Swim Lessons

All four boys are in swim lessons right now.  I am so happy about it.  I feel like we have always struggled with swim lessons.  We started out at a community center in the summer when Craig was little.  It was group lessons by high school kids, and it basically seemed like the kids got about 3-4 minutes personal attention and the rest of the time hung on the wall kicking their legs or messing around.  We tried a community college lessons a few laters and that was better.  I was excited the summer before we moved to find a mom that did lessons in the summer in a person's pool.  The kids got a one-on-one lesson for a good price and made the most improvement.  But then we moved.  And I didn't know where to go last year.

Craig and Jared are decent swimmers.  Zach had just the one set of lessons before we moved.  Branden hadn't had any lessons.  So I was really excited when I discovered our homeschool charter school has as a vendor a local swim company.  That is what they do - teach kids to swim.  They have an indoor pool.  So I called them up and figured out lessons for my kids.  It is fabulous.  It's usually 1 teacher to just 3 kids.  But since we go during the day when most kids are at school, and we have lessons at 12:45 p.m. when most babies are napping, it's just my kids in lessons at that time.  So Craig and Jared work with one instructor.  And Zach and Branden work with another instructor.  They get so much focused attention from instructors who are really trained.  They are learning a lot.  And we use our school funds to pay for it.  Yeah!

So we are doing a set of 6-week lessons now, and then we'll do it again in the Fall.  That way we can miss all the busy summer time as well.  So happy to have found a good solution!

Snow Day in San Diego!

Snow isn't something we see much in San Diego.  But a friend of ours recently had a snow day in their front yard and invited a bunch of families over to play.  They had bags of ice turned into snow on their front lawn creating a little winter wonderland for the kids to play.  They used hay bales to make a little sledding hill too.  Of course, it ended out being the one Saturday of the month that we had 80 degree weather!  By that Monday it was down to 59 degrees again.  It was the warmest snow day ever.

The kids had a blast.  Some (mostly) friendly snowball throwing.  Lots of sledding on the hill.  Tons of good food.  Great conversations with the adults as we watched.  They also had a photo booth with props you could take pics in.  Jared especially had fun in there.

We were there for a couple hours and the snow held up pretty considering the temperatures.  It was a great time.  Thanks, Phil and Phyllis!

Valentine's Day 2013

We had a fun Valentine's Day this year.  I think we have fun every year.  We love holidays around here.  I did a couple of fun projects to add to my decorations and have fun creating a cute fireplace mantel.  We always get a small box of chocolates for the kids and put it at the table for them to find when they come down for breakfast.  It's a small thing, but they were talking excitedly about it for days before Valentine's Day.

For school, I found some fun Valentine-themed activities to do including math, writing, and science (does a conversation heart dissolve more quickly in cold, hot, or room-temperature water?)  And we made and decorated sugar cookies which we delivered to some of our friends.  I want my kids to think of Valentine's day as a day of caring and sharing, showing love and appreciation to others in our lives.  It doesn't have to be just a romantic holiday.  

For dinner that evening, we had heart-shaped pasta I found at Cost Plus and made a fun bubbly drink with raspberry sherbet, pink lemonade and Sprite.  We ate by candlelight.  Jesse pointed out to the boys to pay attention to the things I do because girls will love it if they do it for them when they are older.  :)

A few days before Valentine's, the boys made Valentine notes and pictures to send to their grandparents.  They were sweet and thoughtful.  Zach - Mr. Project Man - went crazy and made a bunch of them.  I had to take a picture of them because they were hilariously cute - things like "You are my Bat-tine" (like Batman); "You are my Super-tine" (like Superman); and my favorite, "You run like the wind, Valentine". I'm not sure where he comes up with this stuff, but I think it is awesome.

We also made and exchanged Valentine's with some homeschool friends at the park the day before Valentine's Day.

I love celebrating love.  I am lucky to have so many wonderful people to love in my life.  And I am grateful especially to celebrate with my children and husband that I love so much.

Happy 5th Birthday, Branden!

This cute little baby turned 5 years old last week!

He has been anxiously awaiting his birthday.  He keeps talking about all the things he'll be able to do, once he is five.  Such high expectations!  He asked for a Spider-Man cake, so that is what I made for him.  Spider-Man has been his favorite super hero for awhile now.  Jared was the first boy to get really into super heroes, and they have all liked them.  Branden is my first to have Spider-Man as his favorite.

For breakfast, he requested eggs, fruit, gingerbread and bacon.  So we did.  He opened his gifts before Jesse went to work, so he was excited to get right on to playing his new Wii game - Super Mario Galaxy 2.  The kids have been in a Lego game mode for awhile now (Lego Star Wars, Lego Harry Potter, Lego Batman, Lego Lord of the Rings), so it is nice to have something else for them to try out!  He also received a Spider-Man coloring book, his own Nerf gun (he can finally defend himself!), and a booster seat.  He feels so big now in the car.

We got him these silly glasses straw too.

Later that afternoon we took him shopping with money from both grandparents.  Quite a shopping spree for a 5-year-old boy!  It was fun to see things he picked out on his own, and watch him make changes for things as he needed to stay in budget.  He picked out some fun things.  A Spider-Man Lego set, a Spider-Man Easter egg with candy, a Spider-Man "video" camera that plays a little Spider-Man video on the wall as you turn the crank.

We met up with Jesse at Chuck E. Cheese for dinner, per Branden's request.  Pizza and games.  What more could you ask for?  We headed home for the Spider-Man cake and some ice cream.

It was a fun day overall.  All the kids have been recovering from colds and Branden wasn't feeling terrific on his birthday, but he still had a fun time.

A few things about Branden.  He is a silly kid and cracks himself up a lot.  And us too.  He wants to be grown up and wants to do many things on his own.  If you try to help him, he will get upset and insist he must start over again.  He reads, writes almost all his letters, and is ready to officially start Kindergarten this year.  He already does a lot of Kindergarten work and learns so much from listening to his brothers schooling.  Her he is doing a workbook one day recently.

Branden loves fruit and playing outside. He loves playing sports.  He is a wonderful part of our family!