Summer Chain of Events: Week with Daddy

I know this is about 3 weeks overdue but here is how our summer finished off.

Week 6 of summer vacation was originally going to be an entire week with daddy.  Unfortunately, the Friday before this week Justin was informed that he would not have the week off and could only have Monday and Tuesday off.  : ( We were not happy about this or the short notice but luckily, Mimi came to the rescue and filled in for Wednesday-Friday.

Monday, Day 37: A day at Mary Brogan Museum

A few months back we had the opportunity to get yearly passes to the Mary Brogan Museum for a great price and we did.  On Monday of week 6, Justin took advantage of this and took the kids.  They love that place!  It's one of those hands on science and art museums.

One of the fun things they have at the museum.

Tuesday, Day 38: Pool Day!

As you may have noticed we went to the pool several times this summer.  At the beginning of summer I got us passes for 30 visits to the Trousdell Pool.  That came out to 8-10 visits depending on whether all 4 of us went or if I went by myself with the kids.  I took the kids 7 or 8 times this summer but Justin only got to go once (we try not to go there on the weekends because it's packed). So on Tuesday of his week he took the kids to the pool and they got to enjoy some daddy time.

Wednesday, Day 39: Movie with Mimi!

Mimi joining our summer chain of events again was kind of last minute but I put in/replaced a few chains and it all worked out.  Kung Fu Panda 2 had just been moved to the cheap movie theater so that was the perfect activity to add to our chain.  Mimi took the kids and when I got home they were using "kung fu" moves on me, the dog, and anything else they deemed appropriate.

Thursday, Day 40: Meet your new teacher!!!

This is one of the days I was looking forward to most.  Unfortunately, I also had orientation at my school so I wasn't able to go.  Justin was able to get off work early to take the kids and they got to meet their new teachers. Seth is in Mrs. Wilder's Kindergarten class and McKayla is in Mrs. McKnight's Third grade class.  Seth was a little apprehensive about orientation but he left feeling much more comfortable and ready for Kindergarten. He's still adjusting to being at school and the new environment but I have no doubt that he will be successful.

Friday, Day 41: Pottery Day with Mimi (again)

This time we checked the hours at Ribbits Enchanted Cottage and the kids actually got to paint pottery with Mimi.

 Seth's Tie Dye Frog (I think McKayla came up with this description)

 McKayla's dog platter!

 

Saturday, Day 42: Birthday Parties

This day fell on August 20th and we happened to have 2 birthdays to celebrate.  The first was my friend Lisa's son, Aidan who turned 3.  They had a water party at their house so we went there to celebrate.  When we were done with that we hurried back so I could bake a cake and cook Arroz con Pollo (Cuban chicken and rice) for my mother-in-law.  I won't tell you how old she turned. Mimi isn't a big fan of pictures so I didn't take any but I now regret having nothing to show for that very special celebration. 

Sunday, Day 43: Last day of summer : (

Our last day of summer was spent relaxing with each other.  Justin took the kids to the bookstore while I finished getting my classroom ready for my students.  Then we headed to Red Elephant for lunch (we had a coupon).  From there we went to Joann's Fabrics and got 2 bird houses to decorate and hang in our yard (we haven't done this yet).  We also got some last minute school supplies.  The kids picked what we would make for dinner, zucchini bacon pasta (their favorite). This was also what they chose to go in their thermos for the first day of school lunch.  It wasn't an overly exciting day but it was one of my favorites because we were all together. 

Monday, Day 44: First Day of School.

I put up a chain for the first day of school that simply said, "First day of school".  They both had a great day.

Being a teacher has it's positives but missing things like this because I have my own classroom is NO FUN!  Luckily, Justin took pictures and called me after he left so I didn't have to miss too much. 

Going back to work after the summer is usually something I look forward too.  After getting to spend so much time with the kids and having so much fun with them I was truly saddened to see summer end.  I can't remember a summer I enjoyed this much.  I look forward to next summer and another chain of events.  I'm sure we'll have some repeat activities and some new ones.  The kids have already started asking about it. So, if you have any good ideas for next year, please do share them with me. 

Thanks for reading,

The Wimberlys

Summer Chain of Events: Week 5

Our 5th week of summer with the kids was a great one and a busy one.  We did all these events and I unpacked and organize our new house.  Here's how it went.

Monday, Day 30: Pottery Painting with Mimi

Mimi (Justin's mom) was kind enough to pick the kids up in the morning to take them to paint pottery.  I was incredibly grateful since we had just finished moving in on Sunday and there was plenty of unpacking to be done.  She picked them up and headed to Ribbits Enchanted Cottage.  When they got there they found out it was closed until Wednesday.  Oh No! But not to worry, Mimi saved the day and took them to Funstation Jr. and Chick-fil-a.  The kids had a blast and I had plenty of time to unpack and organize. Thanks Mimi!

Tuesday, Day 31: Date Night

Tuesday night was a special occasion and something we've never done before.  Justin and I talked about it and we decided that McKayla does not get enough father/daughter time since she's gone every other week.  So we decided to start a new tradition where each week we have them Justin will take one of them out to dinner and I will take the other.  As you can imagine, McKayla loved this idea.  Seth surprised me by stating that he wanted to go on a date with me.  He ran to his room, got his money out of his "ATM Bank", and stated, "I want to do the real deal, I'm buying you dinner." Hahaha! Don't worry, I didn't let him pay with his money but I did let him pay the cashier at Moe's with my money and he enjoyed that.  McKayla and Justin went to Beef 'O Brady's and she loved that.  I love this new tradition and I think the kids do too.

A date complete with flowers for the pretty girl.

Not the best quality picture but it's the only one I have for the week.

Wednesday, Day 32: Let's Go to a New Park

On Wednesday morning (before it got too hot) we headed to Tekesta Park.  This is a park that is pretty close to our house and one the kids hadn't been to yet.  Unfortunately, it was closed for some reason and so we headed to the playground at Killearn Lakes Elementary instead.  They had fun there but it soon got too hot so we headed home and got ready to go to the pool instead.

Thursday, Day 33: Slip 'n' Slide

We have a slip 'n' slide that Mimi bought for us and while we've used it before, we hadn't used it at the new house yet.  Since it has been so hot here this was a great outdoor activity for the kids to enjoy.  I did take pictures of this activity and the next but something happened to my memory card and they got deleted. : (

Friday, Day 34: Water Gun Fight

I think this activity has probably been one of their favorites. We went to Wal-mart and got 2 big water guns for only $10.  It was $10 well spent!  They ran around the yard shooting each other, the trees, the bushes, and anything else they could think of for a couple hours.  I'm sure they'll be playing with those again soon. I'm really sad because I got a few really cute pictures of them with their water guns but due to a memory card malfunction I no longer have them. 

Saturday, Day 35: Let's Take Fenway to the Dog Park

Fenway loves playing with other dogs!  On Saturday we headed to the dog park that the city provides.  She soon picked the largest dog there and proceeded to run, chase, and tumble with him.  We were only there for about 30 minutes because of the heat but it was enough to wear her out for the next several hours. 

Sunday, Day 36: We're Going to Church

Justin and I are Christians but neither one of us has attended church on any kind of a regular basis in a long time. We decided that we needed to stop being "godless heathens" (that's what Justin calls us), and find a church we liked.  While we both have a great deal of respect for religion and Christianity, neither one of us enjoys the traditional church experience.  That's why we decided to try Four Oaks Church.  It's a non-denominational church close to our house and they have wonderful children's programs.  All in all we enjoyed the experience and we look forward to going back.  We also plan to try E3 Church, another non-denominational church here in town.  McKayla enjoyed it but Seth did not.  He didn't want to go to the children's school by himself so he was quite board sitting with us.  Hopefully next time he will have enough courage to join the children's program. 

Summer Chain of Events: Week 4

I know...I'm behind on my posts again.  I have valid excuses, I swear!  In the past three weeks I have finished up an internship, completed another semester of grad school, and have moved.  As you can imagine, I have been super busy. 

So without further ado, here is the update on our summer chain of events. 

Monday, Day 23: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Part 2

I'm sure you all already know this but the final Harry Potter movie came out on July 15th.  Justin and I went to see the movie Friday night without the kids because it's rated PG-13.  Once we saw it we decided it wasn't too scary or inappropriate so we surprised the kids on Monday by letting them see it too.  We didn't take any pictures but I can assure you that the kids LOVED IT!!!

Tuesday, Day 24: Let's Have a Car Wash

As it turns out the kids love washing cars!  This is one of those chores that you love as a kid but hate as an adult. It worked out well for everyone because I got a clean car and we all had a blast.

Wednesday, Day 25: Let's Feed the Birds

While we were in Tennessee we collected some pinecones specifically with this purpose in mind.  We bought some peanut butter and birdseeds, found some yarn, and got to work. Once we were done making them we wrapped them up and put them in the fridge to save for the new house. 

Thursday, Day 26: A Day at Tom Brown Park

Tom Brown Park is one of the largest parks in tallahassee and has a great kids playground.  So on Wednesday of our fourth week of summer we headed to the park.

Friday, Day 27: Picnic Lunch with Daddy!!!

Justin's branch is in Southwood which happens to have a nice park and playground.  On Friday we packed lunch and picked Justin up for his break.  We all went to the park and tried to enjoy our lunch as the gnats tried to invade our space.  After lunch the kids played and even though they whined and complained about the bugs, if you ask them now it's one of their favorite events from the chain. 

Saturday, Day 28: The Gulf Specimen Marine Lab

The Gulf Specimen Marine Lab is in Panacea, about 45 minutes from our house.  We headed there to check out all the marine life they have to offer.  McKayla had been there on a field trip before so she was very excited to show us around.  The kids loved seeing the sea creatures and getting to touch and feel many of them. 

Sunday, Day 29: Sidewalk Chalk

Well...we were going to do sidewalk chalk on Sunday but we were also going to the beach so we ran out of time and never did it.  You see, the activity on each link is not the only thing we do that day.  We usually incorporate the activity into our very full day of other activities.  So on Sunday, there just wasn't time for the chalk.  So we spent the day at the beach with our friend Meghan (who the kids love) and enjoyed every minute of it. So much so that the kids completely forgot about the chalk :-)