This past weekend, we had the kids at our house for the first time in what felt like months. They have been so busy this summer that we haven't seen them much. Between camps and beach trips and a week at their grandparents', their travel schedule has rivaled that of a business man who travels for work every week. Oh wait, that would be my husband. Basically, what I'm saying is that everyone keeps leaving except me. With the new school year just around the corner (just a week and a half of summer left for them!), the kids have been gathering new school supplies and getting back in routine of a regular schedule. They are attending a new school this year so new uniforms have been ordered. Wyatt will wear khakis and a golf shirt during warm weather and a white shirt with a tie in the winter. Anna has a new pair of saddle shoes that she'll wear with her jumpers and skirts. They'll both be so snazzy!
Besides new backpacks and a stack full of books, the kids also got laptops that they'll use in school everyday. !! They'll be in 5th and 6th grade and they'll be using a laptop everyday! I just can't believe it. I mean, I know this is the direction the world is going, but I don't like it. What's wrong with pencil and paper?
They will both continue with their music lessons at the new school - piano for him, guitar for her. And this year, Wyatt has decided to give football a try. Saturday morning was his first practice in full pads.
Doc stuck around and watched for a while. He's definitely one of the smallest on the team, but Doc thinks he's doing pretty well. Maybe he'll be all heart like Rudy.
After the boys got home from practice, we had some lunch and then headed to the pool. With it as hot as it is, you either have to stay inside or stay in a pool. I'm glad we had a pool to go to!
I didn't have my camera out at the pool for very long, so I just got a few pictures.
Wyatt showed off his muscles that he's getting from football practice. Big, aren't they?
Anna took a break to get a drink, but she only lasted out of the water about 1 minute!
Jett and Bren joined us at the pool. Jett had some mardi gras beads from somewhere, so that's what we dove for.
Bren likes to jump in over and over again. She's fearless with her floatie on.
The kids spent a lot of time in the 12-foot end, which means they spent a lot of time hanging on to Doc so that he could tread water for all of them. At least he got a workout in!
We had a low-key evening at home that night. I just love how an afternoon swimming can wear everyone out. I think the lights were out by 9:30...my kind of night!
Sunday morning we went to church. It was the first time for the kids to get to hear our new preacher and I think they liked him (as much as 5th and 6th graders can like someone they have to sit and listen to for an hour...). Like most Sundays, we went to my parents for lunch.
Aaaaand we might have melted some crayons. Again. I can't help it. I just think its so cool and there were still more crayons and foamboard left from last time so...
Or maybe I just thought it was something the kids would really enjoy. Yea, let's go with that.
I was right - they did enjoy it and they thought it was pretty awesome too. They were limited in their color choices since I had already taken out most of the primary colors. Anna chose hers first so she got all the pretty colors that were left. Poor Wyatt was left with all the browns, blacks, greys, and golds. But those are boy colors anyway, right?
After they had their color order figured out, I helped them glue them down. Don't worry, I manned the hot glue gun while they placed the crayon down under close supervision. No burned fingers here!
They got to decide how they laid them down. Wyatt placed the Crayola logo on top like I did, and Anna alternated hers between the logo and the name of the color.
With the oven set to 250 degrees, we popped them in and waited. We all placed bets on which color we thought would drip first. The leading crayon was gold, which no one chose, but my hot pink was second. Woo hoo! Would you believe me if I told you that black was the very last color to drip? I know, crazy, right? At one point while we were watching them drip, Anna turned and said, "This would be a really cool science project." I practically shreaked when I said, "I know! That's what I've been saying this whole time!!"
Just waiting...
Starting to drip! (And yes, my mom needs to clean her oven glass...)
Even my mom can't resist watching the crayons melt again.
When they got to this point, we decided they had melted enough. You can also see that some of the crayons melted from the top and dripped down on top of the paper. That didn't happen with mine, probably because mine flipped over backwards halfway through.
Since we were pleased with the amount of drippage, I turned the oven off and closed the door. I figured since it wasn't too hot to begin with, it'd cool down pretty quickly, and I really didn't want to handle the foam boards while the wax was still liquid for fear of messing it up.
A few minutes later, my mom looked over and said, "Oh my gosh! They're pouring out!" And sure enough, the crayons looked like waterfalls. Every bit of wax poured out of every paper tube. I guess maybe the oven didn't cool down as quickly as I had hoped.
So this is how they ended up. Less drippy than planned, but still pretty cool. I like how the colors blended together. You can kinda see some lumps on Wyatt's from where the whole crayons poured out.
Unfortunately, the kids had to leave to go home before the wax had firmed back up, so they'll have to wait to see their finished products. Maybe I can find some frames by then.
Right as the kids were leaving, this little doll showed up with her Mommy and Daddy and I don't know for sure, but I think she was pretty glad to see me. At least that's what I tell myself.
Look! Teeth!
My mom and I visited with little Alice's parents for a few minutes before they headed home for a day of unpacking. I'm so glad to have them in town! Maybe they'll become regulars on this ol' blog.
While Doc took the kids home and ran some errands, my mom and I spent the afternoon working on the super secret birthday project. It's starting to come together and I love it! They birthday party's not til next weekend, though, so I have to hold off from posting pictures.
My dad spent a good portion of the afternoon like this:
My parents are in the middle of having a sprinkler system installed in their yard, and so far the cable has already been cut in about 6 different spots. The only place the cable still works? Their master bathroom. So my dad rigged up this lounging area with a bench and a chair so he could still watch tv. Anything for some Sunday afternoon golf, I guess.
The rest of the fam came over later in the day. Mom bribed everyone with dinner: pork chops, baked beans, cheesy potatoes, fruit, rolls, and more! While dinner was cooking I played on the playground with the munchkins.
Yes, I'm the aunt that lets Bren climb to the top of the ladder and just takes pictures instead of holding on to her. I blame the pigtails. They're just so darn cute.
I also let Jett practice jumping out of the swing. Safety doesn't always come first when I'm the babysitter.
And then, as I was taking pictures of Jett swinging...
...I remembered the AutoStitch program that my father-in-law introduced me to, and got an idea. I took a picture of him on each swing, and then after a few minutes of tinkering on the computer, voila! He's everywhere!
Sure, he's a little blurry, but I don't think it's that bad for my first attempt. I see a lot more AutoStitching in my future.
So that's our weekend in a nutshell. Low-key but fun. Now if I can just make it through 4 more work days so it can be the weekend again!