Update

I’ve thought about updating this blog almost every week of the summer but either an activity or exhaustion has kept me from doing it. Here are the highlights:

End of school:

The kids finished school on a high and low note. They did very well in school and we are so proud of all their accomplishments.  On a low note their school closed and they will be attending a different one in the fall. All of their friends will be with moving also, so hopefully the transition won’t be too difficult.  Change is hard and they are doing well at this point. 

Camp Vertical:

Summer has brought lots of fun but also time to just relax. Caroline and Julia were both at Camp Vertical every week they offered it this summer. They love everything about the camp and that makes dropping them off easier. Each week they sign up for a different type of camp. This year they did: Crafts & Cooking, Adventure, Musical Camp, Loud & Proud, Construct, Steps and Go for the Gold. 

Musical:

At Camp Vertical the older girls did a small musical and performed it for the parents. It was "Jail House Rock". They had a blast and it was fun to watch.

Gabriella, Caroline and Julia with dessert before the show.

VBS:
Another year at VBS. The kids had a blast at Sky VBS - Where Everything is Possible with God.  We traveled into the great beyond and had fun the entire week.  Sarah was old enough to be included this year.  Aviator sunglasses completed the look!

Smokey Hollow: 
We took a mini-camping trip in July to Smokey Hollow Campground which is located outside of Wisconsin Dells. The kids had a blast and I was ok because we are able to sleep in a gazebo and don’t have to sleep in tents!

Wirth Park:

The warm weather had us going to Wirth Park Pool quite frequently. I love the 90 and 100 degree days and spending the day at the pool is fun for everyone.  All the kids are comfortable in the water which is good. Now I just have to find a time in our packed calendar to schedule swimming lessons this fall!

Birthday Party – Caroline and Julia:

Caroline and Julia had a joint birthday party. Due to my injury we weren’t able to have a party for Caroline in January. So, we decided it was best to just wait and Julia was excited to have a joint party. We had 9 girls total that we took swimming at Wirth Park and then back to our house for pizza, cake and a movie. We were lucky they all fell asleep around 10:30. I have to say I was pretty shocked when the first kid started talking around 6:00 am! I talked with the girls about not having their friends bring presents this year. The look of shock and disbelief was almost too much for me to handle. Thinkiig on my feet, which we Mom’s do a lot, I said "how about your friends give you a book. They can pick out their favorite and give it to you as a gift?" That idea was met with great enthusium and it was awesome to see all the different books the kids got. And there were no duplicates or any that we already owned!

 

Birthday Party – Sarah:


Can you believe that Sarah is 4 years old? It seems like just yesterday she was my small baby. Now, she is lively and full of energy. She told us that she needed an American Girl Doll this year for her birday (what she says instead of birthday). Grandma Mary and Grandpa Jim got that for her to keep with the tradition of the girls getting their first doll from them. It was an exhausting and fun party.


As requested...chocolate!

Rebecca, her American Girl Doll

Triathlon:

Caroline and Julia both did the Pewaukee Kids triathlon. Neither of them want to ever do it again! Enough said.



 

Zoo Classes:

On Wednesday’s Sarah and I have taken quite a few zoo classes that are offered at the Milwaukee County Zoo. They are fun, educational and you really learn stuff! 

Olympics:

I've always loved watching the olympics!  We had a few friends over and watched the opening ceremonies together.  I brought out dish cloths that I bought in London to help decorate.  We had a typical Wisconsin dinner of brats and hamburgers, but added New Castle Brown Ale, McVittes and Ringo's to give it the British flare.  I also made the girls shirts with the olympic rings and London 2012 (in the olympic font) under it.  They turned out great and the kids had fun wearing them.  We also kept track of the medals for a few contries.  Sarah had the United States, Julia had China, South Korea & Russia, Caroline had Austrailia, Germany and Great Britian.  Caroline and Julia then needed to look up on the internet three facts about their country to share with us.  It was a fun way to get the kids excited about the Olympics.

Trees:

Brian helped our neighbors cut down three pine trees that were dying in their front yard. The trees were much smaller than the ones he cut down at his Mom’s house in Milwaukee, but they were still decent size.  It took a good majority of the day, but the front of their house looks so much better. 


This is the largest of the three trees as it's coming down.

Our friends visit from Texas:

We had a great visit from our friends Ms Stacy, Hannah and Charlie from Texas. The last time we saw them was when we made the trip to Texas a few years ago.  They were in town for a wedding and it was great to be able to see them. 

Hannah, Stacy, Charlie, Caroline and Julia

I think that's it for now...hopefully I won't have to do such a long post next time!