Father's Day

I am so thankful for both my own dad, who I feel blessed to live near and see often, and who is a great grandpa, and for my husband, who is an amazing daddy to our kids. We had a really fun Father's Day celebrating them and spending time as a family.

Gilby had a special breakfast bacon sandwich to start the day, we went to church where they held a big "Man Mayhem" Father's Day celebration, we followed that up with an afternoon of swimming, and finished the day with a family cookout at our house.

The doughnut eating contest at "Man Mayhem."

Teaching Myles to chip the ball at "Man Mayhem."

We love you, Dads!

Lacrosse Clinic

Last Friday we took the kids and Myles' friend, Paige, to the National Sports Center for the Disabled (NSCD) Lacrosse Clinic. NSCD teamed up with the Denver Outlaws (professional outdoor lacrosse team) and held a two hour clinic at Sports Authority Field. It was so fun! Our kids had not played lacrosse before, but they actually all picked up on the skills pretty quickly, worked hard, and had good attitudes.

Oh Ryker...he had some funny moments that afternoon like he does pretty much everyday. At 3-years-old he is very up and down with his emotions as he is testing his independence while still just a little boy. A few things he said that day:
- After having a tough time throwing the ball the way he wanted to, "This is useless, I am getting tireder and tireder!"
- While standing in the (hot) sun, "My leg is melting!" {And then he proceeded to slither down to the ground, which is the most appropriate thing to do with a melted leg, obviously.}
- When taking shots on goal, "Fire in the hole!"
- After walking from the shade into the sun, "How did I get in the hot again?"

This is not the best picture of Myles, but we were excited to have his school friend, Paige come with us. Paige and Myles have been in the same class for two years, and have a very sweet relationship.

After the clinic our family went out for pizza at a small neighborhood restaurant in Denver. It was a great Friday night!

End of the School Year

Whew, I cannot believe the kids have already been out of school for two weeks now! Both Sydney and Myles had a great year, were blessed with fantastic teachers, and have very sweet school friends. The last couple weeks of school are always busy with class parties, field trips, field day, and concerts. Our kids go to a wonderfully supportive school, with quality academic instruction and a focus on character development. We are thankful to be part of such a great community.

 On the last day of school we went out to eat to celebrate after letting each kid pick out two toys at the Dollar Store. Sydney has since asked if we can go to the Dollar Store every year on the last day of school. We're fancy...and frugal, thankfully the kids don't seem to care!

Field Day

Kids at play and Sydney with her best friend, Nouvelle (top right).

Kindergarten Concert

Mrs. Babbs' Kindergarteners

Sydney had the same kindergarten teacher as Myles, and we all love her. She is very gentle, calm, fun, and encourages an appetite for learning in her students. Sydney has been talking about Mrs. Babbs this summer, wondering what she is doing, missing her, and always looking out for her at the gym (because she knows we belong to the same one). She is planning to write Mrs. Babbs letters over the summer and can't wait to see her in the hallways next year. Mrs. Babbs played a big role in making Sydney's start to elementary school so positive.

Mrs. Weil's First Graders

I could describe Mrs. Weil very similarly to Mrs. Babbs. She is also very calm, patient, gentle, and has impressive classroom management skills (it's always so quiet and organized!). Mrs. Weil was genuinely happy to have Myles in her class this year and valued everything he brought to the group. With Myles' special needs, he spends some of his time outside of the classroom getting specialized instruction, but Mrs. Weil always welcomed the opportunity to have him included, and took the time to make the instruction meaningful to him. We are grateful for a positive first grade experience.  

Both kids have a love of learning and are looking forward to next school year already!