Summer fun

We have had a great summer around here so far. Our June started off very busy with Logan in swimming lessons right after he got out of school. It was a cold two weeks for his lessons, but he still enjoyed them. His swimming has really improved over the last few months. Cale had Safety Town the second week of June. This is an Ankeny thing where all kids going to kindergarten in the fall can go for 5 mornings or afternoons and learn about all things safety - stranger danger, biking, emergencies, fire safety, etc. He absolutely loved it. It helped a lot that he knew at least two other kids that were at the "Southeast" table and several other kids that will be attending other schools in the fall. The next week in June we all had Vacation Bible School. I was a co-director again this year so we all spent every morning there all week. It was a blast. The kids all loved it. Luke and Elyse were in the nursery all week, but they also had fun 'Camp E.D.G.E' activities to do. They even got VBS t-shirts so they were thrilled! The last week of June Cale had swimming lessons at the Y. He did awesome - until the last day when they had them take off their floaties - then he wasn't so confident. He still made some huge gains over last year when he only got in the water 2 out of 4 days.

At then very end of June and into the second week of July, we took a series of short trips to see family. Each one created some great memories. The first trip we took was a very quick day trip to Minneapolis to celebrate Sophie's 2nd birthday. Can't believe she's already 2. We had a great time and wished we could have stayed longer. We stopped in Clear Lake on our way back that night at the cabin that Doug and Lisa were renting for the week. We had a Mondt get together that was a lot of fun. Logan and Cale got their first ever tube ride behind the boat. Logan loved every second of it. He went first with me and then with Stephfon. Cale wasn't too sure. He didn't really want to go too fast and then when he was ready to be finished, he and Cory dumped out which completely freaked him out - even though he had a life jacket on. There were a few tense moments while they were in the water and we were circling back to get the with the boat. We spent the night in Sheffield that night and got some hottubing time in the next morning. Good thing since it was too windy to get the boat out or even swim at the beach at Clear Lake that day. We still had lots of fun hanging out with Doug and Lisa, though.

We were back to Sheffield the following weekend for Boston's first birthday party. We had hoped we'd be able to catch the 4th of July parade in Clear Lake, but it was raining. We had a fun time at the park in Sheffield celebrating Boston's birthday. Luke and Elyse were in heaven with all the family around to push them on the swings. The following week we were in Thornton for three days to see Corys' Aunt Peg and cousin Emily who were visiting from Texas. We always enjoy their visits. Nick, Nikki, and Soren were there, too, from Colorado so it was great to see them again. We celebrated Grandpa and Grandma Faaborg's 60th wedding anniversary on Thursday night with some of their friends at the Thornton golf course. The kids loved being able to have free reign outside on the ramp and to just run with their cousins.

Then it was back to Ankeny for a fun-filled weekend of Summerfest. The kids all participated in the Kiddie Parade on Friday night - Logan on his scooter and everyone else on their bikes. They thought it was pretty great. The next morning was the big parade. As we were getting ready to go, Luke asked if he could ride his bike in this parade, too! They all came home with a pile of parade candy. Logan, Cale, and Elyse went with me to watch the Cardboard Boat regatta in the afternoon. That was hilarious. Logan thinks he'll need to try his hand at that next year. He'll probably be fine as long as his mom is not the one buildign his boat! That night we went to the Soak up the Son concert in the park. The music was great and the kids loved having the freedom to get up and move around if they wanted to.

Cale and cousin Lucy just spent an overnight with Cory's parents this past weekend. Cale came home full of all kinds of fun stories from Grandpa & Grandma Camp! Logan and Emma will get their turn this weekend.

I can hardly believe that it's the middle of July already. Logan and Cale have less than a month until they start school. Cale is excited to find out who his kindergarten teacher will be this fall. We should find out at the beginning of August. Logan has had two successful years so I'm sure 2nd grade will be no different for him. Luke and Elyse's 3rd birthday is fast approaching. They will be going to preschool two mornings a week in the fall. I'm sure I won't have any trouble finding things to fill my time alone. :-)

Well, that was more than I was planning to blog, but at least it fills you in a bit about what we've been up to this summer...