Summer Fun (including Dance Recital)

It is that time of year again.  School is out and summer has begun!

Our fun began on the last day of school.  As the kids got off the bus, Ms. Roxanne handed them each a can of silly string.  The kids immediately put them to use, spraying each other and their caught-off-guard parents! I was wearing Luke, but he didn't serve as much of a shield--the kids were happy to squirt around, and sometimes at, him.  Then, we went to a neighbors house and surprised the kids with a fun water/pizza party. Kelley had personally filled 300 water balloons that she placed strategically throughout her yard.  Another neighbor, Amanda, had filled another 100.  It was awesome!  The kids had so much fun getting soaked. After we left, they were all asking if we could do the same thing next year.  It will certainly be a hard last-day-of-school-surprise to top!

It wasn't hot, but apparently this coat and hat had been left in Jack's cubby and it just seemed easier to wear them home.

Threatening their poor mother!

We love our neighbors, even when they are squirting us with water guns or throwing water balloons at us! Unfortunately, I couldn't get everyone in this picture, but pretty close.

Next on our summer schedule was the annual dance recital.  Anna and Kara once again participated in tap and ballet lessons and were very excited to show off their skills.  Anna's tap routine was set to "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" and her ballet was a mash-up of "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend" and "Material Girl". Kara had 3 routines!  She had 2 ballet routines, "Let it Go" and "A Whole New World".  Tap was "These Boots are Made for Walking."  Unfortunately, I did not get any good pictures of Anna.  You can't take pictures during the recital and none of the ones I took at the rehearsal came out.  I tried to get her to put her costume back on after the recital, but she wasn't interested.  So, you'll have to take my word that she looked super cute (or sit through the video).  It was a little bit stressful having Luke at the show.  We arrived early enough to get front row seats, but I had to leave twice to feed Luke.  (Well, sneak into the back).  The recital was supposed to last 1.5-2 hours, it was 3.

I was again happy with the age-appropriate routines, but a little disappointed that they hadn't improved more.  I don't think I expect a lot, but after 3 years for Anna and 2 for Kara, it seems like they should be better.  Not they are bad, but I don't think you can learn much in just 45-minutes a week.  We told them that if they want to do more lessons, they have to commit to practicing at home.  We'll see how that goes.

Sometimes, my camera takes awesome pictures like this...

And, sometimes this is what I get.  Can't be user error, right?

Anna is in the back right corner

Luke enjoyed watching the dances during the dress rehearsal.

The first week of summer break was filled with fun activities. We went to the base pool one day, a favorite for the kids.  We knew our friends (Kelley and Amanda) would be there and they essentially took on the 3 older kids while I took care of Luke. We definitely couldn't have gone without people there to help. Luke does have a great swimsuit, but I was very nervous about him getting too much sun, so he only went in the pool for about 10 minutes.  He spent the rest of his time resting in the shade, with one snack break.  Jack actually passed the swimming test that lets him go on the diving board and slide!  He had to swim across the deep end and tread water for 30 seconds.  He doesn't have any form when swimming yet (they kept trying to get him to do the breaststroke, but he has his own method). But, he did it!  He was so proud of himself--justifiably so!  I think Anna could pass too, but she has no interest in the slide or diving board and is a bit more nervous in the water than Jack.

We also did craft days at Michael's, went to the library and did tie-dye t-shirts at Kelley's house.  She had everything set up for us and even had extra white shirts in the kids sizes.  Once we were there, I caught the bug and did shirts for Thomas and me and two onesies for Luke.  We have to leave them bundled up for a week, but I will post pictures after the big reveal.

Luke taking it easy while we tie-dyed 

And, that my friends, concludes our first, very eventful week of summer break.  It hasn't been easy carting Luke around with us, but I think we've had some good success.  He is (generally) pretty compliant.  We just have to keep him fed and well-rested (but, isn't that true of all of us)?  We are trying to stick to a routine, with a little bit of school work in the mornings, followed by a fun activity, and some quiet time in the afternoon. So far, so good. One week down, 8.5 to go!

Bonus picture, just because I like it!