I'll Fly Away

This week was Vacation Bible School at church, and it was Benton's first year to participate.  We had the CD of songs since January, so the kids have been singing them repeatedly for months.  I volunteered as a crew leader while the kids each participated.  They both had a blast--and I wondered why I always think it is a good idea to be a crew leader of six toddlers when I spend all day with my three toddlers (can I still call Lindsey a toddler?).  The most precious thing was watching Lindsey and Benton sing and dance each night during the big group time at the end of the night.  Lindsey looked so grown up, and Benton ran to me as soon as he saw me and stood by me to sing "I'll Fly Away" and dance like nobody was watching.  Our church does a phenomenal job with children's programs, and I am grateful that my kids love VBS each year.

David has been out of town all week, so we went to stay with Noni Friday night.  Emily and her kids were there too, so there was a lot of swimming and not a lot of sleeping, but the kids loved playing with cousins. 

Also this week (I know, it was a busy week) Lindsey had art camp.  She has had her birthday party at the local art center the past two years, and they do a summer camp for three hours a day for four days.  She did some great paintings and learned new techniques.  We now have two new water colors for our house!

This little ham has the biggest personality in the house.  Anytime she sees a camera (or someone holding up a phone) she starts smiling and saying "CHEESE!"  She keeps us on our toes--all four of us!

Does taking the kids to the pool at the gym count as exercise?

Lindsey had her first tennis lesson this week.  David is thrilled Lindsey has taken up the family sport, and I just loved picking out a cute tennis outfit.  (Side note--I signed up for tennis in college and was disappointed to find out we did not wear real tennis apparel to class.)  Her first lesson went well, and we are hoping it is the start of a lifelong love of the game.

The other big event of the week was Lindsey's first sleepover. The neighborhood dads were discussing the need to let the girls have a slumber party but also the fear that they would drive to pick up a crying child during the night, so we decided to host the neighborhood friends at our house.  That way, no one would have to travel too far in the middle of the night.  The sleepover lasted about 14 hours--the girls got here around 7 and left at 9 the next morning.  We started the night with ice cream sundaes, released some energy with Wii games, then put on pajamas and brushed teeth and settled in for a Strawberry Shortcake movie.  When the movie ended, I tucked the girls in on the air mattress (they insisted on all sleeping together) and I slept in the same room on the couch.  They all slept great until they were awakened early this morning by Benton claiming to protect them from bad guys.  After breakfast and cookie decorating and lots of playing with dolls, Madilyn and Abby Grace headed home.  Our little girl can check another milestore off the maturity list.

 Kate thought she was one of the girls the whole time.  She had Lindsey's bitty baby carrying it around and feeding it, just like the big girls.

 Poor Benton was stuck eating at a table with the dolls!

Just keep swimming!

The big two had swimming lessons this week, and they did well.  I knew Lindsey would be cautious but would mind the teacher, but I was pleasantly surprised that Benton did everything Melissa asked him to as well.  Kate and I spent lots of bonding time in the van waiting for the kids to finish.  Her new tricks this week are giving high fives and open-mouthed kisses.  She also likes to hug her siblings usually, but this morning Benton followed her around asking for a hug and she ran in front of him saying "NO!" in her squeaky voice.  She is our hanful of a child. 

In other news, Lindsey lost tooth number 5 this morning.  She has one permanent tooth coming in, but that means she has four gaping holes in her smile still.

The kids are sick, so it must be a holiday

Memorial Day weekend brought a stomach bug with it to our house.  I'll spare the details, but it hit all five of us in five days, and we were glad to see it leave.  Sadly, David caught it on Memorial Day and was not able to celebrate at his parents' pool with the rest of the family. 
My last day of school was Wednesday, and Kate caught the bug Wednesday during the night, so the first few days of summer for us were not fun.  However, we have bounced back and enjoyed a week of playing with neighborhood friends, painting pictures, going to the gym, swimming lessons, and the slip-n-slide.

Lindsey caught on to the slide quickly, but Benton just runs around on it and occassionally stops to drink the water (much like Shelby does).  Kate simply enjoys sitting beside the slide and watching her siblings.