No Somersaults

Benjamin told me that the little sign above (the one that says that the passenger air bag is off) says not to do any somersaults in the car.  So, I'll be sure to refrain from somersaulting!

Tagging Along with Jeff

Not long after school was out, Jeff had a short business trip.  That's nothing worth writing home about, but the unusual part was that the trip was by car, not by plane.  So, we got to tag along with him!

It was a very long drive, and it was made even longer by three of four lanes on one crucial stretch of highway being closed for construction.  So, we didn't get there until after midnight.  But, they kids were good sports and we did get a little sleep that night.

During the day when Jeff was working, we hung around the hotel - we ate breakfast, watched some TV, and went swimming.  TV sounds commonplace, but we don't watch much at our house, and we don't have cable.  And our antenna doesn't pick up PBS.  So, we intended to get our fill of PBS kids' shows, but this hotel didn't have public television!  Oh, my!  We ended up watching some Dirty Jobs episodes and a bit of the show about the guy who builds tree houses.  But mostly, we swam.  Then, finally, when Jeff was done with his work day, we went to Downtown Disney.

We will take our kids to Disneyland someday, but for now, we're very content with simpler pleasures.  And you might think that our kids would have been asking why we weren't going to Disneyland, but they didn't mention it a single time.  I don't think they know that they are supposed to want to go to Disneyland.  As fun as it is, we're not ready for it with this little crew.

They were pretty excited about our evening together.  All the kids wanted to go to the Lego store, so we did.

 We took the kids to the Rainforest Cafe for dinner, which was a big event for all of us.  It was pricey, but you definitely pay for the experience, and we all enjoyed it.  (And, it was less expensive than Disney, of course!)  And playing on the rocks on the way out was fun, too.

The kids all like to sleep in their sleeping bags in hotels now, and Benjamin wanted to pose like this.  He didn't actually sleep with his head propped in the nightstand.  It's nice to be in a stage that doesn't include hauling around a pack 'n play.

On our drive-home day, we planned to stop at the beach, but we got sidetracked at a big Barnes and Noble.  Jonathan had been asking to go to BN, but after the Lego store, he wasn't as focused on it.  We did have a fun reading time at the bookstore!

 And, we finally made it to the beach.  We had a bit of a hunt for a parking place, and the crowds were enough to make me want to skip it.  I love living in our state, but the fact that there are so many people crowded into the more desirable spaces is sometimes very annoying.  Jeff persevered and found a place for us to park, and I'm glad he did.  We had a great time at the beach.  Jeff and Grace spent a lot of time in the cold ocean, and she was delighted by the scary waves.  (Of course, since he was holding her!)  The boys preferred to play in the sand, and I watched in the shade.

Jonathan was on a hut for certain types of shells, as you can see.

On our way off the beach, we ran into this guy and his owner.  They were trying to drum up some business for their local pet shop/tourist attraction.

And then we drove home...

And read some more.

We did come home with a few Legos.  Jeff and I had decided to let the kids choose something small at Downtown Disney.  We gave Grace the choice of Legos or a little something at the huge Build-a-Bear store, and I was very surprised that she chose Legos, even after touring the big Build-a-Bear store.  But, I'm very happy that she likes to play with Legos, and happy that Lego is offering a good selection of small sets these days.

You won't see pictures of Benjamin in this section because he was happy to goof around with the family and didn't need to come home with anything except a Yoda keychain.  He was very happy with that.

Jonathan had been saving his money since before Christmas, so the chance to spend it on a great set was what this entire trip was about, for him.  He loves the more-complicated Technic line, and since Target doesn't carry it, he doesn't get to see it in person very often.  Here's the one he chose.  A crazy huge set, but it has been worth every penny, and he's been playing with it every day since then.

I'm really happy that we all got to go on the business trip together.  We really went back and forth about whether we should go, since there was so much driving involved, but we decided that road-tripping as a family and making memories in the car would be better than being apart for the whole time that Jeff would be gone.  And I think we made the right decision.  We had some adventures and exhausted stretches, but over all, a great trip.

Summery Things

Here's what we were doing, a lot, before we went to camp.

I'll post about our camp adventures soon!

The Build-a-Bear Party

Ever since they were little, my younger kids, especially Grace, have loved to visit the Build-a-Bear store in the mall.  We don't go into the mall often, but when we do, we stop by.  All we have ever done there is hug the animals and then tell them goodbye.  Yep, the kids have never built a bear there.  Now, you might think I'm a heartless mother, and you might be right, but I'm pretty diligent in preventing my kids from having the "gimmes." I don't want to be pestered every time I take them into a store.  (I somehow failed in that area at my mom's house, because every time I take them there, the kids ask her for things constantly.  Nobody's perfect.)  Anyway, after many happy and uneventful trips to the Build-a-Bear store over their lifetimes, Grace was invited to a birthday party there.  Her friend Adelyn was turning 5, and Grace was super excited.  She didn't even realize that she'd go home with a bear.

Here's Grace, ready to go to one of the most exciting parties she's ever attended.  She wanted to make a heart with her fingers.  My talented mom made this dress and hair bow for Grace's birthday.  Super cute, right?

I got to take Grace to the party, so it was fun to have some girl time with her.

The 5-year-olds at the party.  The other girls were younger cousins.

The gal on the left kept the kids engaged the whole time and made it a super fun experience for all the girls…even when the bear stuffing machine was broken.  I am not kidding.

After LOTS of deliberation, Grace chose this kitty and named her Princess Unikitty after the character in the Lego Movie.  And, based on the budget the birthday mom set, Grace chose a tutu and undies for her kitty.  Total bliss for Grace.

The birthday girl and her guests. (Adelyn took Grace's lead and chose the pink kitty, too.)

Happy birthday, Adelyn!

And the cupcakes were great, too.

Last Day of Third Grade

He did it!  He made it through 3rd grade…and it was a great year.  We're so thankful for a great match between Jonathan, his teacher, and his classmates.  And we're very thankful that in the fall, when he and Grace start their school year, they'll be attending a school they already know.  If you're feeling nostalgic, you can see his first day of 3rd grade here.  We are proud of you and your diligence, Jonathan!

Oh, and I should mention that Jonathan's school had "spirit week" the last week of school, and the last day was Crazy Sock Day.  (I really felt for those teachers, whose students would be so would up anyway, having them wound up even more by crazy theme days.  But, I was thankful to be at home with my own wound-up kids, not a classroom full of them.)

 

Yes, I was on my way to the gym.  I joined a gym in late February, but that's another story.

Jeff on his way to work

Here we go, on our walk to school!  Benjamin really would rather walk, but truly, sometimes I just need one kid to be strapped in for a few minutes.  And, now, I'm SO happy that it's summer break!!!