Thursday, August 27, 2009

A brand new school year!



Monday was a very exciting day; not only was it our first day of school, but it was our very first co-op day, which will be every week! Our co-op is called Cross Trainers, and I feel so blessed to be a part of it. There are eight other moms teaching, and they are such an incredibly gifted group of women. Subjects covered include History, Literature, Science, Spanish, Latin, Grammar, Writing and Art. For the K-2nd graders, phonics, spelling, poetry and reading are also covered (in addition to the other subjects on an easier level). I'm mostly in charge of the pre-schoolers, and I will teach poetry and reading to K-2. Bible and Math are only covered at home since there is only so much we can cram into our co-op Monday! There are 27 kids at Cross Trainers, and my boys are so happy to be a part of this group once a week. It gives some variety to our homeschooling, and I am THRILLED to let these amazing women enrich my children's education! Each teacher is passionate about her subject and just goes all-out. It's so neat!


By lunch time, Sullivan was DONE! She fell asleep in my arms when I was outside eating lunch with everybody. So, I went into the sanctuary (we meet at a church) to give her a little time to snooze. Now I know that she won't be able to get through a long co-op day every week without a nap; it's just too much excitement for her. I will be better prepared next week with playpen in tow!

More Summertime Fun



This summer Zane learned to ride a skateboard and Titus learned to ride his bike without training wheels!


Sullivan loves to snuggle with her brother and give hugs and kisses before bed. These two have a special bond because Zane takes such good care of his sissy and spends lots of time playing with her.



If you didn't know where Zane was this summer, there was always one place you could find him: on his bed or on the couch reading the Hardy Boys books. He read at least twenty of them (I've lost count after numerous trips to the library, checking out 5-6 at a time)! His love of reading makes me smile.




The kids did a lot of playing outside in our pretty new yard this summer. The kids love to run and play with the dog and just enjoy the outdoors. Jake's in heaven any time he has his kids around.




Our last weekend before school started, the kids wanted to camp out back with Daddy. They do this every year and they always try to get me to join them. I'm so lucky since I have the perfect excuse of a baby in the house I don't want to leave. However, next year I bet Sullivan will want to camp outside too! This evening was my first attempt at making blueberry pie. Let me just say this is a new family FAVORITE!!! What took me so long??? After it came out of the oven, Levi kept saying, "Mom, your pie smells SO BEAUTIFUL!" I think we'll make this a new tradition: so long, summer, with blueberry pie!

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Solana Beach


my guys!



Our pretty beach baby seems to love the ocean (and sand) more every time we go. She gets so excited, points to the water and exclaims, "POOL!!!"



the girls


We love this beach because it's beautiful! And, unlike today, it's usually not crowded.


OOH, LA LA! Glad he's mine.


Try to ignore the complete strangers who appear to be posing in our picture and focus on the MUSCLES.





Both Zane AND Titus had an awesome time in the water this summer! Titus is a little fish now!







Titus and Levi had such fun in the sand! It was a hoot watching Levi run back and forth to get water, while stepping on every stranger's towel (and bag, and surf board...) along the way. Nobody seemed to mind.



Sulli was such a good girl to take her nap... and only peek a little. She conked out for over two hours!



Zane and I are getting ready to...



...boogie board!!! Yes, even I did it. Zane begged me to, so I gave in and had so much fun I didn't want to get out of the water!


All wet, at the end of a long beach day, my little doll's still smiling.

Some Summer Fun...






Our friends Carri and Eddie Roman hosted this amazingly-fun, all-boys backyard camp-out. With less than two weeks of summer left, it was a great opportunity for Zane and Titus to get to know some of the boys who will be in our co-op this year. As to just how much fun they had... these pictures speak for themselves. (Thanks for the photos, Carri!)


Summer has been a time to make new friends. Two of the boys' favorites are Matthew and David MacIntosh. They are two of the nicest kids we've met. And their parents are pretty special too.


Summer is a time for camping... even in your own bedroom. Zane couldn't keep Sullivan out of his tent.


Jake is fun in the summer.... and every other season.


Swimming with friends at night was a blast!


There's nothing like eating cupcakes when you're wet in the summertime.




Kimberlee hosted another get-together with Denise before she went home to Texas. We had so much fun!