Swimming Lessons

I should have posted these last week, but I couldn't seem to find the energy after sitting at the pool for two weeks. The kids did really well in their lessons this year.

M. did real well at learning her strokes but had a little trouble with her butterfly. She wasn't able to move up, but considering she skipped a level she did fantastic!

A. has become a fish over the last year. At the end of her lessons last summer, she couldn't touch the bottom with her hand. A trip to Canada soon after that and she was doing great. She was to be in level 1 this year, but they moved her to level 2. She was able to pass that and will be in level 3 next year.

E. enjoys the water, but had to be in the deep pool this year because of her age. She will have to repeat level 1 again next year, but that's all right!

D. surprised me the most, I think. He really became a fish this year. He wasn't afraid to put his head under the water and liked to retrieve things from the bottom of the pool. He will be in Preschool II next year.

I was so proud of all of them for working so hard!!

Canada Day and 4th of July weekend

We have been running all weekend. I am glad to finally be able to catch my breath. It all started on July 1st when we celebrated Canada Day at the local Whole Foods. The kids enjoyed trying different foods from Canada and having their picture taken with an RCMP. They also loved the Canada Flag Cake that we ate. My favorite part was singing the Canadian National Anthem with other Canadians now living in the U.S. We entered a contest to win a giftcard from Whole Foods, but unfortunately we didn't win. At least we came in second!!

Friday, Paul didn't have work so we packed up the kiddos and a picnic lunch and headed up the Poudre Canyon. Our objective for the day was to hike up to a reservoir and then fish. We started on our 1 mile hike and were disappointed to find that we couldn't really fish because we couldn't get to a place to sit. We headed back down the mountain with a black cloud following. It started to rain as we walked down. By the time we got back to the van, we were a little wet. The kids enjoyed the walk in the rain. We ate lunch and then tried to go fishing. It continued to rain so we decided that it was time to head home.

Saturday we headed south to pick up Paul's mom and head farther south. We went to the horse jumping show for about an hour and then we headed to Focus on the Family in Colorado Springs. They had lots of great things for the kids to do when they were there. They had a 3 story high slide that the girls loved. D. was not tall enough to go so he played on other things.

Sunday was 4th of July and we didn't do much. We went to church in the morning and then rested in the afternoon. We weren't sure about the weather because rain was in the forecast. We headed to get on the bus to the fireworks and it was pouring rain. We waited in the van for the rain to stop and when there was a break in the weather, we got on the bus. We made it to the park and it continued to rain and then it started to pour. By this time we were cold and wet and decided to head home. We hoped the fireworks would be postponed, but they weren't. The kids were sad to miss them.

Monday, was another day off for Paul. We went fishing and had a picnic in the morning. Paul and I were able to go on a date last night. We went out for supper and then walked around at the outdoor mall. We had a dessert later in the evening. We had cannoli. It was very yummy.

Here's a picture of us on our wedding day 13 years ago.