Kate's Bday Bowling

Kate's birthday was almost a month ago, but since I'm a blog slacker, I'm only posting now. She wanted to go to Jumpin' Jacks, but it closed early, so we went bowling instead. Still lots of fun!

The kids got to use the ramp and bumpers. I was disappointed that the bumpers automatically disappeared on adult turns! Kate's a pretty good little bowler. She got a strike and a spare!

Anna's bowling technique. It was either this, or she'd drop the ball REALLY hard and we'd watch it awkwardly wobble to the pins.

Sometimes I wonder about the simple things that bring so much joy to our little family. I never went bowling as a kid, and this is the first time we've done it as a family. But it was really fun. It's true that "wholesome recreational activities" strengthen families. I love this little brood of mine!

I Believe There Are Angels Among Us

My friend is having a photo contest on her blog. If you win, you get a sweet photo shoot with her. I can't decide if I should try taking professional-ish pictures to enter, or if I should just enter this shot from everyday life. The biggest flaw with this picture is that Kate's hair is a mess, as though she has no mother to care for her. Really, it's b/c she's a wild child and it doesn't matter what I do with her hair....

Grotto Trail

All week long we had talked about going up to my grandma's cabin on Saturday. But Friday night there were huge thunderstorms and the weather forecast showed the same for Saturday. We decided not to try the cabin. Anna was devastated. Luckily, Saturday morning was pretty chilly and we had to stay home and get some work done. But, when the girls woke up from their naps in the afternoon, the sun was shining! We beelined it for Payson Canyon, to test out the Grotto Trail. It was a hit!

The hike is only 1/2 mile roundtrip, so it is the perfect distance for our little family. And it follows this little river the whole way, with lots of bridges to cross,so you can practice balancing. Super fun for the kids!

The hike ends at a cute little water fall and a small pool. We didn't let the kids play in the water this time b/c it was a little chilly, but it was still fun to sit on the edge and throw rocks into the pool.

Eve is teething right now and ALWAYS has something in her mouth. She held onto that blue plastic spoon from Kate's Cinderella Teaset the entire hike, chomping merrily as we went!

hike! I want to share it with everyone, so if anyone is interested in going, let me know and we'll go with you!

Bridal Veil Falls

Summer is almost over and there is still so much fun left to be had! Last Tuesday we hiked to Bridal Veil Falls with my mom for Grandma Day.

Kate and my mom found little knots in the trees. They decided that is where Tinkerbell and all her fairy friends live. They were planning a birthday party.

The kids loved playing in the rocks at the pool at the bottom of the falls. Even baby Eve liked dipping her toes in the cold water!

Swim Lessons

My disclaimer for the past few months is that we've been having too much fun enjoying the summer for me to blog. Plus, I try to only use the computer while I'm nursing (multi-tasking, baby!), which makes it difficult to type.

Anna and Kate both took swim lessons in July. Anna was able to go by herself and loved it! She really improved in areas like putting her head underwater, blowing bubbles, and generally getting more comfortable in the water. She passed off Preschool Aquatics Level One!

Anna with her teacher, Rafael. At first she was bummed because she had a boy teacher and all the other kids in her class were boys. She's not that into boys right now. She ended up loving it though.
Anna's class always met on the #12. She was so proud to be able to find it herself!

Kate, Eve, and I would wait in the shade while Anna had her lessons. Sometimes Kate's faces crack me up. Kate's lessons required me to go with her. It was a lot of fun to spend some one-on-one time with Kate, especially the day that we went on the slide for the entire class. Kate is a fun loving little gal and I enjoyed my time with her. She's also quite a good little swimmer!

Grieving the Farewell to Summer

Summer is nearing its end. I look upon it with true sorrow, because I am not looking forward to the days of rigid schedules that require us to say no when friends call and ask us to join them at their cabin for the afternoon. Or to cut lunch dates with Grandma short so that we can make it to school. Or to dismiss the hike in Payson Canyon I've been meaning to do all summer.
Right now our fall is looking like this: Anna has preschool MWF afternoons. Kate has preschool T/Th mornings. They are possibly taking a dance class on Tuesday afternoons. Um, hello? Did anyone else notice that that really only gives us ONE afternoon a week of free time? Sorry if you ever wanted to have a playdate with us. It better be Thursday afternoon. Or wait till next summer.
This leads me back to the homeschool bandwagon. I know I've posted about it before, and I know many of your comments were like "Are you an insane-o?" But, please read this. Just a woman doing homeschool with her kids, nothing too preachy. When I read it, I felt like crying because I am already yearning for time with my children, even though I have it! I don't know if I really can turn them over to Public Education for 6 hours a day. I'll miss them!
(FYI, I congratulate all of you friends who have already committed to homeschool. I'm not ready to do that yet either. Seems I lose patience with the children by noon. :) )