School Picnic

Today Holli's school had their end of the year picnic. We had a really great time. Drew was able to join us on his lunch break. This is a small school but they have big fun! The kids and I are beat! We've decided to put Holli in public school next year but Dylan will be starting preschool here in the fall. I'm glad we'll get to spend a couple more years with Columbine.


The school principal brought a couple of her horses and took the kids for rides.


A firetruck came and sprayed the kids. This was Holli's favorite part. It's pretty warm outside so the water felt good.


Dylan thought the water was too cold and didn't want to be sprayed. He sure liked being able to be the sprayer!

BMX

One of Holli's favorite activities is to ride her bike. Yesterday we met Drew for a lunch time ride and Holli was introduced to the BMX track. She absolutely loved it. Drew took her back for a 2nd time yesterday evening and we went again after lunch today. Maybe someday she'll race BMX like her Daddy.

Bedrooms

I recently started personalizing the kids bedrooms. Holli wants a pride of lions painted on her wall. We recently introduced her to the book and movie Born Free. She fell in love with Elsa. Grandpa happened to be in Africa when she first saw the movie and she begged me to call him and ask him to bring her a baby lion from Africa. I tried to explain why that was not okay but I don't think she really understands. She'll have to settle for lions painted on her wall for now. I finished the daddy lion this morning.



Dylan wants his room to look like the Bat Cave. Drew is going to build a bunk bed / fort. Once that is done we'll do some more work to make it look like a bat cave.

Pillows and Glasses

Drew was in Moab this weekend with his buddies. Whenever Drew is out of town I like to treat the kids and myself. On Saturday we picked up a birthday cake from the store and had a slumber party in my room. Dylan had to have 6 pillows. Dylan fell asleep early but Holli and I stayed up for a bit and watched Twilight. I know I shouldn't expose her to Twilight but the first movie really isn't scary and she loves it. She knows all about Edward and Jacob (aka Sharkboy).

After Drew returned home on Sunday we went to see Shrek the Final Chapter with some friends. The movie is in 3D and was really cute. After the movie Holli said she had to keep the glasses because she can't see without them. She's still wearing them today.

Ahhhhhmmmmm......

I love having a trampoline! I've wanted one for a long time and was so happy when our new house came with one! When the kids have energy they need to burn it is so nice to have the trampoline available. I can stay in the kitchen and cook dinner or do dishes and watch them at the same time. The other night before bed they were getting some exercise in and then decided it was time to meditate. One of their favorite movies is Ace Venture: When Nature Calls and they love the scene where he is meditating. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhlrighty then.

Best Friends

My parents were so good at having records of our childhood. I've always enjoyed going back and reviewing the audio tapes, videos, photos and anecdotes that they kept as we were growing up. One of my favourites is an audio tape of me when I was about 3. My Dad is interviewing me and one of the questions he asks is who is my best friend. I reply that Rose is my best friend. Rose was our English Bulldog. She passed away when I was 5 and my parents said they thought I was going to have to be admitted to the hospital because I was so upset. To this date my dogs have been some of my best friends.

Dylan is always following our dogs around so today when he was laying with Winnie I asked him who his best friend is. His answer : Winnie! I was so happy! Winnie is such an amazing dog. She's as dumb as a rock but as sweet as chocolate cake. She weighs 120 lbs but is scared of anything that moves. She reminds me of Lambert the Sheepish Lion. This morning the kids and I took Winnie to the farmers market and then for a swim in the river. She loves to swim and never hesitates to jump right in. We've had some very warm days lately so the river is very high and moving pretty swiftly. Poor Winnie was caught off guard. She jumped in and the water was much deeper than she expected. She went completely under and then started to drift away. The kids were in a panic and I was about ready to jump in but then Winnie managed to get herself to the edge and climb to safety. I think she was a bit embarrassed but this didn't stop her from jumping in a few more times. She figured out that if she would just go with the flow she could get out a few yards down stream.

I love having animals around and I'm so glad that my kids get the same joy from animals that I always have.

Public or Private

The end of the school year is almost here and I'm torn about what to do next fall. When we moved to Durango in January we decided to put Holli back in preschool and start Kindergarten over the next year. She was struggling with the work and really was not enjoying school. We enrolled her in a private school that does Preschool thru 8th grade. We have been so happy with this school and Holli loves it. They spend a lot of time outdoors planting, hiking and just learning about the environment. The classes are very small and the teachers all have a close relationship with the students. We just can't decide if we should spend the money and keep her at the private school or have her go to public school. We've heard great things about the public school she would go to and they have many activities that the private school does not offer like music and gym class. If she goes to the public school she's more likely to make friends in our neighbourhood because they'd be going to the same school. As I write this I'm leaning towards public school.

All Natual

Ever since we moved to Durango I've been making an effort to eat non-processed, local food. I recently found flour that comes from a farm that is just a few miles from our house. It's called Blue Horizons Farm. Today, the kids and I made bread using almost all local ingredients. I'm excited to try their pancake mix and other products.