Just another lazy summer...

Some Random Pictures of Summer:

The kids always love when we turn the sprinklers on.  Here they are sharing in the fun with their cousins:

 

Emma getting splashed with the hose.



Charley having fun with the hose.




Bathing beauty





Friends



Evan and his Justin Bieber hair.  Whenever we wash his hair and he combs it, he has to comb it all forward, never to the side.  He calls it "my Justin Bieber hair."

Summer School

The kids and I have fallen into a routine where we play school at night.  I was a bit concerned that I haven't been working with Evan like I used to do with Emma when she was little, so we are doing crash courses on spelling, important phone numbers, and numbers.  Emma loves playing school too, so we are continuing to work on her reading and math so she doesn't forget what she learned in kindergarten!  Plus - Target has a great deal in their dollar section now with little wipe boards, dry-erase pens, and workbooks for Pre-K, K, and school grades. So for $10 I loaded up the Heuer School and after supper, we play school.  (I am lucky, I get to play the bus driver, teacher, and recess flag lady).  It is fun for everyone really.  I had tossed around going to college for teaching, so it is kind of fun to play teacher once in awhile... and bus driver... and recess flag lady!  They are all a hoot.

At this moment, Evan pretty much knows how to spell his name. But, we are continuing to work on the letters and how they look.  He is also still trying to figure out if he is right-handed or left-handed, as he does everything with both yet hands.




Concentrating hard on his name.




The final worksheet.

 And Miss Emma.  She is still working on reading Level 1 books, but does enjoy practicing most nights.  I often read to her from her Kit (American Girl Doll) books as they are chapter books, but she loves hearing the stories.  We have had some interesting questions from her lately as Kit is a little girl who lives during the Depression.  Kit's Dad loses his job and they have to take in boarders so they don't lose their house. So, from these stories I get questions from Emma now "Mommy, are we going to lose our house?  Mommy, what if Daddy doesn't find a job?  Mommy, do we need to take in boarders?"

Taking a spelling test.



Her math tents.




Her first spelling test.  9 out of 10 isn't too bad!

 I figure it is a fun way to keep learning during the summer and to spend good quality time together.  Although their favorite time during "summer school" may be recess some days or riding the bus others, it is still a good way to past the time.

**and - check out Target for their neat little books and school stuff!

The sleepover party

Emma celebrated this past weekend with a sleepover at our cabin with her best friend Breezy (Brianna)!  Emma and Breezy have been friends ever since Emma was 1, so they go way back :-)  Breezy is our daycare provider's daughter and she and Emma are really such good friends, they play so well together, but unfortunately can fight like sisters.  However, they are happy to be back together this summer during the days.  The kids still go to their daycare one day a week, to allow Tim to have one day to work hard finding a job and because I still work from home one day as well.  While we have had many family members and cousins up to the cabin, this was the first time Emma got to bring up a friend. so to say she was excited is an understatement.   This unfortunately also made Evan believe that he was going to bring his buddy Will up. Evan was going to bring up an extra pair of goggles "for my friend Will" and he was excited to teach Will "how to train".  So, that led to a little conversation and disappointment for Evan.

We picked up Breezy Friday afternoon and headed up north. On the way, we stopped to a favorite creamery for ice cream :-)  That is always a kid and adult favorite thing to do. We made it up north and the swimming suits were instantly put on, sunblock was sprayed, and down to the lake they went.  It was fun to hear the screams and laughter as they jumped off the dock and swam in - over, over, and over.  As the thunderstorms approached, they came in to change and make their own little pizzas for supper.  The TV came on, tag was being played, and there were multiples "Evan!" as they were wanting time on their own and Evan wanted to play with them.

After the pizza supper, it was to the basement again to turn on all their favorite Disney shows (Austin & Ally, Good Luck Charlie, and Jessie) and snack on popcorn.  More running came after that, playing hide-n-seek, more whining about Evan, and finally settling in to more TV with their late night snack.  Falling asleep was a little difficult as Breezy wasn't tired, but Emma was. Then, Emma wasn't tired and Breezy was. Then, they wanted the radio on and the light off - then, the light had to be on, but the radio was too loud. Yup, one of those nights. They finally settled down around 11 or so to rise around 6:30.

The next day was more of the same - playing in the lake, going on the jet-ski, laughter, fun, and enjoying the lake with your best friend.   We took Breezy to meet her Mom at a little local town, had lunch, and parted ways.  The girls were sad to go, but both were extremely tired.  I was hoping Emma would nap... so I could nap. :-)

As said this weekend by my little boy....

There is a restaurant up at the cabin called "What the Heck" .  They have good pizza, cheap beer and drinks, and a popcorn machine in the corner.  Those add up to heaven for Tim and I and a fun night out for food at the cabin.  The kids love this place because they have a pool table, multitudes of coloring books and games for kids, and then the beloved video games.  Emma and Evan enjoy playing Big Buck Hunter, pretending to drive the motorcycle game in the back, and love, love, love, the claw machine to win a stuffed animal.

Tim and I have probably given the kids about $10 to try and win a cheap $.50 stuffed animal and their various family members have donated to the cause as well. Throughout our excursions to What the Heck, we have brought home one, cheap, pink, teddy bear thing.  However, every time we go, it is a fight with the kids about playing that game. 

Now, Evan was thinking ahead this week. As we were packing to go to the cabin, I see him busily in his room moving back and forth and thinking hard about something. He comes up to me later, with his little hand stuffed in the front pocket of his camouflage shorts, jangling something.  I ask him what he has in his pocket and he smiles a huge smile and says "I have money for the games at What the Heck" and sure enough, he pulls out a handful of quarters and pennies and nickels and dimes.  Unfortunately only a few quarters and mostly other small change.

I cannot help but hold back a smile and I tell him that I didn't think we were going to What the Heck this weekend.  But not to be deterred, he goes outside to talk to the boss - his Daddy.  Per Tim, Evan does the same thing - he walks over to him, jangles the change in his pocket and says "So Daddy, I was thinking we should go to What the Heck tonight."    Tim smiles and replies with a "Oh, you do, huh?" laughs to himself and Evan heads back into the house.

I put his change in a baggie as he was constantly losing some with all the jangling he was doing and try to break the news that we wouldn't be heading there tonight.  Emma was having a friend up to sleep over and it just wouldn't work out.  I felt bad, but assumed we would head there again.

But, I still thought it was pretty cute: "So Dad, I was thinking we could go to What the Heck tonight!"  Priceless!

The impromptu run in the sprinklers

Ah - the dreaded Monday back at work.  While there are some in my household that would gladly switch places with me and make the trek back to work on Mondays (nope, still no luck for my husband) I slowly dread Sundays coming because that means Monday is not too far away.

Monday evenings are rushed in the Heuer household because the kiddos have swimming lessons at 5:30.  So, that means I fight traffic even more aggressively to get home on time, rush to get food of some sort in the kids' stomach, and head out to swimming.  Level 1 for Evan and Level 3 for Emma.  Both kids did not want to go tonight, but we quickly got them in the car and headed to lessons.  (let's just say I learned my lesson from last Monday that to arrive late to swimming just brings on tears - from both kids.  More on that later.)

Evan still struggled and insisted that "I do not want to go swimming!"  even in the 100 degree heat and my prompting that swimming will feel good. Emma jumped right in and settled into the swimming routine.  The half an hour went by quickly and we headed home for supper - and me proudly resisting the Culver's that we drive by and the heavenly flavor of the day "Chocolate with roasted almonds and salted caramel."  Seriously - how yummy does that sound?

At home it was supper, dishes, and then outside to play.  We played in the front that was sheltered from the sun and was blessed with a light breeze.  I was weeding my flower garden, Evan was "the nice helper boy" that drove the blasted, pulled  weeds in his gator to the fire pit in the back, and Emma was "my flower shop helper".   Mostly, Emma pretended to call customers on the phone and water the flowers.  They had fun playing shop, I got a lot of weeding done and had fun pretending to be the customers on the phone, and we all spent some quality time together.  Before I knew it, I heard some hissing in the flower garden which meant that it was almost 8:00 and the sprinklers were turning on! 

I quickly got all of my tools picked up - put the phone and shoes in the house - and was heading towards the garage to tell the kids it was time to go in. But, then I figured - screw it!  I was hot and sweaty, I figured the kids were too, and I surprised them all by dropping what I had in my hands and sprinting through the front yard down the row of sprinklers.  I turn, see them with jaws dropped and then laughing - then, they follow!  Screaming and laughing they run through the sprinklers, tripping over each other to keep up with me, as we laugh and do it again - and again - and again.  The water was ice cold, but felt so good against the 90+ degree heat we have been having.

We stayed out there for about 20 minutes, running and jumping through the blasts of freezing water.  I surprised Emma and Evan even more as I would pick them up and carry them in front of the sprinkler so they would get completely soaked with water.  I let them push and pull me in front of the sprinkler as well, drenching me right along with them. 

While the kids play in the sprinklers quite a bit, it isn't something that I often join in on.  I think the enjoyed it and I definitely enjoyed the element of surprise and cooling off in the summer heat.

Quotes and Quibs from our week

I often think to myself "Self, you NEED to remember this. The kids will be big before you know it and you will forget this cute little stuff.  So - here I am, making a memory:

Evan as he was swatting a fly on his arm (and no, I am not proud of this one)  "God Damn Fly."  and then he shakes his head and does the UHHHH he is known for.

Tim was excited to take the kids fireworks shopping and to have the kids help him light them.  Yes, this is completely foreign to me as, because most of my family knows, I was never a big fan of fireworks.  So, take the DeLorean back 25 years and you will see me in the house holding my ears and crying as everyone else is outside enjoying the fireworks.  Still  now, not a big fan of the noise of fireworks but I put up with them so my husband can be a pyromaniac one day a year.  Anyway, I digress.... Tim is excited to have the kids help him light the bottle rockets.  When Tim asks Evan if he wants to help with the bottle rockets, Evan looks up at Tim and jumps up and down and asks, "Will these go up to the moon??!!"

And, one of my favorite exchanges between my kiddo's.  Evan had a boo-boo on his foot.  When he has a boo-boo, his world stops.  He will not swim, he will not walk, he will not put blankets on himself.  Weird for a little guy that can be so tough in some aspects, but not in others.  Anyway - Evan had a boo-boo on his foot and refused to go swimming. So, because of this, he didn't want anyone else to go swimming either.  So at one time one day, I am in the kitchen making something and I yell to the kids, "Hey guys- who wants to go swimming?"  Evan is in the living room and quickly yells "NO!" and Emma is in her bedroom and excitedly says Yes.  Evan, thinking on his feet and knowing what this could mean for hims says, "Ummm. I think Emma said no!"  Then I hear the exasperated "Evan!  I said Yes! I do want to go swimming!"  Then never to not get the last word in, Evan says again "Umm - Mama, I am pretty sure Emma said no again."

Mr. Tough Guy

I have often said that Evan is all boy.  Rough-n-tough, throwing balls, aiming guns, pestering his sister, and worrying his Mom.  Well, tonight in my mind says it all : Evan is one tough little dude and always wants to appear that way to his family.

I was sitting here watching the news with Tim and the kids are in bed.  It is lightening and thundering out and, like normal, Emma comes out because she is scared.  We console her and usher her back in bed, which gets Tim and I talking about the difference between Emma and Evan.  Emma loves coming out from her bed to get a hug from me, whether she has a bad dream, hears a rumble of thunder, or thinks something is scary. Evan, on the other hand, is completely opposite.  Evan has told us a few times that when he is scared or hears thunder that is loud ("or really booming!" in Evan speak) he burrows under his blankets and covers his head.  He hasn't come into our room for a long time. 

But tonight was something new.  A while back, we took off the railings on Evan's bed because, well, he is four and we thought it was time.  His bed at the cabin is higher than normal as he has dresser drawers underneath the mattress, but still, we thought it would be okay.  Evan was a bit concerned, but just because he didn't want all of his things to fall out of bed (which actually is a concern because his bed is pack-rat city with cars, stuffed animals, blankets, pillows, you name it) but he agreed.  It has been two months, maybe, since we took them off and everything seemed to be going okay.  He never came and got us because he fell out of bed or started crying, so we assumed everything was good.  But, Emma told Tim tonight that Evan has fallen out of bed (the two kids share a room at the cabin) and that he just climbs up and gets back in!

I instantly felt horrible!  The two kids were in bed when I heard this story, but I couldn't help it!  I had to go in and chat with Evan to see if he has fallen out of bed before.  He and Emma were still up, so it was a good time to talk quickly. 

So, I went in, picked him up and said, "Evan - have you fallen out of bed here before?"   Evan buried his head and hid his eyes "Um No...."   silence... then...    "Well, maybe sometimes....."  Uh!  Instant heartache for my poor little boy that has been falling out of bed and not telling me!

I am pretty sure I smother him with kisses, lay him in bed with Emma for a minute, and put his railings up.  He seemed to be okay with it and was anxious to snuggle back in bed.  I have told him before, especially after hearing that he buries his head under covers during storms, that he can come in if he is scared, but he obviously prefers not to for some reason.  He is one tough little boy.... unless he has a scratch or boo-boo.  But, that is a story for another day.

The cabin 2012

With the warmer than normal spring/summer, it makes the lake water at the cabin that much more enjoyable!  The kids, Tim, and I are taking full advantage and loving every minute.  The kids are down at the lake as much as Tim and I allow, as they know they are not to be there without an adult.  So, pretty much every waking minute that Tim and I want, we would be down by the water.

The activities???

Riding the jet-ski. 
All kids, and dog, enjoy this activity.  Sage just started riding this weekend.  In the past, we couldn't figure out why she would bark constantly and swim out after the jet-ski when people left.  Well, it turned out, she just wanted to go for a ride.  She loves it!  Evan does too. Emma is a bit more skiddish and when she does ride, reminds me "Now Mama, do NOT throw me off the jet-ski. Just an easy ride!"  They are both slowly driving and navigating the lake with a responsible parent along for the ride.


Sage enjoying the ride.




In fact, Sage gets upset if we go for a jet-ski ride without her.

 Swimming! 
Emma is learning to jump off the dock without her life-jacket and swim to where she can touch.  She and I also have "swmming lessons" where we go through what they are teaching her in class.  She so badly wants to learn how to dive and is taking small steps to get there.


Emma trying to perfect her dive.



Little bird, big bird - FLAP!

Even Sage gets in the action with her floaty toy.  She could constantly retrieve if someone was willing to throw her toy for her every 5 minutes.



Sage's favorite activity?  Retrieving her toy.


  And, then there is Evan.  He gets down to the lake, puts on his life jacket and jumps in!  This evening he even brought down one of his big cars and wooden ducks to play with. He threw them in first, then jumped to retrieve them as well.  He is maybe taking some lessons from Sage.


E

Hanging out and being goofy.

  The action shots. I was playing with the burst option on my camera and got a few good pics of him jumping in the lake.  His Aunt Pat laughs because when Evan jumps, he does the "running man" and is constantly kicking his legs until he hits the water.


Picture 1 of 2: Jumping off the dock.




Cowabunga!

 The trainer!
 Evan's ultimate water activity. He will drag this down to the lake, grab his goggles and climb on board.  Then it is "Mama, I want to ride the trainer. Will you drive me?"
He did try water skiing this weekend!  I was pretty excited for that. While it didn't go too well as his little legs cannot control the skis that well yet, I was still happy he tried!  He never made it out of the water and unfortunately, swallowed some water as well.


S'up Dudes?  I am training.




Olympics 2012 Baby!  I am there with my water-ski trainer.  If only....

Emma rode it a few times as well.  Her preferred water activity though? Swimming and jumping off the dock.

Go Emma!

Hopefully we can get her water-skiing this year!

 And then - relaxing! 

Being patient, enjoying the downtime, and loving the lake!



Patiently waiting.



A jumping contest... I think Sage wins.



She flies through the air with the greatest of ease...

 That is a snapshot of our time at the lake.  We had Eric, Jordan, Gaeb, and Seth up for the weekend as well.  The kids love having their older siblings up at the lake and it is fun to celebrate the 4th holiday with family.  We went fishing, went deep swimming, and just hung out.  There is nothing wrong with that when it is 90+ degrees outside.  Perfect weather for being at a cabin that has air conditioning!  HA!

Father's Day

Happy belated Fathers Day to the few (but very important) Dad's that may read my blog :-)

We enjoyed the day up at the cabin and the kids were incredibly excited to share with Tim their gift and cards. Unfortunately, Evan kind of gave away the present when he brought it home from daycare as he was so excited about it! But, Tim acted surprised and I think he thought it was pretty cool.





A quick snapshot of my three favorite people.

 

And, because I love self-portraits, here is me and Dad!

And me and my Dad.  See the early morning mohawk he is sporting??

 And, their gift - a tackle box!  Their hands are on the front (obviously) and they decorated it with stickers.  On the inside, they glued some cork and wine corks so he can put his hooks in there!  Pretty clever!


Evan explaining the present...



{Tim and Evan were going shopping at Gander Mountain earlier in the week, as Tim needed to fix Emma's fishing pole and he was going to buy Evan a tackle box.  Evan's response? "But Daddy!" (with a big smile) "I already have a tackle box!"  and then Emma got all upset because she thought he gave the present away, which he kind of did, and it was all over.}  So, I will not be surprised if Evan starts using this!

Emma's card to Tim was very sweet, as was Evan's. Theresa told me as the picked the kids up from daycare.  "When I asked Evan what he wanted me to write on the card it was "My Daddy is the best Daddy ever!"

Papa at Kindergarten

And, because I didn't have a picture before - here is one of Emma and Papa (my Dad) in her classroom. If you remember, in May my Dad went to her classroom during "Farm Week" to talk about being a farmer. 

She was so proud to have him come in and it was a good learning experience for the kids.  I was talking to the mother of one of Emma's friends at her class picnic and was told me how much her little daughter enjoyed having Dad come in to talk.  In the Mom's words "She doesn't really share much about school or talk about her day, but we heard a LOT about the farm and about Emma's Grandpa."

I am just glad Dad agreed to come up and do it!  Secretly, I think he really enjoyed it as well.

Proud Papa



The last day of school

While school has been out now for two weeks, I am just getting around to posting the pictures of the event.  As the Heuer household is usually up by 6:15 due to a little Man coming in "MAMA! Did I sleep good?" we went to go buy many sprinkle donuts to commemorate the event.

Breakfast was at Kristen's, as that is normally easier with the babies - so we brought the donuts there, made ham/egg/cheese omelets, and celebrated the end of school.  The girls were bouncing and excited as there was a picnic/park day for the Kindergartners and a play day for Kyra.  Eggs were eaten, sprinkle donuts were enjoyed, and then it was outside to meet the bus for the last time this school year.

First - a picture taken on the steps.....



A year older... a lot wiser.



Flashing the 6!





Evan with donut all over his face.





And then some climbing on a rock.... because, well, why not.




On the bus.  For Emma, the last time on the bus this year.

 Around 10 that day, the kindergartners boarded buses to head to a local park.  They got to run, play games, and play there until around 2 when the buses would return them to school.  I made my way there (along with Kristen) around 11:30 to have a picnic with the kids and do a craft.  Our craft?  Fun summer visors to decorate!

While the weather was inconsistent, (downpour one minute, sun the next) you couldn't bring the kids down.  They were running and jumping around everywhere.

Lunches were brought from home and eaten on the picnic tables there.  Then - the crafts.  The school asked for parent volunteers on these, so while we had the visors, others brought hair spray paint, tattoo's, moon sand, colors and books, and lawn games.  The kids were excitedly going back & forth, laughing, and enjoying their last day of kindergarten together.

Emma opted to get the crazy hair and here she is sporting one of our very cool visors! 



And Emma with her teacher.

Around 1:30 or 2, Kristen and I packed up our craft supply and got ready to go.  Emma wanted to come home with us and Kaylee opted to do the same.  I snagged a picture quick of Emma and her teacher.  Then, as I was being emotional about the last day (no - not crying!  I wasn't that emotional) I kept asking Emma "do you want to go say good-bye to your friends?"  The answer was always, "Nope, I am good."  and she walked away from the park without a second glance.

Then, it was packing the kids to head to the farm, as Tim and I got ready to head to the cabin with our friends.  They were excited, we were excited, it was great.

Life as usual

Still here - still going strong.  Our evenings have been filled with outdoor time and it is wonderful. The kids enjoy going for bike rides to the little cul-de-sac close by and we do that often. Then, they pedal furiously up and down the drive-way, over and over, while I pull weeds or water flowers.  Then, they tear off in the gator and go to the backyard to climb on the monkey bars, go down slides, and swing higher and higher on the swings.  It is wonderful!

I have them starting to do small chores for an allowance.  They helped me weed a row in the garden last week and picked up the house and their rooms.  I figure a good weekly rate is $2 - $3.  They get excited to have some money and I start to teach them responsibility.  I need to get a chore chart going or something like that to keep track of everything, but I feel it is time to get then involved with the cleaning of the house and taking personal responsibility for things they do.. toys they throw.. paper they shred, things like that.

This past weekend we were at the cabin and it was great! Yes, the water is still a little cold, but that doesn't stop them one bit.  Evan got out on the lake on his beloved skiing trainer and I got a spin around the lake on some water ski's.  Emma is happy jumping off the dock and swimming to shore.  Then, doing that again for like an hour straight.  I am hoping to get a diving/swimming platform soon that we can float out a bit farther to give her (and myself) something to swim to for practice.  She is doing so well in swimming lessons and we can see that with what she is now doing while in the lake.

Evan enjoys jumping off the dock as well, but is equally interested in playing on the beach, pushing his trucks, jet-ski rides, and "pushing" people off the dock.  His real love at the cabin? Fishing! Fishing for sure.  He wakes up and wants to go fishing usually.  I think I surprised him a bit this past weekend when I told him we were going "jammie fishing" at 7am.  The house was quiet, I was letting Tim sleep in for Father's Day, and Emma was still sleeping.  Evan is, well, loud in the morning, so it is best to remove him from the situation at times to let the rest of the cabin sleep.  He loved jammie fishing and really thought it was cool to be on the dock in his little yellow Transformer jammies.  We were hoping to catch some nice fish that we could eat for breakfast (Tim loves fish for breakfast) but no luck.

During the week, the kids stay home with Tim now, except for Wednesday's when they go to daycare and I work from home.  They enjoy the time at home, but really wish at times they could be at daycare as well.  They miss seeing their little friends and as I have been told, their little friends miss them too!  Evan's little bud is the only boy there (well, old enough to play) and he is so excited when Evan arrives so they can vroom cars and play in the sprinklers.

Tim's search is still on and, like I always say,we are just hoping something happens soon.  It makes it difficult for decisions to be made when the future state in the Heuer house is unknown.  As Evan prays every night "Please let Daddy find a new job so we can buy a gator - big, like Papa's!". While I am unsure that the gator will ever happen, the new job part would be really nice.

 The weekend prior (June 9&10) the stars were aligned and it worked out for Emma and Evan to spend the weekend with my parents so Tim and I could go to the cabin with J&MJ - our neighbor friends.  Emma and Evan headed to Wausau with Nana and Papa to play with Andrew for his birthday and go bowling. Then, Sunday they headed to Durand to attend the FunFest parade and bring home about 10# of candy.  They had a great, great time and are eager to head back to "ride the gator and tractors" (for Evan) and "just play" (Emma).  Tim and I got to relax and not have a schedule.  We went for a pontoon ride at 11pm to see the stars, at too much good, good food and just, well, did what we wanted.  It is so much more relaxing to have a weekend there and not be on constant watch that the kids didn't wander down to the lake or are wearing life jackets and playing nice.  I cannot thank Mom & Dad enough for letting us have one weekend to enjoy the cabin like that!  (but, I hope a nice dinner out with us will help :-) 

Just a quick catch up - I hope to post pictures soon! 

Not a good sign....

I was trying to find my iPod Touch yesterday, when Emma declares "Oh Mom, it is in my jewelry box!"  So, I look in her room and sure enough, there it is.  Now, it has been roughly a week when I used it last and I have been trying to find it ever since.   So, last night, I plug it in to charge it as I was unable to turn it on. I just assumed the battery was really low, or nonexistent, so I wasn't overly concerned that I saw no reaction by the iPod at the charge.

This morning, however, I was a bit more puzzled as to why it wouldn't turn on.  Nothing - Nada - no signs of life - whatsoever.  I ask Emma and I get the typical "I didn't do anything!"  I ask Evan and hear "well, I washed it, then I plugged it in because it wouldn't charge."

Ummmm.... he washed it???!!

"Evan - what did you say?  You washed my iPod?"

"Yup. It was all dirty with fingerprints on it, so I washed it off to clean it.  Then, I plugged it in.  But (sigh) it didn't come on"

With slow and steady nervousness, disbelief, and anger coming over me; I asked slowly again.  "Evan?  You WASHED my iPOD?"

"Yup. Just a little bit. Just a few drops to get the fingerprints off."

Then I deliver the schpeel about never washing an iPod or anything that has batteries, how that was wrong and he should have came to Mommy or Daddy, and how I was upset and it cost a lot of money... yadda, yadda, yadda.

I get the sheepish "Sorry!" from him and then he runs off.

He told me later that he washed it in water (like submerged I assume) and while I haven't looked into it yet a lot about probably fixes, I am assuming it is a lost cause. 

Not good and I am not sure how to handle it with the boy.  Now... maybe a good reason for me to get an iPhone?

The end of Kindergarten

How can my baby be done with Kindergarten?! How can I be the mother of a 1st grader?  I am too young to have a first grader :-)    Good thing that Emma isn't sad, isn't emotional.. isn't anything.  Me?  I am a wreck. Okay, that is being completely over-dramatic, but I am a tad bit sad.  The year went by so fast!  Before you know it, she will be in high school... driving... graduating.. and going to college.  Man!  I am way to young to have a child going to college ....

The past week, Emma has been bringing home her whole stash from kindergarten... her art supplies... her "rest" towel... her art projects...  and then, the sentimental things.  Her year-long art project book that shows different pictures she drew that corresponded with the months.  Her comment from her drawing from way back in September 2011?  "Mama, I couldn't have drawn that!  I draw people much better now!"  and she does. You can tell!  She got a little kindergarten memory book with pictures of their field trips, school events, and class. Then, she got a nice little gift from her teacher: a learning bucket!  It was a sand bucket with school work sheets for the summer, a magnifying glass for exploring, a level 3 reader book about whales, coloring pictures, and other random things. My favorite thing included in the bucket?  A book mark with a picture of Emma and her teacher and a little poem:



You're a very special person

And I want you to know,

How I loved being your teacher

how fast the weeks did go!

Please come back and visit me

As through the grades you grow

Try hard to learn all that you can

There is so much to know!

The one thing I try to teach you

to last your whole life through

Is to know that you are special

Just because you are you!

Isn't that sweet?  She got many special momento's from kindergarten and they were all so sweet! 

She is excited for the summer, for being back at daycare with her best little friend.  Although, due to circumstances in the Heuer house, they will only be going there once per week.  But that is okay, too.



Her kindergarten graduation diploma



Tomorrow is the kindergarten picnic at a nearby park and Kristen and I are going to help with some crafts and to celebrate the day.  All parents and siblings are welcome, so Tim and Evan may come for a little bit to have a picnic and play on the swingsets as well.

And then?? Summer vacation!  We will have a great summer!





Emma and her 1st grade summer bucket





Emma's big birthday bash

Throughout the year, Emma has been getting invitations for big birthday extravaganzas!  Kids invite the whole class to places like Pump It Up or the like.  Little girls having Princess Parties, Art Parties, Parties at their Daddy's Firehouse (as he is a fireman) and things like that. So, when the time came for Emma's party - guess what she wanted??  Actually - a low-key party at home, roasting hot dogs, and playing little games like a three-legged race and a sack race!  Lovely!  Thankfully there were no disagreements over her shindig and she was perfectly content to have her little girlfriends over to play.

The day came to much excited talk, bouncing, and "Emma - calm down"s.  "No, it isn't party time yet. Your friends won't be here for 2 hours!" But, it was cute. And, I was excited for the 12 little people to make their way over to my house for a 3 hour party.

They started to trickle in around 11 and then a mad rush of drop-off's and "we will be in the backyard"  "Any allergies?" things like that.  Then - chaos. But - good chaos.  I joked with my sister that my Sunday School teaching has prepared me well for 13 kids running around in my backyard.  Plus, all the girls were really good!  They seemed to get along well for the most part and just play.  They were swinging, running around, driving the gator and having a good time.

Tim was getting the hot dogs roasted; I was getting out chips, lemonade, watermelon, and utensils.  After the hot dogs, we roasted smores and let each kid roast their own marshmallows. This was a big hit and a good time-killer :-)   Tim was watching the girls (and Evan) around the fire and Kristen (who volunteered to help) and I were getting the chocolate and crackers ready.  After the smores, more running, playing, and girl screaming ensued.

  

Roasting marshmallows.



Evan was there and a good trooper throughout the girl drama.  I think Emma's friends liked him as he was able to sit on their laps and drive them around in the gator.  which was pretty darn cute, if you ask me.

Presents were next and this was the part that Emma was most excited about probably. After months of going to Target to pick out her friends birthday gifts, she was rewarded with Squinkies, Littlest Pet Shop toys, beach towels, a manicure set, a bracelet kit, a decorate your own messenger bag kit, many games, and other things.  I had to quietly remind her to look excited once, but I think she really enjoyed this part.  Personal thank yous are being worked on and on their way to those in bloggerland.





Seeing how many kids they can fit on a recliner doing present time.



After the food were the games.  Not everyone wanted to partake in three-legged races and sack races and opted to play on the swing set instead.  But, the ones that played had fun and got competitive as they hopped, fell, or ran across the yard to beat out the others.  I didn't have prizes for winners, but did actually acknowledge winners, which I am sure is to the chagrin of some "yea for participating" parents. All girls were given a goodie bag at the end with a little writing note pad, BFF ring, Shake It Up tattoo, and bag of chips.

Hopping along in the sack race.

The pinata came next and the girls (and Evan) each had like three different rounds to break open the butterfly pinata. Flying Candy meant running girls (and Evan) and munching and "how much did you get" and the like.  I told the girls (and Evan) they could each grab 8 pieces at first and then adjusted a few times to account for the left-overs on the ground.  Many came up to me afterwards with the "I got 10 pieces" and fun sentiments like that. 

While many kids asked me when they were having cake, Emma decided to forgo this birthday tradition and serve ice cream cones instead.  Birthday cake ice cream and cotton candy ice cream was served with about 20 minutes left to pick up time -- perfect!  The kids ate these outside and enjoyed their last few minutes of a fun birthday party in my mind.



All the kids!



Overall - It was a great, great day.  If the weather hadn't been so nice, I may not have as good of a report, but everything was outside, plates & cups were plastic, and the kids just ran and had fun.  Emma loved showing off her room, her monkey bars, and her home to her friends and we were happy to have them.  I don't know if we will do as large of a party next year, but as least Emma will have good memories of this one! 

A perfect day for a picnic

Evan loves his daycare days just about as much as his days at home.  Many times he wakes up excitedly "Is it a Theresa day, Mama?" (Meaning a daycare day) and sometimes he will do the typical Evan "OOHHH" (with great inflections for emphasis) if it is not.  Lately, since Tim has been home and the two of them have been working outside a lot, he really enjoys being home and helping Daddy shovel wood chips, plant the garden, and dig for worms.

This past Friday it was a Mama and Daddy day and while we were getting a few things ready for Emma's big birthday party the following day, we were also enjoying the beautiful weather.  It was so nice out, we decided to have a picnic!  Now, Evan LOVES making sandwiches and packing a lunch. I think he enjoys that more than the eating. So, he was busy making a peanut butter &jelly sandwich (his speciality), grabbing chips out of the snack drawer, bagging carrots, cherries, juice box, and moving all throughout the kitchen to get it ready. Then.. we head outside.

Yup, just as expected, he wasn't overly interested in eating - which is abnormal for him.  He loves eating and is a constant grazer during the day.  He just picked at this sandwich, cheese stick, and carrots, but was more interested in the flowers, the gator, or whatever else could take his attention away.  I could tell he was getting tired!

So, we headed in so he could take a nap.  And, of course - what did he want to do?  Eat!  "But Mama! My sandwich and lunch isn't gone yet!"  So, he took another 15 minutes to finish eating.   

Overall - still a great day for a picnic!