Ooh, I forgot what only one kid at home was like!

Well, today was the big day. After a night of no sleep for me because of the crying (me, not her) and constant sneaking into her room to look at her, Lucy bounded out of bed and got ready in record time.



Tate's so excited because he found out two of his friends are in his class, so he was also chomping at the bit to leave the house.



Right away, Lucy picked out a new friend in line. I'm glad because she didn't know a soul in that class before today. At this point in the morning, I'm following them with sunglasses on and a wad of Kleenex in my hand.



He's thrilled. I'm choking back tears.



Oh, sob, I can do this.



Miles was ticked to not be dropped off, but I promised big fun today, so he left with minimal screaming.



As we got on our way, he cheered me up and kept asking silly questions in the car. We ate our lunch (in his new lunch box) in the van while waiting for the farmer's market to open, but I was still missing my big kids.



By 2:30 today, I was singing a different tune. In only 5 short hours, I went to the doctor, cleaned out the car, hit the farmer's market, had a picnic with Miles, scrubbed the front porch, pulled dead flowers out of 18 pots and scrubbed them clean, planted mums, cleaned the house, did laundry, and made chocolate chip cookies. I am a machine! By the time I picked them up, I was mentally rested (thanks for napping, Miles), the house was in order, and they were thrilled to see me again. We walked home, had a snack and now they can play because everything else is done. This is awesome!
Oh, and they both had a great day, love their teachers, and made new friends. Oh the difference a day can make.

One!

Oh, I really don't like the first day of school. I like the first day of summer, and I wish they could stay home forever. Nobody asked me though, so tomorrow they go back. We had one last trip to the beach with friends. Lots of little fishies, tiny crabs, and being kids.





(Miley with his girlfriend, Lizzie. The child is obsessed with her. He never forgets to say "thank you for Lizzie" in his prayers. It's hilarious.)



Lucy's never going to be as innocent as she is right now. I've been crying for two days now. I can't do this two more times!

Two!

I know this is a lousy picture, but it's all we could get in the dark. For the last full night of Summer Vacation, we decided to camp out! Because the forecast suddenly calls for rain tonight (of course), we're doing it inside the living room. After a nice FHE lesson having to do with being good examples at school, we rounded out the entertainment with some scary stories, primary songs, lots of extra drinks of water, and hugs. The kids are tucked snug into their tent, but they have yet to show any sign of falling asleep. I may end up sleeping at the door of the tent after all.

Two and a half!

Originally, I was going to leave out Sunday from our countdown of fun in order that we might rest from the excitement. I forgot who I live with.



Sweet sweet little Miles. The little booger got up at 5:30, snuck downstairs, pushed a chair up to the counter, climbed up to the upper cabinets and fished around in the back until he found Lucy's Chocolate Pills. Every breakfast and dinner, he sees her take these and I guess he thought he really needed some too. The chocolate pills are really Ex-lax and he ate them ALL. I just cherish any and all reasons to call poison control on a Sunday morning, so I got to spend some time with them on the phone. He'll live, but today's not going to be much fun in the end. (he he he)

Three!

After convincing Jake that his children had forgotten what he looked like, we dragged him along with us on our last really big adventure of the summer. We traveled (and I do mean traveled) to the center of New Jersey to spend the day at the Land of Make Believe. Part carnival, part waterpark, throw in a small petting zoo, a train, and a creepy Santa House, and it was a full day of fun.



Lucy was spouting memorable quotes all day. "This really is the land of make believe!" "This is the best day of my whole life!" "Landon, this is so much fun, I could just die!"



After waiting for just a few moments, we got a chance to ride a little train (powered by an old tractor engine) around the whole park to check out all the activities. We were all very excited to be on the train.



Some were more excited than others...



but nobody enjoyed it more than Miles. He could hardly contain himself when the old conductor let him touch the engine and then pull the whistle afterwards!



Some of the rides were scarier than others. Lucy was all smiles until this thing actually started. I was just sure she was going to vomit or wet her pants, but she managed to hold it together. I wish I had a photo of her face during the falling, but I was laughing too hard to focus.



It took all of us collectively to convince Tate to go on this, but he finally came up with enough bravery to get on. Opening his eyes was a little too much to ask though. Afterwards, I asked him if he had fun. "Oh yeah!" "Do you want to ride again?" "No!"





One thing I love about this place, is Miles was big enough to ride almost everything. He had a blast.



For a breather, we sat down to watch a play, but soon found out that the cast consisted of audience members. They latched onto Jake right away and made him the king, while Lucy got to be a princess. I swear, those two should just quit their day jobs and become actors.



While I didn't get any pictures of the water part (for fear of ruining the camera), we spent the entire second half of the day swimming, sliding, lazing down the river, and eating ice cream. We all had so much fun, smelled really bad, needed a nap, and enjoyed a day with Dad and friends.

Four!

Realizing that Lucy's going-to-the-zoo days were numbered because of school, we packed a pitiful lunch, strapped on our running shoes, and headed to the Bronx Zoo.



It was made much more fun by the sheer number of friends involved and the nice cool breeze that came and went.
We braved the butterfly house after strict instructions not to touch the bugs. This may very well have been the hardest thing Miles has ever been asked to do.



Stella did a good job not freaking out when this little guy landed on her arm and wouldn't leave, but Miles was trembling with the effort of not grabbing it.
Lucy was told that if they land on you, it was ok, so she spent the entire time making butterfly noises (?) and trying to convince them she was a flower. Sadly, none of the butterflies fell for it, but not for lack of trying.



Tate was mighty impressed when one landed in the little fish pond and all the fish started fighting to be the one to snag it from the surface. The other kids were kind of horrified.



My particular favorite of all the butterflies was the "big smelly kid" one. Very cool.



I think the zoo needs stricter rules about keeping the wild smelly animals inside the cages.



We saw lots of animals, had tons of fun, and got more exercise than we wanted. The kids saw amazing things, but the moms were mostly given this view:

Five!

Well, I was stretching it today to call this outing a "fun adventure", but with no cavities and all the goodies they got to take home, it wasn't the worst thing we've ever done.



Miles did great even if it was his first time in the chair. I think that may have something to do with the television positioned directly overhead. The dentist was amazed until I told him we don't have t.v.



We also went to the school to meet Lucy's teacher and see her new classroom. Sob. sniff. I'm okay. Tate got a look at his room, but his teacher wasn't around.
We headed over to our snow sliding park to roll down the hill before dinner. Nothing gets them ready to eat like throwing up after turning over and over and over.








I'm getting a head start on next year's plaque by giving them all lollipops at the park.

Six!

What could three unruly kids like more than climbing all over expensive, dangerous, loud, usually off-limits toys? Nothing!



Day six in our count-down to school featured a trip to Darien to climb all over cars/trucks in the library parking lot. Don't worry, everyone's doing it! (Can't wait 'til a teenager uses that excuse on me.)
Tate's biggest thrill was talking like a monster into the speaker in the cop car.



Miles was overcome by emotion while "driving" the dump truck.



And sweet Lucy was moved to tears of joy when she discovered the free ice-cream being given away by the ice-cream truck guy.





They had tons of fun and I only lost two of them. After that, we stuck together much more closely.



(Lucy wants to add this photo to showcase her braids.)

This is definitely going on our list of things to do next year.

We spent the afternoon dozing, drawing, and rewiring the vacuum cord. I also made a wreath that Lucy proclaimed "really ugly".
We spent the last hour before dinner at the playground, where I let Tate loose with the camera.


























Not bad!