Tennis Lessons 2012

Each year the kids take tennis lessons through the rec department. They do a nice job with lessons and the kids really like them! This is the first year that we are doing evening lessons, just on Monday nights, for 8 weeks. The kids are loving them! Johanna likes to go and bring a racquetball racquet along and hit balls against the wall. She would LOVE to be taking lessons too. :)

 Abby's been doing great! She has great form and is built like a tennis player. :)

I think he picked up about 12 tennis balls. :)

John Ball Zoo

On Saturday, June 16, Colin was working and the kids and I wanted to knock something off our 2012 Summer To-Do List. We narrowed it down a bit and the kids really wanted to go to John Ball Zoo. It was 90+ degrees outside but since that's what they really wanted to do we packed things up and headed toward Grand Rapids. Johanna rarely uses a stroller anymore but I dusted one off for this trip. I knew that she would get tired and hot so we packed the stroller, water bottles, a few snacks, sunglasses and headed out. We arrived at John Ball and realized it was "Reptile Day" at the zoo. It only happens once a year and we hit that one day. There were lots of reptiles set up in the admin building for the kids to see, touch and hold. It was a great start to the trip!

We continued on with Abby and Henry as our leaders. They LOVED looking at their maps and telling me where to go next. They were very serious about crossing off the animals as we saw them and making sure we saw them ALL. They also loved reading about the animals, seeing which ones were near extinction, etc. It was so cool to see the zoo through THEIR eyes.

 I let the kids feed the birds and it was a highlight of the day. I thought it would freak me out, but it was actually really cool!

 Abigail did a big report on chimpanzees right at the end of the school year. She wrote a paper and did a poster full of pictures and facts. She was super excited to see the chimps at the zoo. Here she is pointing to one so we could send a picture to her teacher.

 This Spider Monkey was hilarious! He was inside a cage and when we went to take it's picture he plastered himself up against the glass like this. Cracked me up!

 Notice the fluffy in Johanna's hand? It WAS her favorite fluffy ever. We left it somewhere at the zoo, never to be found. This is my last picture of Johanna and her prized fluffy. :)

 Henry bought this otter with his own money and Abby bought a monkey. So cute!

 The necessary picture on John Ball.

I quickly found a couple of picture from past John Ball visits. :)

 2006 - Abby, 2 1/2 years old

2008 - Abby 5, Henry 3

We had an absolutely awesome day. It was hot and tiring but one of the best Saturdays I've had with my kiddos. A memory to treasure for sure.

Our Summer To-Do List

I never posted our "2012 Summer To-Do List." We made a family list of 50 things we want to do during the three months of Summer. We sat down and made a list of different things...some cost money, some do not, some are quick, some are long, some are dependent on the weather, some are not. The common theme? They are all FUN and things we can do together. The kids have a blast deciding what we'll cross off next. Here's our 2012 list:

Summer T-Ball

Henry has been playing t-ball for the past couple of weeks. He wasn't super interested in baseball which was fine with us since it's a longer season. He did want to do t-ball which has been perfect. He didn't know anyone on his team which made for a little anxiety but has been doing great hanging with his new friends. He is really enjoying t-ball and has improved so much in just a few short weeks. We love going to his games and have had YoYo, Papa, Grandpa Bill, Grandma Rita, Aunt Rebecca, Josh, Luke, Aunt Ali, Aunt Kelly and Mila all come and watch his games. It's so awesome that we have such supportive family that loves to see him! Here are some pictures of my t-ball stud. :)

We did it.

We made it.
Through third grade.
Through kindergarten.
Through daycare.
Through two schools and no planning time.
Through working days (and still some nights).
Through nine months of making lunches, picking out clothes and prepping backpacks.
Through nine months of waking up on time, eating breakfast and being to school on time.
Through a couple of days of sick kids and two working parents who really couldn't take time off.
Through field trips, school family days, popcorn Fridays and programs.
Through working in Henry's class Friday mornings, working at the hospital then working until 1:00am at 84 East.
Through a best friend moving to Minnesota.
Through a new friend moving to Holland.
Through Girls on the Run.
Through tears over speech struggles and grins over smooth speech.
Through an ADHD diagnosis and what that means.

We celebrate.
The new fourth grader.
The new first grader.
The new threeschooler.
Planned out meals that make the weeks run more smoothly.
Meeting Ms. Kristin and what she's done for Abby.
Our family doing this together...and enjoying it.

We thank.
Mrs. Coon
Mrs. Fuentes
Mr. Werley
Dad
Grandma Rita!!!
Jean

This year was different for the Mulders. And awesome.