Library and Hoppy Feet

The boys and I have been staying busy this week. We went to story time at the library for the first time since moving here. The boys have only been to story time one other time and they were pretty young and didn't make it through the whole thing. I've been wanting to take them since we moved here but story time at our library fell on the same days they had school. So, now that they have Wednesdays free, we're going to try and go more often. It was a lot of fun, they read a couple of stories, do a song and dance and then have a craft and fun activity. The theme this time was dinosaurs, so all the books were about dinosaurs and the craft and activity was also related.

The kids all got to decorate a dinosaur that they put on the wall afterwards.

They also had some dinosaur fossils in a bin with shredded paper for the kids to dig through.

I really hope they offer a story time during the winter on a day the boys don't have school, because I think this would be a great indoor activity to do in the winter when it's too cold to go outside.

The boys wore their anchor shirts to school on Thursday. They were so excited to go and had a great time. They've made friends with another little boy in their class and it was so cute to hear the boys tell his mom about the boys and the teacher said that they all are a tight little group. They seem to really like the other kids in the program and their teachers.

Thursday afternoon was rainy so we actually went back to the library for another story time. They were having a special "meet the bunny" event. I had no idea what to expect, but we decided to check it out. Turns out the library has a little mascot bunny--Rosy the Reader and so they basically had storytime and it was all rabbit themed, with a rabbit craft afterwards and they brought out the rabbit for the kids to meet and pet.

Evan doing his bunny craft.

Carter doing his bunny craft.

The boys loved petting the bunny.

Afterwards, we went to dinner at Monterrey's. The boys

Carter was serious about writing and drawing. He wrote his name several times for us and drew all kinds of pictures.

Friday, I was going to take the boys to the movies but I remembered it was Buy One Get One free admission at Hoppy Feet, a bounce house place that we haven't been to yet. I gave the boys the choice and they chose Hoppy Feet. It's normally 7.99 per kid to get in and with two kids that's pretty pricey. So, we'll only go on Fridays when it's buy one get one free. It's the tiniest place with only 4 bouncy things, but the boys had the best time. There were only a couple other kids there and the boys lasted 2 hours! They were still going strong but it was time to get home and have some lunch and nap.

Since there were only 2-3 other kids there most of the time, the boys were able to really jump around and had a ton of room on the slides. Evan loved going down the slides every way he could possibly think of.

I thought the boys were never going to get out of this one, they bounced for awhile, then they just ran in circles and then they'd fall on each other and just played and played and played.

A little bit before we left, Evan started playing with two other boys and Carter made friends with a little girl. I love watching them play with other kids.

These two were so cute together. When you pay to get in Hoppy Feet, you actually get access all day, so you're able to leave and come back anytime that day. So, after the boys naps, Greg and I took the boys back there for about an hour before dinner. There was only about 4-6 other kids there and the boys had a great time.

Today, we took the boys to the pool. When we got there, nobody was allowed in because they had heard thunder and they have to wait 20 minutes before letting everybody back in the pool. Right before letting everybody back in, it thundered again, so we just went inside and swam. The boys had a great time, they love swimming between me and Greg, floating on their backs and climbing out and jumping in the pool.

Next week we have some fun things planned like a "Hungry Caterpillar" story time and craft at Barnes and Noble, play group, Pirate night at Chick-Fil-A, $1.00 movies start this week, and the weather is supposed to be nice and sunny-so we should be able to go to the splash parks and pool. I'm sure we won't do everything on our list, but I love having the options to choose from each day and we love staying busy.

Memorial Day and Summer Playcation

Sunday, we went over to my parents for a bbq. They went to Tennessee last weekend and got a porch swing and the boys were thrilled! They loved it. They were playing with their army men and put them down to jump up in the swing (that's what's under the swing on the deck)

 

We got there around 11-12 and played and hung out and then had an early dinner around 4-5. The boys had a blast. My sister came over too and it was just a nice day. I love Memorial Day weekend and the fact that we always spend it together as a family, you can see my old post here (2013, 2013, 2012, 2011 (this was spent with Greg's family and has pictures of the boys first time in a pool),

My parents have the perfect size pool for the deck, just big enough for the boys to play and cool off in. It's small enough to fit on the deck, where it's shaded and we can all just sit comfortably while thee boys play. Plus, it's in the shade, so I don't have to put sunscreen on the boys.

Evan asked my dad to see his garden, so my dad took both the boys down to their garden and showed them all the things they had planted. There were a couple banana peppers and a cucumber ready to be picked. The boys LOVE going in the garden and picking stuff. They both will try anything from a garden, but I'm pretty sure Evan has loved every single thing he's ever tried that he's been able to pick himself (he eats radishes, green onions, tomatoes, etc). They both ate several bites of the banana pepper and all of the cucumber. My dad asked Carter for a bite to try and he wouldn't even share one tiny bite of cucumber--he wanted it all to himself. But, luckily Evan was nice enough to give my dad a slice.

 

It makes me so happy how much the boys like fresh fruits and veggies. Sometimes, it's hard to get them to try certain veggies at home, so I'm glad they're willing to try anything from a garden and that they usually like it. Plus, my parents have the best garden-it's huge, so I love that they get the opportunity to try this stuff fresh.

Evan found that Burger King hat in the playroom a couple of days ago, we hardly ever go to Burger King, it's actually from a couple of months ago when we stopped to use the bathroom on the way home from Atlanta and they had those out in the restaurant and I grabbed a couple for the boys.

A few weeks ago, my mom and I found some fun iron ons at Hobby Lobby that I picked up for the boys. I also ordered an personalized anchor iron on from Etsy for Evan. I got one for Carter from a Facebook page that's called "Carter's Mommies" and its just for selling used personalized Carter clothes. I got a great, like new anchor shirt with Carter's name on it for super cheap and Evan's been wanting one, so I was able to get one for him too. So, while I was at my parents, I finally did the shirts and I think they turned out cute. The boys like shirts with their names on it and the iron ons at Hobby Lobby (and the shirts) were very inexpensive. I hope they hold through washing. One of the reasons I got them was for them to wear them on their first day of their summer program at preschool, although they look nothing alike, people get them confused. Their soccer coach had the hardest time keeping them straight and called poor Evan "Carter" throughout an entire game. Somebody also asked me the other day how I tell them apart, haha, so I thought it might be easier for their teacher the first week if they wore shirts with their names on it.

On Monday we had a pretty low key day. My mom text me that morning and asked if Greg and I wanted to go out to lunch. Her and my dad were coming in to town anyways and came over to watch the boys while Greg and I went out. It was a nice, spur of the moment treat. We went to a sushi place that I've been wanting Greg to try. It's much cheaper during the week and at lunch and it's also somewhere we don't feel comfortable taking the boys because they have several peanut rolls.

I wanted to get a picture of the boys in their patriotic wear on Memorial day, but that's easier said than done. I swear, every picture would have one of them smiling and the other blurry and then it'd be the other one smiling, or neither looking at the camera, or they say cheese and then run off before I even have a chance to snap the picture.

 

They are so cute when they put their arms around each other and smile, but it's hard to capture. When I was taking this, they kept hugging and then falling to the ground giggling. They were having the best time and it was so cute, but didn't make getting a picture very easy.

That evening, we grilled out for dinner. We had one of my favorite meals, Italian chicken and Paula Deen's Grilled Vegetable and Pasta Salad. Italian chicken is just chicken marinated overnight in Italian salad dressing. I don't know why it's so good, but it always turns out so moist and delicious (unless you are trying to water your vegetable garden, watch the boys, and grill, then a couple pieces may get a little crispy-oops!) also with the pasta salad, I used a smaller box than it called for and doubled and tripled the amount of veggies to try and make it a little healthier.

Tuesday, the boys started their Summer Playcation at First Baptist of Augusta. It's also where they'll be going to school in the fall. It's every Tuesday and Thursday from 9:30-1:30 until the middle of July. They take a week off in June for Vacation Bible School (which the boys are going to attend) It's not preschool, it's just a day of fun for the kids, they play, do crafts, water play, songs, etc. I was on the fence about sending them two days a week, I felt kinda guilty sending them at all because they go to preschool during the school year, but I thought it'd be a great way to transition into their new school. I also thought it'd help keep the boys on somewhat of a schedule this year and we still have 3 days a week to do fun summer things and it ends mid-July, so they'll still get 3-4 weeks off before school. The boys have been so excited to go, they went with me to sign up and saw the preschool and park area and have been asking about it ever since.

Here they are in their shirts. I think they're so cute, they may be cheesy, but I don't care, I love them.

When we came home from our lunch date on Monday, my mom said "You didn't tell me Carter could write his name" I thought she was joking, but he had actually wrote his name for her. He started and forgot the "t" and she told him there's a "t" and he erased it and wrote it the correct way. I had no idea. I've been trying to work on letters with them, but not let them know I'm "working" with them, I've been trying to make it fun like using puzzles, chalk, workbooks (which they love) abc books from the library, etc. and I guess they've been soaking it all in. Well, today before school Evan did this. I'm so proud of them.

We got to their school a little early and I walked them to their classroom. There was another little girl waiting outside the classroom with her mom and we were able to talk some. I miss the drop off, their old school did car line and I actually like walking them in and talking to the other moms. (car line can be nice too and very convenient, but I just miss the social aspect of dropping them off) The other kids that showed up before I left seemed so sweet, the boys immediately started playing with some other kids and couldn't care less that I left.

There's two teachers and they're both so sweet. One has a grandson with a peanut allergy, so when I started to tell her about Carter's she asked about epi pens and whether he could have something manufactured in the same place as peanuts--it was music to my ears. I felt so at ease leaving him there because I knew she truly got it, I just felt so much more comfortable with him being there.

When I got out of the car, there was a boy getting into his car telling his mom about his new friends "carter and evan" so that just made me so happy to hear. As soon as I picked up the boys, they said they wanted to come back, they loved it and had so much fun. They said the teachers were nice and that all the kids were nice, so I'm thrilled that they enjoyed it so much. I'll probably refer to it as "school" in future posts because it's held at their preschool, there's teachers, etc and it's just easier than saying summer playcation (which is it's official name) but it's not academic (although kids learn so much just by playing and being around new people) it's just something fun for them to do. I love the time too because it gives me some time to clean house, run errands and just get things done around the house. But, I have to pass a shopping plaza that has Hobby Lobby, Target, Micheal's, Kirklands, Ulta, Pier One, etc. to get to their school, so that's going to be tempting every time I drop them off. I'll have to leave my wallet at home to avoid the temptation to just stop and shop on the way home every morning. ;)

Sand Park and the Pool

Thursday, I took the boys to the splash park. It was insane, there was a field trip there, a graduation type party and it was just packed. the boys had a great time for about 10 minutes and then decided they were ready to go home.

 

I love that they're holding hands. :)

So, since I had spent so much time getting them ready, putting on sunscreen, etc. we came home and I got the pools out and they played while I watered my garden.


Thursday was the only day they didn't take a nap last week, so when Greg got home, we decided to go to the park. They wanted to go to the sand park, but it was hot and windy, so we didn't last there very long. We stayed for about 15-20 minutes and then we headed to another park on Fort Gordon that is shaded so they could play.

I really love this park though, we love feeding the fish, turtles and geese. It was so hot, so we set up in the shade under the playground.

The boys just love playing with their sand toys.

Friday, Evan woke up at 4:30. It's been a long time since he's woke up that early. So, he got in bed with me and watched a movie on my ipad.

We went to Chick-Fil-A for the boys to play and met Aunt Caroline there. She came back home with us and hung out for a little while.

The boys have to have bbq sauce AND ketchup with their chicken. Every single time, even at home.

That night, we went out for pizza. We were exhausted from getting up so early, Greg was recovering from being sick, so we decided to skip cooking dinner and just go out. I brought some crayons and notebooks for the boys and Carter just loved practicing his letters while we waited on the pizza.

Evan was just excited to eat, we got some garlic knots to hold them over until the pizza came. He loves them and we always go early enough that happy hour is still going on and they're half off.

Saturday was opening day of the outdoor pool at the Y, so we took the boys and they had a blast. The water was freezing but the boys didn't seem to mind. It wasn't very busy, I thought it was going to be packed, they had a radio station there, free hot dogs and soda, etc. but we did get there pretty early, so maybe it got busier later in the day.

Carter thought the water was a little too cold at first, but he warmed up.

The boys played for over an hour, they played in the kiddie pool and the splash area and then we all got in the deep pool and let the boys work on swimming. I didn't get any pictures but they had a blast, they would climb out and jump back in (they were wearing their puddle jumpers) we all took good naps that afternoon.

I know that we'll spend a lot of time here this summer.

Every 50 minutes, the lifeguards take a 10 minute break and everybody has to get out of the pool. We always bring lots of good snacks for the boys and they are so distracted by graham crackers or pineapple that they don't mind getting out for 10 minutes.