First day of school

Lauren and Dylan started school on August 14th. Lauren is in Kindergarten and has the same teacher that Dylan had, Mrs. Salmon. She is amazing and is helping Lauren come out of her shy world. So far, Lauren is liking school but is coming home tired. She is still working on how to express her feelings, and right now it is coming out in screams and attitude. Girls are great! She told me after the second day of school that she doesn't want to go every day. She's got a lot coming her way! 

 Dylan is in the high ability 2/3 class. He has Mrs. Scanlon and she is great. He will have a little more homework this year, but I'm hoping that he will enjoy the fast-paced learning from this class. He is doing a great job at watching out for Lauren and even walked her to class on the first day! Way to go big brother!

  I am babysitting for two little boys before school and one comes here after school, too. Kameryn is in 1st grade and Zach is in Kindergarten. It gets a little rowdy around here sometimes, but so far we have made it on the bus on time. Ethan really likes watching the big kids get on the bus every day.

 Such a big girl!

Ethan and I have been enjoying some time together as the older 2 are at school. He sometimes doesn't know what to do, but we are adjusting and trying to keep busy. We are hoping to make it to story-time at the library every week and he will be starting a joy-school program with some friends soon. He also gets to have playdates with Jack every week. It has been so nice for him, as he really missed having Jack here all the time! I have been getting some small projects done around the house, and that always feels good.

Last of the summer fun

We are trying to get everything in before summer is over! What a busy time! Here are the past 2 weeks in review.

July 27th, the kids and I went to Illinois for a family reunion. 

 

After the reunion, we went to an alpaca farm. It was really cool to see the fun animals.

 

My mom took the kids home for the night. It was so nice to have a Sunday with just Ricky. We relaxed and enjoyed some quiet time together. Just what we needed. The kids had a great time with Grandma and Grandpa. They went swimming for a little bit (it was cold outside and the water was really cold, too!) and then my dad took Dylan BB gun shooting. He loved it and did a great job. I'd rather my kids learn gun safety from my dad than from a friend!  

 

 July 29th, we had a doctor appointment for Lauren in Indy. We had been contemplating if we should even go, since she is doing well with everything, but decided it would be good to see her specialist. We found out that she needs new orthotics in her shoes to help with her lateral antiversion. Basically, her hips are still facing inward causing her knees to be close together. Fingers crossed that the insurance will pay for them and I feel that they will help correct her hips. She also needs a note at school as she is not supposed to do some of the activities they may require in gym class. (I still can't believe that she is going to kindergarten!) 

August 1st, we went to the Tippecanoe Fair. Ricky took the day off to spend some time with us. Too bad the rides didn't open until 5 and we were there at 2. It was fun and the kids loved seeing all of the animals.

We have been keeping up with weekly playdates with friends this summer. The kids really enjoy playing with their friends and I enjoy having a little time with them occupied! Last week, Lauren's friend was gone on vacation, so she got to spend the afternoon with just me. It was nice to have some girl time with her. I think we need to start doing the one-on-one dates with the kids. They are growing up way too fast!

Last Friday I took the kids to the Columbian Park Zoo. 

 

The kids have been asking to ride the train all summer, so we finally rode it. They raised the prices since they are putting in a new depot, so it was not worth the money, but the kids loved it! The things you do for kids!

Last Monday, we went to the State Fair with our good friends, the Sproat's. It was so much fun showing them around as they had never been before. We love going to the fair and try to go every year. My favorite food this year was the turkey leg. It was so flavorful! Of course the deep fried basket of veggies, doughnut burger, corn dog, deep fried Oreos, deep fried Reeses, deep fried milky way, and deep fried butter, roasted corn, and milkshakes were all really good, too.  

 

 This is the world's largest popcorn ball. It was fitting as this was the year of the popcorn. Good old Indiana!

 

  Tuesday, we went to Fair Oaks Dairy farm for playgroup. Lauren and Ethan loved the big bouncy thing. They spent most of their time here.

 

 Ethan and Jack were inseparable! This is their 'cheese' for the camera! Love those boys!

 Dylan was a lot more adventurous this year. He climbed all the way to the top! I'm so proud of him!

  Last night, we had a big celebration here at our house! Ricky has graduated from Purdue University with a bachelors degree in Hospitality and Tourism Management. We are so proud of him! I thought it would be nice to celebrate with our friends and family, so I planned a cook-out. I think he was surprised! He came home from work early, to work on stuff from home, and figured it out earlier than planned, but it all worked out in the end! Congratulations Ricky!

Summertime

Crystalin, Ricky's sister, and her kids were here this past week, so I got to spend some fun times with them. So of the many activities we got to enjoy were: Seeing Despicable Me 2 in the theater (and taking a picture with the Monsters University display); 

 

dinner out with all of the adults, while the older kids watched the younger kids; getting pedicures with the older girls; 

 

celebrating Jared and Lenell's baby with a baby shower;

 

going to Tropicanoe Cove; 

 

(After a long day of playing hard, the boys were out cold!)

 

taking a road trip to the Albanese Candy Factory in Merrilville and then getting pizza at Costco; and late night movies.

It was so great to spend so much time with them as they are living in Mexico City now.We miss them already and hope to see them all soon!

I finally got some pictures of the kids at swim lessons. They loved them and all improved from the lessons. It is a great way to enjoy the summertime! 

Dylan swimming to his teacher.

Lauren waiting her turn to show her teachers how well she can do head bobs.

Ethan holding hands with his buddy, Jack! Those boys are so cute together!

 

We have had a great month with family and summer fun! 

Happy Birthday Lauren!

Lauren's birthday was spread out this year. We celebrated with Ricky's family on Saturday at the cabin. Then on Sunday, her actual birthday, we drove all day. Not so fun. So when we got home, we planned a little tea party for Lauren and a few friends. She kept asking if she would be 6 after her party with her friends. I tried to explain it, but she didn't understand. She is still just 5, thankfully! I don't want her growing up any faster than she already is! 

Here she is on her birthday!

 All dressed up! (it's always fun to see what Lauren wants to wear!) It was so much fun watching the girls get all dressed up. They had a great time putting make-up on, then having 'tea' (fruit punch) and cookies.

 "Tea" time

I can't believe that my little princess is 5! I love you so much!

Pigeon Forge

Last week, we had a fun road trip to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. We drove down on Tuesday, July 9th and came home on Sunday, July 14th.We met up with Ricky's parents and sister's family to carpool down. We ended up with these crazies in our car! It was a ton of fun! My kids travel very well and we only had to stop 2 times!

Wednesday, we headed over to The Smokey Mountain State Park to explore. We hiked to Cataract Falls and then went to the highest point, Clingman's Dome. Fun fact: The top of the Dome is the highest point of the Smokey Mountains at about 6,600 ft. Crystalin (Ricky's sister) and family live in Mexico City, Mexico where the elevation is about 8,000 ft. I thought that was very interesting. The kids did great and we had a wonderful day, minus the heat. It was very hot!
Lauren had a special bond with Grandpa this trip. It was really cute. 

The best shot of our family in front of the Cataract Falls.

Dylan had a blast hiking around.

Looking out at the mountains from the base of Clingman's Dome. It almost looks like a photo-shopped picture, but we were really there! Ethan didn't want to get too close to the edge. He was a little timid (and I'm glad he was. It was a long way down!)

At the top of Clingman's Dome.

Ethan resting on daddy for the long walk back down the mountain.

After a long day, we enjoyed ice cream sundaes on the deck overlooking the mountains. The kids loved to eat outside.

Thursday, the older kids and the brothers went White Water Rafting. Our brakes were squeaking really bad after driving through the mountains, so we had to take it in to get the brake pads replaced. Fun times! I hung out at the cabin with the kids under 8, Ruth, Spencer, and Crystalin. We thought it would be fun to take the kids to the park down the street. It was really fun, but we were sweating so bad we couldn't stay long. The kids didn't seem to mind! Ethan is such a big boy! He walked across this rope bridge all by himself!

After dinner, we all headed over to a go-carting place. It was so fun to race all of the family! The little kids even likes these rides.

On Friday, all of the big boys went ATVing up the mountain. They had a blast! Here is Ricky looking out over the mountain at the top of the hill.

Ruth, Lenell, Crystalin and I took the younger kids to the pool. They loved it and it felt soo good to be in the cool water. It was so hot outside that we were instantly sweating when we walked outside.

Keegan and Ethan loving the little pool.

Dylan decided to grow up on me and jumped off the diving board. I just looked up from the shallow end of the pool and saw him standing on the edge of the board. He loved it and jumped off about 10 more times! Way to go Dylan!

The kids had to stop for a snack break!

After a long day at the pool, we came back to the cabin for dinner and games or a movie. We had a great time hanging out with everyone! 
 
 Saturday morning, we all (minus the 2 prego ladies) headed over to a stable where we got to ride horses in the woods. Dylan loved it! The single riders got to go on a different trail and left about 15 minutes before the double riders. It worked out great as they got back a little after us, too.

The little ones waiting to get on the horse.

Lauren petting her horse, Cinnamon.

Ethan and I rode Mr. Gray. He loved it and had a great time!

Such a great time horseback riding!

 

After we got home from the stables, we celebrated Lauren's birthday. (Her birthday was Sunday, but we were driving home all day. I thought it would be more fun to celebrate with everyone!)

She got her ballerina barbie and movie (the only thing she asked for), along with another barbie and some clothes. She had a great day!

 

This is what the kids enjoyed doing around the cabin! What did we do before technology?

After lunch, we went back to the pool for the afternoon. It was a gorgeous day! After dinner, we headed out to go mini-golfing, but the big boys got distracted by the go-karts. We got bored, so we went to a couple of little shops in town and got some ice cream. Much more fun!

 

The little kids watching the big boys on the go-karts.

We had a wonderful week at the cabin in the mountains! This view from our balcony was hard to leave! This was one of those vacations that you don't want to end. My kids even asked if we could move to a cabin in the mountains, they had so much fun! We will have to go back again soon!