Magoomba Monday #12

1) Swim lessons took up the majority of our mornings last week and both kids continue to make improvements. We have been going early so I can walk a couple miles before lessons. Jake rides his bike and Jadyn hangs out in our little Maclaren umbrella stroller. In the half hour period between Jadyn and Jake's lessons we have usually been going to the park next to the pool. By the time we get home I am personally exhausted, although it seems like the kids just keep going like an Energizer bunny.

It was a huge step for Jake to go from the preschool swim levels to the grade school levels where he is now actually learning to swim with no help. Sometimes he gets discouraged or scared but for the most part he is doing really well. Today he went off the diving board without a life jacket and swam to the side with minimal help.

It was a huge step for Jadyn to do anything where I was NOT right there with her, hence the screaming bloody murder on the first day, continual sobbing the second day and brief protesting on the third day. However, by the fourth day she went to her instructor with only the briefest whine and also went off the diving board with no tears. She continued to do well today, even after the last three days off and one of the other caregivers on the sideline even commented, "Oh my gosh! I think she is actually smiling."

2) Joe came home Thursday evening making our family once again complete. It had been a long 2 weeks without him. It took him about 5 seconds for him to fall in love with our new kitties who are now fully acclimated to our home.

3) Friday the drive-in was actually showing a family friendly double feature - Up and Night at the Museum 2. Even though I had already taken the kids to see Up, Joe had not seen it and I think it was definitely worth it to see it again. I cannot recommend this movie enough to anyone of any age with or without kids. Night at the Museum was really cute too. Unfortunately, neither Jake or Jadyn was able to stay up long enough to watch more than 15 minutes of it but it was a nice night out at the movies. It won't be long before the temps will be too unbearable to sit outside for that long, even in the late evening.

4) Saturday we made the trek to our hometown of Upland to get my hair done, but more importantly to have a family dinner in honor of Father's Day and my mother in-law's birthday, which is next week. I made the strawberry walnut salad and a no-bake cheesecake to compliment Joe's chocolate fondue with other goodies for dessert. We also had chicken and beef shish-kabobs and twice baked potatoes making it a most delicious meal shared with great company. A great time was had by all.

5) Because we had such a busy day Saturday, although we were originally planning to spend the day at the river for Father's Day, Joe opted to stay home and relax. The kids had painted rocks for Daddy to use as paperweights that read, "Daddy rocks" and "You Rock" and I gave him the Indiana Jones trilogy on DVD, which he had been wanting. When Jake woke up in the morning and I handed him the gift and card to give to Joe, Jake asked me what it was for and I reminded him that it was Father's Day to which he replied that he wanted it to be a Kids Father's Day so he could get a gift. Nice try Jake but growing up I always remember being told something along the lines of everyday being a kids day. Overall it was a nice day and I think we were all able to recharge.

6) And it's a good thing we did too because this week we have the conclusion of swim lessons, as well as Jake's first week of his t-ball summer training league not to mention the fact that we have to make preparations for our upcoming long weekend at the beach in Oceanside, something I have been looking forward to for the last 2 months. It's hard to believe that 4th of July is less than 2 weeks away. Where does the time go?

Hope everyone's week is off to a productive start!