Slip 'n Slide Fun

Nothing welcomes summer like dusting off the Slip 'n Slide for an afternoon of fun. The boys loved the Slip 'n Slide last summer and they have been begging to get it out. Such a simple, and inexpensive activity (if you don't count the millions of dollars spent in constant water flow)!

Before I get to the slippin' and slidin' fun, I have to share Caleb's recent purchase. He has been saving his "Cha-Ching" money for a while now. He didn't have much, only about $6 but that didn't stop him from finding the perfect toy.

Yep, that's a baby pool. 

I tried to tell Caleb that this pool was very tiny and he might not even fit in it, much less be able to swim in it.

Leave it to my almost 8 year old to cram himself into a pool made for a baby.

I usually caption the photos that I post. However, I don't think these next photos need any captions. Just boys having a great time.

I love this photo of Benjamin. He has this tough look on his face and the fake tattoo on his arm just really adds to his toughness.

Summer Bucket List

Some of you might remember last summer when I did "Cool Summer Days" with the boys. It involved this really cute calendar.

Basically I put a small piece of paper inside each ice cream cone. The boys would pull out the paper to discover what the activity was for that day. Super cute idea. The boys loved it. However, it was a lot of work for me. The task of having a DAILY activity all summer long quickly became a stressful chore for this momma. 

I decided to do something a little more relaxed and low key this summer.

Presenting....Our Summer Bucket List Poster

It's a simple white poster board that I decorated with images from PicMonkey.

The bucket hanging next to the poster has slips of paper with different activities written on them. Some of the activities are ones the boys came up with on their own, and some I added. As we do an activity, we write it on our poster board.

Even though I didn't want to have the stress of thinking of an activity to do every single day, I did want there to be an element of surprise on some days. So I made this.

A small banner of buckets with pockets so I can slip a paper in the bucket.

I've decided to just pick a couple of days a week to have a planned activity so the boys still get the thrill of pulling out a slip of paper that reveals the fun for that day. I'll likely use these buckets for planned outings.

I'll also let the boys randomly choose an activity from the bucket from time to time. These activities will most likely be crafts or activities at  home.

As you can see from our Summer Bucket List poster, we have already done a handful of activities. Last week I took the boys to the park for some playtime and a picnic lunch.

Yes they are dressed exactly the same. And yes they both have a mohawk hairdo. No, it was not my idea to make them look like twins. Whenever Benjamin picks out his clothes for the next day, Caleb then chooses a shirt the exact same color (or in this case, the exact same shirt). Benjamin usually bases his hairstyle on whatever Bubba chooses. So that is why they look like twins.

After some playground fun, Caleb wanted to hit up the basketball court.

Like a good little brother, Benjamin would get the runaway balls for Bubba.

 Our summer is in full swing!

Benjamin versus the sprinkler

"I will dominate you sprinkler. You are no match for me!"

"See how I prance around you. You can't get me!"

"I will now attempt to jump over you completely."

"Aaarggg, you squirted me in the eye!"

"You must pay!"

"I shall simply squash you with my foot. You silly sprinkler"

Phone Photo Dump

Since joining the world of modern technology last December (when I finally got a smart phone), I have taken a lot of photos on my phone. I rarely think to post photos from my phone on here but I need to because there are a lot of cute photos that never make it to the blog. So here is a completely random assortment of photos from the last few months.

Sometimes Caleb likes to practice wheelies, and I mean REAL wheelies...without the wheelie bar to catch him. It requires a ridiculous amount of balance in order to maintain a wheelie position without falling back. We stay safe with a helmet on and couch cushions all around.

Daddy decided to run outside in the rain holding Caleb. 

On day Benjamin woke up from his nap, walked over to the couch, and fell right back to sleep. So weird.

The boys on the shaky bridge at the playground. Benjamin was jumping and Caleb was holding on for dear life.

Enjoying a lunch at the park.

Caleb recently got new AFO's and a pair of KAFO's.

This is what the new AFO's did to Caleb's poor ankles the first day he wore them. I felt terrible about it. Obviously, we had to get the AFO's fixed.

Glenn and I in a photo together! That almost never happens.

We were all dressed up for a wedding.

Benjamin still gets out his Halloween costume from time to time.

Benjamin's ensemble of choice one day. Superman socks with mismatched shoes.

My two spikey-haired boys.

Caleb enjoying some pool time at friends house recently.

Benjamin enjoying the water.

Lounging in the sun.

Caleb put tape all over his face. I don't know why.

Caleb wanted to camouflage himself to look like our fence.

And that concludes this session of "phone photo dump".

School Ends, Summer Begins

School is officially out for both boys. Benjamin has been out for about 3 weeks and Caleb finished first grade last week.

I think Benjamin looks a bit more mature now compared to the beginning of the year.

Caleb looks the same, maybe a bit thinner in the face.

This was a bittersweet day for me. Not only was this Caleb's last day of first grade, it was also his last day in public school (in case you didn't know, I'm homeschooling next year). Caleb has been at this school since he was 3 years old. I am confident in my decision to homeschool but there is still some sadness as we close this chapter in our lives.

Caleb's very first day of school, only 3 years old.

So stinkin' cute.

I know that most of you that read this blog because of Caleb. The vast majority of my readers are fellow SB parents and I know that many of you love Caleb and feel like you know him. And you know that it hasn't been an easy year for him at all. He is dealing with some things right now, some significant anxiety issues. Significant enough that it is impacting daily life. I would appreciate prayer for him and prayer for us as we try and figure out the best way to help him. 

Adaptive Sports Extravaganza!

I've said it before, and I'll say it again. We are so blessed to live in an area that offers a variety of adaptive sporting events. There are so  many opportunities that we can't even begin to do them all but we try to hit up as many as we can. Every year we take the boys to a local event that offers a variety of adaptive sports including cycling, water skiing, tennis, archery, etc. That event was this past weekend.

Caleb trying disc golf. He actually enjoyed this quite a bit. We learned that there are quite a few disc golf courses in our area (who knew?).

Benjamin enjoying a little disc golf too!

Now this is just cool. I have never seen anything like it. The entire side of the truck comes out!

Seriously, how cool is that! We so need one of these. I was too scared to ask how much something like this would cost. I imagine it is ridiculous.

He enjoyed sitting behind the wheel. I told him not to honk the horn...what do you think he then did about 15 times in a row? Yep, honked the horn.

While Caleb was trying a little wheelchair tennis, I took Benjamin out to the playground.

Throwing sticks into the lake.

Sticks were flying everywhere.

Yep, that's a pink BB gun. He's actually a pretty good shot.