Swinging is such fun!

On Tuesday, Maxwell discovered how to really, really swing on the swingset. He could swing a little for a couple of years but to get really high, needed to have a push. Well, on Tuesday, it just kind of clicked and he was able to pump those little legs hard and go really high. He has just been loving it! He wants to swing 24 hours a day! He could hardly go to bed that night because he didn't want to stop swinging (after an hour straight of doing so!) and first thing in the morning, got up and did it again! Very cute!
Here's a picture of Calvin doing the butterfly at our last swim meet. He has been going to Boyscout camp all week and thinks it is great fun! He got a "bullseye" on the BB shoot yesterday and was just thrilled. He also got to watch a watermelon get "blown up" by the Bomb Squad which he says was the coolest thing ever!
Today we get ready to leave for our annual pilgrimage to Notre Dame for 5 days. We are all very excited as we know we will get in lots of eating, bike riding, paddle boating, and tree climbing. Plus, we get to spend 5 days with Josh this weekend! Should be fun!
I officially used Quincy as a babysitter last night while I went to a friend's house for my bookclub meeting. He did a great job getting his siblings to bed despite a small thunderstorm that was making him nervous. He is thrilled to get paid for his "work". I don't mind a bit since I had a very nice time with good friends and good conversation!

A Beautiful Morning!

I got to run in the nice, quiet, cool beauty of this morning! It is very hard for me to remember that I do have some new found freedom this summer. Quincy officially took the babysitter's prep class at the local hospital so I can use him for short periods of time. This morning, I woke up early and while the kids were still sleeping, was able to get a few miles in. Fantastic! I will have to motivate myself to do that more often, my treadmill is just getting too boring. I am including a picture this morning from my recent half-marathon that I ran in Indianapolis. One of my proud accomplishments... I was able to outrun 20,000 people and only got beat by 15,000 others! Not bad, eh? That and my 60 mile walk last September to raise money for Breast Cancer are some of my proud moments!
Another long swim meet with the kids last night. Only 2 more to go though and then our season is done. Calvin is off to Boyscout camp all day today, tomorrow and Thursday. He was so excited that he could hardly sleep last night.

Wonderful weekends!

Daddy's home! Gotta love when Josh pulls in the driveway after having been gone all week and the kids immediately flock to him! I feel like I am officially off duty! Our week went pretty quickly this week because of the fact that we were very busy with swim team but also had visits from all the grandparents, except great-grandma. Very fun! Our swim meet on Thursday night was cancelled due to storms so will now be rescheduled for next week. It was nice to have an unexpected early evening at home. Time to show the house again today (keep your fingers crossed for us that one of these many lookers turns into an actual buyer soon). Calvin has a birthday party to go to today and Quincy has a summer get-together party to go to with several of his closest friends. Taba has plans to do some baking - she is very good at that and I hardly have to do it at all anymore! Here is a picture of our 3 swim team members. Burly bunch, aren't they?

Hot Days of Summer

Our time in Batesville is now starting to grow short and we are starting to wind up all of our activities in preparation for moving. Max has been taking some tennis lessons finally after spending years playing on the sidelines of the court while mommy plays. He is really enjoying it. We have two more swim meets this week and despite the fact that Monday's meet was delayed and then cut short due to storms, Quincy managed to get a first place in his heat for 40 yard freestyle. He was thrilled! Tabitha has been taking a sewing class this week and has made a "shaggy" pillow and a pair of pajama pants. She is much more of a natural at sewing than her mother, and... she actually enjoys it! Quincy is the perpetual social butterfly and spent the night yet again at a friend's house. Other than that, he hangs out at the pool at the country club and plays with a steady stream of friends. The big news this week is that Josh's dad has also decided to move to Lafayette and signed a lease on Tuesday!

A great dad!

Well, hopefully Josh felt like he had a great Father's Day. We did, just because he was home with us. We had a very pleasant weekend, it seems to make all the difference in the world to have both parents at home and 2 drivers to run kids to their various activities! We spent a very relaxing day by the pool at the country club on Saturday while someone looked at our house. I was able to escape briefly and get the massage that the kids had given me a gift certificate for on Mothers Day. What a wonderful way to relax!! On Sunday, Taba made Josh breakfast in bed after we let him sleep in! Josh was able to spend some time getting his sailboat ready for the summer, although, he didn't get to take it out on the lake because the weather was pretty iffy all day. We then spent a very rewarding afternoon cleaning out the attic! Sounds fun, eh? It did feel good, however, simply because it means less stuff for us to move and less stuff to have to find a place for in our new house! Josh's dad drove up from New Orleans and spent the weekend with us as well, a nice Father's Day treat! Josh is now back at his new job and the kids and I are busy as usual. Our swim meet last night was delayed due to a storm and then when it finally got started, had to be cancelled half way through due to another storm. Oh well, Quincy was able to secure one first place ribbon in free style before the storm rolled in.
I had to include a picture of Quincy today because he seems to be growing like a weed this summer and eating us out of house and home! He also seems to be very focused on girls this summer! Ughhh! Are we ready for that? He's only going into 6th grade!

Friday

Had a great swim meet both Thursday night and tonight. The kids' team won by huge amount as usual and all 3 of my swimming kids did well for their age groups. Tabitha got to swim against Quincy tonight in breast stroke and won by about 3/10 of a second which thrilled her to death but didn't make Quincy too happy. Josh was able to leave work a little early to make the 2 hour drive home in time to watch the whole meet. That was great for all of us! Someone is coming to look at the house in the morning. Keep your fingers crossed! Maybe this is the buyer we need!

Overwhelmed!

That is certainly the way I am feeling these days! We are preparing for our move to West Lafayette which will take place on July 17. Josh is already working up there while the kids and I stay here to finish up the summer swim team season and get the house ready to move. Too much to do and way too little of time to do it! Thank goodness that I have 4 great kids that are willing to help and to behave when I need them to! Between tennis lessons, golf lessons, swim team practices twice a day, working 2 days a week, sewing classes, Boyscout camp, piano lessons, volleyball camp and everything else, I hardly have time to catch my breath! Oh well... I'm sure we'll pull it off, we always do!

7 years old!

Somehow, one of my "little" boys is turning 7 today. It seems like Calvin was that sickly little baby just a short time ago but obviously is not anymore. He is so excited to be a big kid today. Because he can't play any contact sports, we are always trying to encourage other sports for him. Today, we gave him a set of golf clubs and some golf lessons at the country club. He is so excited! He is also active in tennis lessons and swim team this summer and loving both. He is such a great kid! Interested and ethusiastic about everything. He is even taking a sewing class this week and despite the fact that he is the only boy, his teachers claim that he is the best in the class. They report that he has great eye/hand coordination. Guess all those video games are good for something!

First Days of Summer!

Thought this might be easier for me to keep up with than our traditional website. Just wanted to keep all of our friends and family posted on the daily trials and tribulations of our family of 3 quickly growing up boys and one girl. I'll try to post something every couple of days and keep up with pictures in the process.