Outdoor Fun!

Well, it's rare we spend much time outdoors (unless we're in water) once June rolls around, but we had a few special events the past few days!

On Thursday we met up with some friends at the park to visit with an old friend who has moved out of state. It was rainy and wet but the temperature wasn't too hot, just perfect for a fun morning at the park!

Steven Joseph in his "Aggie Wunning Shirt" swinging his heart out! He's not a big swinger, and is usually satisfied after only a few swings, unlike the girls at this age who would have loved to swing all day!


Ellie with some of the little kids playing with a parachute


Her first time to really jump rope! Good job, Ellie!


Mary Clare joined in the fun too!


Saturday was another swim meet, but with much milder weather than last week. The pool was shaded, and included 8 lanes so it went really fast! I didn't get many photos of the swimmers, just a few videos. But here was Ellie in her freestyle relay:


One of the best parts of swim meets, Ring Pops!



After a nice long nap, I ventured out with the kids to a festival while Steven went in to work for a few hours. He joined us later on in the evening. It was the grand opening of a brand new YMCA Outdoor Adventure! It doesn't have a pool or gym (although it will host some fitness classes starting next month), but will offer lots of fun outdoor activities like hiking, archery, climbing, and other family nature events. We look forward to spending lots of great family days out there, especially when the weather cools off this fall!

Here's Joey learning to blow bubbles!


MC by one of the giant tipis!


The girls checking out the inside


We ran into some friends from our homeschool group there and had fun running around with them. Mary Clare was happy to see Emily! They enjoyed the blackberry picking and pie baking together recently (see video) and we look forward to sharing the next homeschooling year with them! Here are the girls cooling off in the "misting area."


I think this might have been the first time my girls braved a petting zoo! They usually like to watch from the outside, like Steven Joseph did on this occasion.



We ran to grab some snacks before they ran out. They tried their first funnel cake, yum!


And got a chance to do some jumping on the big moonwalk! SJ was especially fond of this activity. I think this was his first time to jump in one!




And to end the weekend, my parents joined us for 9:00 Mass this morning followed by Donut Sunday, where the homeschool group displayed the scrapbooks of the Little Flowers Class and churches built by the Blue Knights boys.



They were so proud to have their work displayed. Here are a few of them who were playing together after Mass.


We're looking forward to a busy week preparing for the big dance recital and also celebrating the End of Year Mass for the homeschool group. I better get to bed for our now early morning swim practice...and maybe starting with our new homeschooling year...Have a great week, everyone!