Our First Two Weeks of Vacation...still sane.

So here's a brief rundown of our first two full weeks of vacation, it hasn't always been pretty, but I think we've done alright. We've all learned a few things that will help our summer go a little more smoothly (I'm pretty sure that I'll be learning a few new things each week until school starts, and then I'll have to relearn everything again).

First off: BLOCKS ON TILE

Pretty self-explanatory, we needed a flat surface to be able to build really tall towers, so I dumped the blocks out onto the tile in the front hall. It kept them busy for 2 hours, always a good thing, and was only noisy in the front, not in the back, of the house.






Davin built a Star Destroyer from Star Wars, not too bad.









Next on our list: SUMMER MOVIES
Wow, this has gone surprisingly well. Despite some grumbling about our first movie, Charlotte's Web, everyone (including our contrary child) loved it. Maddie did get a bit squirmy the last 15 minutes, but nothing big. Eric took the kids the second week, and they were just as good for him. Well, if this keeps up, we may do this in the future too.

Moving on: ARIZONA MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY

Um, I've got mixed feelings on this one, but it's a bit lengthy, so I'll share the full story later. But suffice it to say, everyone found something to enjoy there, and everyone found something to be upset about on our drive home. You know, a typical summer outing for my family.

Still Moving: SUMMER SWIMMING

Our goal is to swim at Nana and Papa's 3 days a week. So far we're making it. And I've passed this years lesson on how to open and close the pool cover (it's a bit finicky). The kids are turning into little fishes, although Davin claims to be a shark.

Getting closer: CRAFTS & LEARNING

As my kids get older, summer crafts have become a life saver. They can burn through a glue stick in an afternoon, and create a confetti wonderland on my kitchen floor in a matter of minutes.

This year we tried out perler beads, and the kids love them! I also had this insane idea (which sounded good at the time): use my cricut to cut out sticky backed foam for the kids to assemble their own paper doll/monster/dinosaur/flower/animal... Sounds good, right? I didn't realize just how much of my time it would take to get all of the pieces cut out. I spent a full hour cutting foam, with the cricut, for three projects (an astronaut, a pirate, and a beach girl). The depressing thing, it only took the kids 5 minutes to put them together. Worse, they want to do it again. sigh.

I also save all of those unused worksheets that the kids bring home on the last day of school. It gives us math and writing stuff to work on all summer, they do 3 a week, and I feel like a good educator.

And, finally: MADDIE'S NAP TIME

We took the side off of Maddie's crib just about when she turned 2 in April. She does nap time pretty well, not all of my kids wanted naps when they gained freedom, but Maddie is a napper. However, sometimes it's hard to take a nap when
everyone else is playing without her. I found her like this one day (the room had been cleaned that morning):