Jun 22, 2014

Swimming Lessons

Our little mousey has been taking swimming lessons this summer, every Tuesday for half an hour.  This girl LOVES to swim!


I am quite impressed with what a great swimmer she is...her backstroke is crazy good for never having lessons before!


She has a wonderful swim teacher and there are only 3 other kids (boys) in her class.  It's amazing how much they learn with just a few lessons!

My Running Partner

I'm excited to have a running buddy this summer!  Rachel has decided to take up running with me and I am loving it!  We run my normal route which is about 2.5 miles with lots of inclines.  She's doing so good, and I love the chats we get to have, especially the ones about health and nutrition.  She is wanting to lose some weight and get into better shape, and I want her to be smart about it and do it the right way.


We decided to have a summer mileage challenge.  We're keeping track of how many miles we run or walk and whoever has the most at the end of summer wins.  If I wins she has to clean house and do laundry for a week, if she wins, I take her on a shopping trip.  

Last week that little shit logged 10 miles!  Although today I ran 7.25 and the week has just begun, haha!!  Although I might have to giver her a break, she has been on the couch most of the day today with a fever and sore throat...


Random Rambling

I decided to make Pioneer Woman's lemonade.... Oh my stars!!!  It's divine, you must try it!


We took the girls out for Mexicsn to celebrate Mr. Z's birthday....


I went out for a late night run and got to see this beautiful sight for 2.5 miles, wow!


Emma decided her American Girl dolls needed a camper, and she'd be damned if she was going to shell out $250 for one, so she made her own!

Jun 10, 2014

Summer is Here!

Summer vacation is finally here!  The girls have been counting down the days for the last couple weeks...sleeping in, no homework, being lazy.  Funny how on day one they were already complaining about being bored...*sigh*.

I have a list of things they need to do everyday:  Reading for an hour, workbooks, chores, and of course plenty of playtime.  Emma couldn't believe that they would have to do chores for a full half hour EVERYDAY!  Such a horrible mom am I...

Alayna has taken up cooking with me.  Yes she has a knife, she actually uses it quite well!  She loves to add the ingredients to whatever we're making.  A couple nights ago I made hobo packets for the grill and she loved putting all the ingredients together.  I do think it makes her more willing to try new foods if she's helped make them.


Thursday nights Rachel has softball practice, so I take the other two to the splashpad which is right next door.  Emma reads while Alayna plays.


I think I need to bring a friend, she doesn't quite know what to do by herself, haha!


We made these super yummy smores cups.  I'm not a smores fan, but these were delicious!


Alayna's favorite teacher ever, Mr. Beneke!  We were so blessed that all three of our girls had him, he is truly an amazing teacher that absolutely LOVES what he does.


On the last day of school I took the day off and spent the morning in Alayna's class.  She made Mr. Beneke a wooden wall hanging that has his inital on it and got him a gift card to Barnes and Noble.  My niece Madalyn had 8th grade graduation which was SO nice, and makes me so sad that Rachel's turn will be next year, ugh.

I had lunch with all three girls and then helped out at the school carnival.  It was a BEAUTIFUL day!  After school I took them to cone castle for some ice cream and then promptly dropped them off to enjoy a cold beer at the La with friends!


Happy summer!

Field Trip

One of the best things about my job is that it is extremely flexible.  I've been able to help out on a couple fieldtrips and volunteer in Alayna's class.  The week before school was out we took a trip to PAM'S Auto which is right here in St. Joe.  They sell used auto parts, and it was a fascinating trip!  I think the adults enjoyed it more than the kiddos, haha.


The best part of the trip was at the end they showed the kids how they smash the vehicles before sending them to the junkyard.  Hearing all the screams and cheers was priceless!

       

Miss A and her friend Ava.  Mousey needs to grow this summer!

Jun 7, 2014

Memorial Day 2014

For the first time in a looooong time, we actually had gorgeous weather for Memorial weekend!  Friday night we headed up to Padua to spend the night with friends at their cabin.  The girls had a blast playing the game Tensie (its a dice game) and bumping the volleyball around.



Saturday we hung out at their cabin with our group of friends and enjoyed the weather!  We left there around 9 and headed home to get a good night of sleep.


Sunday we went to the camper for the rest of the weekend and were super stoked to get the new boat on the water! It was too cold to tube, but we thoroughly enjoyed cruising!  Of course we won't talk about my husband forgetting to put the plug in and water in the boat....



Sunday night we enjoyed a nice campfire, Grandpa had taken the girls to Dairy Queen, so we didn't do s'mores.


It was a gorgeous night!


The kids were exhausted and I think we were all in bed by 10!


Alayna's highlight of the weekend was getting to use her new fishing rod!  They had some luck and caught some good sized crappies.

Such a great start to summer vacation!!!