Blankets and Blog Photos

We're a few days into summer vacation, and the kids have found some creative uses for our blankets.

Last week they made up a game called "Ghosts."  It's like Marco Polo, only the person who's it wears a blanket over their head.  They talk to the other players, who must respond each time they're addressed, and the ghost follows the sound of their voice to try and tag them.  If a ghost tags you, you have to put on a blanket and become a ghost too.  The last person without a blanket wins.  That may be because we have four kids but only three beige blankets.

The kids also employed every blanket in the house to make a big tent fort.

Meanwhile, I was in the next room taking lots of pictures for my recipe blog.  I throw away ten or twenty photos for every good one I take, but I love how this gnocchi picture turned out. :)

An Out-of-State Organ

This morning we drove to New Hampshire for stake conference (a semi-annual meeting of several local congregations).  I still think it's kind of funny that we go to a whole other state for stake conference, even though it's just half an hour away.

Daniel's Sunday school teacher played the organ for this conference.  After the meeting ended, we went up to say hello, and she gave us a little demonstration of how the organ works.

Joy found it fascinating.

Todd's Musical Graduation

We attended Todd's preschool graduation this evening.  Daddy felt a bit of Mr. Incredible angst about calling it a "graduation," but he still came, and did his best to act like the whole thing wasn't totally irrational.  Thank you, Engineer Daddy. :)

Personally, I thought the ceremony was really fun.  The kids performed several songs their teachers had taught them.

Then they received a delightfully colorful diploma . . .

. . . and gathered for a class picture.

Thanks for everything Miss Julia and Miss Rochelle!  Todd had a great time in your class, and learned a lot about being a good friend to his classmates. :)

Clapping for Anna

School's out for summer!

Joy and I went to Anna's school this afternoon to cheer for Anna in her clap-off parade.  Our town has two elementary schools (one for grades K-2, another for grades 3-5), and it's traditional for family, friends, and younger students to applaud for the second graders on their last day at the younger school.

The dress code is casual, but that family in yellow decided to take things up a notch or two.  I'll bet I could've talked Joy into doing that with me, but I think Phillip would have been a hard sell.

It was sweet to see my daughters holding hands as we left Anna's (old) school.

They also found a tree to climb. :)

Then we picked up Todd and Daniel, and headed to the store for our annual end-of-school-year treat run.  I took the kids to Aldi, gave each of them a $3 limit, and let them choose anything they wanted.

Todd - Grabbed the first yummy thing he saw on a shelf (granola bars). 
Daniel - Opted for a sweet cereal.
Anna - Chose messy, totally-bad-for-you cheese puffs because her mother never buys them.
Joy - Methodically went through the entire store, and opted for a box of 8 ice cream sandwiches because she figured they would last her longer than a bag of chips or cookies. 
Mama - Bought some store brand knock-offs of Girl Scout Samoas, which are DEE-licious. 

Then we came home and traded with each other so everyone got to try everything (and all the kids got their fingers covered with messy fake cheese powder :P ).

Our Daddy Rocks

For Father's Day, I presented Daddy with what is quite possibly the most beautiful cake I have ever decorated.

Eat your heart out, Martha Stewart.  Actually, Sour Patch Kids are a surprisingly scrumptious addition to a frosted cake.  Also, the "I am clueless about CAKE" sign is Joy's addition.  It's an inside family Minecraft joke.

Last but not least, this painted stone was a Father's Day gift from Anna, because her daddy rocks.

Tennis and a Funny Sign

This morning, we gathered up all the things we decided to let go of yesterday . . .

. . . and took them to the donation event at the high school.  Funny how I always feel a bit lighter after I let go of old clutter.

Our next stop was some nearby tennis courts.  Daddy helped Joy practice her new tennis skills . . .

. . . while I tapped balls over the net to Anna and Daniel.  Todd preferred to help out by collecting our stray tennis balls.

On the way home, I got a chuckle out of the sign above this window:  "MIR ASSOC. PARKING ONLY.  DON'T CRY IF TOWED."

Last but not least, Anna's Activity Days group had a party today to kick off summer vacation.  While the adults chatted in the screened porch, the girls had a blast playing on the trampoline with a sprinkler underneath.  Not a bad way to cool off on a hot day. :)

Letting Go of Things

I helped the kids declutter their rooms today.  Each of them let go of some things they had been fond of but don't use anymore, and they asked me to take pictures of them before we stored, donated, or discarded those things.

Daniel's favorite shirt is too small, so we put it in storage for Todd to use in a few years.  Daniel says his favorite part about the shirt was that it had a zipper.

Joy and Anna both let go of school ceramic projects that they put a lot of effort into, but which didn't stay in one piece for very long.  Anna's project was a kangaroo.  Joy's was a "living" teacup that had four legs and its own hand-drawn comic.

Todd loved wearing these snow boots all winter, possibly because they were so easy for him to put on.  They will be too small next winter, though, so we are donating them tomorrow.  I actually had a harder time letting them go than Todd did because they are so cute.  Plus, Todd's name means "fox," and I thought it was fun that my "fox pup" had adorable fox boots.

Oh well.  As I often tell my kids, "It was fun, and now it's done."  Time to let go of old clutter so we can focus on the things we actually use and love.