End to Summer

As Summer winds down...
Grady turned a broken down yard car into a sprinkler...
We stopped by Cumberland Falls in Daniel Boone National Forest...
Cora tried pretty successfully to use chop sticks for the first time...
Grady harvested and dried out his corn crop... and we successfully popped it for breakfast...
Cora and Grady and Chester made a huge mud field in the back yard...
We thanked and thank again all our friends and family for making the birthdays so much fun...

Cora and Chester keep breaking the rules and playing in the resting garden bed...
Chester discovered the joy of popping birthday balloons...
Cora ate a delicious and messy dark chocolate covered Graham cracker... and School started up...

Welcome to Home school Kindergarten...

Grady begins reading practice on Starfall.... and plays with Friday School project slime.

Friday school is on Fridays in rotating houses where different mommies host a project or lesson.

Tuesdays Grady takes Yoga, Thursdays Spanish. Wednesdays might get busy soon too. I'm also thinking about joining a Monday Geography Club to rotate along with our Monday Library days. Last but not least Grady and I have discovered Dreambox... a terrific online math curriculum keeper that gives mom progress reports... he has completed half of Kindergarten already! yea!

Cora is getting two year molars and potty training some, and Grady's bottom front teeth are getting wiggly from time to time.

The BIG August DOUBLE Celebrations!
Double the DOUBLE, two kids, at least two parties and special occasions to celebrate the big 5 and big 2.
River Dogs, Cakes with Family in Md and Big Friend Party at Rolly Pollies! (A Huge Success)

The goody bags were made by Grady... and

Celebrating with Friends was a total Blast, thanks to all who came.

The Importance of band-aids.

CHESTER:
We loved him at first sight, so handsom. Then it turned out his new home was full of people allergic to dogs... don't blame them they had a lab for 12 years or so and never realized why some one always had a cold.
He fits right in here and seems content. He was a rescue who needed rehoming. He came to us as Buster. We tried on the name Chopper, and Chops... then Boomer and Butcher. Then somehow Chester and we all seem to like it, maybe it will stick.

As Summer wears on...

There has been a lot of relaxed discoveries inside and outside. Most recently we had an adventurous boat ride with Jennifer and Lindsey.

Swim Lessons

Grady will begin swim lessons today. He has expressed some trepidation. I know he will warm up to it. He is really ready for "knowing" how to swim instead of pretending. At the water park a week ago, I kept finding him in 3ft water. He disobediently went to where he felt most brave and challenged without a clue as to the real dangers.

After six months Cora has finally gotten her second Canine tooth. those suckers take a long time on her! She is also a sentence talker now who has started potty training/awareness with ease.

Both kids really love their gym class. Second session started last week. Cora and her airplane arms are so cute. Not to mention constantly breaking into song with another rendition of "Little Teapot".

Our Fathers Day get together.

Summer is Here for us
There is reclining to do...Making Fruit Pizza!

Playing with Flashlights
Learning to water the garden...
Make t-shirts with FriendsWater a sibling... and the Grass.

Shelling CSA beans... very pretty.

Gardening Again

Garden Successes and Failures!

Gfinally has some corn growing, from pantry popping kernels. Now the squirrels area attacking the sprouts.
The empty garden bed is a bed of old seed...
New carrot Seeds will save us yet... I really want Carrots.

Mother Day and Such

A sweet rose from my family.

Cora's first hair cut, ie a trim.... about a half inch off the very back.
"Mom I want to paint my toe nails blue, I like blue."

This moment in Time

Mothers Day with a dash of Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease.

Oh here are some of the Easter festivities. Firstly we took part in the Rivers Reach neighborhood Easter Egg hunt, rainy day but the kids had a marvelous time.


Our baskets at home Easter morning and ...

Cora loved her special gift of a tea set from Yo Yo ...
While Grady adored, and still does his special request Space Shuttle Legos.