June: Camp Erwin Post 1 - Playtime, Goats & Rough Riders Baseball

Almost every summer, we go to Camp Erwin. Camp Erwin is just what we've dubbed a long summer trip to Sanger, Aubrey & Lewisville to see our families! Sometimes, I've taken the kids and gone while Vic stays to work and sometimes, we all go as a family! This year, we made it our family vacation, so we all went! I'll try to remember things and document by pictures...

We arrived Wednesday evening and of course, the kids immediately pull out all of Grandma's toys to play with. There is something so fun about knowing you will get to play with certain toys when you go somewhere. They pulled out these radio headphones, wooden buildings, a castle, a farm set, stuffed animals, rocking horses, and anything else they could find! And, this is pretty much how their first evening and the following morning went! 

 

I don't have photos, but I'm guessing that we spent the day playing and relaxing! It was a Thursday and I know most people were working. However, it looks like we also played outside with the goats and fed some baby goats too!

 On Friday, the 30th of June, the men spent the morning working on the saddle shop. They worked until it got hot and then we rested and waited for GG to come babysit the girls, while the rest of us went to the Frisco Rough Riders Baseball Game!

Daddy had gotten special tickets for a First Responders Night at the Rough Riders game. It was tickets and All You Can Eat Hot Dogs! Sign me up! Atticus had just finished his first season of T-Ball and was excited to go to the game. It was such a great night! We got there and the weather was great. The ballpark is really nice and the entire thing was so family friendly. If we lived in Frisco, I think this would be a constant fun night out for us. We got there, got our souvenir baseballs (If you know Atticus, you know he loves a good souvenir or freebie!). Then, of course, I had to take him to the sports shop to get him a t-shirt, cap, eye black and baseball cards (too bad those weren't free!)! We got our food, sat down and enjoyed the night. I know we lost the game, but it was such a fun evening! And, it is always fun to have some one-on-one time with one of our kids. They know it's special and it's special for Vic and I as well. Mom, Daddy, Vic, Atticus, Ana, Charley, Molly, Kirk, Rowdy & I all attended the game.

 I do not remember who this player is, but Atticus got his baseball signed by him!

 And, Atticus was throwing his peanut shells on the ground. He thinks it is so fun to do things like this!

 More freebie time! They had a spin-a-wheel for bags and towels and Rough Riders treats!

 He was having the best time!

 At one point, we checked out the kids playground area - it was awesome!

 And, I have to document the picture above. Atticus really wanted to be on the big screen on the field, so when I saw this dog being videoed, I sent him over there. While he and I did not see him on the screen, our family did! And, he will still reference this as "a time he was on the big screen at a game"! ha!

 My little baseball fan!

 After the game, everyone could run out on the field and then watch fireworks. While you could only be in the outfield, it was still fun to run and chase Atticus. He wanted to run everywhere! Vic, Atticus and I went out there and then camped out on the ground and watched the fireworks while Mom & Dad watched from the stands. Such a fun, special night!

Our 4th Week of Summer

Monday:
We had swim lessons and the kids did great! Greer & Ellie's mom, Stacy, and I decided to put them all together in hopes they would encourage one another and put some peer pressure on each other to learn to swim. The first day our kids did great! And, then we came home and watched a movie in our tents, with our Beanie Boo animals.

 And, because Atticus is really into flags and the 4th of July, he decided we needed to make an England flag. So, we did.

 Every single night, this girl wants in her daddy's lap to read. She will sit in mine, but she will sit and look through a book in Vic's much longer. So sweet!

Tuesday:
We had gymnastics and then swim lessons. Grace had to walk on the balance beam and she was not a fan. She would NOT let go of her teacher and I could tell, from far away, that she was not into that beam. And Every found a chair and was in and out of it over and over. And, here she is trying to pull her little self up, but that baby belly just makes it tough!

Wednesday:
First, we played and read books at home. Then, we went to Atticus' favorite place: The Brazos Valley Museum of Natural History. This place consists of two rooms but he loves it. We went through the room with the snakes, lizards, turtles and animals that were stuffed (but previously alive). Then, we went through the museum part. There were the regular displays of some animals, dinosaurs and the stagecoach and pioneer day corner. Atticus specifically brought his dinosaur book so we could look up those dinosaur fossils in his book. Oh and Grace brought some of their beanie boo animals in her flower girl basket too. And, when we got to the stagecoach section and all of the flags, Atticus said "the side is my favorite because I love the red, white and blue". In case you didn't know, he is really into the 4th of July and wars and soldiers. So, when he saw the old rifles and pistols and flags, he decided it was his favorite. Anyways, it was always fun. However, I really want to take Atticus back one day to look at every little detail. He just loves it! After that, we went to swim lessons for another great day of swimming!

 Last summer, I bought Grace this cupcake game and still today, it is one of her favorites. She finds so many ways to play with these little cupcakes and the cards and the princesses that match them and somehow, we haven't lost a piece yet!

 And, we have a long way to go to get to 100 books read, so Atticus decided to read one to me while I cleaned the kitchen.

 We finally made it to the museum.

 I let Everly down and she immediately went to touch the beaver...next to the sign that said "do not touch." Back into my arms she went.

 Grace would not go near this bear, but Everly had no problem with him.

 There was a temporary exhibit about housing and items in houses through the ages. They look at this TV and they tell me "this is like the TV on Tom & Jerry!". Remember how they are obsessed with Tom & Jerry right now?

 Later in the afternoon, after swim lessons, the kids are playing. In this corner of the playroom, Grae will play with her dollhouses and treehouse and little figures for hours. Well, Everly really likes to play too...as in just mess up every setup and get in the middle of toys. Grace is really not liking this stage of Everly.

 Everly also found this crown and I put it on her and she wore it around the house for a long time. I don't know if she knew it was there the whole time or not, but this girl does like accessories (like her sunglasses), so maybe she wanted it on her head!

 And later that evening, the kids played outside with friends. Grace came in a few different times to bring me teeny tiny flowers. She LOVES to pick flowers for me and I think it is the sweetest thing. So, we gathered them all together and put them into a medicine dispenser cup and she was so proud. 

Thursday:
First, we went to the library to return and check out some new books. And, then we went to swim lessons again. On this day, after only 4 days of swim lessons, Atticus was jumping in the pool by himself and swimming across the pool by kicking and scooping. He was having some trouble remembering to get big breaths when he would pull his head up, but I was so proud that he was so confident to swim!! And, he even went down the slide 3 times at the end. He also came home and proudly asked me if I "heard him encourage Ellie to slide down the slide too?". We have talked a lot about encouraging one another during lessons this week because Grace and Greer are still pretty cautious. So, I thought it was great that he was intently trying to encourage. And Grace was doing great too, but she's still young and still cautious. But, she was putting her face into the water over and over (which she did NOT do before this week) and she just talks and talks about how she loves to swim. So, this was a good end to our first week!

 These four! Ellie & Greer with them.

 They were fighting, so I made them snuggle up next to each other for punishment. However, I think Grace was perfectly happy snuggling. So much for punishment.

Friday:
I had plans to take the kids to a park in Brenham, have a picnic, and go to the creamery for some Blue Bell ice cream. But, I never told them my plans. And when Friday morning came, I decided a day at home sounded much more fun! So, we did a lot of playing and that was it!

 I attempted french braids on Grace again on this day. Yikes; it is hard. Even if I get one side looking good, I can never replicate it on the other side. Anyways, when she asked me for these braids, she asked for "friendship braids" instead of french braids.

We played his current favorite game, Animal Tracks.

 And, here, Grace is looking at a chatbook (which consists of instagram pictures that automatically get put into books and shipped every time one fills up). Atticus became really interested in looking at these during this week. He would go to the shelf and ask me to pick a year and he would choose a book and we would go through it, page by page. Then, when they got suitcases to "pack for their field trips", they had to carefully choose which chatbook to include.

 Everly loves playing in the play kitchen right now. She's so cute when she eats the food and drinks from the cups and stirs things. So, of course, I have to dress her up!

Also, that afternoon, we went into her room and read books on her bench. At one point, she grunts and grunts until I realize she wants her baby out of her bed. I have put the babies in her bed since Christmas and we will play with babies sometimes with the big kids. But, I don't think I realized how much she loved this baby, at least on this day. She put her on the bench next to her and then picked her up to hug her and kiss her and then lay her down and then hand her to me and then ask for her back over and over. Then, later, she pushed her in the grocery cart and would stop and take her out and then put her back in. It was super cute. Also, this is the face she makes right now  - this little "o".

 OH! And we are walking about 7-10 steps at a time now. She's getting better and better.

 This is her kissing her baby...open mouth kisses of course!

Saturday: 
On this day, we went to lunch at Kreuz Market (BBQ) in Bryan because the Mariott's were driving thru! Russell, Sarah, Austin & Aubrey (who know live in Tennessee) were driving through after visiting family in Texas and had talked to our group of friends from OSLC to see who could meet for lunch. So, the Williams, Rolls, Langfords, Tatums and us met them for lunch. While we would have LOVED to visit longer, it was so so good to see them and see how much Aubrey and Austin have grown! Atticus and Austin picked right back up where they left off a year and a half ago and just talked and colored and laughed at the table the entire time, along with Aubrey and Grace. Everly was an angel as always, and it was so very nice to not only see the Mariotts, but also our other OSLC friends. Later that afternoon, I took the big kids to a playdate with Dani and loved an adult visit with Lindsay.

 Aubrey & Austin with the kids

Sunday:
Well, although we shouldn't have, we skipped church on Sunday and had a day at home to sleep in, play, swim outside, and catchup on American Ninja Warrior and Spartan Challenge. We are huge fans of those shows--especially Atticus!

 

Sunscreen on and ready to swim!