Sunshine, Summer, & Swimming!

We have been having an amazing summer so far!  We started off that first week strong, and we haven't stopped since.  The kids just finished up their last set of swimming lessons with my nieces, and there were a few rain days, but they were mostly swimming Monday-Friday for four weeks.  They learned so much, and they had a blast!  Kenley and Kayla both came out of swimming lessons saying goodbye to floaties, and they are now confident swimmers, which they proved to me and my sister by going down the big slides into the deep water and jumping off the diving board and safely swimming to the side. We are so proud of them!  Charlie learned how to swim a bit, and he can go a short distance on his own too.  He did really well at swimming lessons, and he already said he can't wait to go again next year.  Rylee and Autumn were in the tot class with my sister and I and had fun learning songs and playing in the water.  Autumn was the star of the class since she is so close to being 3, but she's ready to be in the big kid class next year!

As soon as school got out we took our 4th annual trip to Shipshewana.  We had quite an adventure when we first got there because within 10 minutes of walking into the flea market with all 5 kids, a stroller, and a wagon a huge storm rolled in.  We took shelter under a little eating area, but the winds, hail, and rain were crazy!! We tried to wait it out, but after about 20 minutes it didn't seem to be letting up.  My sister and I ran to our cars, which were in the flooded parking lot and drove closer to get my mom and the kids.  By the time we all got in the cars we were all soaking wet anyway.  But, we spent time going to eat and swimming and the hotel, and the next day the weather was much nicer.  We got in some shopping, a carriage ride, and stopped at the animal farm on the way home.  I love this tradition that we started, and I hope we keep it going for years to come! 

 

 

I also hosted my annual BIG playdate!  Again, this year it was even bigger than the last.  It was so much fun having so many friends gather from all different parts of my life-people I've known since I was a kid, to high school and college friends, friends I've met through the kids, and neighbors. I love that all of the kids have such a blast playing together even though they don't all know each other. I put out every outdoor toy that we own, so the kids had a blast, and there was something for kids of all ages, and it was so nice for all of us mommas to socialize!  Another tradition I hope continues!  One of my friends said, what will the 15th annual BIG playdate look like? And I said, the same mommas, probably no kids because they'll be old and won't want to hang out with us, and wine!

July was a pretty busy month too, and the biggest milestone was that Rylee turned ONE! It was so nice that Ray was able to take that day off of work, so we had a really fun 4th of July weekend. The day of her birthday we went to the zoo, out to lunch, and celebrated at home with some sparklers and cake.  She is standing, but not walking yet, she says about 20 words already, and she is still so happy!  I love how much Kenley and Charlie truly love her, and most days once I hear that she is awake I still go in her room to find that one (or sometimes both) of them have snuck into her crib with her.  Since the day we brought her home from the hospital they have started every morning wanting to be with their baby sister right when they wake up.  I know the few weeks leading up to the end of my pregnancy I got pretty nervous about how life would be with 3, and I can honestly say its been awesome!  Rylee has been the most easy-going baby, which we are so grateful for.  She seems to enjoy being on the go a lot, which is good because she has no choice!

 

 

We had a party at the house to celebrate Rylee's birthday, Charlie's upcoming birthday, and Ray's birthday too.  It was a beautiful day, and the kids had a blast playing outside and going down the waterslide.  We had a pink 1st birthday theme, and a superhero birthday party all in one! It was a busy day with friends and family coming and going, and I think everyone had a good time.  Ray and I were able to sneak some alone time and celebrated his birthday by going out to eat and getting massages, which were amazing.  We've been so busy this summer that we haven't had many date nights, but with our anniversary coming up, I'm hoping to plan something. 

We are planning on taking a quick weekend trip up to Gurnee this weekend and getting some use out of our Great America season passes.  We already took Kenley and Charlie, but this will be our first time taking Rylee.  I guess we will be introducing her to thrill rides early! We've just been enjoying this summer weather and being outside as much as possible.  In the next few weeks we have some fun things planned including a concert in the city, a little weekend getaway, and a few parties to attend before we start thinking about....yikes....back to school!  I wasn't sure how the summer would be having all 3 kids home all day with me, but its been great!  We've been having so much fun, and I've been keeping us all busy.  I'm not ready for them to go back to school yet, or me for that matter since this will be my first semester teaching since January.  But we still have plenty of time, so I'll ignore all the back to school ads for now!