Brotherly Love, A Socially Distanced Piñata Party, and A Belt Ceremony!

These boys are too cute. Mr.T. follows SlimJim around like a puppy and SlimJim eats it up. 

Over the weekend we went to a socially distanced pinata party. Super cute idea- each family got a hula hoop circle to stand in, and we all brought our bats to hit the pinata. When it broke, flowers fell out and each family had a bag of candy and prizes to dump on our kids. So fun, but it will be nice when we can celebrate birthdays with a little less caution.

Today, the girls were thrilled to be able to attend Taekwondo in person. The school moved from their old space to a new location with plenty of outdoor space, perfect for socially distanced classes. Since a belt ceremony has to be in person, they added it to the class this evening and both girls got their new belts!

 

Just More of July

Hello Toothfairy!

I knew it was coming, LittleL.G. has had some just wiggly teeth for months. But suddenly the "just wiggly" turned into really wiggly, and she got so excited, that she wiggled and twisted and pulled and the first of the loose teeth just came out!

So proud and excited for her!

Happy 4th of July

We couldn't stay away from NH for the 4th of July weekend. What could be better than the company of family, especially with none of our usual festivities? While we might have missed a big fireworks show a tiny bit, or sitting on the beach as the sun sets- just a little, the kids had a fantastic time, and it was so nice to be with family and just relax and enjoy the evening without having to worry about finding a parking spot, or a place to watch the fireworks, or toting supplies for a late evening out with the kids. So the grownups definitely thought it was the best 4th of July yet! We started a bunch of new traditions, with a 4th of July cake, a handmade 4th of July piñata, a 4th of July dance, and of course, there were fireworks.

And to end a fantastic weekend, we saw a rainbow on the drive home.

Hiking: This Changes Everything!

The pandemic has certainly changed the way we are doing summer, and one of the things we have been doing more of is exploring. We've really enjoyed the trails that we can walk to in our neighborhood, but taking longer hikes farther from home has seemed a bit daunting. I think it was the thought of carrying water, snacks, and changes of clothing for five of us while potentially also carrying two children who might tire of walking.

THEN Uncle Chris and Aunt Ruth were amazingly generous and sent the kids hiking backpacks. This changes EVERYTHING! Now the KIDS can carry water and snacks and clothes and if I happen to have to carry kids, I don't have to carry anything else.

Today we still stayed close to home, finding a new trail only a five minute drive from our house. The kids were thrilled to carry their own stuff and couldn't wait to test out the packs.

It was a really cute trail, with lots of wooden bridges over a little brook filled with frogs. The kids had a great time.