Not a fan of selfies, but...

...I love these!!!

Have a great week!!

Our NYC Experience

It's been something of a surreal summer for this little, humble family of ours...  You see, back in January, our eldest child auditioned for the School of American Ballet's summer program and was accepted.  This is no small feat.  At first, the thought of sending our 14-year-old baby to Manhattan for 5 weeks to live in a dorm was daunting, but we prayed, talked to the staff there and her ballet teachers here, and we were heartened and encouraged to send her.  So, we did.  Her faithful grandparents stayed nearby for a couple weeks, and we all visited for a week prior to bringing her home, but largely, she was on her own (with the help and supervision of the SAB staff - who were excellent).  

She describes the experience as the 'best five weeks' of her life.  I'm so thankful.  

She had unbelievable ballet training, outings to so many cultural events, and wonderful suite mates. She navigated the cafeteria with all her food allergies and did her own laundry.  She even got her own NYC library card.  

She was so nervous about going, but she did it.  In fact, she thrived.

The rest of us flew out and stayed in an apartment in the Upper West Side. We walked miles every day in spite of 100 degree heat.  We met with old friends, saw Matilda on Broadway, took in so many beautiful museums ( American Museum of Natural History, Metropolitan Museum of Art), historical sights ( Statue of Liberty, 9-11 Memorial), and watched Joy in her ballet classes.  

At the end of all that, we piled into 2 Ub*r SUVs, made for the airport, and came right back to the wide open Midwest, which we love.  

Did that all really happen?  Again, it seems surreal.  But here's some picture proof:

Central Park Zoo

South Street Sea Port

The Met

The NBA Championship Trophy - we caught the last 10 minutes of its public display in the NBA Store.

A little sidewalk pow-wow with our old friends in front of Grand Central Station

Crash's primary form of transportation for the entire week

Heading home and happy to be reunited...

Milestone

When you're the youngest of 5, there's lots of action at home, but not a lot of time for you to have your own classes.  Mr. Crash has been to a couple story times at the library and a couple parent-child music classes...  and that's it.  

This summer, we really wanted him to learn a few skills such as sitting in a circle and follow a teacher's directions, so we signed him up for a creative movement class. 

The first week, I attended the class with him.  He loved it but definitely wanted me there for security and needed a little extra guidance.  

This week his sister walked him in, and he did the whole class all by himself.  

So proud of this little stinker.  And so grateful for patient and kind teachers.  

June

 

Diary of June 2016, the month that came and went like cookies in the pantry : 

 

Days 1-5:  Diligently finishing 9th grade English papers, 4H projects, and packing!

 

smiling because he's done with 2 projects

Days 6-12:  Family trip to the Smoky Mountains with my parents and sister plus fam.  We hiked!  We shopped!  We had a girls' night out!  We rode horses, played golf, and slid down a ridiculous number of scary (by my standards) water slides!  Serious family bonding all around.  It was great. 

Boys full of pancakes

Three generations of bargain shoppers

 

Days 13-17: Ballet Intensive for kids 1, 3, and 4, track practice, more 4H projects, more English papers, a trip to the spina bifida clinic in Indianapolis, and a baseball game. 

 

Days 18-21:  More 4H projects, packing and preparing to send Joy to NYC.



 

Manicures for the girls on the day before Joy's departure

Day 23-27:  Joy and I flew with Grandma and Pada to the Big Apple.  Daddy and the other 4 are at home. 

First time in a cab!

Dinner at an Irish Pub for the tired travelers.

Grandma had the spontaneous idea to take in a show while I was still in town.  Incredible! 

Day 27-30:  Joy began her ballet training, Grandma and Pada stayed in the City while I flew back to reality. 

Celebrating 16 happy years of marriage with this handsome dude - one week late. 

 

 

All the while, our garden grew, we snuck in a whiffle ball game or two (pants optional), Yoyo and I euthanized lots of beetles in the garden, and Bosco the dog behaved badly, as usual. 

Say goodbye, you horrible creatures.

Happy 4th of July!  Here's to another wonderful summer month!

Little Dancers

Just for fun, I signed Yoyo and Kid 118 up for a hip-hop class this summer.  After the first night, their assessment was that hip hop is the exact opposite of ballet.  In hip hop, the teacher tells them to find what's comfortable and do that.  Their ballet teacher, by their report, says, "If it hurts, you're doing it right." 

So, the logical next question for me was which they liked better - ballet or hip hop?  They both gave me looks of incredulity at the audacity of my inquiry. 

"Mom!" exclaimed Yoyo, "That's like asking if I want a fly in my house or not." 

So, hip hop is fun, but ballet is here to stay.  There you have it. 

Afternoon at the Playground

I've been making a point lately of going places just for our littlest one.  It's way too easy to come up with one million reasons why I'm too busy to do things like take him to the park.  But errands can wait and the messy closets aren't going anywhere.  This little guy will not be 4 forever.  

Yesterday, we found a new playground, just he and I.  We had the place to ourselves, all the other kids were occupied with activities, so we had all the time we needed for him to gather his courage and brave that big slide.  

After the first run, he proudly climbed up over and over again, and by the end, he needed just a tiny push from me to get started.  

It was a rare moment of pure fun and togetherness for him and me.  

Time well spent.

May

I totally get why teachers save up all their field trips for May!!!!   The end of the school year is in sight, but those last few weeks!  Ugh!  This Spring, we've jumped on the yellow bus bandwagon and made some super-fun road trips...

This is Sauder Village in Ohio.  It's a historical village and worth the drive!!  We went with our good buddies and had a great day.

Next, Daddy braved the zoo overnighter with the oldest 4.  God bless him.  They all sleep on the hard floor in the aquarium.  Sounds like torture to me but the kids love seeing the zoo after hours, getting some behind-the-scenes interaction with the animals, and having a giant sleepover with their compadres.  I enjoy packing them all up and sleeping in my bed.  Here they are before...

...and after...

About a week later we visited Aunt Sara and Uncle Phil and COUSINS in Cincinnati.  

The Waffle House and zoo trip that will never be forgotten!  Don't ask why...  😄

Two more days of 'school' in this house, and then we switch to 'summer mode,' which means math, 4H projects, and whatever else we feel like.  

Yay for summer!  We're ready for you!