vacation

Today marks the last day of my summer vacation. This week has been wonderful. Don't get me wrong, I love my children dearly, but the week of everyone in camp has been delightful. I never thought my vacation would be a week of kids in camp from 9-3. Nor did I think that chasing an almost one year old around would be the easy part of my life! I know I'm not the only one who cannot accomplish the little things with all of their kids around. It's a miracle that any bills have gotten paid this summer, that we haven't eaten exclusively fast food dinners or that the laundry has actually been folded. This past week I've even started this blog, filed paperwork and cleaned the house! I know crazy right! So here we go, updates on the kiddos.

This week has marked the beginning of me choosing not fighting with 2. He is in a "wonderful" stage right now called make mom and dad crazy for no good reason. It is quite difficult to reason with an unreasonable 7 year old who thinks it is okay for him to run away whenever things are not going his way. He has been the cause of many VCB's and mommy timeouts. I think the most frustrating part is the impasse. Not knowing what do do the get this to end is the worst part. He's too big to remove and too little to let him run. Plus there are 5 other kids to contend with while he is demanding all of my attention. DH thinks I make it worse by not hugging him and explaining why he needs to do what I want him to do. It sounds like a simple solution, but its difficult to have a quiet moment with just one child. It is especially hard when he only has these moments when we are trying to go somewhere or do something for someone else.

1 has been especially pleasant this week. He is enjoying camp and is making new friends. His baseball team is #1 in his league and is heading into the playoffs. This season has been really good for him because he is the youngest on his team and therefore the least skilled player out there. He is really enjoying himself and that's is such a great life lesson to learn.

3 is really coming into her own this summer. Jimmy Club has been so good for her. She was so excited to be her groups leader for the Cheer and Dance competitions, and very proud that they won both of those. This from the girl who professed that girls are boring and girl stuff sucks.

I know that I really enjoyed my time as a camper there and that I have some great memories of my time there. Its is amazing to watch her as she grows up. She is definitely the most like me of all the kids.

4 is my girlie girl who despite being the youngest in her group is the leader. The other kids follow her lead and she uses that power for good. I know the LRSH staff appreciates that. She will do great in PK at HNJ this year. Its hard to believe that she is already going to big school.

5 is also becoming more of a big boy this summer. He is staying all day at camp and thriving. The transition to napping at school was a piece of cake for him. I bet he'll be potty trained before the summer is over. Yesterday at 2's baseball practice, he had the best time hitting whiffle balls off of the tee. He was as good or better than the older kids who were doing that for practice. His enthusiasm is infectious. You cannot help but smile and laugh with him as he goes about his days.

Which brings me to 6. Talk about growing like a weed, I can practically see him growing right before my eyes. He is still a snuggle bug, but he also enjoys playing with his toys, throwing balls, and making loud noises. He has discovered the plastic dishes and tupperware cabinets in the kitchen and regularly empties them out for me. Isn't that so sweet! He also really love the water. He wants to splash and kick and crawl around. He also loves to be thrown up in the air. The higher the better. I bet he is a daredevil like 2.