So long summertime...

Well, its here, the end of summer is officially upon us. We had a great summer. It was really a lot of fun. I loved having the kids around more, being without a schedule, and enjoying our lazy mornings. It was bliss! In honor of this great summer I thought I would do a top ten summer highlights list. So da da da da... here we go.

10. Oh eh oh ... cause we're living The Suite Life

Well we have come to a major milestone in our family. Sadly for Brayden, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and the rest of the Disney Jr gang just wasnt cutting it anymore. I shed a tear when he voiced his complaint and after much begging, I gave in to a few other television options... ... in particular "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody" which was Braydens entertainment this summer. We watched the entire series of both "The Suite Life" and "The Suite Life on Deck." Yep quite an accomplishment (thank you Netflix). I did mention lazy mornings didnt I? If our summer had a theme song... well you get the idea...

9. Aspen Fitness / The Game of Life
I was fit this summer thanks to the game of Life. I joined a gym a few months ago and at the beginning of the summer the kids (ie Brayden) whined about the childcare and made it hard for me to go. That is UNTIL... they discovered the game of Life on the computers there. After that they were begging me to go work out. Thank you game of Life...

8. Neighborhood Friends
Our kids have some good friends in the neighborhood and when it comes to a quick fix for boredom, they have really come to the rescue. I think our house is the hot spot for friends and I wouldn't have it any other way.

(this picture is actually from the first day of school but it works)

7. Piano

Well the kids certainly wouldn't agree with my ranking of this one but the summer gave them lots of free time and they really progressed in their piano. I am so glad we didn't take summer off because it really was an ideal time to focus on it.

6. Fort Building
I could take a picture of the mess of forts that our basement is but I will spare you. Use your imagination. The kids were very into fort building this summer. We had many different variations. They seemed to get bigger every time. Its one thing they can all play together and all have a great time so the mess... well its a small price to pay. (I guess ;)

5. BUGS! and other small creatures

Kids love bug/ frog/ toad/ butterfly catching/ feeding/ naming/ and "training." I'm not sure if its because they don't have a real pet... but the little creepy crawlies found in our yard have provided my kiddos some great entertainment.

4. Papio Pool
So this year we joined a nearby members-only pool. In many ways it was fantastic. We went often, we beat the summer heat (which was pretty bad this year), we had two great sessions of swim lessons, we enjoyed their cheap snack bar, and the kids made HUGE progress in their swimming abilities- and I mean HUGE. The drawback unfortunately is that the pool itself is kinda well "ghetto." Oh well- good times!

3. Fun "stuff" with Friends...
Well most of this is covered in previous blog posts but we had a great time with a lot of our great friends. Going to parks, bounce places, baseball games, the zoo, eating out, and just hanging out. We did it all with lots of good friends and had a blast many times over.


2. Our Visits to see family (Canada) and our Visit from family (4th of July). We have the best extended families!

1. But what I loved best is my time with the 4 Coolest Kids Ever! I am one lucky mother.
And there you have it folks, our summer in a nutshell