Swim Lessons

We got in a session of swim lessons during June. It was super nice this year because we just had to walk across the street to our neighbor's house! Both boys improved a lot, and I really just love seeing them swim and make progress. Devin is a true little fish and works so hard to do exactly as he's told. Landon impressed me and even the teacher with his coordination, and it's hilarious to see him almost roll over while using his "big arms." As usual, the teacher's comments about Landon were, "He's too brave." and "He's pretty fearless."

Landon's favorite part of class was getting to be a "monkey on the wall" and jumping in at the end of class.

Devin's favorite part was being told he had done his strokes perfectly. I really do see swim team in this kid's future. 

Both boys loved the last class where they got to go off the diving board and dive into the deep end. A great swim session is under their belts, and they're ready to display their new skills for the rest of the summer.

Nora was just along for the ride and was a sweetheart through most lessons. She would just chill on the towel and then entertained the kids once Devin's lesson started and more of the neighbors showed up to wait until their turn. Of course I had to take as many pictures of her as I did of the boys doing the swimming!

End of Kindergarten

I cannot believe Devin is done with Kindergarten! So crazy that he's this big. Honestly. We went a few weeks before the end of school to have his year-end tests. He looked so cute over there talking to Mrs. Harrison.

The week before school got out Devin had his Kindergarten field trip to the Living Planet Aquarium. I volunteered to go since I hadn't been able to help in the class after Nora was born (reading times were right during feeding/naps). Devin was okay with me coming, but he didn't want to sit by me on the bus! I made him take selfies, and he was very much not into it. Ha! It was fun just letting my little group of boys run and set the pace and decide where to go. Loved being there with Devin.

Last day of school! Ah! Again, I volunteered to help on the field day (so much easier to help one day for an hour or two than to commit to every week). Devin still wanted to ride the bus for his last day. He is pretty sad he won't be riding the bus next year, so this was a sad goodbye.

The kids had so much fun at the field day with all the water games they got to play. The day was pretty perfect, since it wasn't too hot until the end, which helped dry off the kids.
Devin is going to miss his Kindergarten friends. It seemed like a cute class, so I'm glad that we're still in contact with some of these boys.

Devin's two favorite stations were the tug-of-war and the slip and slide inflatable. He was cheering so loud after his class won the tug-of-war, and when they did a BYU/Utah competition, he was so happy his BYU team won.

Mrs. Harrison was a wonderful teacher, and I'm going to miss working with her. Devin really liked her and never was sad or nervous about going to school. He definitely lucked out in the teacher department this year! Kindergarten was so much fun, and we are so proud of all that Devin has learned this year. He received the Rocky Ram Leadership award for completing requirements in Service, Academics, and Self Mastery. He has grown up so much, and we love him so much.

I thought the comparison of first and last day was pretty fun.

Father's Day

Rich is the best daddy around, and we were happy to celebrate him.

Our celebrating started on Saturday night with a Millett family party. We were also celebrating birthdays back from March--clearly a sign we need to get together more! So Landon got to open some presents, which of course he was thrilled about.

We went swimming as part of the get together, and Rich was the most awesome adult and got into the pool with all the kids. He really had to get in because he took his huge water gun and had told the kids they were going to get sprayed like crazy. He followed through on the threat.

Sunday morning he was greeted with hugs from the kids and a special breakfast before church.

After church, before we had our rib dinner, we presented him with all the presents. The boys couldn't wait to show him their pictures and surveys and things they made at church.

Happy Father's Day to Rich!

Nora 8 Months

I am very behind in my blogging. This cute girl is going to make comments when she's older about how I documented every minute of her brothers' lives but she got the shaft! I do take pictures all the time, but actually blogging (especially since Blurb changed their software making it harder for me to turn the blog into a book) is a trial! 

Anyway, this little cutie is just a sweetheart and a Mama's girl through and through! She smiles so big for Landon and Devin, and is always very interested in Daddy, except for when I'm in the room. If I'm there, Nora wants me. And, though this can be frustrating at times, it really does make me feel good. I know she'll soon be a daddy's girl and won't want me since Daddy is much more fun than I, so I'll take advantage now. I mean, who can get tired of a baby who will only give you kisses and no one else!? Aunt Wendi came for lunch one day, so we had to throw in a pic from our chat session!

 

She does love her brothers very much, and they like her lots too. Landon continues to love her too much sometimes, but they both think it's so funny to dress her up or put random things on her. I wouldn't be surprised if her first word is "Landon" because he's always there for her telling her he loves her and giving her the biggest hugs.

She's been laughing so much more and smiling a lot. She is getting pretty ticklish and likes to be upside down. "Trot along to Boston" is her favorite game. Nora's favorite book is probably "Happy Baby, 123" because of the baby faces in there. She always gets excited about seeing human faces. She also love "Hooray for Fish", and we like to sing along to "Snuggle Puppy" together. Sometimes I really do think she's singing along and I bet she will be a singer when she gets older because when I sing to her before bed, she starts making noises likes she's singing. 

 

 

She loves her baby doll and gets so excited when she sees it. I think this also has to do with the face on the doll. She saw another baby doll that had very prominent features and she got kind of freaked out by it. But she loves other babies and loves to see herself on the camera and when we're taking selfies.  

 

She's a mover and a shaker these days, and though she's still not doing the official crawl, her frog-hop version takes her wherever she wants to go. She doesn't always love being contained in the exersaucer, and I'm pretty sure the swing is a thing of the past, but she will handle the door jumper and exersaucer in small doses. Mostly she just wants to be out and part of the action (ie, eating food off the floor).

This month had a couple of firsts: She rode sitting up in a shopping cart for the first time, and she got to swing with the boys. I probably could have put her in a shopping cart before 8 months since she's been sitting up, but sometimes I forget how old and capable she is because she's so petite. She loved the experience. 

As for the swing, she loved it. And then it lulled her to sleep. Ha! So cute. She's been out since then and fallen asleep a few other times. Apparently we know where to go for the afternoon cat nap she sometimes needs! 

Another first was that she finally found the door stops. Such a baby rite of passage, no?!

She goes down great for naps and still sleeps great. One thing that stands out about Nora is that she transfers well from the car seat. If she falls asleep before getting home, I can usually take her out and put her in bed without her fussing. She sleeps much better and longer in her bed than in the car seat, so this is a great trait! 

One day when I was in Jazzercise childcare we had 11 kids, and it was loud. I couldn't believe it, but Nora just snuggled right down into me and fell asleep amid the chaos and noise. 

And while she fights going to sleep at church a lot of the time, I will say that I think she is our best non-bed sleep of the bunch. I still snatch every chance I can get to rock her to sleep because the opportunities are few and far between.

As for eating, she continues to be a great eater, and she has gotten better about textures. She likes cottage cheese and most fruit--her favorites being mango and watermelon. I'm mostly happy that she likes avocados because the boys never did. Her favorite food by far is green beans. She likes them pureed or whole, and if I puree them with an avocado she slurps them up even faster! She is kind of up and down at breakfast time, wherein I never know how much she's going to eat from day to day, so I frequently end up wasting oatmeal.

Her bottom teeth are pretty well in, and her top teeth are still acting like they want to come down but haven't broken through yet. We can't decide if her full smile or her little grin is the cutest. We just love Nora and can't imagine life without her.