This just may have been the busiest summer we have ever had. On top of our already extensive therapy schedule, we had 3 kids partake in summer school plus numerous activities. I definitely over scheduled us as we were constantly on the go chauffeuring to and fro. But the kids enjoyed all the fun activities and many wonderful memories were made throughout the summer.
Our summer activities kicked off in May with adaptive T-ball for Cole and Aria. They both enjoyed T-ball, although Aria was much more interested in playing catch than the game. Cole buddied up with Popi Dave again this year and I was Aria's helper. Cole's been playing since he was a wee little tyke while this was Aria's 2nd year. The biggest game changer this year was having Aria's new one-arm drive wheel chair to run the bases instead of using her little Bella's Bumba chair. It was definitely much easier to navigate the dirt field with the bigger wheels.
Cole's become quite the slugger knocking the ball out of the park. If the ball comes his way in the field, he'll quickly scoop it up and kindly bring it right over to Aria so that she can throw it. He's such a great big brother!
Aria is still working on understanding the concept of batting, but she sure has throwing down pat! That girl has got a wild pitching arm. The ball is still a bit big for her to grab one handed, but she was sure determined to get ahold of it and toss it as far as possible. Both Cole and Aria had a great season of T-ball and are looking forward to playing again next year.
Owen signed up for his obligatory 2 weeks of sailing on White Bear Lake. He wasn't too excited as the sailing camp he had loved on Pleasant Lake was unfortunately no longer running. But he had to do at least one activity this summer, so sailing it was. He shocked us when the 2 week session ended and he asked to sign up again. This continued every 2 weeks and by the end of the summer, he had sailed for a total of 8 weeks! He loved his time on the lake. In true Owen fashion, he wore a long sleeve hoodie every day, even when it was 90 degrees outside.
The weather definitely makes sailing unpredictable. Some days there'd be zero wind or poor air quality thanks to the fires in Canada which meant a day off the lake. While other days were quite breezy, making it quite the adventure.
Rose was curious what all the hype was about and decided to add sailing to her repertoire too. Her sail boat is much smaller than Owen's. It's pretty darling seeing all the little boats bopping around on the lake. She spent 2 weeks on the water and ended up falling in love with sailing. She's since declared a major career change and wants to be a sailing instructor when she grows up.
Swimming lessons at Foss Swim School kept Cole, Rose and Kate quite busy. Cole spent 4 weeks swimming 4 days a week. He hadn't taken lessons for years so it was time to get back at it. His teacher was amazing with him. By the end of the session, he was even swimming short distances independently. We are so proud of his progress!
Rose's and Kate's swim sessions were twice a week for 4 weeks. Rose has been swimming independently for quite some time and is now working hard on improving her techniques. This session, she mastered the front crawl, back stroke and breast stroke. She is quite the little fish when it comes to water! She just has one skill left to perfect and she'll officially be a 'Learn to Swim' graduate.
Kate is a natural when it comes to the water. She mastered all the skills required in her class and is now ready to move onto the more difficult techniques next session. Way to go, Kate!
Owen, Rose and Kate spent many a day on the golf course this summer. They all took lessons at our local golf club and worked hard to improve their golf skills. Owen was the happy recipient of a set of new clubs which just so happened to be his favorite color - orange. With his new clubs in tow, he set a record for himself - a 212 yard drive!
Rose and Kate are Shane's go-to golf buddies. It seems like they are always headed off to the course for a tee time. Rose has really improved her game and even out-golfed our neighbor, who may have been a tad bit embarrassed to have been out-played by an 8 year old.
Rose and Kate decided their schedules weren't busy enough and insisted on adding gymnastics to their summer calendar. They were in the same class this year which definitely added a dose of silliness to their moods. They jumped, tumbled, balanced, and did a fair amount of crashing and giggling.
Rose and Kate danced with the Grupo Danzas Colombianas MN throughout the year. They learned the choreography to both Encanto and Sobate el Coco. They performed at several festivals and celebrations and finished up their year with an amazing performance in Richfield. It was so fun watching them! Unfortunately, they both decided to hang up their dance shoes to instead focus on other activities next year.
While the summer was packed full of organized activities, we did manage to sneak in some of our favorite summertime things. We set up our kiddie pool again this year, and we all had a blast splashing, floating and cooling off from the hot summer heat.
No comments:
Post a Comment