Side Yard Success

2 Swings + 8 Tons of Sand + 30' Retaining Wall + 1 Helpful Grandpa =



Grandpa Green built the boys these huge 14' swings. They love how high they can get on such a big set. They have created a game they call "Wo-Hoo" where someone pitches a big, bouncy ball to the person swinging, who kicks it. The pitcher then must catch the ball to get them "out". Leave it to my boys to find a way to incorporate a ball into something like swinging!

8 tons of sand really does feel a bit like the beach. We dug out one area a bit deeper than the rest so that boys can really dig! We thought the sand might be mostly for the Caboose, but all of the boys are digging away.

We just finished the area last night - and within an hour had 7 neighbor kids over playing. I love that we have something that draws in the neighborhood.


We really weren't sure what to do with the side yard, but I think we come up with something great. And while I'll probably be cursing the mess of all that sand before the week's over, right now I couldn't be more pleased.

Preschool

After weeks of anticipation, the Caboose was finally able to start preschool this week. He was beyond excited about the whole process. He had packed and repacked his backpack multiple times, had several different snacks ready to go, and was thrilled to be a Big Kid.

We decided to put him into a home preschool, run by a friend of mine who is as sweet and kind as Mary Poppins herself. She's one of those people who greets each child with her arms out and a giant smile. (Reason number 518 of why I taught high school instead of preschool: no mandatory hugging.)

After the first day he came out saying he had made some friends, had great fun, and wanted to go back - NOW! Every morning he asks if he can go to preschool and is quite disappointed when it's not his day. I love that he loves it so much!

As for me? This is the first time I have ever had 2 1/2 hours 2x a week all to myself! This week I exercised, helped a friend pack for her upcoming move, and volunteered at school. As great as it was, I have to say I missed that little guy. It's been just the two of us in the day since he was born. Still, I found myself wondering if the movie theater has showings as early as 9:30...

100 of My Favorite Things

Click to make bigger.
Thx for the idea Randi!

Bus Business

School started Friday morning at the crack of 9:00. Our school has moved back their start time to minimize busing costs. There are several downsides to this. First, the boys won't be home until after 4:00 in the afternoon. Fitting in homework, scouts, practice, tutoring, and dinner, yet alone even a smidgen of playtime will be tricky.

But the worst part is that the district MOVED OUR BUS STOP! It used to be RIGHT in front of our house. I didn't so much as brush my teeth before waving goodbye from the front door.


So here's the question: How close does the bus stop need to be to safety send the boys there on their own?

The facts:
-I am paranoid when it comes to my kids.
-The bus stop is .25 miles away.
-I can watch them (from the house) for the first half of the walk.
-They are entering 5th and 3rd grades. (And yes, when I was in 5th grade I would ride my bike all the way up to Julie's house - a good mile plus away. But that was THEN.)
-I'm paranoid when it comes to my kids.

Am I crazy to be worried???

Meanwhile, the Caboose had a hard time seeing his brothers head back to school this year. He will be starting preschool in just a couple weeks and CAN NOT WAIT! Of course he had to wear his Spiderman backpack to the bus stop, I expected that. But the poor kid cried the whole way home "I wanna go preschool!" Soon grasshopper, soon.

Instead of Blogging...

We have been all kinds of busy this summer. My plan of daily chores, schoolwork and play worked out quite well.

The boys did their fair share of things like this:

(Of course, they felt like they had waaaay too many chores.)

We did a ton of this:

(BB#1 getting some tutoring help with his spelling from my mom.)

Spent some time here:

(And read almost every night in bed.)

But we also did this just about every evening:

Enjoyed way too much of this:

(Yuuummmm, Sonic diet-Coke with extra ice and lemons...)

Did this a couple days a week:

(Swim lessons with a way fun college student.)

And even fit this in more than once:

Add in our trip to Florida, Grandparents coming from Utah, a few movies, and plenty of playdates, and we really had a great summer. Just enough structure to keep us all sane balanced with a good amount of play.