Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Oh, what do you do in the summer time?

Oh, what do you do in the summer time?
Some of the kid's favorite summer activities.

It wouldn't be summer without a lemonade stand.
We headed to the busiest corner in our neighborhood and let the kids work their charm.
They ended up making about $60 thanks to some very generous passersby. They sold lemonade, cookies and cupcakes. It's a bit of work for mom but worth it once a season.

Their first customer.

It's hard work waiting for buyers.

Isaac got caught with his hand in the money jar.


The pool and critter catching are another summer favorite. The kids ended up catching a skink and large bull frog at the pool that day.

Fishing.
This is a lot of work for dad.
We didn't catch anything at Mountain Island lake but had a lot of success the next weekend at King's Mountain.





Isaac with the worms.

And just because school is out doesn't mean that learning has ceased. All the girls spent one day researching the Titanoboa, the largest snake remains ever found, and then had me judge a diagram building contest. It was a tough call. Addilyn and Ella's was more aesthetically pleasing to the eye, but Maycie and Avery built their diagram using items from nature. Very creative on both teams.



We had our first boat trip on Lake Norman, the largest lake in the state that is right by our house. Thanks to our friends, the Worths, who invited us out on the boat with them.







Thanks to an unusually wet summer where we had many down pours the kids also had many opportunities for another favorite: swimming in the gutters.

Addilyn and Ella also practiced their baking skills by trying to perfect the cake. My one rule for using the kitchen: leave it cleaner than you found it.

And on particularly hot and humid days just coloring around the table in an air conditioned house was a nice reprieve. 


June


End of school parties.
As co-room mom I got to plan the end of school party for Maycie's class in luau style.

Coconut bowling...


...grass skirt and coconut bra relay...

...and hula hoop game.

Maycie's first grade class

Next, onto Addilyn's class party

Way to limbo, Addilyn.

Addie and Kayden

On the last day of school I threw the kids a party to celebrate.


Excitement in the cul-de-sac. A some teenagers trying to evade the police due to speeding decided to abandon their car on our street and ran off into the woods. So the police came and tried to track them down on foot. They even brought a police dog to track their scent. They didn't find perpetrators that night but it did provide an evening of entertainment for the kids.


Piano Recital Time
Miss Carolyn presenting certificates to Maycie and Addilyn.
Maycie played In the Hall of the Mountain King by Edvard Grieg
Addilyn played Pachebel's Cannon

I'm so proud of both my girls for sticking with piano (not that they have a choice).

Girls Night Out with my old Mountain Island Ward friends.
Amber Campbell, Alison Bergstrom (who drove down from Ohio to visit) Kristin Smith, Angela Worth, Melissa Porter, Me, Melissa Morrow, Trish Peterson.

The kids were thrilled to have a visit from their friends, the Bergstroms.


Happy Father's Day!

Safety Town
Alex is the third child in our family to attend Safety Town.
Huntersville Police Department puts on Safety Town for uprising kindergarteners. They teach the kids about gun, bike, stranger, fire safety and many other tips. 

Alex, Max and Josh




 Maycie's 8th birthday.
For breakfast in bed Maycie requested blueberry pancakes and, of course, sausages.




Even though I swore I would never do another one after Addilyn's Harry Potter party last year, I gave in to Maycie's birthday wish for her own Harry Potter birthday party.

First was wand making.

Followed by the sorting hat.



The kids' favorite was the potions class.








Maycie requested her favorite food in the world, donuts, instead of cake.



And, of course, we had Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans, Butter beer, chocolate frogs, and flying snitch truffles.


The final class was defense against the dark arts. The dragon was successfully defeated and emptied of all it's candy.