Congratulations Heather and Leif!

The week school started, my sister got married at the beach. I taught for two days and then headed to the beach and spent the third day of school getting ready for Heather and Leif's wedding. They married on Friday evening at sunset and I don't think it could have been more perfect. Congratulations Heather and Leif!

Us with Heather, Grandad, and Nana

Us with Heather, Mimi, and Perry

Last Days of Summer

My classroom is finished for the upcoming school year or as finished as it's going to be...I can always think of more to do! Since I start back to work on Friday, I've reserved the last three days of summer exclusively for my boys. Today was a good one. The boys were asleep by 8:00 last night so they were both awake by 7:30 this morning. Matthew and I headed off to the pool today for a little one-on-one swim time while Tyler went to the McWane Center with Grandad. I've heard all about his McWane adventures tonight. He is so exaggerated when he tells me about his day...

• "Mommy, I hate to tell you this but they have putt-putt at the McWane Center now. Not the little putt-putt but the big one. It is so much fun!"
• "The sting rays swim like this" and he precedes to get down on the floor and lay on his belly with his hands out to the side.
• "I didn't touch the sharks because if you put your hand too deep down in to the water then they'll bite it off."
• "We saw the eel and it came out of it's cave and we even got to see it's tail." As he's saying this he is showing me everything with his hands. "And then he started swimming after fish so he could eat them but he never caught any. I guess he's still hungry."

He had such a good time and keeps sharing things with me as he thinks of them. When he got home from the McWane Center and after Matthew woke up from his nap, we went outside and played in the sprinkler. The sprinkler is not something we do often because it's just a pain to me, so Tyler was so excited to play in it this afternoon. As soon as we went outside and he saw the sprinkler, he said "Thank you, Mommy, for letting us do this." He and Matthew had fun playing, although Matthew wasn't too sure about the water squirting out everywhere.

Natalie even came by to play in the sprinkler with Tyler for a little while. As I was trying to take a picture of the two of them, Natalie received a nice surprise in the face!

While we had the sprinkler out, the neighborhood kids got home and came over to play. Tyler enjoys playing with them so much. They played Play-Dough, golf, and a game of baseball, as well as played in the water and on the swing set in the backyard. While they played, Matthew enjoyed swinging in his t-shirt and diaper!

As I was bathing the kids, I realized I was scrubbing off a layer of insect repellent on top of a layer of sunscreen and the bath water was brown. The kids were worn out but happy. What a perfect way to spend a summer evening!

Tyler's "Friends"

Sunday night Jason's family came over for a birthday celebration. When I told Tyler on Sunday afternoon that everyone was coming over, he was so excited that his friends were coming over to play. Take a look at his "friends"...

They're also known as the cousins and their boyfriends. He absolutely loves playing with Jason's cousins and he especially likes the boyfriends of Payton and Kelsey. When I look at that picture, I can't believe those girls are old enough to have boyfriends! Wasn't it just yesterday that Payton was 4 and Natalie was a baby and I was keeping you during the summer and doing fun crafts? Here's a picture that shows what you are supposed to still look like! Love the fact that Jason and Taylor are on the floor wrestling while I'm trying to take a picture with the girls! Come to think of it, shouldn't Jason and I still look that young, too?

Summers Off?

While it's true that, as a teacher, I technically have the summer off, I still have to get ready for the start of school each year. I usually begin in mid July getting my classroom ready and planning for the upcoming year. I wanted to share a picture of what my classroom looked like when I left in May...(yes, everything is off the floor for cleaning.)

And here's what it looks like for the beginning of the school year in August...

Thank goodness for a wonderful custodial staff. They moved all the desks back in the classroom and set up like I wanted. It was up to me to get everything off the counter tops and reorganize everything for the new school year. Busy and a lot of work, but worth it to a classroom of smiling fourth graders!