Day 181: Chefs-in-Training

June 30

I was making bread, and Vicki and her friend Shelbie asked if they could help.  They did a fabulous job rolling the dough out and shaping it into loaves, and got to enjoy the fruit of their labor hot from the oven after it finished rising (which took waaaay to long for their tastes) and baking.

Day 180: Lexi's Turn

June 29

Vicki's Girl Scout troop bridged from Juniors to Cadettes last month, and today it was Lexi's turn to bridge from Brownies to Juniors.  Of all the days for us to forget her uniform, it would have to have been today!  But she's leaving the brown behind and moving on to Girl Scout green!  Yay, Lexi!

Day 179: Must Be Summer

June 28

Because the swimsuits are back in the hall every day, hanging out to dry after swimming lessons.

Day 178: The Happy Volunteer

June 27

Because she'll be starting 6th grade in the fall, Vicki is old enough to volunteer with the library's summer reading program.  Each week she spends two hours stamping reading logs and helping kids choose prizes.  As an added bonus (as if the coolness of being a volunteer wasn't enough) she got her t-shirt early - it's the final prize in the game, so her sisters don't have theirs yet - and she gets a real, official nametag.

Day 177: The Swing

June 26

How do you like to go up in a swing,

   Up in the air so blue?

Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing

   Ever a child can do!

Up in the air and over the wall,

   Till I can see so wide,

Rivers and trees and cattle and all

   Over the countryside—

Till I look down on the garden green,

   Down on the roof so brown—

Up in the air I go flying again,

   Up in the air and down!

-Robert Louis Stevenson, A Child's Garden of Verses

Day 176: Please Buy Our Stuff!

June 25

Every year all the 6th graders in Oregon go to Outdoor School.  However, funding is waaaay down (read: nonexistent) for this anymore, so we've started work already to raise money so Vicki and her friends can have this fabulous opportunity next year.  We've set up tables at all kinds of school events, placed a donation jar in our local Burgerville, held a carwash, and each weekend all summer long we have a booth at the local Farmer's Market.  Vicki and I took a turn at the booth this weekend, and her friend Ali and her mom showed up to teach us how to make the bracelets we're selling so Vicki can take custom orders.  Kudos to all these kids who are working so hard to make this happen!

Day 175: Every Chance She Gets

June 24

(even though it makes her carsick)

Day 174: Another Dress Rehearsal

June 23

This time it's Ellie's turn.  She's third from the left.

Day 173: ¿Por Que No?

June 22

Another great local restaurant.  Mexican food is generally hit or miss for me, and this was definitely a hit.  I meant to take a picture of the food before we ate, but we chowed down too quickly and I didn't remember until we were done!

Day 172: Dress Rehearsal

June 21

Tonight was Lexi's dance recital.  No photography is allowed at the recital, but this afternoon was the dress rehearsal, and we were free to snap and record away.  Lexi's on the far right, waiting for her teacher to make sure that all the girls are in the right places before the music starts.  Lexi did a fabulous job and absolutely LOVED being in the limelight (no surprise there!)

Day 171: Jump!

June 20

Today I had lots of extra kids at my house, and my friend Shannon came over with some jump ropes.  This is Ellie's BFF Katie, trying her hardest to jump that rope.

Day 170: Happy Father's Day!

June 19

Every year for the past seven years we've sent Chris on a treasure hunt for his birthday presents.  We were camping on his birthday this year, and I wasn't organized enough to put together a treasure hunt while we were gone, so we did it for Father's Day instead.  Here he's reading one of the clues, while the girls bounce up and down in anticipation of the next one.

Day 169: Happy Anniversary! (even if it was yesterday)

June 18

Yesterday was our 12th anniversary, so we celebrated tonight with a movie (Super 8 was lots of fun - it had a very Goonies feel to it) and Jamba Juice.

Day 168: Garden Art

June 17

Lexi's artwork was chosen from among all her classmates to be painted on a board outside the school garden!

Today was the last day of school.  It's official: I now have a 6th grader, a 4th grader, and a kindergartner.  Crazy.

Day 167: Elementary School No More

June 16

Middle School, here she comes!

Day 166: Feathers

June 15

I made the mistake of letting Vicki and Lexi do a craft project with these feathers the other day, and I guess a ziplock bag on the kitchen counter wasn't put away enough, because Ellie and her friend found them and had a glorious 10 minutes decorating the living room with them before I discovered what was going on.

Day 165: Hidden

June 14

Tall grass is unavoidable when you're five.

Day 164: Why Are You Taking My Picture?

June 13

Because it's 9:00 at night and I just remember I haven't taken one yet.  Thanks, Hon.

Day 163: Camp Yamhill, We Love You!

June 12

My Brownies, on our way out of camp.  We had a blast exploring, climbing, ziplining, and not sleeping nearly enough.

Day 162: Wheeeee!!!

June 11

Lexi and I spent this weekend at Girl Scout camp.  She braved the zipline for the second year in a row and loved it!

Day 161: Dancers

June 10

The recital is coming up and they're getting ready!

Day 160: Balloon Pop Polka and For Good

June 9

(I'm breaking my own rules today and posting two pictures.  I just couldn't decide!)

The school talent show was today, and Vicki and three friends (who all share a piano teacher) played "Balloon Pop Polka".  It required 2 pianos, 16 balloons, and 4 poppers (markers with pins taped to the ends), and was a BIG hit.  They did an awesome job!  You can see Vicki and Ali in the foreground, and in the distance are Kate and Anya at the other piano.

That was going to be my only picture, but then Vicki and a few other 5th graders, directed by my friend Donna, sang "For Good" from Wicked and brought the majority of the adults in the room to tears.  They had a slide show to go along with the song, with pictures of students and teachers.  The picture on the screen in the photo above is of Mateo, our principal's baby, who after three months in the NICU got to go home on Saturday!

Day 159: Junior Rose Festival Parade

June 8

Every year our Girl Scout troop has walked in the Junior Rose Festival Parade.  This year we were lucky enough to be near the front, so we weren't already worn out before it even started (this may be the first year that everyone was still smiling when the parade was over!)  I took this picture at the very end of the parade, where we were greeted by the Tillamook Cheese people and the Oregon State Beaver.

Day 158: Final Choir Concert

June 7

Tonight was Vicki's final choir concert of the year (and of elementary school, *sob*).  When I snapped this picture, the kids were singing a song with the words "Be kind to your parents, though they don't deserve it!" and they were clearly all enjoying it.  Our music teacher is retiring after many, many years at the school, so this was her final concert, too.

Day 157: Come to the Dark Side

June 6

We have cookies.

Day 156: Balancing Act

June 5

Crossing the creek at our friends' house.

Day 155: Car Wash for Outdoor School

June 4

Vicki and her fellow almost-6th-graders are trying to earn money to go to Outdoor School next year.  With this carwash and the candy and water bottle sale up the road, they made just over $500!

Day 154: In Her Natural Habitat

June 3

A bookworm is best observed quietly, from behind large shelves of books.

Day 153: Summertime Treat

June 2

At the risk of outing myself as a complete weirdo, I am sharing with you a tasty treat my mom introduced me to: cottage cheese with watermelon.  You should try it sometime.

Day 152: More Instagram

June 1

Just some irises outside the church where Vicki has piano lessons.