Final Day of Summer

We decided to take the canoe out on our final day of summer break. We were able to canoe out to rather hidden rock for a picnic and some hiking. After lunch we canoe around some more to check out the wildlife. We were able to see lots of turtles, ducks and a blue heron. It turned out to be a great family day before heading back to school!

Learning to Knit

Elsie begged mom to teach her to knit. It was a bit rough going, so mom made some knitting looms out of popsicle sticks. Alstan got into it as well. Well, for that day they got into, and haven't touched it since.

Elsie's Dance Videos

Here are the videos of Elsie's last day of dance.

Alstan's First Days of Soccer

Alstan was very excited to go to his first soccer camp. However, we rushed off to his practice only to find out it had been canceled. To Alstan's disappointment the next day was canceled due to tornadoes and severe storms in the area.

Alstan finally made it to practice on the third and fourth day. He loved it and is looking forward to the regular season starting!

Elsie's Final Day of Ballet

I know this post is pretty late, but this was Elsie's final day of ballet. She finished up the class excited about taking it again next summer. She is also very insistent that she should also take hip-hop classes next year. I do have some video that I will add if I get a chance.

Grownup With His Suitcase

Alstan wanted this photo taken of him looking like a grown man carrying his suitcase. 

Sewing Projects

Mom had to get out the sewing machine this past week, so Alstan and Elsie figured they needed to make something too. They made blankets for their toys. Alstan made his for Long Necky and Elsie made hers for her baby sister.

Weekend to Help Aunt Carrie

Elsie and mom went to the farm this past weekend to help Aunt Carrie finish up her wedding invitations. Elsie was so excited to be the one to help grandpa with his chores. She really didn't do anything more than what she does when Alstan is there but it must have felt like more. On Sunday we went to the Eden Parade with Aunt Tracey and Andrew. Mom forgot to pack Elsie's sunscreen so grandma let her wear her hat.

Decorating The Kids Room

The kids have decided they want the yellow room, so they have started their decorating. We hope to eventually have bunk beds and move out the crib and queen bed, but little moves at a time I guess. They are not used to sleeping alone yet so that will be our first challenge once we can all move down stairs.

Driving with the Windows Down

This video is a bit late, but it is worth sharing jus to show the things they get excited about.
Alstan and Elsie are always asking us if they can have their windows down while we are driving on the highway. We were not actually on the highway, but still driving about 50 mph, so we let them put their windows down. They were so thrilled that they made up a song about it!

Experiments

Alstan and Elsie love doing experiments. Here they created their own experiment and wanted to video record it like a real science show.

Camping With Cousins

Alstan and Elsie spent the last few days camping with a couple of their cousins. They filled their time with biking, swimming, mini-golfing and just plain playing.

First Day of Ballet

Elsie had her first ballet lesson today. It sounded like she had a great time!

Cuddles

Mom has been wore down by those big brown eyes. (Yeah, that didn't really take very long.) We picked out our new kitten today. Originally Alstan and Elsie had agreed that they wanted a boy cat to name it Curious George. However, when they met this little lady they decided she should be named Cuddles.

Boating

Our boating trip got off to a bit of a slow start. Grandpa drove over to investigate some new buoys on the lake. It turns out they were marking some fish nets which ended up getting wrapped up in the motor. At one point we thought we would have to paddle to shore to get them off, but we were eventually able to cut them off. We were then able to enjoy a bit of boating which Alstan and Elsie loved!