Month: May 2012

Wading Pool is Open

The pool opened a little early due to the warm weather. As soon as I mentioned it to the kids they wanted to go over. Liam had hurt his knee while on rollerblades because of something Helena did (forget the details) so he didn’t go in completely, but he still splashed the girls.

Can you spot which leg hurts?

Helena spinning Ada around.

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Sharks

Did I mention that it got a little cold by the end?

Rollerblading

With three new pairs of inline skates (Ada’s still a bit wary of them) we decided to go to the lake for some skating. My intention was to have Ada skate a bit, but she only made it about 50 feet away before she wanted to turn back and get her scooter. Helena and (especially) Liam were much more willing to give it a shot. Helena wanted to go all the way around the lake with Liam. Ada was supposed to stay with me, but she took off with them. But they did make it all the way around Lake of the Isles, which is 2.86 miles.

Liam does the splits (again)

Liam has learned really quickly.

Ada on her scooter.

Conspiring the trek around the lake.

Liam will wear long sleeved shirts even in 80 degree weather even if warned.

Helena laughing.

Ada taking a break.

Downtown Trip

The kids have been asking to go to Candyland again, so we all (including Helena’s friend Elaina) took the bus downtown.

Ada was talking about getting shoestring licorice all week, but once we got there she decided to get the jelly beans again. She always wants the small (and more expensive) gourmet jelly beans. Helena and Elaina both got popcorn, which is something new for Helena, and Liam did get the shoestring licorice, which he tied into knots continuously.

We then went to Panera to get some drinks and sit outside in the nice weather. I was busy hiding their candy whenever one of the kids went inside for a fruit punch refill.

Ada on the bus

Probably talking about boys.

Lots of choices.

This is what she came for, but then got distracted by the jelly beans once again.

Success.

Eating outside on Nicollet Mall.

Concentration….

Feeding the birds.

This was taken moments before security came and told us to get off the fountain. Oops.

Waiting for the bus.


Weather Radar

On the way home from dropping a kid off at a sleepover there was a sale in an alley by our house. There were a pair of rollerblades for Ada for $4.

And I was already headed over to another house to look for a pair for Liam via Craigslist. We did get them, and Liam rode them home without incident (well, except for not being able to stop without holding onto Ada who was on her scooter).

A few blocks from home we began to hear tornado sirens. We made it in just in time. Ada was in tears and was afraid that lighting was going to “struck her” so we’re all down in the basement looking at the radar.

Liam: “What is the green?”

Me: “That’s rain”

“What is the light green?”

“That’s light rain”

“What is the dark green?”

“Think about it, Liam”

“Oh, heavy rain?”

“Yes, Liam”

………….

“What is the orange?”

Liam Does a Split

I got Helena a pair of rollerblades at a garage sale and they fit Liam as well. The day before he was saying how he wanted a pair of roller skates and I told him that hardly anyone uses them anymore but I can try to find him a pair of rollerblades. He was unconvinced, but once he put Helena’s on, he was quite happy with them. Except with all the rain this week, when he came up onto the porch, the wet wood made his legs go out from underneath him.

I didn’t get a photo of him doing the splits, but he was still laughing about it, and was still trying to get up.

Liam’s Soccer

Liam didn’t score too much today because (1) the coaches decided that the kids needed two very long water breaks, (2) the girl who played keeper for the whole game on the other team held on the ball for a good thirty seconds every time she touched it, and (3) Liam played keeper for awhile and didn’t get to play forward too much. He did almost score after kicking the ball while playing keeper, though.

He scored from here, but I didn’t get it.

Lyndale Farmstead

Helena was putting the finishing touches on her state project (putting stickers on it, some of which never did make it home as you can see on the project itself) and Liam was practicing with his team before the game began, so Ada and I played on the playground with the caterpillars.

“Ada, I can see your underwear!”

“I know. Everyone could see them at school today, too.”

I was worried that she’s stop climbing and using the monkey bars if the other girls in her class didn’t do it as much as Ada does, but she seems to still love it, as you can see by looking at her blisters.

Helena’s State Project

Helena had her state report presentation at school today. The kids sat at desks around the classroom’s perimeter and parents could talk to the kids about the projects and write comments about them.

Helena also had artwork up. She was a bit confused as to why both the finished project and a draft were up, but she was happy about it.


Vera’s Garden

Rather than make the kids dance to music that they didn’t particularly like, I took the kids down the path to Vera’s Garden, where we used to go many times a summer before half of it was taken out for the new apartment complex. But the kids enjoyed climbing up the steps and walking around the building anyway.

The Lyn Lake Fest in the back.

Ada asked me to take her picture here.

On the way home, Bryant Square Park sat eerily empty. But my kids enjoyed their time playing there despite the quiet.

 

Lyn Lake Fest

On our way over to the Lyn-Lake Festival, Ada and Helena could hear the hip-hop band so they began to dance at the park (two blocks away). Once we got there, Ada got the giggles while hearing the music. I guess that she’s never heard that kind of “singing” before.

There wasn’t much for the kids, but we saw two jugglers, the girls got their hair done by the Hair Police, and they pet many dogs.

 

Soda Machine of the Future is here now!

Liam went to a Davanni’s at a birthday party/sleepover and told his sisters about the cool soda machine. So they asked if they could go. I think that they each got about three different kinds of soda by the time that they were done. They didn’t touch much of their pizza, though.

Toddle Doddle

Liam took a science class at Minneapolis Kids and one of the days they had an egg drop. His contraption, which was supposed to be named Toodle Doodle but for his spelling error, kept his egg safe. I only knew about it because when I dropped him off on Friday morning, his doohickey was on display. Luckily I had my camera in the car for Helena’s band performance later that afternoon.

Lake Harriet Upper Campus Playground

After Helena’s show, we went outside to the playground. Liam had already been out there with his friend Ruben. He came in a bit scared like he was when he fell at school and almost had to have stitches. Ruben’s dad came over to tell me that Liam fell. Apparently, Liam fell off the slide and then bit his tongue, which can clearly be seen in the second picture. Yuck. But he was fine after a few minutes.

Composers Night

Helena and her friends band did a song called Communication. Or was that the band name? I think the music teacher even had the band name incorrect. (I’ve been told that the band name was Six Ovations. Even though a seventh person joined in at the last minute, they kept the name)

Unfortunately, the song ended abruptly when the singer missed a verse (or something). You can see the confusion on Helena’s face in the last photo. Tears were shed, but not by Helena. Seems that there was some lack of, um….