Summer Vacation Is Here!

So, summer vacation has started and so far, it's been a mix of the good, the bad, and the ugly!

Monday, May 23
We started off the break fairly painlessly.  We played at the school playground for a little while - although it was still pretty muddy outside and the field was a bit soggy.  We had a picnic in the front yard for lunch.  Spencer cracked open a watter bottle, held it up high and said, "This is the life!"  I had a good chuckle at that one.

Tuesday, May 24
It was raining cats and dogs on Tuesday, which prevented us from much outdoor play.  In the morning I needed to go to the dentist, so the kids played at the Padilla's.  After the Padilla's, we stopped at the market, bought snacks and ice cream, then dropped by Domino's Pizza to grab a pizza for lunch.  After lunch we made train cars out of cardboard boxes and art supplies.

Wednesday, May 25
Sadly, I needed to go back to the dentist for a barrage of fillings.  The kids didn't seem to mind though, since they had the pleasure of playing with the Snell family.  After playing at the Snell's, we brought Caylee Snell home for a play date.  Although Sydney suddenly had a rotten attitude, she made a bargain to have Caylee stay for a sleepover.  The kids played in the backyard for hours - at one point getting soaked by the neighbor kids, directly behind us, who sprayed them all down with a garden hose!  The kids used up a good portion of Spencer's water balloon collection during the battle.  The laundry mountain grew profusely that afternoon.

Thursday, May 26
Feeling inspired to get out of the house myself, I loaded up the kids and headed down to Boulder to meet Shane for lunch.  We dined at "the Toad," a pub popular with Shane's crowd at work.  The kids chowed down on cheesy fries and stared at the plate of nachos we ordered for them with an air of disgust - they went mostly untouched.  During lunch I wondered out loud why I had thought it might be a good idea to take the kids out when they often seem to be ungrateful for special treats.  (I think it's possible they are quite spoiled.)  After lunch, we stopped at Sandstone Park in Longmont to play for a while.  Ryan displayed some skill with a soccer ball that I wasn't aware he possessed!  After the park we came home for a quick rest before the day continued.  Penny came over in the afternoon.  She and I ran to the market for groceries, Sydney came along and was very sweet.  We returned to the house to hammer out two gallons of butter-cream frosting and two batches of fondant that Penny would be using to decorate a graduation cake for a friend.

Friday, May 27
I endeavored to take the kids out to blow the stink off on Friday.  We went shopping in the morning and then stopped at Roxbury Park on the way home.  After nap-time we headed to Longmont for a sleepover at the hotel.  The kids went swimming in the pool at the hotel and ate dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings - a special treat selected by Shane (just not something I enjoy!)

Saturday, May 28
We had breakfast in the cafe at the hotel - the boys were excited to see Mrs. Karen.  My boys have always loved on Karen and she seems to really love them back.  Our morning plans almost went off without a hitch, until I realized that I had failed to pack any shoes for the day other than the boots I had worn for work - ugh.  Instead of wasting the same money on gas to drive home and back south, we stopped and bought flip-flops at Sears in the mall - which is almost entirely dead at this point.  There are hardly any stores left - only a few of the major chains and a couple of hodge-podge stores being run by local merchants.  We finally headed south to the Butterfly Pavillion to redeem our Groupon for an annual pass!  I discovered that the deal was one of my better bargains lately - it was less for the pass than it would have cost for a single visit normally!  The kids had a good time checking things out.  Syd, Spence and I all held Rosie, the tarantula - a first for all of us, except Syd.  Ryan watched with a look of fear on his face!  The kids left disgruntled about the visit because we hadn't brought any change to use in the penny presses - which we didn't know were there!  We then headed down to Grandma Maggi's for a surprise visit.  We ended up staying all evening, grilling steaks as a birthday/mother's day treat for Maggi.  We played games and the kids ran themselves ragged in the backyard.  It was one of the funnest visits we've ever had - everyone seemed to be in good spirits and the fighting was minimal (which is a great feat!)  We ended up getting home well after midnight.  I'm not sure if the kids slept in this morning - all I know is that I was too tired to notice anything!