Tumbling - The End.

Tumbling has officially come to a close. Amy seemed to like it. Here is a cute picture of her posing with her little certificate. She was so proud of it. Her teacher also wrote a cute little note to her on it. She loved the energy that Amy brought to class ... she had a little trouble following directions ... but overall was a wonderful addition to the room.

There were a few nights during this session that I didn't think the poor teacher would get anything accomplished. It is pretty tough to teach a bunch of 3 and 4 year olds how to do gymnastics when they are nearing bedtime and they can see the playground outside through the windows. Just so many distractions! Don't forget the fact that almost all of the parents were in the room, so kids occasionally had to leave the mat to give their Mom a hug ... or go to the bathroom ... or just come over and say "hi" ... or play with their sibling... It was pretty humorous.

What you can't really see in the picture is Amy's little leotard, or "avatar" as she often called it. Such a nut! She was a good little tumbler. We'll see if we can find her some more classes this fall.

Matthew & Amy Go To The Dentist

Our kids go to this great pediatric dentist office. Our most recent visit really counted as Amy's first official teeth cleaning. Her first trip to see them was about a year ago, and she was having nothing to do with it. I was so surprised. Matthew never had an issue with the dentist, and of our two children, she is by far more laid back. She just goes with the flow. Well ... not that time.

Unfortunately, she developed a huge cavity in her mouth last fall. We might have found it earlier had she cooperated with this first visit. Grrr. To make a long story short - we had to put her under general anesthesia to fix it. While she was under, they also cleaned her teeth, flossed them, and took her first set of x-rays.

Well .. let me say ... what a difference a year makes!

She was such a trooper this time around! She sat up in the chair all by herself (well, you will see froggy standing guard by her side). She put on the sunglasses and let them do their thing. She was so funny about all of it. She loved "Mr. Thirsty" (a.k.a. the sucky straw). She even picked out "cookie dough" toothpaste. It made me gag just thinking about it, but she thought it was great.

Matthew was such a superstar too. No cavities for either one of them. We were so proud! Good job kiddos!

Planet Spain

About a month ago, my brother Dominic came up here for a family wedding. He had just gotten back from a semester abroad in Spain. He was sweet enough to bring the kids back some presents. Matthew's gift was this awesome Madrid t-shirt. It has a cool bull on it - he totally loved it.

Anyway, last week I pulled it out of his drawer and suggested he wear it to camp that day. This is how the conversation went:

Mommy: "Hey, you should wear this shirt today!"
Matthew: "Why?"
Mommy: "Because it is super cool. It has this awesome picture of a bull on it. Plus, if any of your friends ask you where you got it, you can tell them that your uncle got it for you in Spain."
Matthew: (looking at me like I was an absolute idiot) "Um Mommy ... nobody even knows where that planet is!"

It was the total comic relief I needed that early in the morning.

4th of July 2011

Happy 4th of July! What a day! We started the morning with some goofing around outside and a couple of errands. Then we were off to the Twins game with Uncle Aaron. It was so hot out today, and the kids made it through the whole game! We couldn't believe it. Our seats were in the direct sun, so we spent a lot of time walking around the concourse and eating (of course). The kids tried Dip 'N' Dots for the first time. That was a huge hit.

We also managed to share a pretzel, an ice cream cone, and some mini donuts. Ok, so we don't win any awards for our adherence to the food pyramid - but we sure had fun!

We definitely needed a cool down after all of our time outside. When we got home, we headed to the basement to lounge around and watch a movie in the air conditioning. After a light dinner and lots of water, we were ready for a quick trip to the Edina pool. This is turning out to be a great summer to have that membership!

Happy Independence Day!

Before I sign off, I just have to capture a funny conversation I had with Matthew the other day. It was ridiculously hot outside, and we were heading to the pool to meet Arik and Amy. He was just looking out the window at a stoplight and said this:

Matthew: "Mommy, what do you think would be better? A little fountain of water to play in or a giant waterslide?
Me: "Um ... I think a giant waterslide would be better."
Matthew: "That was my guess too ..."

Where does he come up with this stuff?

Upside Down Summer

Both kids have gotten far more adventurous lately. Holy moly! Every time I look at them - somebody is either upside down or dangling from something! My Mom did a great job of capturing the craziness in these photos. So fun to see them smile! Enjoy!