Monday was the first day of school. Carter started kindergarten…
And Raine started 2nd grade.
We all walked over to the school.
We dropped off Carter in Mrs. Schultz’s class.
Then we took Raine upstairs to Mrs. Allen’s class.
Today, I took off work to spend a little extra time with Carter since the kindergartners only attend half day the first 3 days of school. We rode our bikes to school and back.
Carter still can’t pass a flower patch without picking one for me!
See that painted fingernail? I was painting Raine’s nails for the first day of school and Carter begged and pleaded to have his painted too. I tried to pacify him by saying that I would paint a couple toenails, but he wanted it visible. This one finger on his right hand was our compromise! I told myself that it’s an educational aid because it helps him remember which hand is the right one. He likes it because it looks green indoors and then turns blue outside.
These past three weeks, cousin Sydney has been staying with us to be a nanny for the kids. They (meaning the kids, I can’t speak for Sydney) had a BLAST! Sydney is 14 years old and therefore can’t drive, so everywhere they went, they rode bikes. They made countless trips to the library and the local playgrounds. They also rode to Jump Street trampoline park, the McDonald’s play place, Baskin Robbins ice cream, Milwaukee Joes ice cream, the Kids-ville playground, the nice covered playground at the elementary school, and the movie theater (I think). It’s great that we live so close to so many fun places!
They spent plenty of time around the house too. I think Sydney did enough crafts to last her for the next six months!
We’ve had the most mild summer this year… until Sydney got here, then the temps soared to 106* and sat there. Each afternoon, they soaked in the little inflatable pool in the backyard. They also spent time on the trampoline.
Playing crack the egg.
On the weekends, we tried to show Sydney some of our favorite “everyday” kind of things. Things like shopping at the Grapevine Mills mall (during tax-free weekend no less), Bahama Bucks shaved ice, Central Market, and the Colleyville City library party.
The City hosts great, completely free, parties. They had pony rides:
and a petting zoo.
The kids really liked this pig!
They also had inflatable obstacle courses, crafts, carnival games, and prizes. It was so much fun that we didn’t even mind the evening heat.
When Sydney mentioned that she had never been to a rodeo, we knew we had to take her to the Fort Worth Stockyards Rodeo.
Nothing says Texas like longhorns.
And nothing is more Texan than a rodeo.
Raine did the mutton chase… in flip-flops!
This kid can sleep ANYWHERE!
We also made a couple trips to the water park.
All the photos are of Carter because Raine and Sydney were off riding slides the entire time. They both worked up the courage to ride the Green Extreme roller coaster slide (once at least—I won’t mention who chickened out the second time ;)!
We loved having Sydney here. We worked her like a dog! But hopefully it wasn’t too traumatic of an experience because it was super nice to have a babysitter available *ALL*THE*TIME* And since she is family, she does most things like we do them so she fit right into the family. The kids were especially sad to see her go. She was the big sister that they never had. Tonight at dinner, Raine was telling Carter that he should turn into a girl so that she could have a sister! I think she really enjoyed having a girl around 24/7 to play with her.
I’ll be honest, I’m just glad to have this crazy summer almost over! The kids will start school next Monday and I’m counting on my life getting a whole lot simpler.
Mid-week birthdays aren’t as exciting as weekend birthdays, so there isn’t much to report. The kids put together a 13-clue treasure hunt around the house that lead him to two of his favorite things — bottles of Dublin Dr. Pepper and Reese’s peanut butter cups. Daddy opened his presents, we had a yummy ice cream cake, and now he’s another year closer to the big one!
We are officially pet owners. After years of begging for a pet — and me telling them that the lizard living in the front bush was the only pet they were every going to have — the kids prevailed, with the help of a high-pressure salesman, and we are the proud owners of two hermit crabs.
This was taken before Raine learned what it feels like to get pinched! Somehow she managed to hold onto the little critter and not fling it across the room, but she sure wasn’t as eager to pick it up after that.
We built a fantastic little crabitat last night and provided them with two new shell options to explore. When we woke up this morning, Carter’s crab had shed the superman shell and taken up residence in the more natural-looking spotted shell. It spent most of the day buried in the corner — probably recovering from the shock of changing environments.
After the McKay family reunion, the kids went down to Orem with Grandma/pa Anderson and spent two weeks at their house—without parents. I only know a fraction of what went on there, so here is what I’ve been made privy to:
7/6/15 – Day 1 at Grandma and Grandpa’s house
Raine built a block tower with Carter, Annie, and Uncle Jed
Carter met Cousin Dixon for the first time
Carter was still tired from the weekend
7/8/15 Cousin Annie’s birthday party
7/8/15 the Bean Museum at BYU
Uncle Ryan demonstrating the size of a hippo’s mouth
This girl has never met a life-form she wouldn’t touch, I don’t doubt her for a minute when she says that she is going to be a veterinarian. Both kids said they touched a ball python too.
7/12/15 Carter’s birthday
Aunt Sara and her family stayed at Grandma’s house for a few days, including Carter’s birthday. I believe this was the first family birthday party that either of my kids has ever had on their actual birth day. Daddy and I tried to participate via Skype, but it was difficult.
7/15/15 Camping in the Uintah Mountains
Grandma/pa loaded up their camp trailer and took the kids up into the mountains for a few nights of camping. They said it was cold, but they had fun.
Grandma/pa Dewey flew the kids home to Texas on Monday, July 20. We couldn’t wait for them to get back!
Fourth-of-July weekend was the McKay family reunion in Meridian, Idaho — this was the first gathering in about eight years for the McKay family. The kids and Daddy had been visiting Grandma and Grandpa Dewey in Woods Cross the week before the reunion so they rode up with Grandma and Grandpa Anderson while I caught an early morning flight from Texas.
Thursday, July 2
The first thing we did was test the pool. It was FREEZING! Raine didn’t mind the cold but Carter only ventured in for a minute or two.
That night, the family met up at the hotel for an ice cream social. It was fun to spent a couple hours re-acquainting with cousins that I haven’t seen in years.
Friday, July 3
We started the day by driving about 50 miles to Christensen’s Pond in Parma, ID. The family had it reserved for most of the day and it was a fantastic way to beat the heat of an historic heatwave baking the entire mountain west. The pond had a zip-line stretching across it as well as a big water slide, diving boards, paddle boats, canoes, and soft sandy beaches.
Daddy convinced Raine to do the zip-line with him. He went down first to show her how it was done.
Then Raine did it! She wasn’t too sure at first. The first few times Uncle Jed lifted her up to the handlebars, she immediately let go. Eventually though, she held on tight and zipped down. She also jumped off the low diving board (I think that’s the first time she’s ever jumped off a diving board).
I took the kids around the lake in one of the paddle boats and wasn’t sure that we were going to make it back to shore. Raine was more interested in looking for frogs than pedaling and Carter insisted on steering but couldn’t keep us going in a straight line! Eventually we zigzagged our way back to the shallow water before my legs gave out.
Grandpa caught this little frog for the kids.
Carter and I swam out to the floating dock in the middle of the lake so that he could look for more frogs.
That evening we all met at Idaho Pizza Co. for dinner and a little presentation by Grandma Anderson on the work that she is doing indexing Grandma McKay’s journals.
There were 104 descendants of Grandma and Grandpa McKay at that restaurant. All 6 of their children were present with their spouses, as well as a lot of the 28 grandchildren with their spouses and children. That’s a lot of posterity!
Addy and Raine are several years apart in age, but are best buddies when they get together.
After dinner, several of us went out for shaved ice at a little roadside stand. It was well after 10:00 pm before we made it back to the hotel with our very tired kids!
Saturday, July 4th
Aunt Sarah and her family stayed at the same hotel we did Friday night and the kids braved the only-slightly-warmer water in the hotel pool Saturday morning.
Raine, Carter, Daddy, Logan, Carson, and Addy
Carter laid down his water gun and Addy took advantage of the opportunity to give back to him what he’d been dishing out!
After the swim, we headed over to the Meridian Temple construction site where Aunt Mary Ann and Uncle Keith are serving as temple construction missionaries. We learned all about the construction that had taken place so far and were impressed with how well-built the temple is.
Aunt Mary Ann told us a faith-building story about the man who designed the baptistry. He was a master carpenter, not a member of the church, and felt that his life had been preserved for this very purpose. He designed the forms for the font but passed away before they were removed from the concrete. Prior to passing, he was meeting with the missionaries and his wife called asking if he could be baptized, but it wasn’t possible. He will likely be one of the first people to have his work done in the very font that he built.
Our family, Uncle Jed and Aunt Katie, Grandpa holding baby Amelia, Aunt Sara and Uncle Daryn, Grandma Anderson, and the rest of the Hicks cousins.
Our next stop was the Meridian Cemetery, where Grandma and Grandpa McKay are buried.
Addy, Raine, Carson, Logan, and Carter
Raine was named after Grandma McKay, who passed away just two months before Raine was born.
We stopped for some more shaved ice on our way to the picnic. (I think Aunt Sara is addicted!)
The Fourth-of-July picnic was held at the church building where Grandma and Grandpa attended.
Cousin Will and his super-talented wife Kalli set up a carnival for the kids. I didn’t get photos of the games, but the kids loved it and walked away with a bag full of candy and prizes. This is Carter doing the balloon walk.
They also had a bounce house with water slide for the kids — apparently the water was pretty cold.
Kalli painted all the kids’ faces. (This is the first time that either of the kids allowed someone to paint their face. On other occasions, they wouldn’t have anything to do with it.)
Carter loved his ninja-turtle face. I can’t even begin to describe the hysteria that ensued late that night, after fireworks, when we broke it to the kids that their faces had to be washed before they went to bed. I’m pretty sure Carter doesn’t remember, but he made me promise to buy some face paints and learn how to paint a ninja-turtle face so that I can do it for him when he gets home.
It just wouldn’t be a McKay family reunion without a volleyball game.
As it started to get dark, we migrated up the road to Grandpa’s farm for fireworks. The farm is just a shell of what it was when I was a kid. The cows are gone, the farmhouse was torn down a few years ago, the barn is dilapidated, and the grass is dead. The farm was central to so many childhood memories for my cousins and me.
Carter on an old tractor that was sitting in the corral.
The kids have never really liked fireworks. Raine really hates them but Carter warmed up to them a bit this year and even waved around a few sparklers after he finished the last bag of poppers. Raine stayed as far away as possible and couldn’t wait to get back in the car!
Sunday, July 5
Aunt Pat and Uncle Ben happen to attend church in the building that was built about eight years ago on 10 acres of of land that Grandpa donated to the church. Aunt Sara decided to bless her new baby, Amelia, in that ward so that all the family could be there. (Uncle Daryn has several family members in the area who were able to come as well.) Uncle Ben serves in the bishopric, so he took care of the arrangements. I was very glad we could be present for the blessing; they live so far away that we don’t normally get to attend the milestones in their lives.
As soon as the last photo was taken I rushed to the airport to catch my flight home. Carter wasn’t happy about me leaving. He had big ‘ole crocodile tears in his eyes as I said goodbye at the airport — I just wanted to pack him into my carry-on bag and take him with me. Raine, on the other hand, was having too much fun with cousins to even come to the airport! It’s funny just how opposite these two can be.
DJ and the kids rode back to Utah with Grandma/pa Anderson and dropped off Daddy at Grandma/pa Dewey’s house so he could fly home early Tuesday morning. Raine and Carter will spend the next two weeks in Utah with Grandma/pa Anderson!
The first grade celebration was Monday, July 1. To be honest, it was a little under-whelming! When I first saw it on the calendar, I assumed it was an end-of-the-year award ceremony. But the more I heard about it, the more confused I became. I asked Raine’s teacher what it was — since I was going to be leaving work and driving an hour round-trip to be there for it — and her response was that it was like an award ceremony but without the awards. Ummm, okay???
Here’s what it was:
Every kid in the first grade walked across the stage while their teacher read what the student had written was their greatest accomplishment in first grade. I won’t get into all the ways this reinforces mediocrity in American children, but wow! Really?
Raine’s greatest accomplishment was “reading, because [she] used to not be able to read well last year.” Where was the teacher input or guidance on this? Raine scored in the 99th percentile nationally last year in reading! She obviously could have used some direction on how to identify your “greatest accomplishment.”
When I gently pointed this out to Raine, she explained that she wasn’t a good reader last year in kindergarten because she wasn’t reading chapter books until the end of the school year. I just nodded my head and said “oh.” (And under my breath I muttered “overachiever”!)
But the important thing was that Raine was thrilled that I came. She kept giving me hugs and then trying to wave as she carried her chair back to her classroom!
For a more accurate summary of Raine’s achievements the past five months, here is Raine’s First Grade Report Card. The notes at the end are the most helpful.
I love this art project that Raine made this semester.
And speaking of overachieving, Raine was accepted into the Aspire GT (gifted and talented) pullout program. Below is a copy of her scores as well as the questionnaire we filled out as part of the application process. (And by “we” I mean DJ stood there doing the dishes, pretending to help, while I came up with all the examples illustrating why Raine is so gifted and talented! And let me briefly mention here just how stressful it is to write something — without the benefit of spell-check or a backspace key — that is specifically designed to show that your child, and by its very nature YOU, are gifted-and-talented material! I’m pretty sure the essays on the bar exam were less stressful!)
I must admit something related to this questionnaire… I cheated. Well, not exactly. You see, Raine really wanted to be in Aspire so I went to the information night to find out what it was and how to apply. There they told us exactly what the process was and how many points the kids would need to score in each area in order to be accepted. Well, it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out exactly how many questions needed to be answered “advanced” on the parent questionnaire in order to meet the 2-point “Gifted Standard.” I simply figured out which ones applied the least to Raine and then marked the rest “advanced.” Granted, the questionnaire was only a small part of the equation, but I didn’t want Raine to barely miss the cut-off just because I didn’t check enough boxes to identify her as “special.”
As it turned out though, she scored plenty of points on her own and they ended up not even making her take the math test because she had already crossed the threshold. Daddy and I were very excited when we received the letter informing us that she was accepted into the program. She, on the other hand, was 100% confident the whole time that she would make it; the letter was just a formality for her.
She will definitely enjoy the program next year. They do exactly the kinds of things that she loves doing anyway — things like research projects!
We spent Memorial-Day weekend down in Austin with a few of our friends to watch Daddy run in the Cap-Tex triathlon.
Saturday was arrival day and we met up with the Walkers and Boyers at Torchey’s Tacos for dinner. Sunday, we met up at church and then headed over to the Ashley’s sister’s house where we spent the afternoon and evening. The kids worked out some energy at the neighborhood playground.
Even though it was bright and sunny Sunday afternoon, Austin experienced a torrential downpour Saturday night and the rivers were all running high and fast. Because of this — and all the debris being carried down stream — the swim portion of the triathlon was canceled. Monday morning, the boys arrived at the starting line bright and early and hopped on their bikes. The kids and I took the hotel shuttle downtown and found ourselves a comfy bench along the bike route to watch. The bike course took Daddy right past us four times.
After he passed the final time, we walked down to the park to meet up with the rest of the gang.
Jordyn, Raine, Carter, Boston, and Cade
We cheered on all three dads as they passed.
These are the official photos from the race:
Here are his stats — not too bad for his first time. They were all disappointed that the swim was cancelled. Now they have to sign up for another one so they can say that they did a full triathlon.
DJ, Bryan, and James. (You’d never guess they didn’t go swimming with how soaked they were — it was very humid out there!)
The kids wanted a ride on Daddy’s bike as we walked back to the car.
