Every summer I have grand plans for the kids... grand plans for lots of fun and activities, jobs, piano practice, reading, and individualized help with math and school stuff. And each summer I fail to even come up with, let alone put into practice, a schedule to make it all work. About 90% of what I want to accomplish doesn't get done. And I feel bad about it.
But... then I realized, that my mom never did any of that crazy stuff to keep us entertained or up to date scholastically. And I survived. Actually, I had fun in the summer and I somehow ended up still being smart in school. So, I'm letting myself off the hook. :) I've decided that I like the laid back, do nothing-ness of summer. No, my kids didn't do many jobs around the house. But they did some. I think I went over a few times tables on maybe four different occasions with Natalie. I didn't do anything with Kelton. Somehow, I think they will still survive the upcoming fourth and first grades. Anyway, I'm always complaining about how, during the school year, they never have time to play because they are at school all day and then come home and have to do more homework, and jobs, and piano practice, and then go to bed early because they start early in the morning... and they don't get to play! So, this summer, I just let them play! No structure, no schedule. They will have all of that back soon enough.
Anyway, here is what we did do this summer. We bought tickets to the summer movies at the Harkins Theater. For $5 per person you get a ticket to watch a different kids movie each week for the months of June and July. The kids love doing this. Even Arie liked to watch the movies.
Arie also liked to sneak into the isle from time to time to watch.
On July 10-12 I went as a chaperone with the YW/YM in our ward to a stake youth conference in Safford/Thatcher. Chrissie Hancock was going to go but wanted a break from being gone from home. So she switched with me. I went, and she watched my kids during the day while Nate was at work. While I was at the youth conference, she sent me this picture of Arie napping.
Monsoons finally hit at the beginning of July and cooled our temperatures. So much so that we hit an incredibly freezing 78 degrees. Good thing the kids had access to these clothes so they wouldn't die of exposure when we had to brave the outside conditions to go to the store.
Arie loves to dance and has leaned some awesome hip action this summer.
She also woke up one morning looking like either Pebbles from the Flintstones or a Who from the Grinch. Take your pick. Either works.
Damon got to go to a birthday party for Eugene, one of the boys who was in our Joyschool group. The party was Angry Birds themed and Eugene loves the color green. So here is Damon modeling the present I made for him, while demonstrating his best "angry" face.
On July 19th, Natalie got to go to an all day basketball camp here in town. There is not an organized basketball league of any kind here, (which makes me so sad!) so I was glad to find out about this. Natalie said she had a lot of fun.
One day while shopping, I found the perfect shirt for Natalie.
Another thing I was very excited about was swimming lessons! The YMCA came to the not-open-to-the-public (long story--don't get me started) school pool here to do *almost* free swim lessons. I signed Natalie and Kelton up for the first four weeks in July. Unfortunately, Damon couldn't do it because he isn't five. Lessons were Monday-Thursday for half an hour. I didn't feel like the instruction given was as good as it could have been (you get what you pay for), but the kids had fun and I was grateful for the opportunity the kids had to be in the water, since we don't have a place where they can swim. Kelton can even swim a bit now! He couldn't at all beforehand. This is a major accomplishment because in previous years, he loved being in the water, but would get very upset when the water touched his face at all. But this year he was ready. He will put his face in and actually swim!
The last thing we really did this summer was go to Snowflake for Pioneer Days. Cue next post...
3 comments:
Way to make your mom feel like a failure! Tell the world that she never did anything constructive during the summer!!! Thanks.A.Lot.
Fun pictures of your cute kids! You might have to bring sweatshirts if you ever come to visit in the summer, just in case. :) (When we came to AZ at the end of May and stopped at your parents house, the kids wanted to jump on the trampoline in the morning and asked for their coats because they were used to using them in the still chilly mornings at our house.)
Sounds like you had a fun summer! I always make a schedule because I feel like I at least get a few things done (it's more of a reminder to me to take advantage of the opportunity to spend time with my kids), but we never follow it rigidly. (And then there's this summer when I barely get healed from surgery in time to break my elbow and I feel like we haven't done anything.) Oh well! :)
Your girls camp sounds like lots of fun! That's a lot to put together, but sounds like it went well, even if it was exhausting!
Arie is just too cute!
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