Rainy Day Pinterest

Have you seen those Superior Parenting articles on Facebook about how kids should embrace boredom in the summer and learn to entertain themselves? Mr. Intense Loud Persistent High Energy did not get that memo.

So, if you want any peace around this house, you better get yourself on Pinterest and come up with a mind-blowing creative activity to keep him entertained for those rainy afternoons.

He loved the act of making this "race track" village. Running back and forth to stock the village with every single toy from the playroom was the fun part. The magical maid fairy that lives with us was so happy that we were entertained that she cleaned it all up for us a few days later. 

Karate

Ryan started karate this year. Our parents and his karate master tell themselves that he is learning discipline, respect, and self control.

But I know he is secretly honing his Fight Club moves. He loves to spar, going straight for the throat,

then taking his opponent down.

All without breaking a sweat.

Next time he should be paired up with Clare in the pink helmet.

She dominates on the mat!

Selfies

Mom and Dad picked me up on the last day of school and took me out for the greatest dessert ever invented: Chocolate Thunder From Down Under.

It was the perfect chance to snap some selfies.

Emphasis on these awesome freckles!

Last Day of School

Can you believe I just finished Kindergarten? It seems like yesterday that my tiny sweet self was marching into the exciting new world of elementary school.

Lucky for me, I got to spend the year with the best teacher in the whole school. This was her very first time teaching a class on her own, and she managed all the nervous parents like a pro.

She kindly and effectively guided us through reading, math, and science. 

And we LOOOOVED her!

 

All of the Moms were crying at dropoff on the last day.

We thought it was the best day, ever! We did fun centers all day, what was there to cry about?!

Our Moms are going to have a tough transition next year with the first grade teachers. The gloves come off next fall. No more walking us to class and lingering in the room. No more parent reader every day. First grade gets real.

Meanwhile, Ryan and I are ready for summer camps.

Ryan "Don't Take Any More Pictures Mom" is ready to move up to the 3 year old Big Boy Room.

We think the teachers are purposely separating best friends Maniac 1 and Maniac 2 for the summer. Ryan is very sad that Eli will be in a different class. He can't understand why teachers dislike their love for nonstop tackle football, wrestling, and kickboxing in their classroom.

We'll be sure to set up summer playdates with Eli and our other close friends.

2014 will be the summer of milkshakes and beach days!

Pajama Time

I have no words for this beautiful boy.

Memorial Day Weekend

This marks the start of summer for us, the time when every day should be spent in the ocean or a pool.

Or on a boat.

That sounds like a good plan to me!

 The best thing about living in Florida is the fact that tons of our friends have swimming pools... perfect for catching up with old VPK friends at birthday swim parties!

Subliminal Art

Dad found me peacefully drawing this one morning while Ryan was in the throes of a Stage IV Screaming Meltdown: "This baby is very quiet. I dreamed about him."  Maybe a psychotherapist could translate its meaning?

Termite

There seems to be a strange crib-eating creature in our house.

We think the monster is eating other things, too. Like rubber tires on all of the toy tractors and monster trucks. And propellers on the toy planes. We've identified a person of interest, but the investigation is still in progress.  

Baby Octopus

While we're on the topic of science... Mom brought home a baby octopus from Fresh Market, thinking it would keep us busy for 30 minutes while she cooked dinner.

 It was fun at first. Until it started to smell like dead octopus.

Ryan didn't mind the stink.

But that's because he thinks everything stinky is hilarious. Like farts.

I tried teaching Ryan fun facts about the octopus, like how octo means eight and how it has 8 legs. But all he wanted to do was squeeze it really hard on different sections to see what the juices would do. He's just not Kindergarten material yet.