A year ago we were putting the house on the market, Kent was in Kentucky and our life was bustling. My kids finished school at the end of June and we had 7 short weeks of summer vacation which included a move to Kentucky.
Today I find myself at the end of a fantastic school year and like whiplash I can't seem to figure out how the year passed so fast.
Chris and Megan made the move to middle school this year and we all spent more then a few days worried about the transition, it went so smoothly I can't say why we worried at all. Middle school agreed with both of them and their report cards showed it as they both received their best grades ever. The time change for them was excellent as well! They enjoyed sleeping in till 7:30 every day! Middle school doesn't start until 9:05. We shared casual breakfasts, finished homework together and sauntered out the door any time between 8:35 and 8:50. It was fantastic. Neither of them played a sport this year but Megan joined the art club and Chris joined the science club, which they both seemed to enjoy. Homework for both of them was almost non-existent and they also enjoyed casual evenings staying out late hanging out with their friends! Again, It was fantastic! Chris improved his skateboarding skills, took up paintball and enjoyed scouting and young men events. Megan enjoyed make
jewelry, playing with kids in the neighborhood and activity days, she also started attending Young Women's once a month to prepare for girl's camp!
Allison and Joe attended school together and both had a great year as well. Allison began playing the violin, became an avid reader and participated in gummy bear club. She has a wonderful friend in our neighborhood who also goes to church with us and that has been her favorite part of our move. Joe started the year behind and a little rambunctious. He quickly assimilated to our new schedule and caught up in his reading and math by the end of the year. I am so proud of the extra effort he put in to read and practice math so he could catch up here. He is quite the ladies man and has accumulated 5 friends that are girls which makes us all giggle. I am sure he would also have friends that were boys if we had any in the neighborhood that were his age. He finally learned to ride his bike and he loves it. He also has become quite attached to Lucky our beagle he got for his birthday last year.
Allison and Joe's schedule was a little harder for me to adjust to as they left for school often in the dark. We really had a tough time getting out the door in the morning. I often said hi to the moon or cursed it for still being up there! Now in the spring it is a distant memory and I am finding it much easier to get out in the morning. The afternoon was fabulous though as we had 2 hours together everyday before Kent and the big kids got home. That's when Allison's reading took off. She read all of Harry Potter(7books), Percy Jackson(5 books as well as the 3 spin offs)and anything else she could get her hands on!
School ends tomorrow. I am planning out our summer reading list and activities. I am getting ready for days filled with kids, friends and heat. Joe is signed up for swimming lessons. We bought a pass to the city pools. Chris is going to scout camp and Megan is going to girls camp. Allison has a stack of 5 books with her name on it. We were hoping to make it back to MA for a week but it just doesn't look like it's going to happen this summer, definitely next year though! Before you know it , it will be the middle of August and I will be marching them all back to school and I'm sure I'll be asking again,
Where has the time gone?
Megan got to go to Girls Camp which was a surprise as she didn't turn 12 until August! She had a blast and can't wait to go again next year!
Against my will Joe spent a lot of the summer doing this! We would find him all over the house playing video games. This is a picture of him curled up in a corner in the girls room!
Towards the end of summer Kent took a week off and we had a few adventures, I managed to forget my camera most of the time! We went to King's Island which is a amusement park in Cinncinatti. The kids loved this place though many of the rides they went on caused me to think I may never bring them back! : )
We also took a trip to Berea, Kentucky which is the Arts and Crafts district. We enjoyed exploring all the different shops filled with sulptures, arts and crafts.
We kept a morning schedule this summer which included getting dressed, picking up bedrooms and having breakfast by 9:00 then reading , weed picking and 4 trips around the circle on bicycles. It kept us going in the morning, kept our house clean and I didn't feel bad when they watch TV or played video games because all of our "have to's" were already done!