Showing posts with label Fourth of July. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fourth of July. Show all posts
Sunday, August 23, 2020
July 2020 Happenings
To be honest the months have started to fade into each other a bit. It's a weird mix of being bored at home with nothing to do and at the same time being too busy with work and the remodel to catch a breath. In the long list of traditions that were lost to the pandemic is our 3rd/4th of July parties spent with friends. Instead this year C and Tio had us over and we still had a great time with a BBQ, fireworks, and sparklers.
Lots of time at home means lots of time in the pool, playing games, watching movies, and building a giant fort in Kieran's room that the boys camped out in for days. Thank goodness a few days a week the boys continued to go to daycare where they were able to interact with other kids and their beloved teachers.
Uncle Kyle, Aunt Kari and the girls came to visit. It was so great to see them and have the kids play together. As a gift we had family pictures done while they were here. It has been a long time since we've all been together so it was nice to be able to document it. The boys were sad to say goodbye and talked about the girls non-stop after the visit.
Reed and I spent a lot of time at the Allergy Doctor's office during the month. His blood work in the spring indicated he may have grown out of some of his allergies so after follow up skin tests we moved forward with oral challenges. The challenges are pretty much all day affairs. He has vitals taken, eats a small amount of the allergen, is observed for 30 minutes, has vitals taken, eats a bit larger quantity, repeat for about 5 hours. Reed did great and passed soy, walnut, hazelnut, and pecan. It's been wonderful trying new foods at home and helping him (and me) overcome the fear of eating something that for so long we have avoided.
The boys' piano teacher aired the vitural recital and it was great. We were able to see so many of our friends play their piano pieces and it definitely seemed like a little piece of normal even if we were watching from our living room. Kieran continues to have the hardest time with staying home. He seems to need to be wherever I am but I have found I can get some space when needed by getting him drawing or crafting. Maybe this will be referred to as his "pandemic period" when he's a famous artist!
Saturday, August 31, 2019
July 2019 Happenings
A July update on the last day of August - that seems about right! We started off the month like most Americans, celebrating 4th of July. The Parkinsons hosted their annual firework watching party on July 3rd and we had a great time swimming, catching up with friends, and of course watching the fireworks. Then we went to Pepe and Nonna's for festivities on the 4th. Lyla had everyone playing the Pretty Princess game, Pepe set up an inflatable water slide, and Tio took the boys fishing and they caught a massive cat fish that turned into the highlight of the night (sorry I have no pictures only video).
The boys wrapped up waterpolo by playing a scrimmage against a neighboring town. I wasn't able to attend but Jon and the Grandparents all went to cheer them on. Kieran was not a big fan of waterpolo but Reed loved it so we'll have to see if either is interested in doing it again.
G-Momma and I planned a puzzle play date and the boys had a great time having lunch with her and finishing a pretty impressive puzzle too.
We joined Grandma and Grandpa one weekend on a hike to Jenny Lake and the boys did awesome. They were definitely motivated by snack breaks and lunch by the lake but had a great time and requested we go again soon.
The highlight of the Summer for the boys was Lego camp. I was worried they had built it up so much they would be let down, but it did not disappoint and they were sad when it was over. It was 2 hours a day, each day, for a whole week and since it didn't fit nicely into most of our friend's schedules some of us moms took turns carpooling and walking the kids to and from daycare. It was definitely a team effort but very worth it for the kiddos.
Our company donates tons (literally hundreds of thousands of pounds) of fruit to our local food bank every year and we have done other things to support them over the years but never actually volunteered our time. I decided now that our kids are getting older it would be a great experience to volunteer with them. I organized a volunteer night with the food bank where with our co-workers and their families we put together over 600 boxes of food to be disturbed to local families. It was a wonderful experience and definitely something we hope to do again soon.
After talking with Jon's cousin Megan several times about her piglets and the steer she is raising for FFA we decided we needed to take a visit to the farm. The boys have always loved Megan and so they had a great time learning more about the animals from her and of course liked getting to interact with them too. Auntie P met us there which they were super excited about too!
After our stop at the farm we continue a busy day with getting some allergy testing done for Reed. Note to self - always bring Kieran along to entertain Reed - this made the appointment go so much more smoothly!!! After the tests were complete we met up with the Nenadovs for a much overdue playdate. The kids got along great (except for some arguments over hide and seek rules) and Heidi and I got to catch up. We rounded out the day with a final swim lesson for the year. They boys did amazing this year, learning the basics for all four strokes and improving a ton. Of course they are still in love with Morgan and are sad when they don't get to see her as much once lessons are wrapped up.
Auntie M and I decided we needed to get the boys all together for a play date before baby #3 arrived. She also needed to get out of the house because Kevin was gone for the weekend. We met up at a play place in Kingsburg and the boys had a great time playing together. They are definitely boys and a bit rowdy compared to some of the much sweeter girls playing! I also managed to finish Baby #3's quilt and surprised Auntie M by giving it to her before his arrival.
After a successful hike a few weeks before, Grandma and Grandpa asked if we wanted to go again. This time we went off trail and had to fight a marshy area filled with mosquitos and a few streams but Grandpa made a game out of looking for the metal markers that were on a bunch of the trees and the boys once again had a great time.
Sprinkled in during the month were a bunch of other random happenings - pasta making, checking on our fruit in local grocery stores, making smores around our fire pit, working in the garden, and going to a Fresno Foxes soccer game.
The boys wrapped up waterpolo by playing a scrimmage against a neighboring town. I wasn't able to attend but Jon and the Grandparents all went to cheer them on. Kieran was not a big fan of waterpolo but Reed loved it so we'll have to see if either is interested in doing it again.
G-Momma and I planned a puzzle play date and the boys had a great time having lunch with her and finishing a pretty impressive puzzle too.
We joined Grandma and Grandpa one weekend on a hike to Jenny Lake and the boys did awesome. They were definitely motivated by snack breaks and lunch by the lake but had a great time and requested we go again soon.
The highlight of the Summer for the boys was Lego camp. I was worried they had built it up so much they would be let down, but it did not disappoint and they were sad when it was over. It was 2 hours a day, each day, for a whole week and since it didn't fit nicely into most of our friend's schedules some of us moms took turns carpooling and walking the kids to and from daycare. It was definitely a team effort but very worth it for the kiddos.
Our company donates tons (literally hundreds of thousands of pounds) of fruit to our local food bank every year and we have done other things to support them over the years but never actually volunteered our time. I decided now that our kids are getting older it would be a great experience to volunteer with them. I organized a volunteer night with the food bank where with our co-workers and their families we put together over 600 boxes of food to be disturbed to local families. It was a wonderful experience and definitely something we hope to do again soon.
After talking with Jon's cousin Megan several times about her piglets and the steer she is raising for FFA we decided we needed to take a visit to the farm. The boys have always loved Megan and so they had a great time learning more about the animals from her and of course liked getting to interact with them too. Auntie P met us there which they were super excited about too!
After our stop at the farm we continue a busy day with getting some allergy testing done for Reed. Note to self - always bring Kieran along to entertain Reed - this made the appointment go so much more smoothly!!! After the tests were complete we met up with the Nenadovs for a much overdue playdate. The kids got along great (except for some arguments over hide and seek rules) and Heidi and I got to catch up. We rounded out the day with a final swim lesson for the year. They boys did amazing this year, learning the basics for all four strokes and improving a ton. Of course they are still in love with Morgan and are sad when they don't get to see her as much once lessons are wrapped up.
Auntie M and I decided we needed to get the boys all together for a play date before baby #3 arrived. She also needed to get out of the house because Kevin was gone for the weekend. We met up at a play place in Kingsburg and the boys had a great time playing together. They are definitely boys and a bit rowdy compared to some of the much sweeter girls playing! I also managed to finish Baby #3's quilt and surprised Auntie M by giving it to her before his arrival.
After a successful hike a few weeks before, Grandma and Grandpa asked if we wanted to go again. This time we went off trail and had to fight a marshy area filled with mosquitos and a few streams but Grandpa made a game out of looking for the metal markers that were on a bunch of the trees and the boys once again had a great time.
Sprinkled in during the month were a bunch of other random happenings - pasta making, checking on our fruit in local grocery stores, making smores around our fire pit, working in the garden, and going to a Fresno Foxes soccer game.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)