More Swim Lessons

We had LOTS of fun at swim lessons! Here are some more shots from the craziness....

 Danielle and one of her little friends...

Hi, Mom!

...in the water...

Cheese!

Puzzle girl!

The other day Danielle re-discovered her puzzles. She also discovered that she can now do all the 'hard' ones that she used to get frustrated with.What a big girl!!

 Setting it all up....

All done!

Saturday morning at the Track

 This past Saturday we packed up donuts, juice, and fresh fruit......and took it up to the track for breakfast. The girls LOVED watching the horses, and Mom and Dad had fun chatting with some friends that met us up there. Their boys are about the same age as our girls, and boy number 3 is due ANY day now.....
The other REALLY cool part of this day is that Bob bought me a new camera for my birthday, and this was the first time I got to use it! Thank you, my love!!!!!

Danielle likes donuts....

...so does Ashley...

When we go up in the morning like this, we get to pretend that we have crazy money and sit in the box seats (translation: in the shade), and it makes a great little spot for the kids to sit and watch the horses while eating breakfast!

 I can't believe it, but this is the only picture from the day that actually HAS a horse in it! (See the tiny little fly-speck?)

The rest of our group!

 Daddy hanging out....

 Mommy getting hugs....

....and since we were at Saratoga, we were just bound to see some great fashion. Whadaya think......"He's just so...money!"

Ashley's pool-time!

You might be wondering what Ashley does during swim lessons....the answer is that there is a fabulous toddler pool at our pool, and Ashely gets to play!

 Of course, playing with buckets is always fun.

 ...and then you wonder why your hair is wet...

 ....and turn around to show Mommy...

 ....who then does "Big Jumps" into the pool with Ashley!

 ....just random....

And then there are smiles!! (although she's squinting here)

SWIM LESSONS!!!

I think this year is going to be a year of 'firsts'. This particular first was VERY welcome. Swim Lessons! Danielle was very excited....and Mommy and Daddy are excited for her to learn. Perhaps the best part is that she actually obeys her teachers.....and is learning alot! She's learned how to hold her breath, look underwater (she wanted pink goggles....so off to Target we went), kick with a kick-board, is trying to learn to float on her back, and how to swim down to the bottom and pick up a diving ring. Yes, she's in the BIG pool for the lessons. It's about 3 feet deep and she can stand -- the water comes up to her neck. It's so much fun to watch her learn, and she's very good at showing us what she's learned....even in the toddler pool.

 Standing in the pool!

 Going under water!

 Practicing kick boards with Pauleena, her instructor.

One day the class had all girls....too cute!

 Swimming on her back (learning to float).

 I have no idea why this picture is rotated....and I can't fix it for some reason. Pauleena is holding a diving ring with her foot, and Danielle is underwater getting it.

 Up she comes!

Climbing out of the pool....

 ....and over to the best part of the day -- the diving boards! During swim lessons, the instructors will 'catch' the kids when they jump off the boards. During regular hours, this isn't allowed, so for the little ones, this is super-special time!

Hopefully I managed to get this on here right....

Danielle turns 5!

Big girl turned 5.....how in the world do I have a 5-yr. old?!?!? In keeping with our busy, crazy theme this summer, the party was the day after VBS. Lots of fun! Yes, I made the cake, no, I didn't do the food. Brooke's Pizza did the food. And Amy brought an AMAZING  amount of cut fruit!!! (where does she find the time with 5 kids?)

Ever since last year's Cinderella cake, Danielle has been requesting an Aurora (that's Sleeping Beauty for those not Disney-princess-inclined) cake. I tried getting her to change her mind, but she knew EXACTLY what she wanted.....and I figured that I don't have much longer to make these cakes, so why not?

And the presents begin....

 Seriously, we had LOTS of people there....

 Here's Jessie!!

 ....watching whatever is next...

Did I mention there were LOTS of people?

 Ashley and Emily decided to entertain themselves....

 What cuties!!

 Yeah, the house was full. It was GREAT!!!! Thank you everyone for coming, and for those who couldn't, you were missed!!!!

....the missing week of VBS!

There's a week of our lives missing here. It was for VBS!!! We had a great time....and were so busy that neither of us had a camera. Probably a good idea in Bob's case as he led the outdoor games....and they involved water. Sometimes LOTS of water. I did hear that there were some cute pictures of the girls and us, but I haven't been able to track them down. So here's a general idea of what each day looked like during VBS:

7:30 - make sure Bob and I are out of bed. (This is a big deal as I've stayed up WAY too late preparing for Rowdy Wrap-Up.)

7:50 - get the girls out of bed. (Another big deal as they usually get out of bed around 8:30.) Get everyone downstairs for breakfast....and coffee. Lots of coffee.

8:15 - get everyone in the car. Make sure Bob and I BOTH have whatever we prepped the night before. Make sure the kids actually get buckled in as we're a bit distracted.

8:30 - be at church. Drop Ashley off with Tricia and the toddler(s). Drop Danielle off with Maria to learn some of the songs and motions. Go to volunteer devotions. Remember to make whatever announcements need to be made. Find homes for everyone there that day....ask for patience many, many times. Try not to look like a deer in the headlights. Remember to smile!

9:00 - make sure all the kids checking in go to the right group, check with leaders to make sure they have all the materials they're supposed to have. Remember to stop freaking out and go to the front following the singing and open in prayer and dismiss the kids and make any announcements needed.

10:00-11:15 - track down whatever materials I need for Rowdy Wrap-Up and recruit volunteers from Bob's team. Remember to tell the recruits what they're doing and when. Don't panic. Try to be helpful. Copy the next day's newsletter.....make sure it's finished. Line up someone to close the day in prayer.

11:35-12:00 - Rowdy Wrap-Up! Have fun leading the kids through what they learned that day. Be goofy. Have fun. Have someone close in prayer. Turn OFF the wireless microphone. Stuff the crew bags with the next day's newsletters. 
Go home and have lunch. 
Finish the next newsletter. Start prepping the next day's Rowdy Wrap-Up. 
Sleep.

Repeat. 
For 5 days.

I was exhausted. Bob was tired. Danielle was totally excited. Ashley learned to not have a morning nap. 
Good times!