I'm having this sneaking suspicion that summer is going to fly by in a moment....but until it does, we still have our list of things we want to do this summer. We did check a few things off already, but we would love to be able to do them more than once, so we'll see how far we get!
So we are already two weeks into the summer vacation. The first week is VBS at Trevor's old preschool. Both kids had a great time and got to hang out with some of their favorite friends. Fridays also are, for the first 8 weeks, the kids' golf lessons. I think Trevor thought with his increased ability in baseball from last year, he assumed that he'd be so much better in golf this year. Since both sports are played at the same time, I think his swing for golf needs a little more time to adjust between golf and baseball. But I do give Trevor credit, he has been wanting to get out and play as much golf as he can. Last weekend for Father's Day, he played his usual 5 hole league game, then wanted to play 18 on Saturday (but we all got to go to the par 3 course nearby our house and played only 9 and had a BLAST), followed by almost another full 18 on Sunday. We got rained out...or thundered out and finished the 16th hole. He does finally have over 100 yrds distance with his 3 wood and wants to get a driver. I would bet we can take care of that by the end of the season. Because Gwen isn't in a "hole" league this year, she hasn't gotten a chance to get out on the course yet. So when we played on Saturday, she was able to play for the first time. She kept sinking her puts and saying "hole in one". I'm glad she is not getting too frustrated while playing. She just hits the ball when she can and we teach her more of the etiquette of golf rather than swinging and such. And of course Trevor is always on the lookout for either a beverage cart or water stops. Sunday he had two snickers bars, a can of lemonade, a hot dog, and water stops along the way. I'm pretty sure the treats alone make him want to come back. But hey, you get your practice any way you can!
This week, for activities, we had Trevor doing a hockey clinic and Gwen doing gymnastics. OH was Gwen in heaven. She was finally able to have a fun gymnastics class for a whole week (ok, well actually except for Friday, we skip it to go to golf). She loved telling me all the different apparatus she got to try out, and that she was learning how to do a cartwheel. THAT was what she was looking forward to the most. Today she was telling me she learned the different positions...pike position, tuck, and straddle. They also were swinging on the bar and doing some tricks with a stuffed (I assume) caterpillar. I think based on what she told me I'm going to also sign her up for another week in a later session. Even if they do the same things, I know she will love to try to get better at all the stuff she learned. Plus they have a fun recess time as well where they get to play on the recess equipment, and eat their snack. I'm so glad she had a great experience.
With hockey for Trevor, he was in a skills clinic where they learned and practiced drills to become better skaters. Probably not the most fun week, but very necessary to keep Trevor "on his skates" in the off season. He looked to be one of the youngest kids the group, but they still regrouped them when working on drills so they had them working on different things by ability. He also just got a different size skate that seemed better for him as well, so hopefully he can skate that much better this year as well.
This weekend we are off to the lake! Hopefully the weather will hold and it will be nice enough to hang out at the beach! I'm having this sneaking suspicion that summer is going to fly by in a moment....but until it does, we still have our list of things we want to do this summer. We did check a few things off already, but we would love to be able to do them more than once, so we'll see how far we get!
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Her first "Graduation"
Actually, we missed her "graduation" as it was our ultimately busy day. Family baptism, golf event, Norwex party, graduation, baseball game. The fact that they called her ceremony a promotion one, because they were moving to the 3 day a week classes, not onto Kindergarten next year, kind of was lost on me. Hopefully next year it won't conflict with so many things. She had a spring concert less than a month ago, so by making that, I felt as though we were really not missing much. They took these pictures of the kids in a graduation cap a few days ago, and passed them out at the ceremony, so we got ours today. At her spring conference, I got pictures from the beginning of the year, and so I figure it was time for me to reflect on her past school year.
I have always thought that 3-4 year old preschool isn't exactly necessary. I like it because it gives me a break. This was the first year where it was actually true because when Trevor started his preschool, I had Gwen 4 weeks into the program. So not a whole lot of alone time for me. Regardless, there has been a tremendous amount of growth out of this little girl over the past year. She had a very small class size - only 10 other kids in class with her, her teacher and one helper adult. Even before class started, we filled out a questionnaire explaining what we hoped our kids would get out of the school year. I knew that she needed to work on socializing or "sharing" and her small motor skills, like cutting and writing her name. In both of these areas, I believe because of the small class size, she has made huge strides. We both can read her own writing of her name, she is getting very accurate with her cutting, and when she has playdates, she does take some possessiveness of her toys, but really does a good job of wanting and playing with her playmate instead of hoarding her toys.
I have a lot of hope that next year, possibly with an even smaller class size, she will get most of her letters down and get her cutting skills honed. I'm not sure how much I will have or want to use the childcare, but we are going to already get a few more days before Trevor is done with school. She can do some of the VBS camps with her friends, but I'm not planning on sending her for an entire week for something that lasts 5 hours for a week straight.
We have hit a big fear of bugs lately. Not only do bees break out the horrific screams, which I really would be ok with, if that was the only thing. But even gnats and small, harmless flying bugs are bringing about the screams. I am trying to get her to take ownership and know that she can get rid of these bugs by using a cloth and killing them. If it is inside, she is usually pretty ok with doing it, but not outdoors. I'm also going to try bug spray. I have been bringing a bottle of it to baseball games, being prepared for whenever the mosquitoes come out. Haven't had to use it yet, but I think we will shortly. Anyway, it might be a mental thing for Gwen to think that if she has the bug spray on, bugs won't bite her, or hopefully land on her. I'll have to try it out and see how that one goes. Until then, we are just trying to get organized for the summer.
However; technically, Gwen's summer vacation has started! Bring on the hot weather!
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
A Big Night
With all the things coming up, it is hard not to get lost in the details of the little things. Last night was Trevor's first exhibition game of his baseball career. This is his first year where the teams must keep score, keep outs, and keep track of their batting order and such. There is no walks, but the hitters can only have 7 pitches or three swinging strikes. I know there was a lot of nerves, across the team. From the kids worrying if they could get a hit or not, to the coaches style of pitching, and the head coach making sure that it ran as smoothly as it could.
Thankfully the weather was a bit warmer than it had been, although not quite warm enough to my liking. And I quickly learned that it is a pretty quick game, inning wise although I would guess that it depends on the skill levels of the teams. It took our team once around the batting order before everyone was settled down enough to get some hits. I will say that the team when they were in the field was awesome. It was hard for kids their age to stay awake enough on every pitch but I will say that there was one double-play and if it hadn't been for the other team's coach, their players didn't get more than a double.
Trevor got a hit, and really I thought it was a good goal for him to have when playing. I was proud of him for not flipping out when he didn't get a hit, but I think he also took his cues from the other players on the team. One of the best players on the team didn't get a hit at all, and he was very good at not beating himself up about it.
The team has one more exhibition game on Wednesday before the games really "count". In the end, they lost 5 to 4, but getting more time and experience is something that this team really could use. I hope to say that they will win a good chunk of their games so that the kids do enjoy playing and they learn a lot.
Thankfully the weather was a bit warmer than it had been, although not quite warm enough to my liking. And I quickly learned that it is a pretty quick game, inning wise although I would guess that it depends on the skill levels of the teams. It took our team once around the batting order before everyone was settled down enough to get some hits. I will say that the team when they were in the field was awesome. It was hard for kids their age to stay awake enough on every pitch but I will say that there was one double-play and if it hadn't been for the other team's coach, their players didn't get more than a double.
Trevor got a hit, and really I thought it was a good goal for him to have when playing. I was proud of him for not flipping out when he didn't get a hit, but I think he also took his cues from the other players on the team. One of the best players on the team didn't get a hit at all, and he was very good at not beating himself up about it.
The team has one more exhibition game on Wednesday before the games really "count". In the end, they lost 5 to 4, but getting more time and experience is something that this team really could use. I hope to say that they will win a good chunk of their games so that the kids do enjoy playing and they learn a lot.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
A change is coming
Of course...the weather can't remain nice for more than one day. The one day it was nice and hot, our air conditioner was not working. Unfortunately, it is bad news for the house, because the house cannot cool down by itself once it is heated up. I believe it got up to 84 degrees, although to me it was nice. Russ was gone on business so he didn't have to deal with it.
This weekend was one of the few where we didn't have any plans. Saturday wasn't really fun as it was cold and rainy all day. But today was very nice. I knew that compared to last year I gained a lot of confidence that the kids could behave themselves while I took care of things outside. I was able to clean the gutters and plant some flowers with the kids entertaining themselves, for the most part. It does make me a little sad to think that there won't even be that many opportunities to do that this year, with how busy our calendar has become. But it does make me think that if I do need to take care of some work outside, it won't be horrible to try to have to keep an eye on Gwen constantly. I am slowly gaining my freedom back!
My other big change is my love of cleaning. Dyson + Norwex is a very good combination. Except for the organization part of cleaning, our 3 season porch is becoming presentable again! And, with Gwen being able to eat at a normal chair, we all have our seats at the table. If I could sing Norwex's praises more I would, but I feel like through all my facebook posting I become sounding like a broken record! I am amazed at how wicked clean our windows look, and I do have a new fear of how many birds are going to die this year by flying into the windows.
The only downside that I am experiencing right now is that I haven't been able to get out golfing yet this year with my usual 9 hole league. It doesn't look like it is going to happen this Tuesday, but possibly next week. I knew that my PTA meetings were going to conflict with them, but there have been and will be 3 other conflicts this year. Oh well. If we can get good weather for it in the future, I guess I can wait.
So for all you people looking to get more green with your cleaning, or anyone looking to simplify your cleaning by only using WATER in addition to your norwex cloths, I am a big supporter of the stuff. I LOVE my Norwex!
This weekend was one of the few where we didn't have any plans. Saturday wasn't really fun as it was cold and rainy all day. But today was very nice. I knew that compared to last year I gained a lot of confidence that the kids could behave themselves while I took care of things outside. I was able to clean the gutters and plant some flowers with the kids entertaining themselves, for the most part. It does make me a little sad to think that there won't even be that many opportunities to do that this year, with how busy our calendar has become. But it does make me think that if I do need to take care of some work outside, it won't be horrible to try to have to keep an eye on Gwen constantly. I am slowly gaining my freedom back!
My other big change is my love of cleaning. Dyson + Norwex is a very good combination. Except for the organization part of cleaning, our 3 season porch is becoming presentable again! And, with Gwen being able to eat at a normal chair, we all have our seats at the table. If I could sing Norwex's praises more I would, but I feel like through all my facebook posting I become sounding like a broken record! I am amazed at how wicked clean our windows look, and I do have a new fear of how many birds are going to die this year by flying into the windows.
The only downside that I am experiencing right now is that I haven't been able to get out golfing yet this year with my usual 9 hole league. It doesn't look like it is going to happen this Tuesday, but possibly next week. I knew that my PTA meetings were going to conflict with them, but there have been and will be 3 other conflicts this year. Oh well. If we can get good weather for it in the future, I guess I can wait.
So for all you people looking to get more green with your cleaning, or anyone looking to simplify your cleaning by only using WATER in addition to your norwex cloths, I am a big supporter of the stuff. I LOVE my Norwex!
Monday, September 6, 2010
The Last Hurrah
Well, it is the last day of Summer Vacation, and we all made it relatively unscathed. Surprisingly Gwen is a little more anxious/bonkers than Trevor has been. The past week has been kept busy by going to the State Fair, Back to School night, and taking one more trip to the cabin for the summer. I went with the kids to the State Fair on Wednesday. We got into the grounds at 9:00 and left after 1:00. It was my first time going solo, so rather than even attempt the rides this year we just walked around leisurely. We did go on the sky ride, the big slide, and sat down to eat, but otherwise the kids were on their own power walking around. They both did really good. I think we are starting to get a good routine down where we do the animals and a few snacks first, then end with the kids rides. By the time we were going to do the kids rides, I could tell the kids were running out of steam. But it will be a good goal to have for future years.
Then on Thursday evening, we were able to go to the back to school night at the Elementary school. I had already introduced myself to Trevor's teacher earlier in the week, so it was nice to know that I didn't need to try to talk to her for longer to get to know her more. As is normal Trevor, I'm pretty sure he would have chatted with his teacher forever, but he was easily distracted as soon as he saw a few of his former classmates. I think it is really going to be a different situation with him really knowing a few of his classmates, knowing his school, and being really excited to be at lunch and recess. That and I'm sure he has matured since last year too. Gwen was surprisingly timid and a little scared by the whole thing. I think she wanted Trevor to go back to his old room with his old teacher. We put Trevor's supplies in his desk (first year for that!) and picked up his paperwork and then headed out to the cabin for the weekend.
We had been really lucky this summer to get such warm weather at the lake. Both so we could swim and that the water temperature was so warm. We were hoping to be able to swim one last time this summer, but no such luck. Looking back over our family Labor Day vacations up to Brainerd, we never had warm enough weather to swim, or at least it was rarely. I will take the summer weather we had over being able to swim on Labor Day anytime. Although I am sad to be chilled and have to get out the long pants and shirts for fall.
So this closes another summer vacation. I know we will have many more adventures in the next year. Here we go!!!!
Then on Thursday evening, we were able to go to the back to school night at the Elementary school. I had already introduced myself to Trevor's teacher earlier in the week, so it was nice to know that I didn't need to try to talk to her for longer to get to know her more. As is normal Trevor, I'm pretty sure he would have chatted with his teacher forever, but he was easily distracted as soon as he saw a few of his former classmates. I think it is really going to be a different situation with him really knowing a few of his classmates, knowing his school, and being really excited to be at lunch and recess. That and I'm sure he has matured since last year too. Gwen was surprisingly timid and a little scared by the whole thing. I think she wanted Trevor to go back to his old room with his old teacher. We put Trevor's supplies in his desk (first year for that!) and picked up his paperwork and then headed out to the cabin for the weekend.
We had been really lucky this summer to get such warm weather at the lake. Both so we could swim and that the water temperature was so warm. We were hoping to be able to swim one last time this summer, but no such luck. Looking back over our family Labor Day vacations up to Brainerd, we never had warm enough weather to swim, or at least it was rarely. I will take the summer weather we had over being able to swim on Labor Day anytime. Although I am sad to be chilled and have to get out the long pants and shirts for fall.
So this closes another summer vacation. I know we will have many more adventures in the next year. Here we go!!!!
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Maybe I will get more time
Once both kids are in school for a total of 4 hours a week, I will have more time to run errands. I am worried about the time I'm going to lose when I need to go pick up Trevor from school and then wait to put Gwen down for her nap. But we will have to see how it all works out. Right now I'm just trying to get things done on my mental to-do list.
Last weekend, we were lucky enough to run up to Derek's and Kyrsten's house to say hi to the pets before heading out to Dave and Busters. The kids had a blast, like I knew they would, but both were a little questioning when I said it was like Chuck E. Cheese. They had been to that place before, but never a Dave and Busters. It was a little too old age-wise for Gwen, but she still found her favorite places to be and pretend to play games. Except for Deal or No Deal. She knows how to play that one, and had gotten the top two prizes out of the 3 times we played. Trevor probably could have played all day. When it came time to pick out prizes, Gwen immediately found a Sleeping Beauty nightlight that she wanted. Lucky for us it was the last one, and the lady felt bad giving it to me without a box. I think it would have been worse if it would have had a box because she wanted to play with it right away. Trevor got a Twins teddy bear and Viking's mini helmet so we were set with the prizes.
Then on Tuesday this week we headed out to the waterpark of America. It is right near the Mall of America and we had never been inside it before. Tracy and Kyrsten were generous enough to go with us, so with a ratio of three adults to two kids, we were golden. It says on their website that they keep the air and water temp at 83 degrees, but when they have the fans blowing, the water by the fans seems much cooler. We were swimming for over an hour before we took a lunch break, and the air temp in there was even cooler. Gwen had just begun to get chilly before lunch, and the break didn't help her. Although she did get a bit dryer. When we went back to the water, I think she only lasted 15 or so minutes before she was blue and shivering. I had found a nearby pool where she couldn't touch, but the water was much warmer. She could tell and she pinked up within 5 minutes. Not only that, but by a few more minutes she was asking me to let her go underwater after she jumped in from the steps. I have a feeling if the water temp is warm at the lake again, she might be jumping in by herself without jumping to anyone. Trevor also enjoyed the pool area so he could do his somersaults and such. While I know he feels safer in the lake with his lifejacket on, it gains his confidence when we are in a pool that he can touch and practice swimming in shallow water.
Yesterday we split the kids up and my mom took Gwen to the Children's Museum and I took Trevor to Edenborough Park, an indoor climbing gym. He went at it for over 2 1/2 hours. From what I heard from my mom, both kids enjoyed their day.
We are on the brink of refinancing our mortgage to a 4.375% rate and a three year term reduction. Who knew that could be so easy. Next week, we will hopefully be golfing with a couple that we both know at the golf course we play at. Then maybe going to the fair one day. After that, bring on the school! It is almost time for summer break to be over.
Trevor's behavior recently has had it's ups and downs, and right now we are in an up stage, so I almost don't want to jinx it. But he has been doing a lot better with completing tasks that I give him. Or maybe I've just been better at sticking to my promises. Either way, I had to give him a big hug today for all the help cleaning up that he has been doing when I ask. He has even been reading an occasional book to Gwen if it is a book I know he can read. Pretty cute I must say.
Now Gwen, I'm pretty sure she can sense a big shift in schedule coming up. She has been fighting going to bed, especially her naps. She has developed a screaming fear of bugs, any and all. So that is what happens for her day-naps. She gets into her room and she thinks there are bugs on the ceiling, in her bed, if she is outside and sees one, she screams. Poor girl. I've been combating it every way I know how. I even told her that Prince Naveen (the stuffed frog that she has from Princess and the Frog) loves to eat bugs, so if she sees one, she can tell Naveen to eat the bug. She got a chuckle out of it, but I wonder if it doesn't calm her down a little bit.
Now if I can just stay ahead of the homework stuff....
Last weekend, we were lucky enough to run up to Derek's and Kyrsten's house to say hi to the pets before heading out to Dave and Busters. The kids had a blast, like I knew they would, but both were a little questioning when I said it was like Chuck E. Cheese. They had been to that place before, but never a Dave and Busters. It was a little too old age-wise for Gwen, but she still found her favorite places to be and pretend to play games. Except for Deal or No Deal. She knows how to play that one, and had gotten the top two prizes out of the 3 times we played. Trevor probably could have played all day. When it came time to pick out prizes, Gwen immediately found a Sleeping Beauty nightlight that she wanted. Lucky for us it was the last one, and the lady felt bad giving it to me without a box. I think it would have been worse if it would have had a box because she wanted to play with it right away. Trevor got a Twins teddy bear and Viking's mini helmet so we were set with the prizes.
Then on Tuesday this week we headed out to the waterpark of America. It is right near the Mall of America and we had never been inside it before. Tracy and Kyrsten were generous enough to go with us, so with a ratio of three adults to two kids, we were golden. It says on their website that they keep the air and water temp at 83 degrees, but when they have the fans blowing, the water by the fans seems much cooler. We were swimming for over an hour before we took a lunch break, and the air temp in there was even cooler. Gwen had just begun to get chilly before lunch, and the break didn't help her. Although she did get a bit dryer. When we went back to the water, I think she only lasted 15 or so minutes before she was blue and shivering. I had found a nearby pool where she couldn't touch, but the water was much warmer. She could tell and she pinked up within 5 minutes. Not only that, but by a few more minutes she was asking me to let her go underwater after she jumped in from the steps. I have a feeling if the water temp is warm at the lake again, she might be jumping in by herself without jumping to anyone. Trevor also enjoyed the pool area so he could do his somersaults and such. While I know he feels safer in the lake with his lifejacket on, it gains his confidence when we are in a pool that he can touch and practice swimming in shallow water.
Yesterday we split the kids up and my mom took Gwen to the Children's Museum and I took Trevor to Edenborough Park, an indoor climbing gym. He went at it for over 2 1/2 hours. From what I heard from my mom, both kids enjoyed their day.
We are on the brink of refinancing our mortgage to a 4.375% rate and a three year term reduction. Who knew that could be so easy. Next week, we will hopefully be golfing with a couple that we both know at the golf course we play at. Then maybe going to the fair one day. After that, bring on the school! It is almost time for summer break to be over.
Trevor's behavior recently has had it's ups and downs, and right now we are in an up stage, so I almost don't want to jinx it. But he has been doing a lot better with completing tasks that I give him. Or maybe I've just been better at sticking to my promises. Either way, I had to give him a big hug today for all the help cleaning up that he has been doing when I ask. He has even been reading an occasional book to Gwen if it is a book I know he can read. Pretty cute I must say.
Now Gwen, I'm pretty sure she can sense a big shift in schedule coming up. She has been fighting going to bed, especially her naps. She has developed a screaming fear of bugs, any and all. So that is what happens for her day-naps. She gets into her room and she thinks there are bugs on the ceiling, in her bed, if she is outside and sees one, she screams. Poor girl. I've been combating it every way I know how. I even told her that Prince Naveen (the stuffed frog that she has from Princess and the Frog) loves to eat bugs, so if she sees one, she can tell Naveen to eat the bug. She got a chuckle out of it, but I wonder if it doesn't calm her down a little bit.
Now if I can just stay ahead of the homework stuff....
Thursday, August 19, 2010
It's been a week?
A week ago we were at the lake for an extended week-end. The weather was so nice and hot. The water was so nice and warm. Even Wednesday afternoon when we got there, the kids didn't want to get out of the water for dinner. It was calm and so warm that Gwen could swim and swim for hours. We did it again on Thursday after Trevor, Russ, my dad and Dave were golfing. I was so surprised and had really forgotten what it was like to swim while the water was like bathwater.
There was no air conditioning in the cabin, but as everyone knows, I like that. By opening the door to the bedroom and the windows as well, a breeze blew around in the room so it kept it non-sweating at least for me. We had a really fun shower, mom you really can throw a good one :-)
We came back early so Russ and I could play in a couple's tournament. I guess my luck finally ran out when it comes to golfing. I played as bad as I had all year. I hit two balls out of bounds, and I hadn't done that all year...honestly I can't ever remember hitting a single ball out of bounds on these two holes ever. I made it over one water hole, only to hit three balls in a row off of trees and backwards. I had a 10 on one hole and an 8 on another. I was nowhere near close to where I wanted to be on my round. It would have been nice to play with a couple we knew, but maybe next year. It seems we have a pattern of winning one year and then losing the next. So we are due next year.
After that horrible round, my attitude stunk. The kids were crabby and so was I. Trevor has been taking the bus to his sports camp this week, but after Friday we are done with activities. Hopefully he will behave for the two weeks until school starts.
I played golf again on Tuesday, and had a very good round, so I guess that improved my mood a bit. I haven't even started my reading for class, which is very unlike me. Someday soon, I'll have lot of catch-up to do. My two professors this session have been very absent the last week. So I haven't gotten a lot of information on how I am doing in the class.
Wednesday, I met with some of our PTA officers because I had gotten my responsibility as Fall Fundraiser Chair. They were stuffing envelopes, and we ended up staying over an hour after they were all stuffed sharing ideas for the next year.
My mind is a flutter with lots of random things to get done soon. While school is just over 2 weeks away, I can't even get there yet mentally. Thank goodness I have already gotten the school supplies or that would also be grinding on me.
On to a few more things to try to check off the list....
There was no air conditioning in the cabin, but as everyone knows, I like that. By opening the door to the bedroom and the windows as well, a breeze blew around in the room so it kept it non-sweating at least for me. We had a really fun shower, mom you really can throw a good one :-)
We came back early so Russ and I could play in a couple's tournament. I guess my luck finally ran out when it comes to golfing. I played as bad as I had all year. I hit two balls out of bounds, and I hadn't done that all year...honestly I can't ever remember hitting a single ball out of bounds on these two holes ever. I made it over one water hole, only to hit three balls in a row off of trees and backwards. I had a 10 on one hole and an 8 on another. I was nowhere near close to where I wanted to be on my round. It would have been nice to play with a couple we knew, but maybe next year. It seems we have a pattern of winning one year and then losing the next. So we are due next year.
After that horrible round, my attitude stunk. The kids were crabby and so was I. Trevor has been taking the bus to his sports camp this week, but after Friday we are done with activities. Hopefully he will behave for the two weeks until school starts.
I played golf again on Tuesday, and had a very good round, so I guess that improved my mood a bit. I haven't even started my reading for class, which is very unlike me. Someday soon, I'll have lot of catch-up to do. My two professors this session have been very absent the last week. So I haven't gotten a lot of information on how I am doing in the class.
Wednesday, I met with some of our PTA officers because I had gotten my responsibility as Fall Fundraiser Chair. They were stuffing envelopes, and we ended up staying over an hour after they were all stuffed sharing ideas for the next year.
My mind is a flutter with lots of random things to get done soon. While school is just over 2 weeks away, I can't even get there yet mentally. Thank goodness I have already gotten the school supplies or that would also be grinding on me.
On to a few more things to try to check off the list....
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
There went the weekend
Well, at the end of the week, I could tell that Trevor really enjoyed his Tennis lessons put on by the Summer Spectrum group. He had the class with a few kids he knew, and got to ride on his bus for the entire week. We picked him up on Friday and headed to my parents house for the weekend so Russ and I could golf. I was excited that the weather was going to be hot, although there was a good chance of rain, which is never fun to play in. It never got called off, so all that meant was that there wasn't any lightning.
On Saturday, I was playing in the rain until hole 12. I shot a 99 and was tied for first place after the first day. Then on Sunday, the heat and humidity really kicked in. I don't know why I tried to make it through without taking an electric cart. But I did. And I was pretty exhausted after that round. I shot a 105 that day, which ended up winning my flight. I feel kind of bad because I didn't care at all if I came in first or last. As long as I shot under a 110 both days. Russ came in a tie for 2nd in his flight, so he did well as well.
The kids seemed to have a blast as they always do when they are with their extended family. They got to go to the county fair, teddy bear park, and play in the sprinkler. Trevor also lost his 3rd tooth there. I knew it was a possibility, but I forgot to send his tooth "pillow" with him so he had to make do. It is a bottom tooth, but it still changes his smile. Looks like his top two teeth might not be out for a few more months. Maybe it will be a Christmas time event. Then he can sing the song, "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth."
Trevor's attitude seems to have slowed down over the past week. I wonder if it is getting him back to the park for a few days, or just his cycle. Gwen has turned it on in the mean time, but I seem to have more patience with her because I know she doesn't get it yet. But today, when I came downstairs this morning, Trevor had turned on the FSN channel and they were recapping yesterday's baseball scores. Trevor was loving it. He was able to tell me scores and what was going on around the country. I thought it was really cute. I would have thought he would have been tired out with baseball by this point, but it sure doesn't sound like it!
We are off today for a longer weekend at the cabin. We are celebrating the new nephew coming into our family! That time sure is getting close!
On Saturday, I was playing in the rain until hole 12. I shot a 99 and was tied for first place after the first day. Then on Sunday, the heat and humidity really kicked in. I don't know why I tried to make it through without taking an electric cart. But I did. And I was pretty exhausted after that round. I shot a 105 that day, which ended up winning my flight. I feel kind of bad because I didn't care at all if I came in first or last. As long as I shot under a 110 both days. Russ came in a tie for 2nd in his flight, so he did well as well.
The kids seemed to have a blast as they always do when they are with their extended family. They got to go to the county fair, teddy bear park, and play in the sprinkler. Trevor also lost his 3rd tooth there. I knew it was a possibility, but I forgot to send his tooth "pillow" with him so he had to make do. It is a bottom tooth, but it still changes his smile. Looks like his top two teeth might not be out for a few more months. Maybe it will be a Christmas time event. Then he can sing the song, "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth."
Trevor's attitude seems to have slowed down over the past week. I wonder if it is getting him back to the park for a few days, or just his cycle. Gwen has turned it on in the mean time, but I seem to have more patience with her because I know she doesn't get it yet. But today, when I came downstairs this morning, Trevor had turned on the FSN channel and they were recapping yesterday's baseball scores. Trevor was loving it. He was able to tell me scores and what was going on around the country. I thought it was really cute. I would have thought he would have been tired out with baseball by this point, but it sure doesn't sound like it!
We are off today for a longer weekend at the cabin. We are celebrating the new nephew coming into our family! That time sure is getting close!
Friday, August 6, 2010
Hoping to give myself a break
It has been a little better week all around, with a little trouble from Trevor, but I'm actually confident that I'm letting him make his choices and if he wants to keep making not good choices, it will lead him to not getting things he wants.
It has been a pretty good week from the perspective that I've been playing a lot with the kids. While I don't get all the other things I need to take care of done, it at least relieves some of the mom guilt I have.
Gwen has been wanting to play food or babies all the time. So that is where I have been spending most of my days. While she is starting to imaginatively play, she can't quite grasp the concept of naming something. I think she thinks that things either already have a name or that whoever is playing with the toy, inherits the name. So we have mommy baby, baby, and daddy baby that we play with. She plays with them similar to a real baby, we dance, we change diapers, we put them to bed, we give them bottles, but she is not the mom. She is Gwen. I am mommy. Because it is my name. Now she gets that my mom and other people call me Krissy, but my name still is mommy.
We went school supply shopping for Trevor, (more on that later) and at the end, because the kids were good we headed over to look at the toys. Gwen is starting to understand that you need to get something in order to take it out of the store. So she is starting to ask to get things. Target just set their toys that will be in the stores for Christmas, so they have a bunch of new toys. The one she found that she really wants is the one fairy that she doesn't have. She was kind of a "bad" fairy in the first one, and not even in the second one, but I hear she has a bigger part in the new movie coming out. So when she saw it in the store, she wanted it. Now is the time she needs to learn how to wait for her birthday. It is under 2 months away, so she won't have long to wait, but she now is asking to have her birthday so she can get the fairy. What I thought was a cute sidenote: Trevor asked in a quiet voice if he could get that for her for her birthday. I thought it was a nice gesture, so I think we will be doing that.
So we brought Trevor's school supply list to Target last night and I read the list off while he searched for the items. We found everything we needed, so we are all set. I could see his excitement growing, and he even said it himself - yes doing the wrist flap and jumping up and down - I'm so excited for school to start! I thought it was another moment of cuteness for him. Or maybe I just like remembering what it was like to be in his shoes.
And one more cute moment for Trevor, but this has to be something that is not teased because I know it could easily be. Hopefully those that would think of teasing will remember the many times where they themselves could have been teased for what they enjoyed doing. Anyway, after Gwen went up for her nap, I left it to Trevor to decide what we were going to do. Sometimes it involves a game, a card game, me watching a Nascar race of his, or playing Cars. That day, he wanted to play with Gwen's Fairies. I wonder why he chooses things like that, and I think it is because he likes the Tinkerbell movies, and always likes to act out or slightly change the stories in the movies. I acted out whatever Fairy he asked me to be, and I think we had a good time. Not having a sister around screaming at you to stop playing with your things is nice for him from time to time. There isn't going to be much more time of that, I don't think. I'm not sure how much time he will have to himself once he is back from school.
So this weekend, the kids are going to the fair with Bubba and Papa. They are both really looking forward to it, and I hope the weather is good for everyone. I have plenty of homework to get done in addition to having some fun times at golf. Hope everyone has a great weekend!
It has been a pretty good week from the perspective that I've been playing a lot with the kids. While I don't get all the other things I need to take care of done, it at least relieves some of the mom guilt I have.
Gwen has been wanting to play food or babies all the time. So that is where I have been spending most of my days. While she is starting to imaginatively play, she can't quite grasp the concept of naming something. I think she thinks that things either already have a name or that whoever is playing with the toy, inherits the name. So we have mommy baby, baby, and daddy baby that we play with. She plays with them similar to a real baby, we dance, we change diapers, we put them to bed, we give them bottles, but she is not the mom. She is Gwen. I am mommy. Because it is my name. Now she gets that my mom and other people call me Krissy, but my name still is mommy.
We went school supply shopping for Trevor, (more on that later) and at the end, because the kids were good we headed over to look at the toys. Gwen is starting to understand that you need to get something in order to take it out of the store. So she is starting to ask to get things. Target just set their toys that will be in the stores for Christmas, so they have a bunch of new toys. The one she found that she really wants is the one fairy that she doesn't have. She was kind of a "bad" fairy in the first one, and not even in the second one, but I hear she has a bigger part in the new movie coming out. So when she saw it in the store, she wanted it. Now is the time she needs to learn how to wait for her birthday. It is under 2 months away, so she won't have long to wait, but she now is asking to have her birthday so she can get the fairy. What I thought was a cute sidenote: Trevor asked in a quiet voice if he could get that for her for her birthday. I thought it was a nice gesture, so I think we will be doing that.
So we brought Trevor's school supply list to Target last night and I read the list off while he searched for the items. We found everything we needed, so we are all set. I could see his excitement growing, and he even said it himself - yes doing the wrist flap and jumping up and down - I'm so excited for school to start! I thought it was another moment of cuteness for him. Or maybe I just like remembering what it was like to be in his shoes.
And one more cute moment for Trevor, but this has to be something that is not teased because I know it could easily be. Hopefully those that would think of teasing will remember the many times where they themselves could have been teased for what they enjoyed doing. Anyway, after Gwen went up for her nap, I left it to Trevor to decide what we were going to do. Sometimes it involves a game, a card game, me watching a Nascar race of his, or playing Cars. That day, he wanted to play with Gwen's Fairies. I wonder why he chooses things like that, and I think it is because he likes the Tinkerbell movies, and always likes to act out or slightly change the stories in the movies. I acted out whatever Fairy he asked me to be, and I think we had a good time. Not having a sister around screaming at you to stop playing with your things is nice for him from time to time. There isn't going to be much more time of that, I don't think. I'm not sure how much time he will have to himself once he is back from school.
So this weekend, the kids are going to the fair with Bubba and Papa. They are both really looking forward to it, and I hope the weather is good for everyone. I have plenty of homework to get done in addition to having some fun times at golf. Hope everyone has a great weekend!
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