Summer Vacay.....YEAH

FINALLY! Our summer vacation is here. I don't know who is more excited me or the kids. I love having them home and spending time with them. The school year gets so busy with things that sometimes I can forget to enjoy the moment.
We don't have many plans for the summer except going to the pool and hanging out together. Bob is going to be gone for a few more weeks then we thought so we are going to be going to Boise for a week to visit.
All the kids have made plans with friends. Grey will be mowing a friends yard for some extra money. I need to have one more yard sale to get rid of the stuff from my last yard sale.
I hope this year that I can remember to spend more time with the kids. They grow so fast and don't need me as much as they have before. Every year I make tons of plans and put them off because we have so much time. Until that last month and we are rushing to get things done and I begin yelling at my kids to have a fun, happy summer.
I hope that I make good memories for the kids to reflect back on. That those times I yell at them don't cement in their minds.
I also hope that they listen a little more and argue a little less. But I don't think that will happen, they are kids afterall.
Happy summer to everyone. There are also 3 new posts below this one for your reading enjoyment.

Dancing Queen

Finally, Natalie. Her last week of school was really busy. The school does a dance festival for all the parents in lieu of a Christmas program. This is our 3rd year doing it and we always enjoy it. Natalie practiced her dance at home alot and was ready to go Tuesday. They had a cute little dance about the US with whistles (somewhat annoying). She really shined!

We also put her into dance again this year after many years of her begging and us coming up with lame excuses. She has enjoyed every single minute of it. Her dance recital also landed on this last week of school. On the same day that the school had the fun run (she ran the full one lap on the track) and field day (fun and socializing)! So, I was nervous about hair and make-up and her being tired and grumpy that night (make-up was awesome thanks to the sister of a friend call me for a reference). We got her all dolled up and off to the recital.

SHE TOTALLY ROCKED! I'm not going to say my daughter will ever be a prima donna but she was awesome! She loved it too and that's really all that matters. She's ready to do it all again next year. As soon as I get help putting her video on her you will all have to watch.

Natalie is such a social butterfly and hates to hurt people. She made alot of new friends this year and found out that not everyone is nice and kind. She gets nervous but perseveres. She takes things seriously but can also have fun, she really hates to let anyone down because of her soft heart. I really love her can do attitude and it seems to only get better the older she gets. She balances out the boys very nicely and even tries to keep them in line. I can see the teenager poking through every so often and it scares me. She is such a sweet and caring little girl, I'm so proud she is my daughter.

Off to a great start

When Greyson started Jr. High this year we were a little worried. He didn't like elementary very much after our move and Jr. high can just be awkward. And when they get to be this age they don't really talk much about what's going on. So, either you guess or you just hope that everything is hunky dory.
So, when after the first week he came home happier and more energetic we were thrilled. He also said that he loved school again. He felt he was using his mind again and he really likes it. Bob and I both breathed a sigh of relief. THANK GOD!
As the year progressed he just seemed to blossom more. He found new friends and new subjects to study. He loved it. Sure, he had some problems with classes and the technicalities of Jr. high but he truly enjoyed it.
He had an awards assembly the 26th for all 7th graders. He received 6 awards. One of them for maintaining a 3.95 or higher for the full school year *he had a 4.0 every report card and would have had higher if the school didn't do simple GPA*. He also received perfect attendance, outstanding citizenship and 3 excellence in educations.
I'm so proud of the man he is becoming. Not just academically but also socially. He's willing to put himself out there more and he really is happy with himself. He has always been a great kid but now I can see little glimpses of the man to be. Sure, we still have a long way to go in these teenage years but we truly are off to a great start!

Kindergarten Graduate

Jake had a Kindergarten graduation ceremony on the 22nd and has officially become a 1st grader! He could really care less. Sitting up on stage he sang the songs and goofed off in usual Jake fashion. He's a smart kid but doesn't take school too seriously. He would rather be out at recess running and jumping then inside learning math or words. I know he knows the stuff because he comes home and recites things to me but he won't do it for the teacher's when asked. He might be the one we have to use the incentive program/bribe into doing schoolwork. Hope he likes hot wheels for a VERY LONG time.

Jake is so ready for summer. He is outside most of the day making friends with anyone who will talk to him. He keeps inviting other kids over for a party that I am unaware of until we have a bunch of kids here. I'm not complaining, I really like his outgoing personality, it keeps me on my toes.

I'm amazed that he'll be in school all day next year. I will miss our little shopping trips where he yells at me to go home and I tell him just one more store. I'll miss cuddling with him in a quiet house in the dead of winter. I'll miss his "cooking school" where he makes something totally disgusting but eats it anyway and tries to make me eat it too. I look forward to him learning more, because he does love it. I look forward to his stories of how the school day was. I look forward to the big grin he'll get when he fully realizes that he gets out of school the same time as the big kids.

Adddiction!

A friend of mine recently turned me onto these new types of slipper shoes. They are soooo cute, sooo warm, and soooo fuzzy! They are girly but practical. Perfect for a quick run to the mailbox or go to the school and drop off your kids lunch that they forgot that morning.

Today we went shopping and I thought I'd get a few for my sisters and moms. This is what we came home with......

It was a really good sale! These babies are usually 30 and we got them for 8 each! Seriously, how can a person pass up that type of sale! Especially if that person loves shoes, shopping or just spending money.

Jake even got a pair and loves them. They also have bags, pillows and blankets.

My cat seems to like them too.