Cheer Camp

The other day the kids had a popcorn and reading picnic. Only we didn't end up reading. Some kids in the neighborhood came and helped us eat two bags of popcorn. (I didn't take pics of the other kids-just the cute ones...)

This week M had cheer camp. Here she is on her way:

 Here they are playing a warm up game:

Last day: (the little girls were paired with the high school cheerleaders. So the big girls spotted the little ones etc. The two M worked with were so nice and really helped her feel welcome and good about herself. I appreciated that because she tends to get really shy and anxious when she is in a group of people she doesn't know.)

M even got to do stunts where they threw her in the air! She can't wait until August-they have a few more days of camp to learn the cheers and then the girls get to cheer with the big girls at the first high school football game!

On the last day I let J and P play at the school playground while we waited for M to get done:

Camping in Kentucky

Tonight, my story is about our recent camping trip. A few months ago, my gorgeous sis-in-law mentioned it would be fun to meet somewhere and have a cheap holiday so our kids could play. The cousins really miss one another. I loved the idea and whether she really meant for something to actualize or not, I started planning. I didn't want the whole summer to pass us by and then regret that we never did anything with them. So, we decided a camping trip would make a pretty cheap vacation. We found a location that met our requirements. It was about half-way between us. After lots of phone calls and emails planning food and crafts and travel plans etc we were finally getting ready to go. We cleaned house, grocery shopped, prepared food, and packed. (Camping is a lot of work.) Then on Thursday I woke up early, packed all the food up, made the kids a travel breakfast, woke them up, got them dressed and peed and we gave Mr. J a hug and were out the door on our way. We made several stops and thankfully had a very uneventful trip there. (I always pack lots of games and activities for the kids but all they want to do is watch movies. So, three movies and a nap (the kids, not me:) later we arrived at Dale Hallow Lake. It is a beautiful place with a resort, golf course, marina, huge boating dock, an island, and a big campground with playgrounds, a swimming pool, mowed lawns, caves, trails, and hot showers!

So, the kids and I got to work setting up camp and then took a dip in the pool while the rest of the crew were stuck in traffic. Then I let the kids play on the playground while I began dinner. When everybody arrived we got their tents up and enjoyed a meal together.It was so wonderful be together again!

this was a cool digger that j enjoyed very much right near our campsite:

 his on-command smile:

After a good night's sleep (actually, thanks to an awesome borrowed air mattress I was really comfy-we just had a loud neighbor) we got up and had breakfast and then went on a hike. Here's what I saw ahead of me for most of the time:

 and behind me:

After the hike I think we had lunch and then the kids made a fairy house and a bug house while two of us went to the store and the two young ones had a nap.

 this one was super G's and little M's:

(the kids were very delighted when they woke up the next morning to find that a fairy had left a shopping list behind after her stay at the fairy house. I believe a bug left something behind as well.)

more activities from Friday:
water balloons, a delicious dinner, airplanes, swimming, showers, a shadow puppet show (no pics), smores,

This pic turned out terribly but it was so sweet to look over and see super G holding J while he drank his milk. Cousin power!

Sat morning we loaded up and the kids hung out!

It was a sad parting but I am so very grateful my parents and A and the kids could come. We all worked hard to be there and I hope we all enjoyed it. I know I did. I know M did. She holds her cousins dear to her heart and can't wait to see them again. Thanks y'all! Love ya lots!

Three Stories

M's second front tooth was loose for a loooong time! I'm talking months. And she wanted it to come out at school so badly because if you loose a tooth at school you get a tooth necklace to keep your tooth in. Oh, the jealousy that ensued because Natalie "loses a tooth everyday!" I received daily updates on who lost a tooth at school. Very interesting stuff I tell ya. Anyway, I tried to help her dream come true by sending paper towels in her lunchbox so she could pull it out at school! It never came out. That tooth was dangling by a thread and it never came out-until the day after the last day of school! Such is life.

M really loves getting her hands in "stuff." She likes feeling it, mixing it, doing science experiments etc. She begged me for weeks to make "oobleck" so I finally did. It kept them busy for a looong time because after they got it all over themselves, the kitchen, and the bathtub they then had to clean it off the bathtub, themselves, and the kitchen! They had a good time with it though. Little Miss P wasn't so sure about the mixture and I extracted her from the situation before it got too messy. I did not want that stuff in her hair!

 (and yes, J did have to put his feet and a car or two in there, as always)

My children love listening to music! One of our family's current favorites is the Ho Hey song by the Lumineers. I heard them singing this at the top of their lungs and I looked over to find them stuffed in the laundry basket facing one another and shouting this song into each other's faces! I quickly grabbed my phone but the camera distracted my movie star and the other tuned out for a min. Still, a cute vid if you ask me...

And here's what the little one was doing during all this:

A Fort, A Horse, and A Beach

The wild things in our house like a fort. And I normally lack the engineering/creativity required to make a good one. But I think this one was pretty good. There was a little "hallway" with a brighter more "open" area at the end. They enjoyed playing and reading in there for quite a while.

More on the last day of school: here is a blurry shot of M with her teacher. How can I screw up one quick point-and-click of still objects you ask? Beats me!

After school we went to the beach! First we rode the carousel  (thanks to our neighbor who generously funded this little treat).

Then we played in the sand. It was cool enough on this day that we needed our light jackets/sweaters on the windy beach.