We had to take advantage of every moment we had the last month of summer. Since Mike's schedule is pretty busy and we have a new baby coming pretty soon, we knew we wouldn't have this much free time together for a while. Plus, we LOVE our summers and this one was just plain nice. It was our first summer in our new home where we weren't painting or fixing up or working twice as hard to make ends meet after spending all of our money on buying the house in the first place. It felt tremendously relaxed and just busy enough to be worthwhile.
We decided to make everything about Ethne also about butterflies. I think it was the quilt that Mike's mom is making for her that ended up being our original inspiration. But, since then, it has taken flight, and now she owns butterfly bibs and burp cloths, butterfly toys, and an adorable outfit to bring her home from the hospital in complete with a butterfly print. Our project as a family was to paint butterfly canvases to decorate her nursery with. Mike and Colin worked together on theirs and the girls and I each did one separately. I think that they turned out beautiful and they look so good in her little corner of our master bedroom.
Chesley made space helmets for her and Zach. Zach loved them and was completely serious about them, walking around like a soldier and talking in a deep voice. It was awesome. Later she made him a rocket out of the same foam blocks.
The kids spent a great deal of their last month of summer combining all of their toys (star wars guys, polly pockets, playmobile knights, littlest pet shops, etc.) and making villages for them. Setting up the "village" took half of the day and then the afternoon was left for playing out all sorts of scenarios. Of course, until about 4 o'clock when we usually headed for the public pool.
This kids also loved to set up stores and take turns being customers and shopkeepers. This was Colin's Toy Store, but I really think his licorice sales brought him the most revenue.
Of course, the magic of "dress-up" never dies in our house. I don't think any of my kids will ever outgrow the fun of throwing on a costume and play-acting. I love my little cowboy here. He really gets into his characters too, and soaks it up when you play along.
Another summer favorite. Building ships and rockets with the household furniture. Apparently there is absolutely no better way to watch your favorite show than sitting in your very own kitchen-stool-and-couch-pillow-rocket.
This is the girls playing with another one of their "villages". I should ask them if they ever came up with a name for this game of theirs. I love this picture because it shows how much my grown-up girls are still little girls at heart.
When we did our summer cleaning we pulled out the disco ball to put up in the girls room again. Apparently it inspires dancing and bed-jumping. Our kids have some serious moves. :-)
The best part of July is usually the monsoons. For some reason they came in short supply this year, but luckily we did get a couple of opportunities to get out in the rain and get soaked.
Having a backyard with a large porch and a grass-covered lawn (and no dog) was heaven this summer. Plenty of slip-n-slide action, squirt guns, chalk "potions", and hose spraying. How Arizona kids would ever survive the summer without plenty of water, I hope I never have to find out.
Our original plans were to go camping again at the close of summer vacation, but with the threat of constant rains up north, and my increasingly harder-to-bear-without-a-little-bit-of-sympathy pregnant condition, and our ever-depleting summer funds, we decided to just take a day trip up north. The idea was to take up a picnic lunch, which we did, but shortly after this picture was taken we were attacked by enormous, vengeful mosquitoes who chased us back into the refuge of our minivan. Our lunch tasted just as good in there.
We went for a short "hike" (if you could even call it that, more like a mini-stroll as I walk like a turtle nowadays) down to Tonto Creek so the kids could play in the icy water.
They had an ABSOLUTE BLAST!!!
We also headed up to the fish hatchery, which was surprisingly quite fun to see. I highly recommend it. It is free. And the tanks crammed full of crazy fish are pleasantly entertaining.
On the last day of summer vacation we got together with my sister, my sister-in-law and all of the kids cousins on my side of the family still in AZ, and had a perfect time watching them run around at Tempe Beach Park.
It was the perfect way to end a perfect summer with a perfect bunch of kids. I am sure going to miss these faces hanging out with me 24/7, but at the same time, I am excited for them and everything they are going to experience this new school year.
So long summer vacation!
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