Hello Summer, Goodbye Summer
Per usual life happened, time flew by and now it's a week away from the start of the Minnesota State Fair, which is the official end of Summer to most us Minnesotans. I won't bore you with the details of the last few months, instead I decided wrap it all up in a tight bow and present a "top 10" highlight reel of our Summer. So... here's what's been going on.
1. SO LONG, DIAPERS!
Shortly before my Summer hiatus, I dedicated an entire blog post to the agony that was potty training Emmett. A few weeks after of my parental rant E decided he was ready to take this whole undie thing seriously. He got the hang of things pretty quickly and we only had a few minor accidents those first couple weeks. Since then we've been sporting Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle boxer briefs and superhero undies all day and night.
2. PRESCHOOL GRAD
Back in May, Harper finished up her final days at Karing Kingdom. The two years she spent there were beyond delightful. The teachers, parents and kiddos were wonderful and we are going to miss them as they all venture off to their designated Kindergarten classrooms (although, Emmett starts at Karing Kingdom this the Fall, watch out!!) She looked so grown up in that shiny green graduation cap and gown and we couldn't have been more proud of our little lady!
3. MEMORIAL DAY TRADITIONS
I love traditions. Our families have plenty of them, and I do my darnedest to make sure our adventures and memories continue. We've been renting a cabin with the Helleen side at Kavanaugh's Resort in Brainerd over Memorial Day for the last few years. This year our group grew, and adding Matt, Jen and Flin made it that much more fun! The kids ran free, got dirty, swam and lived the cabin life. It was a glorious long weekend filled with too many cookies, cocktails and chuckles!
4. TINY DANCER
It's official. Little kids dancing is the cutest thing ever and just down right good for the soul. Harper danced in two recitals back in June, and in my unbiased opinion was awesome! 😉 She put her best stage smile on and performed her little heart out. This group of girls (and their Mamas) absolutely made my Monday nights. To see them all dolled up and on stage was just the best! A new season of dance is right around the corner, and we can't wait!
5. BIKER BOY
I spent months trying to convince our strong-willed little dude to wear a bike helmet. He absolutely refused. I offered to buy him a super cool TMNT bike, but mentioned he had to wear a helmet. He still refused. I told him he'd have to ride in a stroller all Summer while Harper biked during our walks, he looked at me and said "yea, I'll just ride in the stroller." I had given up, until one day this Mikey helmet sparked his interest at Toys R Us. When he asked to wear it I must have given him the Mom stare, the one where your facial expression clearly reads "are you kidding me?" This was a big step in Helmet-gate. We had never gotten that far and to my surprise he kept it on and then asked, "We can bring this home?" OF COURSE!! Days after checking the helmet off our to-do list, we ordered his bike. For our next walk, both kiddos buckled their helmets and hopped on their bikes. We made it to the end of the driveway and Emmett said, "okay, lets go back now." <insert same Mom stare here> We tried, and this might be stretch but I'm going to call it a minor success. But to be honest, we haven't been on it since. Maybe next year, bike...
6. GOLF IS FOR GIRLS
Last year Mitch hung up his softball cleats and decided his Summer activity of choice was going to be golf. The passion for golf grew pretty strong and when we found out Rush Creek offered a three-week lessons for kids, he was all in. Remember when I said kids are adorable in dance costumes? They're also adorable in athletic wear and golf attire. She loved the three weeks and so did Mitch. Putting was her favorite and no matter how far away her shot was, when she heard the sound of the ball clinking into the hole - it was an immediate fist pump followed by a whispering "yesssss!"
7. I'M ON A BOAT
We don't get out on my parents boat much, but when we do - it's a blast! Harper has a weird thing about waves, but when she finally realizes our boat is not going to sink or tip things get a lot better! The kiddos love to swim in the deep water and catch fish off the back. Oh, and the snacks. They definitely LOVE the boat snacks. These are the same memories I have as a child, and getting to see my own kids having those same experiences is the absolute best!
8. BABY ANDERS
My bestie had a baby! Sweet Anders Michael Wavrin was born 8/18 and is complete perfection. I forgot how teeny tiny newborns are. Every time we visit I catch myself examining his adorable little hands, or all his smooshy faces. What it really boils down to is, babies are the best. Plain and simple. We couldn't be more excited that Anders is finally here - he is oh so loved!
9. BYE MEDFORDS!
What do you do when one of your best friends of 20+ years tells you they're moving to Florida? If you guessed cry, you win. When I received that very message from Melissa, sharing their plans to pack up the Medford crew of 6 and head down to Florida - I was so excited for their new adventure and that they would be so close to family. But then I got real sad and bummed out that I didn't make more trips to St. Cloud when they were a measly 45 minutes away. We grew up across the street from each other, and quite frankly I don't have many Minnesota memories without Melissa in them. Our friendship is so special to me, and our kiddos love one another too. It's incredible. We made the trip to St. Cloud one last time for a playdate and to give our "see you soon" squeezes. It was wonderful and sad all at the same time. I know they'll do great, and it just means we'll be planning a trip to Florida in the near future! :)
10. TOOTH FAIRY VISIT
Harper lost her 1st tooth!!! This one wiggly tooth has been on her radar for months. Every night after we brushed I'd wiggle her tooth and she'd ask for my rating on the wiggle meter. Last week during my wiggle meter testing, I bumped her up to a 9 (out of 10) because I could tell it was close. We got in the car to head to dance and before we could even get out of my parents neighborhood she yelled, "Mom! I bit down on my water bottle and now my tooth is really wiggly." As I turned around, I just noticed blood. When she noticed the blood, her worried face quickly became tears. I pulled over, jumped out of the car and headed to her door. I tried reassuring her in my calm voice that "this was good!" and "we want this to happen!" She asked if I could pull it out, and with a minor tug she was one tooth short. The tears stopped and total excitement came over her, quickly followed by "that means the tooth fairy is coming!" The tooth fairy left a nice little sack of quarters, a new tooth brush and a encouraging note. Now we're on watch for wiggly tooth #2.
The Helleen's
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