Summer Scholars

What is it about school-work at home during the summer that is so fun?  Now that school is out the boys have started in on some little work books to keep their 3Rs sharp over the summer months.  The other day when they were getting started Peter said that he didn't like to color.  To which Eliot responded, "Well Peter, there's lots of coloring in Kindergarten, so if you don't like to color you'll have a lot of trouble."  The wisdom of a Kindergarten graduate, thank you very much.

Peter is getting very good at writing his name.  Here he's tracing letters that I wrote in pencil, but even without letters to trace his name comes out looking pretty good.

Eliot is whizzing through his math book and is excited each morning to work on his books.  We have to limit him to three pages a day in each book so that he can get his foot-loose-and-fancy-free time in.

Move over Spring! Here comes Summer!

We've had a series of really beautiful weekends (it was rainy and gray today just to remind us that it's still May) and the boys have been getting outside and enjoying the sunny weather.  They have kept very busy, pulling weeds and sowing new ones.  The other day they both went out to the back yard to cut dandelions with scissors (a weed management strategy of their own invention).  As always, they took the job very seriously.         

Eliot likes to "mow" the lawn with GranDad.  He follows behind with his truck to make sure it's all done properly.

Sunny weather just makes everyone smile.

Yesterday we went to the Farmer's Market and the boys each chose out two tomato plants to raise.  Eliot also picked out a lovely geranium.

Both boys enjoyed getting to work on their little potted gardens and Peter informed me that he intended to share his tomatoes with everyone.  We also had some lettuce plants that someone had given us so they planted those as well.  Eliot went with me to the garden shop to pick up the potting soil and was a very hard worker helping me load the bags of soil into the car.  Both boys love to feel that they're helping out in some meaningful way.

The hot water heater needed to be replaced this past week which was a boon to the boys.  Not only did they get to observe the work of handy-man Jim Anderson (Jim Anderson can fix and build just about anything and is right up there with firefighters and astronauts in the boys' eyes) but they also inherited a great big cardboard box.  They spent a good deal of time outside with their box yesterday, painting it, drawing on it, decorating it with stickers, rolling around in it, and finally stomping on it.  It may not be summer yet by the calendar, but as far as we're concerned it's here!

Terry Andre

Last Saturday Rissie and I took the boys up to Terry Andre State Park.  It is about an hour's drive northeast of West Bend and has been a favorite place to visit since I was a little girl.  The sunny day we were enjoying back in land-locked West Bend became a misty one as we got closer to the lake, and the lake itself was complete veiled in fog.  It was like playing on the edge of the earth.   We took a walk along the "corn-whap" as Peter pronounced it and did all kinds of exploring.

Both boys were thrilled to find themselves back on a beach.  They knew exactly what to do.

We stopped along our walk to have a ramble up the sand dunes and the boys burned off a lot of energy climbing up and rolling down the other side.

This picture was taken from the top of a pretty steep sand dune.  The boys had a great time running/tumbling/rolling all the way to the bottom.

On the way up we stopped for lunch in Sheboygan at the sort of cute little Italian eatery that you'd least expect to find in place called Sheboygan.  They had delicious wood-fire pizzas which were a hit with all of us.

There was an Italian grocery attached to the restaurant and after lunch Peter picked out his dessert--dried dates (in the picture above he is showing me the pit that he found in the center of his date).  Just behind him you can see a window in the floor that allowed us to look down into the cheese cellar.  The boys were delighted.

Before heading for the beach we drove a little farther to Kohler.  Kohler is a quaint little industrial town that is home to a manufacturer of the same name who has been turning out sinks, toilets, bathtubs and all their accoutrements for over a century.  We visited their Design Center which is part showroom, part museum, part art gallery where the boys got to do all sorts of hands-on things, like run 12 shower heads at once.

Both Eliot and Peter were very impressed.

 

The day was a huge success, as indicated by the energy level on the ride home.  During our time at the beach both boys kept asking if we could come back this summer.  You bet boys!  You bet!

Rumble in the Jungle

On Friday I was able to get off of work early to attend a performance of "Rumble in the Jungle" that the Kindergarten students at Eliot's school were performing.  Eliot was an alligator and did a wonderful job in his group recitation.  

There was a small reception after the performance and Peter was allowed to try on one of the costumes.  Eliot was delighted to have him there.  Leading up to the day of the performance, whenever I reminded Eliot that I would be coming to see him he would add, "and Peter too?"  He was almost more eager to show off his classroom to Peter than to me.  He is convinced that Peter will be attending Kindergarten there next year (Peter has one more year before he'll start there) he is looking forward to having Peter there at school with him.

That evening we returned to the school for Gator Days.  It is a carnival-style party that Eliot's school puts on toward the end of the year.  It sported all sorts of delights, including bouncy houses, hot dogs, balloons, and a magician (Eliot is still fascinated by the mind-bending tricks).  The boys had a wonderful time together.

Star of the Week!

Late last month Eliot was Star of the Week at school.  He had a questionnaire to fill out about himself and got to talk about some of his favorite things (the beach, sushi, etc) and some of the unique things about himself (his dual citizenship, his love of in-door plumbing, etc).  He also got to take in a favorite book to share with the class--he chose Octonauts.  A family member was able to attend one day and share a special talent, so Noni showed up and made origami dingos with the class.  Australia featured prominently in his favorite things and he was able to share some of his best memories (most of them involving animals and the beach).

He was very excited about his poster and labeled each picture.  He and Peter are both doing very well.  We're so proud of them both.  They are the Stars of the Week all the time around here.  :)

Happy Easter!

This year we experimented with natural dyes for our Easter eggs.  The boys were very happy with the results.

When Peter saw these coming out of the oven he said, "Are those hot cross buns?  Yay!  Just like in Perth!" 

After breakfast is was time to get down to business.  The Easter Bunny had hidden eggs all throughout the living room.

Eliot had his gathered up in no time!

That foxy bunny had not forgotten the scavenger hunt and the boys were sent to every corner of the house in search of their bag of goodies.  Each clue instructed them to move in a different way, crawl, skip, or--as pictured above--hop.

Peter called out each item he found in his treat bag.  Both boys were delighted.

Eliot especially liked the chocolate blueberries.

The day before we had gone to Riveredge to participate in an Easter egg hunt.  While waiting for their age group to be called they took some time to have a look at the chickens and rabbits.

Then the hunt was on!  The eggs were hidden all through the grass and stones in their nature's playground.  Peter found several eggs each containing a shiny stone.  Eliot only found one egg but it contained a ticket for a prize which he chose to redeem for a box of crayons.

Eliot requested lemon meragne cake which I was happy to produce.

The boys had a wonderful weekend and are looking forward to all of the wonderful things that Spring has in store for them.

Birthday Boys

This weekend Eliot and Peter had a joint birthday party.  They each invited friends from their classes. Four of Eliot's friends were able to attend, and four of Peter's friends were able to attend, so it actually worked out perfectly.  It was so fun to watch the boys socializing with their little friends.  Eliot was clearly in his element, surrounded by his friends.

Peter, though a little more shy, was equally delighted to see his friends.  He had listed off, by name, all of the little friends he wanted to invite and greeted them each happily as they arrived.

Each boy had his own cake with candles to blow out.

The cakes were also topped with Mighty Machines.

Both boys had asked for a side-loader recycling truck.

Peter could hardly contain his excitement when he discovered that his birthday wish had come true.

Both boys were gracious hosts and I was very proud of them for making their friends feel welcomed and thanking them for the gifts they brought.

This was also the weekend of the all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast at Riveredge Nature Center.

The boys ate their fill (though considerably less than the one hundred they had been talking about eating on the drive out there) and a little bit of rain could hardly dampen the fun we had.

Later, while hanging out in the nature center they came across a ladybug (or ladybird, as they would have said back in Oz) and Eliot very gently carried it outside and set it free.  They are both sweet, clever, feisty little boys, and we are so proud of them.

Happy Birthday Eliot and Peter!!