Dog days of summer

So, I had this crazy idea that when pre-school and playgroup ended, life was going to get a little less hectic. We'd relax this summer. And then the summer catalog came, and we signed Samantha up for spring soccer. And then we discovered that t-ball was 2 days a week this year, and Jason ended up coaching so we had to be there earlier than everyone else. And then Samantha wanted to take a singing class. And then I read about a week long basketball camp and that sounded like fun. And swimming classes needed to be resumed for both kids. And suddenly, my nice relaxing summer turned out to be anything but!

But, it has been so much fun. We always spend at least one day a week with friends. We've been to the lake a few times this summer, Tiger games and we spend a lot of time at the park.

One night, when I was having dinner with a friend, Samantha called me on my cell to tell me that daddy had taken them to the metropark and she could now ride her bike without training wheels. Apparently, it was a 20 minute thing and she picked it up without any issue. And I was so excited for her, that it wasn't until my friend said, "He taught her without you there to see it." that I realized I had missed the whole thing!!

I'm free!!

My Kyle is three - or "free" if he's telling the story. It seems like only yesterday that this ball of fun joined our lives, but amazingly it has already been three years. Kyle had a family party and his first "friend" party this year. His playgroup friends and some other Dexter friends joined him at Treehouse for a birthday celebration. He had a wonderful time and seemed to really enjoy having all of his friends there just for him.

This picture seemed pretty fitting to me to add here: Kyle, surrounded by the girls at the party and him loving every minute of it. I think I'm going to have to get used to that scene. If I had a nickle for every time my son has been referred to as a "flirt" - often by total strangers - his college education would be paid for.

Go west young man...

Since we got married, my husband has been dying to go back to Yellowstone NP. We'd both gone with our families around the time of the fires when we were kids, but Jason couldn't wait to return. So, after putting him off year after year ("Yellowstone would be really hard with a baby"..."let's wait until the kids will remember"..."are you crazy? I'm not driving across the country with a 1 YO"...you get the point), we finally planned the trip. We decided to buy a small camper - a hybrid with hard sides and pop out beds at each end. We booked a campground at Madison in Yellowstone, and we headed west. We drove until very late the first night, stopping at a Walmart to sleep for the night (in case you don't know, Walmart allows you to camp for free in their parking lots!). We finally arrived in the Black Hills, SD for the first stop of our trip. It was beautiful in the badlands, 70s, sunny, we hiked through some of the trails and we were having a great time...

After our first beautiful day, we arrived at our Flintstone campground and packed it in for the night. When we woke, it was snowing. And so started the first phase of our trip - an ugly flashback of last year's wretched weather in New Orleans. We did what we could in the cold - visited Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse, wind cave, the mammoth site, and on the last day, it was in the 50s so we were able to take the kids to the Flintsone theme park... and then we hightailed it out of there and headed to Yellowstone - where the weather was sure to be nicer and warmer.

And so we drove on. Partway through Wyoming, I started to feel awful - dizzy, nauseous, lightheaded - and the next morning, after we had arrived in Yellowstone, I had razor blades running down my throat. Having finished antibiotics for strep throat only days before we left for our trip, we assumed the strep had returned. So, we spent the day calling the insurance company, making a doctor's appointment, driving out of the park to the doctor - an entire day ruined and miserable. It turned out not to be strep throat again. The doctor suspected mono from being crazy enough to travel across country with a 5 and 2 YO so soon after having strep throat. So, I spent the rest of the day sleeping while Jason took the kids sight seeing. After a few more days of me feeling like garbage, horrible weather, nothing going right and being cooped up in the tiny camper - Jason had had enough and decided he wanted to pack it in and go home...

So, after he CALMED down and at least pretended to agree that we weren't cursed on trips, we decided that we would stay. This was the low point of the trip - the turning point. It was all uphill from there. My speech convinced him, although he was still skeptical. But it was. We had a great time the rest of the trip. We visited the Tetons, we saw black bear, grizzlies, Moose, Elk, Bison, Mule and Whitetail deer, coyotes, eagles, osprey, fox - and what I hoped to see more than anything else - wolves. We woke in the morning to 3 bison eating only a few feet from our camper; Samantha and Jason were able to see a baby prong horn stand up for the first time after birth; we found a wolf den and watched the wolves keep watch over their pups; we watched a mother grizzly walking with her cub. And the weather held out. We got up very early on our last day, checked out and read the weather board - the forecast called for 2-4" of snow...and we smiled at our good luck. :)

All good things must come to an end

Pre-school was a wonderful experience. Samantha loved it and learned a lot - more socially than academically. The teachers were amazing. They even had Mother's and Father's Day celebrations. Below are some pics. The Father's Day celebration had a "beach wear" theme and the Mother's Day celebration was "dress up", so that's why we're wearing feather boas. Kyle stayed with a friend for an hour while I went to school with Samantha. And Jason had to take some time from work to go to class with her on his day. But, we each had a great time with our daughter.
But, the school year had to end. It was surprisingly emotional for me! I picked her up, not expecting any problem, and then the teachers got sad and kept hugging everyone and I struggled with not tearing up - big cry baby that I am. Each chapter that she closes is sad for me because it means she's growing up. But I also feel sad for her because, while she may not realize it, these are moments she'll remember when she's older and they're moments she'll never get back. She, however, had no problem saying goodbye to everyone, hugged her friends and teachers and waltzed out the door to start her summer vacation.

If I'm this emotional about the last day of pre-school, can you imagine how hard their graduation days will be for me?? Buy stock in Kleenex in May 2021!

My busy girl

Samantha has been busy again with pillo-polo this season - a spiced up name for floor hockey. It's amazing how much she has improved this year over last. Last week she scored her first goal, and this week she assisted in one goal and scored another on her own. She's doing a great job and trying her best.














Samantha's pre-school class was in the newspaper! The Dexter-Leader came in to take some pictures of Samantha's pre-school class on Valentine's Day. The kids were having a Valentine's Day party, and brought in their favorite bears to class. Samantha is on the far left holding her bear.

The Ky-guy - full of surprises

Every night, before bed, we check in on the kids to make sure they're tucked in, comfortable and safe. Sometimes they're too sweaty from blankets pulled up over their heads or too cold from kicking them off or just uncomfortable looking, but they've always been there. One night, I felt panic when Jason asked, "where's Kyle?" and I stepped around him to see an empty bed and empty floor beside the bed. I was busy scanning the room and closet for him when I heard Jason laugh and say, "here he is" and when I turned around, I saw him sound asleep, under his bed. He had pulled his blankets and teddy bear down with him, curled up under his bed and fallen asleep.

Now that Samantha is in school, her social calendar is starting to get busier. One weeknight, she and I had a birthday party to go to. So, Jason decided to do a boys' night out with Kyle. They headed over to Chuck E. Cheese for a little food and fun. When Samantha and I walked in the door, we heard a very excited Kyle come running in calling, "Hi mom! Hi Sam!" and this is what he looked like... The picture doesn't do it justice, but none of us could stop laughing for a while. He's our little clown.

Five Star Birthday

The birthday Samantha has been waiting for finally arrived. Samantha turned five. The age that opens the door to kindergarten, requires her to start taking the bus like the neighbor girls and makes her an official big girl. Her birthday was on a Saturday this year, so she and her friends celebrated at the Chelsea Treehouse. She invited all of the girls in her pre-school class and some other friends from Dexter. Then, she celebrated with her grandparents that evening and on Sunday. It's amazing how quickly five years can go by. Time flies when you're having fun.