August 3, 2009 - The condensed version...

Ok, So I am a bit behind. OK, a lot behind. I have a whole bunch of things to share.

First, Caelia had a birthday. Can you believe that she is already 7 years? She has gotten to be such a big girl. She shares so well with Lera. She loves Dairy Queen ice cream but she seems to love Lera too. It is so sweet to she her share with Lera.
Lera and Caelia graduated from Kindergarten at the end of June. Caelia was very attentive and soaked up the attention. Lera devoted her attention to the juice box that she had liberated from the refreshment table. She was patient for half of the ceremony and then decided that she had better things to do – after all, Daddy, Mama and Michael were were visiting her school today.
Michael also celebrated a birthday. He is now officially a teenager. He got the big, extra special celebration because it was also time for our summer trip. Once again, we visited Wisconsin. And, as usual, we had an extra boy with us. Michael’s best friend Chris went with us to explore the waterparks of Wisconsin.
We visited House on the Rock and Wisconsin Dells. House on the Rock is very interesting and the girls were surprisingly patient with this strange experience. They really enjoyed the automated orchestras. Lera tried her best to catch a ride on the Carousel, but she was nabbed by security or family everytime. This is particularly funny because when we have taken her to ride on a Carousel, she wants to get off immediately. I really enjoy this place. As you can see by the pictures, it is an amazing place.




We experienced many waterparks and I was feeling extremely waterlogged by the time we returned home, but the kids loved it! Caelia and Lera were thrilled with the whole experience and did not show any signs of the trepidation that they had been showing at the pool back home. I guess if you add a cool looking slide, there is no such thing as fear.



Summer vacation disappears fast when you finish on June 25th and start back on July 27th. That’s right. My babies are in first grade! They seem really excited to be back at school but they are gone so long during the day that I feel kind of lost without them.. They attend school Monday through Thursday, so I always get a long weekend with them. I guess this means that I have no excuses for not working on the dozen or so projects that need my attention now.

6 comments:

NDMom said...

Oh my, but your girls are cutie patooties! They remind me of my Grace (9 w/DS) so much! Thank you for sharing your vacation photos with us. You are a beautiful family....hope you get lots done! :)

Paula adopting Bella in Ukraine (in country right now!)

Lou said...

Good to hear from you!!! The girls are adorable and looks like they had a fun summer break. Wow, first-graders!

Bethany said...

So fun to see the pics of House on the Rock! I grew up near there and used to go there when I was younger. BTW what ever happened with your adoption? Did things just never work out?

Beth said...

Glad to hear the update! The kids all look great! They are growing like crazy!

I can't believe that school has started so soon for you! That's incredible!

thedickinsonfamily said...

I was so excited to see the new post. I am so glad all is well with you and your family. I think about your family often. I will never forget the precious photos you took of our sweet baby boy. He has come so far is just a short time. I would invite you to visit our blog for an update.
How is your current adoption going? I haven't seen an update in months. How can we pray for you?
I look forward to hearing from you.
Blessings,
Meghan

miffie98 said...

Hi - Great to see your update! It looks like you all have had a nice summer. Congrats to the girls on their graduation and to Michael on becoming a teenager! Love from Bill, Sheryl & Melissa