Summer Fun

I love summer. I love my kids even more. I love dusk. It seems we all get a second wind at dusk. My kids have been going to bed LATE. But they've also been sleeping in which is SO NICE! We've been bike riding, running through sprinklers, putting the bubble machine to good use, and just takin' in easy!

I feel really blessed that I get to stay home with these kids. As we were riding our bikes from the school after voting, my heart was flooded with thankfullness that I get to witness these little girls grow up. I've been there for it all and am so glad I haven't had to miss a thing. Nobody knows these babies like I do. It may just about break me on some days, but I wouldn't miss being here for anything. No worldly luxuries could make me want to miss them growing up. Just feeling really blessed I guess.  Speaking about dusk, something overcomes my kids and they feel the need to strip to their underwear. It has happened on several occasions. I guess they feel free and uninhibited without clothes and their smiles couldn't get any bigger. Poor Julianne, she's desperate to discard whatever she can and she usually ditches her diaper if she can't get her shirt off. Luckily I got a semi discrete picture of her hiding behind the garden. Yep, she's fully naked behind there.

Swim Lessons

Wow! So we did our first ever swim lessons. Today was day two, and my kids LOVE IT!!! Sophia was a little hesitant yesterday and said she didn't want to do it as we were driving there, but oh boy, her tune changed once she saw the pool. I know for a fact, that she was the first one to get in the water in her class. I only wished it was a little more advanced, because she floats on her back in the bathtub, if you know what I'm saying. But hey, it is just a fun time for them to be in the water, and I don't have to be in a swimsuit. Her little buddy there is Brenna, and we ended up taking lessons at the same time as all the kids in our babysitting group. So it's fun for all!

Gabriela loves it a lot too. Her teacher told her to get her hair wet (meaning stick your head under water), yet she found a better way to do it.  But her teacher caught on to her shenanegans and told her to put her face in.  They then played a game where there was a fish in the middle and they had to swim out of the hoola hoop. Gabriela chose to be a star fish. How fitting. The only problem we have is that it is never long enough. And once again, Julianne has to be the bystander and watch her sisters have all the fun. Her times a comin' though.

Summer Jobs

Well, we really wanted the girls to start pulling there weight around here, so I made them a chore chart (I've tried this a billion times before), but I've put a new spin on it. You see, during Gabriela's kindergarten assesment, the teacher informed me that she didn't know her coins very well. She would be right. I haven't gone over that with the kids, so I decided to kill two birds with one stone. I made a chart with 10 small circles (dime sized) and drew a big picture of a dollar at the top. Each time they do a chore or help out they get a dime to tape to one of their circles. 10 dimes = one dollar. Brillant!!! Well the girls earned two dimes each today by helping us with these family tasks.   It started out innocently and then led to this!

  All the while, Gabriela sat on top of a dirt pile digging holes. So we had her catch up by shucking corn and putting dishes away. Maybe this time our charts will work (crossing my fingers and holding my breath!)