A few more things off the list...

#25 Another Day Camp (as opposed to a Scout Day Camp which they will do later in the summer).  Parker used to do Jujitsu all the time when he was 5, but he hasn't gone if quite some time.  This time Mimi went along and they loved it! 

#15 COSI, we went with cousins!

 #30 Knight's Ice Cream, it's seasonal so it's fun to watch when it will open in the spring. 

#55 Pick fruit, maybe we'll do peaches later in the summer...

Of course a stop at Velvet's ice cream factory :) 

Check list

So I made up a list of things to do this summer and I'm trying to check things off.  

Item number 16, Drive-in Movie!

We went to see Maleficent.  There is a Narrator in the movie.  Once when she said something Yoda asked, "How does SHE know the story???"

School's Out

 Parker first day 2013

 

 Parker last day 2014

 Mimi first day 2013

 

 Mimi last day 2014

 Yoda first day 2013

Yoda last day 2014 

(forgot my camera and forgot my phone has a camera, oops, so one of the teachers sent this photo to me) 

Pre-Summer Fun

We wanted to get a few things off our Ohio list before summer even hit, and we took photos to share just with you, whoever still reads this blog :) 

Ohio has a National Park!  Who knew?  

We went and enjoyed a very long hike along with many other people from all over the world.  When we got home Greg read the map again, the hike we went on was about 4 miles and considered moderate to difficult.  But it was beautiful.  We did NOT bring enough water.  I panicked a little. Lesson learned. 

Parker did a little orienteering.

 The hike went along an old canal and up and down some hills and over creeks and bridges. 

We saw a deer and a toad. 

All the way to a waterfall with a million other people who wouldn't move out of the way even though they had already taken about 3 minutes worth of pictures.  So this guy got to be in our picture too. 

And this guy, with the tree, neither one would move!  

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We also visited Cincinnati and Newport, KY.  There are TONS of things to do!  

President Taft's house.

I could tell you all about the informative duck-boat tour, but I'll just show you this amazing bridge.  It was one of the first suspension bridges in America and built way bigger then needed at the time (the river was like 5 feet deep).  The Brooklyn Bridge is modeled after it a little.  And that awesome building right behind it was built to mimic the bridge.  Rumor has it that famous people have condos there. 

Here's another bridge, just for pedestrians to cross the Ohio river. 

There's a piece of the Berlin wall at the museum that memorializes the Underground Railroad. Remember how I said the river was like 5 feet deep, it made for ideal crossing for the Underground Railroad! 

Off to Jungle Jim's grocery store (with lots of international and hard to find food)

And Ikea of course. 

38 days of summer

Seriously, that's how many days we have for summer!  Not counting weekends and our 2 family trips, that's it.  I both love and don't love the structure and schedule of the school year, who's with me? 

When summer comes, I don't know what to do!  Do nothing?  Do a million things?  Be bored?  Be overwhelmed with outings?  I just don't know....

To keep myself sane I go back to when I stopped working and had my little baby Parker...Do one thing a day, whatever it is, do something.

So here goes...

Day one

We stayed in pj's for a while, had a couple of friends over, and signed up for the Summer Reading Program.  Not much, but it felt better then absolutely nothing. 

Yoda funny! by Parker

Yoda: I need the pokeball.
me(Parker): Why do you need the pokeball?
Yoda: I don't know I just need it.

very funny! see also

Video by Parker and Quotes by Yoda

Chips

Yoda took Sport-ies for Short-ies this past month.  Poor kid gets so lonely without his big brother and sister around.  They played different sports each week, t-ball, soccer, hurdles, football, etc.  The last week they played fun games and had an obstacle course.  He did the whole thing in 33 seconds and he tells EVERYONE!

As Yoda ran down the hill, I got a little nervous...
Me, "be careful, watch out!"
Yoda, "I'm watching out!"
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Yoda, "Dad, do you want some chips while we wait for our food?"
Greg, "No, I'll just wait for the food."
Yoda, "I'm going to wait too AND eat my chips."
__________

Spring and Cleaning

This Spring has been amazing!  Nice and cool with lots of outdoor activities. 

 Here's Mimi at a Brownie event, it couldn't have been nicer! 

 __________

To help Yoda get dressed sometimes I do a countdown...
Me, "put your pants on in 10...9...8..."
Yoda, "I'm can't hurry!"  or "I'm not gonna make it!"
__________

But when he tries to say 'hurry' he says 'hu-we'
So I try to help him by sounding it out slowly
Me, "Say it like this...'hur' 'rey'
Yoda, "I'm not gonna say it like that"
__________

Greg, "You can't use this toy"
Yoda, "Let's talk about it"
__________

 

I've been cleaning things out and decided it's time to get rid of videos that no one watches.  Parker was shocked that I had these in the goodwill bin.   I told him there was no way we were keeping them, but that we could take a photo of them if he wanted to remember the videos he's watched about a million times each. 

Yoda Asleep

He outgrew a formal nap almost a year ago, but lately he has fallen asleep at funny times and places.

This was just this past week...

He's also had strep 3 times in 4 months so we are off to the ENT, hopefully nothing is really wrong.
__________

Yoda's advice...

Mimi, "I feel a little car-sick."
(completely serious) Yoda, "Mimi, if you feel throw up in your throat, just choke it down."

"May the 4th...

be with you, always"

(Parker is in the background about to throw Yoda on the ground.) 

Mimi, "Uh, shouldn't 'Yoda' be wearing this?"

Here he is from a few years back. 

Or here and here.