June 2015

It’s so cool / in my pool
It finally got warm enough to start using the pool a lot in June, so in the first two weeks, we had a Vilma & Alana & families end-of-school pool playdate, the first family pool weekend, and a pool playdate with the neighbors (Janeen and sons Greyson and Anders). I’m finally figuring out how to do it right, w/r/t timing, towels, a pitcher of water & some glasses outside, etc. And with Lukas in a floaty suit, I don’t have to hold him in my arms the entire time he’s in the water — yay! Often, after a long hot day, I’d get the kids in the pool in the late afternoon (sometimes after their dinner); the shadow of the house shades the pool at that hour, so no sunscreen is necessary, and not only does the water calm both of them down, but also, in this drought, it suffices for a bath/shower. 

Family game night ahoy
For no real reason, I decided we needed classic editions of Clue and Monopoly, so we got them, and took a chance on playing Monopoly as a family … and it actually worked! Even Lukas held his own, although he more or less always thought it was his turn, and Annika became incensed anytime anyone else gained money or property … lol. Of course it takes forever, so we quit after an hour or so and came back to it another day, and left it set up on the dining table for weeks (until we had houseguests and had to take it down so we could feed them properly). Feels like the start of a new era! 

Annika’s world
—The last week of school: School runs into June here, and this last week was really pretty sad for us — Annika hated the thought of not being in Mrs. Casey’s class anymore, plus knowing Vilma won’t be there next year … :-(  There were actual tears the last day. First time I’ve ever seen (or done) anything like that!
—Camp Mom: Annika decided she didn’t want to do any camps this year — in her words, she wanted to “take a break” — so we scheduled nothing, but made a list of fun and/or educational things to do (e.g. go to Chuck E Cheese, get a library card, learn to tie her own shoes, have a picnic, work in the 3rd grade notebook, bake, etc.), and started in on them right away. Of course she played a lot of Club Penguin, but it was pretty well balanced with the other stuff — and she is hugely proud of having her own library card. Takes it very, very seriously; borrows all the Rainbow Magic Fairies books (there are apparently three million titles); always remembers to get a book or two for Lukas. So cute!
—The Last Dance Recital: Annika still insists she doesn’t want to do dance this next year, which means 2015 is her last recital. She loved her costume, she loved only doing ballet (no tap), and she really enjoyed being onstage (and Lukas LOVED the show — I mean it, I doubt there’s a dance parent in the whole audience who was more into it). But when it was over, she was as firm in her convictions as ever, so I guess that’s where we’ll leave it for now. 

Lukas Land
—Potty trained??: The kid had been keeping dry during the day and overnight (mostly) so we made the leap (hoping not to have to take diapers with us to Hawaii) — and it’s early yet, but it looks like we may have VICTORY!!! Woooooooooooo!!!!
—Lukas’s first invited party: He’s used to being dragged along to Annika’s parties and playdates, or included as her plus-one, but this month, Lukas got his first very own party invitation: to our young neighbor Anders’s superhero party! He did great, and wore the party-favor superhero mask for three solid days (most of the kids took theirs off within about 15 minutes).
—Swimming: Lukas finally earned his first ribbon at AVAC! He’s not quite as achievement-oriented as Annika, but BOY was he proud of himself for getting his O-Fish-al Jellyfish ribbon. A big day for the little swimmer! 

Blue Hawaiian
The big event of the month — nay, the whole summer! — was our almost-two-week trip to “our place” in Hawaii (the condos near Waikoloa, on the Kohala Coast of the Big Island). This time, we didn’t muck it up with long drives or Hilo or luaus or any of that stuff — we stuck extremely close to home, packing a cooler, having breakfast on the lanai, and hitting the beach club early every single day of our stay — which made for a very mellow, actually-at-times-relaxing vacation. Highlights included:
—Lukas learns to swim for real: Maybe it was the buoyancy of the ocean, or the amount of time we spent in the water, or all those months of swim lessons, but he finally really got it, and spent all his time either playing “chase race” with me or swimming in a triangle between me, R., and Annika.
—Annika and Daddy snorkeling: Those two booked some serious time in their snorkel gear, going way out past the rocks, even seeing a shark just past the reef! Annika continued to work on her (excellent) free-diving in the channels, and is excited to learn scuba or snuba as soon as she’s allowed.
—Annika and I doing water sports: I rented a SUP board one day, took it for a lap or two, then picked up Annika as my passenger and paddled us around the bay. It was awesome!! Another day, I rented a two-seater kayak, and we paddled together almost as far out as she and R. go snorkeling — a really fun change of pace for us both, and I was extra glad to be in such good shape (that stuff is hard work!).
—Lukas in restaurants: Parents of the Year, here, we let Lukas have his favorite meal every time we went to a restaurant … and by the end, he was ordering "French fries, ketchup, and water” like a pro. Ha! 

The Quotable Lukas
—“Hey Mr Chivers - I'm wearin underwear!” Imparting important facts to our contractor, who had come to check on the progress of the new downstairs shower.
—Annika, seeing Lukas with hands behind his back: “Hey Lukas, whatcha got there?” Lukas: “My CROTCH!” he roars as he jumps 180 degrees, pointing to his butt and collapsing in giggles.
—“honeypickle" = Popsicle
—“I was SO gone!" What he told his teacher, Miss Penny, re: having been on vacation