Swim Lessons: Week 1

So I already talked about Hudson's first week of swim lessons, and you know, what a success that was.

Riiiiiiiiight.

Anyway, Reese showed up at swim lessons ready to get her Station 3 sticker.  I think she's itching for a little bit of the independence her big brother has in the water.

 I know that she likes to work hard while she's with the instructor, but she really likes her "free play time" on the steps.  She usually throws a toy and chases after it.

 Wyatt passed Station 1 on the first day of his new Children's program, but he worked all week on getting his Station 2 sticker.  Some days he didn't push off the wall with both feet, another day he wasn't blowing his bubbles, and I don't what went wrong on the final day.  But at least he's working.

 Reese is getting good at her back floats and front floats to pass Station 3!  She was so close when she tested on Friday, but she'll have to keep working next week.

 He wasn't blowing bubbles here!  Silly kid!

 Reese loves swim lessons, and she really liked her instructor last week (that always makes things easier)!

 This little girl was so good all week!  We had a few grumps, but nothing some yogurt melts wouldn't cure.  And this is the first really good picture of her two bottom teeth! 

I'm hoping that they both make lots of good progress this summer and get more comfortable in the water.  Wyatt is already basically a little fish, but Reese could definitely use the extra lessons!  Fortunately we have a little break this week, so we need to find something else to fill up our mornings.  I think we'll start with the pool at the Y and story time at the library!

Hudson's First Swim Lesson

Wyatt and Reese have been taking swim lessons for the last two summers (2012 & 2011).  This year I signed them up again, but I also enrolled Hudson. Let's just say that he needs them.  He is very nervous around the pool, and getting comfortable in and around the water is a must for the little guy!  We started Wyatt with his first lesson when he was a little older, but we figured it was better to start during the summer than to wait for winter like we did with Wyatt.

Monday was the first day of swim lessons, and Reese jumped right back into learning her front floats and back floats, which are musts to pass Station 3.

 And Wyatt was able to pass Station 1 of his new "Childrens" program.
Showing off his bobs!

And Hudson.  Oh, sweet little Hudson.

 He screamed when Brian passed him off to his instructor.  He screamed until she let him pick out a toy.  And then he was fine.

He even got the hang of pulling on the pool noodle slowly.  It's still something he needs to practice, though.

 This is his, "I can't believe you did this to me, Dad," look. I think he's got it mastered at the ripe old age of two.

 He did allow her to dunk him without throwing a fit.  Getting dunked definitely warmed him up!

 He made quick work of the bubble blowing...

 And the splashing!

He did not walk away with a Station 1 sticker that day, or any other day this week!  What I'm most excited about is that he is warming up to the water, and he's also becoming okay with leaving my side for awhile.  He's gotten used to the YMCA, and he seems excited for school in the fall, but I still worry!  I really hope that swimming lessons become fun for him.  It is nice that he isn't the only one that cries, though!

Busy Saturday

I know, I know, I'm kind of working backwards, but I wanted to post about our first day of summer break!

It started like this:

We got Wyatt and Reese new readers as "end of the school year" presents.  They were excited because they are books about Star Wars and Marley (for Wyatt) and Doc and Sofia (for Reese).  Wyatt is much more advanced with his reading skills than his little sister, so he sat down to read her book to her.  And I was blown away by 1) how well he did reading something he's never read before, and 2) all these little faces crowded up on the couch listening to their big brother read to them.  When did they get this big?

I mentioned before that Reese had another recital on Saturday.  I dropped her off at that performance and then I took the other three out on an adventure.  By adventure, I mean I took them to Target for snacks, and then we went to our favorite park.  Is it weird that one of my favorite parks is in my old neighborhood?  I don't care. This place is awesome.  There's almost never anyone else there, it's very shaded, and there's lots to do.  And it's all together, so there's no kids wandering to different sections!

Wyatt so wanted to do these when he was itty bitty, but he couldn't ever do it without help.  Now?  He's basically a pro.  (As a sidenote, I can't believe the things he remembers.  Seriously.  Citing things from when he was 2 and a half year old.  This kid is nuts!)

This little cutie is just as adorable swinging in this swing as her big sister was!

These two!  Wyatt kept trying to break away from Hudson because he really wanted to push Finley, but Hudson wasn't having it!

Yeah, this is what he wanted to spend his time doing.  He loves this little girl!

I finally told him to go play with his brother!  He decided to show Hudson how to go down the slide.

And Hudson put on his "brave face" and he did it!

After we were done at the park we went to pick Reesie up from her recital (Daddy and Mimi and Baba had been at that show, but Brian had to go right back to work), and then we rushed home to get ready for Tyler's birthday party!

The party was at a local field house, which is basically where a lot of indoor sports get played.  Needless to say, this was right up Wyatt and Hudson's alley.  Yes, even Hudson wanted to play soccer and dodgeball with the big boys!

After an hour of sports, the kids went to have birthday cake, and then the played in a little "fun zone" with slides and stuff.  They had so much fun that Wyatt has already said he may want to do that instead of the zoo next year!  After three years, I can't imagine him having his party anywhere else!

By the time we got home from the party it was time for me to make dinner and for the kids to wind down.  After a busy, nap free day every one made it to bed early!  We had a great "first day of summer break," and we're hoping for a fun summer - starting with the swim lessons we're taking this week!

Dance Recital 2013

Reese's dance recital was last weekend!  We had a fun week leading up to her performances on Friday and Saturday.  She had dress rehearsal on Tuesday, which was my first chance to see her ready to go in her super cute costume.

Of course, her costume last year was pretty adorable, too!  In this year's recital she had two performances.

She wore it like this for her "jazzy" number.

And this was her costume for her tap performance.

She and her friends did such a great job!  Last year they were super cute, but you could tell that they've gotten better this year, and that they are able to remember more of their routine.  Basically, they're like old pros now :)!

Of course, she's only four, so she spent some time looking at Ms. Jada for instructions...and reminders to "smile."  I actually told her on Friday afternoon that based on what I'd seen her do at home, I thought she knew her routine pretty well on her own, and that she only needed to look at Ms. Jada when she couldn't remember something.  I think that helped boost her confidence a bit before the Friday show!

Ready to dance "just like a rock star."

Seriously, I loved watching her dance on that stage.  She had no fear!

Here is a little snippet of her jazz perfomance.  She's in the front row, second from the right!

Reese's class taking their bow!

Flowers for the dancer!

Reesie and her proud Mommy!

And this is the patented "so over pictures" smile that Wyatt developed last week.

Reese was amazing! We were so proud of how well she did dancing, but I was so surprised that she wasn't at all phased by being on the stage.  I missed her performance on Saturday, but her Daddy gave that one rave reviews, too!

She is already asking me when her next recital is - I think she caught the stage bug!

Last Day of School

Wyatt and Reese's last day of school was Friday.  We "celebrated" with blueberry muffins for breakfast, and then shuffled to get out the door on time - it wouldn't be school day if we weren't rushing around at the last minute.

This guy had such a great year!  He loved his teacher and all his friends.  And I'm so proud of all of his hard work!  I touched on most of the progress he's made this year at conference time. His reading fluency has improved so much, his handwriting is so much better, and he's asking me to do math with him this summer!  I can't believe how big he's gotten in nine months!

Reesie's year in 4 year old class was awesome!  Like Wyatt I talked about her progress last month, but her handwriting and math skills have gotten so much better, and she's actually reading!  She had such a great time with her friends in class, and her favorite part of school was definitely taking things in for show and share and coloring!

 Last day that these two are going to be at the same school for a long time!  Wyatt is over taking pictures right now.  Seriously!

Reesie with her friends Ava and Emma before school!

 Freedom!  Brian came home to take them out to lunch after school.  I can't believe that it was Wyatt's last day at this school.  We have loved his three years there so much, and we're so glad we found the right preschool for him when we started looking!  We're now easing into a summer full of swim lessons, trips to fun spots, and "summer home school."  We're not counting down the days until school starts...yet :)!

Father's Day

These kiddos LOVE their Daddy.

 So when Brian called me on Saturday and told me that his parents were going to spend Father's Day at the Waterpark, we didn't have to think too long before we said we'd be there, too!  Even though this guy isn't a huge fan of water.

 We got to the park right when it opened, and Wyatt rode down this slide about a million times (that's a rough estimate by Wyatt himself).  The beauty is that we had a cabana that basically let me sit in the shade and watch him do it over and over and over again. 

 We went straight up the hill to ride the tube rides.  We had lots of fun, but man were my arms and legs tired from walking up the steps with three tubes!  When do these kids start earning their keep?!?!?

 She screamed the entire way down, and then shouted, "That's AWESOME!" when she got to the bottom.

 Wyatt fell in love with Jungle Falls when I took him last week.  He loves the drop from pool to pool!

 And I know looks scared, she totally loved it, too!

 Even though they both like riding the "big kid" rides, I know Wyatt had lots of fun hanging out in the kiddie section.  He was floating with his arms behind his head.  When I asked what he was doing, he told me he was "relaxing."

 Reese saw me with the camera, so this was the face she made while riding the slides with Baba.

 This little cutie loved the jumpers!  She wasn't a fan of the water when she first got wet, but she warmed up to it.  And anything that involves jumping is a win in Finley's book.  Hudson loved them too when he was a baby!

 We had a fun, long day!  I can't believe these four lasted at the park from 10AM to 4PM! I know that they loved actually being able to spend Father's Day with Brian, even though he was going back and forth from his office and other parts of the park to us.

His girls LOVE him!

 Finley was a rock star baby all day.. She was so good!

I'm so glad that we were able to go and spend time with Brian and Baba for Father's Day - the kids had a blast!