Even though we're only three weeks into summer, we might have a hard time finding a way to get to everything we have planned to do. But at least it'll be fun trying.
Last week we went to Ocean Shores to feel the soft Pacific sand in our toes. It was great. I have no pictures to show for it, sadly. Our camera was not invited. The highlights included a wonderful playground, Joel and I battling each other at air hockey, swimming in the heated outdoor pool in the cold rain, barefoot
runs on the beach, hermit crabs, engineering irrigation systems, dune climbing, restaurants, sunsets, card games, and deer sightings.
After playing the 4th of July fireworks show in the cold and rain, we jumped right into Art Camp for Joel. His teacher was complimentary of his dedication and attention to detail. He got to do some techniques I hadn't a clue about, and we have some lovely artwork to share. His daily complaints to us that camp was too long (3 hrs) and that he didn't want to go back fell on deaf ears. He secretly enjoyed it. And it seems he is a natural artist:
Clockwise from top left: handmade paper (using two-batches in landscape, and abstract with
one batch), oil painting quail on canvas, painted and glazed ceramic tile, oil painted water lilies a la Monet, charcoal drawing of a stuffed toy, and clear glue with chalk on black paper (no idea if that has a better name to it).
We also started swim lessons and violin lessons this week. Joel got a new violin and Jamie got the old one.
We spent lots of time in the sun at the water park. I took Joel on his first grown-up roller coaster rides and water slides, and now he's hooked (as am I)!
Upcoming plans include camping trips, painting clouds in the kids' room, sports camp, a week on Vashon Island with the grandparents and camp, a beach trip to Oregon, 11 days in Georgia. We've begun homeschooling, although it's been rough and intermittent. Our gorgeous garden is growing carrots, peas, potatoes, and tomatoes. And the kids are past the halfway point on their potentially underachieving summer reading goals. So, stay tuned, and I'll try to bring along the camera.
