It has been a busy last two weeks. The kids are out of school and we are getting into summertime routines. Today we went to the Explora museum and enjoyed playing with things there. It is an interactive discovery museum and there is a lot to do. We were there almost three hours and didn’t even go into all the areas. Andrew and Spencer tried the bike thing today. It was open this time and they decided to brave getting strapped onto a bike to ride over the play area. They said it was fun.
These were wind mill type things, they worked really well but the picture caught it in one frame, so they aren't spinning like they were
Two weeks ago on May 18th was the final band concert. The kids did a good job. The bands sound good for middle school bands. I think it is because of the dedication and enthusiasm of the director. I am glad the kids can enjoy being in a good band. Ruth was all emotional after the concert because it was her last one, since she made the decision to not continue with band in high school. She has been exploring more on the guitar and piano since then. I am glad that she still enjoys doing music.
Andrew's band, he is in the back on the right
Ruth's band, she in on the second row on the left
May 19th was our ward’s father and sons camping trip. The boys were excited about it. Neal didn’t have work that day and was able to have everything ready so when the boys got home from school they left. They enjoyed the camping and being with friends. Saturday they took their time at the camp ground and enjoyed playing and visiting. Then they went to a train show at the fair grounds. They enjoyed being a part of the club and helping with their trains on display. They stayed there all afternoon and even helped clean up the clubs things. They had a great day together.
While the boys were away Ruth and I enjoyed time together. We tried out some Chinese take out food for dinner and enjoyed it. We watched “Mr. Hollands Opus” at home that evening. I thought Ruth would enjoy it since she had just finished with band. She liked it. Saturday morning we got going a bit early and went to an “early bird” showing of “Beauty and the Beast.” It was a good movie. The music was beautiful and the animation with people was believable. It was a good show. I am glad that we were able to go see it. Saturday afternoon we went to the mall and were able to get a few things for Ruth for summertime clothing. It was a nice time together.
The kids had some fun year end activities that they enjoyed. Ruth went with the 8th grade class to the amusement park “Cliffs” that is here in town. She enjoyed going on a roller coaster and many other rides for the first time. Neal and I don’t really like amusement parks, so we haven’t taken our kids to any. Ruth decided she loved it.
Andrew had a 6th grade pool day at the school outdoor pool. He had fun with that and being with friends. His PE class had done a swimming unit the last two weeks of school and so he had been swimming every day and loved it all. He has been doing a lot of bike riding too. He is working hard at being active.
Spencer and Caleb both had days at school that they had a PE Play Day time. They had each grade go through about eight activities and games at the school. They really enjoyed doing it. Their classes also got to go to the library party for classes that had turned in all books by the deadline. They enjoyed that party too. The first grade did a picnic for kids and parents one day. I went to it and enjoyed eating lunch with Caleb and his friends.
On the 24th I went to Ruth’s 8th grade promotion ceremony. It was like a graduation and they called each of the kids names and gave them certificates and a flower. Ruth was happy that I would come and watch. Afterwards I took Ruth to the park where she met with a group of friends for a “out of school” and a birthday party for one of the girls. They had a great afternoon playing and being silly together at the park. She got together with friends on Friday evening too. I am glad that she can enjoy her friends.
The last day of school was the 25th for the boys. Andrew didn’t need to bring anything and told me he ran to the school and ran home. He said it felt good to run and to be free of carrying anything. I know that bringing the trombone to and from school was a bit hard for him but he enjoys playing it and plans to continue with it. The kids were all happy to be home and enjoyed telling me about all the fun things they did the last couple of days of school.
Caleb and Spencer with their teachers
Ruth and I both went to the eye doctor during the last couple of weeks last couple of weeks. I was thankful that my eyes have stabilized again and didn’t have any changes this time. Ruth is more near sighted and we ordered her new glasses. I guess she got my eyes. I am thankful that we both have healthy eyes and we can see.
Spencer has really been enjoying playing with Lego. He has made many creative things lately and will work on things intently for long periods of time. On Friday the 26th in the morning we met with some friends from church and did a little hike. We went to Carlito Springs, just east of us off of I40. It was a pretty little hike and the kids enjoyed being with friends. We ate our lunch there and then came home. In the afternoon we filled up our pond and ran the fountain and the boys enjoyed playing in the water. That was a fun way to spend our first day of summer vacation.
Andrew has enjoyed cooking lately. He likes to make muffins and has tried many different recipes. He also tried making pretzels one day. They turned out pretty good and everyone voted that we should try them again. Andrew is working on his “Family Life” merit badge and one of his projects to do for his family is to learn how to cook new recipes that he has found on the internet that are foods from other countries.
Saturday morning Neal, Ruth and Andrew took a bike ride. They enjoyed going some distance. They started their ride by going up to Ruth’s friend, Brianna’s home, so Ruth could have confidence to ride her bike there. It is up the mountain side so she ended up walking her bike up the last big hill, but she did get there.
Sunday we went to Kent and Jorge's home. They are an elderly couple in our ward. We have gotten to know Jorge because she comes to choir and she plays the organ and piano a lot in the ward. She is a sweet lady. Neal met her husband (who isn’t in the church right now) and he said Neal should bring his family over sometime. We were able to go Sunday evening. It was a nice visit and we enjoyed sharing some things about our family with them. And they shared some fun stories with us.
Monday was Memorial Day. I enjoyed going for a walk and seeing flags on many of the houses. We had a busy day doing our regular chores of grocery shopping, laundry and caring for the yard. Neal was home from work and that was nice to have him around. In the evening we grilled some burgers and hot dogs. Then we had some fun with Neal’s sister Holly and her family come for a short visit. They were on their way home from a trip to Texas, they live in Arizona. We had dinner with them and Neal took everyone on a hike in the open space. Then we had Tuesday morning with them before they headed out to return home. I am glad that we could see them.
The kids played with the rocks while they were waiting for their cousins to arrive
Monday was also my parents 52nd anniversary. I called my mom and she said she had a nice day visiting cemeteries, going out to lunch, and spending time with my sisters. I am glad she had a good day.
Yesterday Andrew enjoyed visiting with his friend Aiden. He said they mostly played Lego at Aiden’s home. But that was great they could be together. He is in our ward, in fact Aiden’s dad is the bishop, and the boys have really gotten to know each other because they play trombone in band together.
We have done a lot of work in the yard. Neal worked a lot getting a drip irrigation system set up in our garden. I did weeding with the kids and cleaning up the rose bushes from the dead blooms. With 22 rose bushes it does take some time to keep them looking good. The fruit trees are growing well. The weather has been nice and I have enjoyed going for walks and being outside.
I got the results for Caleb’s gifted testing. He did amazing. This was the second round of testing they did. He first took the cogat a couple of months ago. Since he scored high on that and they did more testing on him to see where his strengths are. When the lady called me she gave me the back ground information that the kids need to score at least 92 to be considered for gifted services. She said to get full services and in a full gifted schooling experience a child needs to score at least 98 in two categories. Then she told me Caleb’s scores. He had 98 in critical thinking; 99 in math; 99 in reading and 99 in creativity. So he qualifies for the full service gifted program in the school. I am excited for him. He has expressed that he really would like more in school to learn. I think he will get it next year. For now we will do things with him at home. This week I taught him how to multiple multiple digit numbers (like 52x16) and Neal taught him how to do long division. He got excited about the concepts and has been practicing them. He also likes to draw pictures and has been playing games a lot. If he can’t get anyone to play a game with him they he will just play two players himself. He has a game of Monopoly that he has been working on a little bit every day for over a week now. He also likes Ticket to Ride and anything to do with the United States right now.
Well, as you can see we have been busy. We are thankful for our family and are happy that it is summer time and we can spend more time together. We have asked the kids to do some self motivated learning this summer. They needed to pick a topic to research and work on it every week. Each week they need to write at least one paragraph about what they have learned. Ruth is working on ancient Greek culture right now and is enjoying learning about it. Andrew wants to learn about animals in New Mexico. Spencer is learning about Navy ships and other boats, he also wants to learn more about air planes. Caleb wants to study about solar and lunar cycles. It has been good for them to have a topic to work on.
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