Yikes!

I didn't realize it had been over a month since I last posted. Wowza! I'll blame grad classes on the absenteeism...I'm finally getting a handle on my classes and feel I can breathe. When I signed up for 4  (somewhat traditional) classes, I didn't think it would be all consuming...then a friend reminded me that that was a full load. Add in the family and I've been trying to stay afloat. That does not mean we have not had fun, others have had more fun than me, but I'll deal with it and realize I'll have a summer vacation - next year. Rather than taking time to think things through, I just put all the pictures in one post...so here goes:

First week out of school I packed up the boys (and Luke) and we headed for Sandy Pines. We had a short (6 days) bonus trip as we will be coming back in Aug. for my parent's 50th (and taking Adam too). Opa learned that watering the flowers/grass when Emmit was awake was not the smartest move:

Being wet didn't bother him and his driving abilities!

And Opa still didn't learn when he put a bucket of water out for feet washing....

We did a lot of this:

One night Opa, Luke, Gerrit and I went to go-karting (what I don't do for boys!):

After 2 races and being passed by everyone, Gerrit had enough (thankfully). We let Luke finish up the ride points and Gerrit played a video game...good choice - basketball!

We made a lot of trips to the new BMX park at Sandy Pines. It was very rutty (Opa said they fixed that after we left) but it gave Gerrit an idea of what a real BMX track is like. Luckily, after a few laps he was tired so we could go home (rather than spend our whole day here).

An early morning golf outing...lesson learned by Opa - Gerrit is NOT a morning golfer!

 We spent some time at the Lake. Opa is quite the hole digger:

 And Gerrit is quite the hand stander...

 And a trip to the lake of course meant a trip to the ice cream shop:

 Luckily, Gerrit is a fast eater - I didn't have to clean up his superman flavored ice cream (ick!)

We took a boat ride around the lake, here is captain #1

with a little assistance as needed

and here is captain #2

We made it back to MN in record time - 9 hours 15 min! Don't ask how many times the boys made it out of their car seats....
We made it back in time for our town's summer celebration....here is the newest member of the color guard for the parade:

yes, that is a utility flag he is waving...

Gerrit gained some new sporting equipment....

 he is a fast learner but will admit - its not his first love...unlike basketball camp:

Emmit tried to get in on the action

Gerrit chose his MSU jersey for the last day - here's the little lefty dribbler!

one of the few (but becoming more frequent) times the boys are playing together. this is the neighbors front yard...cute little spot for them!

VBS - they did the new GoFish curriculum and it was a hit! At the end of each day, they sang songs and here Gerrit is dancing with his 'girlfriend' Olivia. She is such a sweetie, I hope they stay friends for a long time (and I hope they are in the same K-garden class too).

 oh - this one is out of order - this picture was taken at our church...we went to the youth's fundraising dinner and someone took this picture. What is so cool is that it made the newspaper!

OK, that covers the month of June....we are off to a BMX race tonight so stay tuned...July is coming and I promise, it won't be a month before I post again. (1 class is done, 1 is almost done, and 2 classes are manageable!)

Let Summer Begin!

We had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. We spent time outside and inside due to rain. Sunday, Adam took Gerrit canoeing and fishing (a little). They took Paul as well and Millie and Travis kayaked. Mom and Emmit stayed behind in the cool air conditioned house! Gerrit loved it and they are ready to go again next weekend - this time Luke gets to go along.

Monday we thought we'd start summer by heading out to Lake City for a swim at Wilkinson's. The guys road and the ladies took the cars/kids.  I quickly finished making Gerrit and Emmit new hooded towels for the pool/beach. I saw a cute idea on Etsy (so I can't take credit for coming up with the idea on my own) and thought I'd try making ones for the boys. 

Here are the fronts:

Gerrit chose orange and I chose blue for Emmit. Max Rockne has a red one we gave him for his birthday, so if you see a few super heros around the water this summer, don't be alarmed - they are good superheros!

And here are the backs:

 Emmit took some time to warm up to the idea of a swimming pool again, but loved every minute of it. He enjoyed staying near the steps which was fine by me - easier to watch! 

 

Gerrit on the other hand can now touch in the shallow end! He was a fish and swam non stop (except for the numerous trips to the bathroom due to drinking pool water!) for 2 hours. I love that he can touch and doesn't need to be watched as much as in the past. I think the pool will be a bit easier to manage this year!

Gerrit's favorite part when when dad showed up: 

Thowing this picture in for Oma and Opa - Gerrit likes playing store with his new cash register. This time it was a bike shop, but he's had a grocery store as well as a knit shop. Now to learn how to read money!



I have 2 weeks left of teaching and then I become a student myself. I'm taking a full load this summer - 4 classes! Yikes. This is all towards getting my health certificate (so I can legally teach health class). I'll have 2 classes in the fall and then 2 in the spring and I'll officially be able to teach health. So, I'm not sure how much I'll be able to blog, but I'll do my best to keep you in the know!

Picking Your Battles

Gerrit had his preschool graduation this week. 

This is Gerrit's graduation robe and stole:

 Gerrit hammin' it up before things started:

 After 20 minutes of me trying to force the robe on him while he was kicking and screaming and trying to come up with every bribe in the book, I gave up. His friends even tried to get him to put it on (even his girlfriend). One friend said: you need to face your fears. How cute! I finally said we were leaving (as I was holding back the tears because this was not how I envisioned preschool graduation and I felt awful that Oma made a special trip and wouldn't see him graduate). I asked his teacher to tell Adam and Oma (who flew in special for the graduation) that we were leaving. We got 100 yards outside when I asked one more time if he'd go through with the graduation if he didn't have to wear the cap and gown. He agreed, and this is how he looked walking in:

The 17 graduates - can you find Gerrit?

He doesn't look thrilled but he did sing and join in on the ceremony.

Receiving his diploma from the principal:

When asked to hold up the diplomas....classic - story of our day!

This is better:

The graduating class of Kids of Christ preschool 2012:

Smiling nicely now that it is over with his 3 teachers:

A quick shot with mom and dad (don't I look sweaty - all that hard work I put in before the ceremony!)

In front of the school:

At home I was able to get him to put his stole on (briefly):

And the last cooperating shot was with Oma!

So I lost the battle of the kid wearing his cap and gown but was proud he was able to bounce back and go through with the ceremony. He'd graduate regardless of the cute cap and gown everyone else was wearing. Like Adam said, at least he was dressed decent! I can only hope high school graduation goes better and maybe Emmit will give me my dream photos of a cute little 5 yr old in a cap and gown!

Annual Bike Rodeo

We almost forgot about the bike rodeo in town yesterday. Luckily we talked to Luke and he reminded us. Last year Gerrit wanted to go but then didn't want to go through the stations. This year was different. He was ready to go and did well. Even Emmit tried the stations - well, he followed his big bro.



During the bike inspection, Gerrit didn't pass the reflectors part - meaning, he doesn't have any and should according to officer Gene (aka Barney Fife). I didn't have the hear to tell him that his dad doesn't believe in reflectors and went with it. Dave Dahlen's quote when I told him about the reflectors: I'd give the kid a $500 light before I'd put reflectors on that bike! It is OK to say it - Adam (and Dave) are bike snobs.

Why I'm Called Mom

Mother's day turned out to be a great day. The boys surprised me with new charms to add to my Pandora bracelet before church.  We did church and brunch afterwards before attempting the annual mother's day photo:

 

This was the best we could get:


I'm a little nervous for the large family photo shoot my parents are planning this summer! I can only hope the photographer can get all the kids to look decent at the same time!

I had a great day and even though there are times I want to quit or take a break from being a mom, at the end of the day I wouldn't trade it for the world. I'm thankful the Lord blessed me with these 2 little guys and love that I can be called 'mom'.