Friday, June 25, 2010

Summer Marches On/ Flagstaff



Summer is going swimmingly. And yes, swimming seems to be the main event this year. Sage had her first two swim meets and did great. She got a third place backstroke and a second place butterfly ribbon. Watching her do the butterfly is so darn cute. She wiggle worms and gets those arms up as far as they can go. Have you ever tried the butterfly? It's hard! I am amazed that my six-year old is so much coordinated than me. Actually, most anyone, any age, is more coordinated than me but that's another story.


We escaped the heat to Flagstaff last weekend. Normally a trip like this would involve some high adventure or serious hiking. But since the only hiking I do is around the house every day, we decided to bring the girls along and keep it all kid/pregnant-woman friendly. And the condo we were using had some extra beds so we invited my parents and Micah along - affectionately known as Uncle Stinky Breath to his three girl friends.


All weekend our timing turned out to be perfect. We hit Montezuma's Castle on the way up so we never have to drive by that brown sign again saying, "We should stop and see that one of these days." It was the perfect little side trip because our maximum time limit in the car is about an hour and a half. (I know, we're sissies when it comes to traveling.) It was well worth the stop and we even picked up our first new Christmas ornament for 2010.

We took the Snowbowl ski lift up the mountain and it was a really fun ride with the girls. The weather was perfect and the views were beautiful. I'm glad my parents and Micah were there or it would've been a little tricky riding up with the kiddos. There was even a patch of snow to play in at the top. I think that's the first snow the girls have ever seen. Here we are - the highest family in Arizona.

And here are is Grandma Delynn and Sage Delynn at the top of Arizona. The next day we explored the Flagstaff Arboretum. It worked out perfectly that Sage, Bert, Grandma and Grandpa went on the wildflower tour while Micah and I let the little girls run around everywhere. They had little trails meandering through pretty gardens and we spent quite a bit of time at the tree maze. Very fun and Jane got very dirty. The best part of the arboretum was definitely the bird show. They had hawks, vultures and owls that had been trained to fly right over our heads. I really thought one of them was going to pluck a few hairs out as he flew by! The girls had a great time watching the birds and feeding them dollar bills after the show.

We also checked out the mini golf course, the community pool, Ms. Zips diner and the Flagstaff music festival downtown. We played cards until I couldn't keep my eyes open and ate like kings all weekend. The weekend just flew by and when we were packing up to leave Sunday morning I wished we could've stayed a little longer. It was really nice to have my Mom and Dad along. Usually we spend time with them in large family settings so it was special to have them all to ourselves. I love watching them dote over the girls and the girls really adore their grandparents.

Check out this picture after a day's fun. Can you see Faith knocked out in the backseat? The little two girls were just plain worn out! Sage, of course, had maneuvered herself into Mom and Dad's car.

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Sunday, June 6, 2010

The First Week of Summer

Summer started with a bang! We are off into the hot summer summer months running at full speed. To keep ourselves busy and add a little structure to each day, Sage and I put together a summer schedule. It's pretty ambitious for us since I'm a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kind of mother. But it's already been a lot of fun and it's very good for Sage. She is very motivated by schedules, plans and charts.
Summer Schedule

Breakfast and Clean-up
Swim Team
Lunch
Piano Practice
D.E.A.R Time
Summer Lessons
Dinner and Bed

Weekly Lessons
Monday – Spanish Talking
Tuesday – Sewing Class
Wednesday
Thursday – Cooking Class
Friday

Sage started swim team at Kino with the cousins - namely Berkely, Emma and Kaylee. I have to say that watching those little bodies go back and forth across the pool is about the cutest thing I've ever seen. Our sweet Sage gives 100% to things she's excited about and she is VERY excited about swim team. That's why when she got swimmers' ear and was sidelined from the pool for two weeks we both nearly cried. Sage is being a very good sport about her expulsion from the water and she'll only miss one swim meet. It seems fitting that our first foray into an organized sport produced an unwanted side-effect so quickly.

Faith and Jane started swim lessons with Grammy and are already flourishing. Faith is the oldest on Grammy's swim team this summer and has blossomed into quite the leader, a role that the other cousins usually play. She's even starting to take breaths and overcoming her fear of the deep end. I think this will be her summer to become an independent swimmer. Jane is still crying during her lessons but willingly submits. Even in her sobbing, she'll stop long enough to hold her breath so she doesn't drown. We all giggle watching Jane get her lesson. Afterwards, she'll chatter on and on saying, "I good swimmer. I do rings. Grammy help. I happy swimmer."

I LOVE Grammy's swim lessons. We have the best Grammy ever! She is so consistent but loving at the same time. I love to watch her take her precious grandbabies and hug and kiss their wet faces. She teaches them with so much love while expecting the very best. We are so lucky to have a Grammy who loves to teach swimming. The girls and I had this conversation the other day.

Faith: When I'm a mom what will you be?"
Kelli: I'll be a grandma.
Sage: And you'll babysit my kids all the time?
Kelli: Yep!
Faith: And do swim lessons?
Kelli: Yep! I want to do swim lessons just like Grammy.
Faith: You'll have to have a big pool just like Grammy's.
Kelli: OK, Dad. Did you hear that? We'll have to have a pool so I can do swim lessons just like Grammy.

Besides swimming we had our first cooking class. Whoa! Talk about too many cooks in the kitchen! There were fingers in everything - brown sugar, flour, egg shells, canned pineapple, the mixing bowl, girlie mouths, my mouth... it was quite the production! But our first creation was a success and everyone at our Memorial Day BBQ raved about our Pineapple Upside-Down cake. I think the next cooking class will take place while Jane is napping. She is much too ambitious a chef and doesn't follow directions very well.

I had a something unusual come up with my pregnancy so Dr. Beck sent me out for a Level II ultrasound. Baby Boy Millett is absolutely perfect. It was really fun to see our baby in such detail and to watch him move around. He is a very active guy already. I hope that doesn't mean he is destined to be a wild man. We even got bunch of 3D pictures and a DVD of the ultrasound. I can never tell but others tell me he looks like Bert and Sage. I always thought the Bodine genes were too strong to beat but maybe he'll favor the Milletts.

Not printed on the schedule but a big part of our summer is this.... Wish me luck.
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