Summer is Over, Already?

Considering that it is still 116 outside, I know many do not believe summer is over, but my kids started school last week, which signals the end of summer break.

Lydia, our warrior princess, started Kindergarten.  She is extremely excited about it, and rather peeved that after 3 days she still has NO homework.  Clearly, that teacher doesn't quite understand her job.  She is also frustrated at the 3yo work she is being asked to do, since she learned how to draw lines years ago!  But, she is loving meeting new friends, and she enjoys riding the bus.

Nate is in 5th grade this year, and has the same teacher Colin had last year.  She is a good teacher, who already knows Nate, and I am sure she will build a positive classroom.  His other 5th grade teacher is the same teacher he had in 4th grade, so there isn't a lot of new transition going on with teachers.

Colin is in 6th grade, which means that this is the only year all 3 will be in the same school.  He is excited about his teachers, feels great about his writing teacher, and is looking forward to a "Space Mission" project for 6th graders.

The summer seemed to fly by, but we made a bunch of great memories and had a lot of fun.  Since the end of May, we:

• Took a trip to California, and visited the beach, as well as La Brea Tar Pits
• Attended our first ComicCon (which I wasn't too sure about, but my brother really wanted to take the kids.  I am very glad we went, because the kids had some fantastic encounters with young adult authors and it was a great day.)
• Lydia attended summer camp at the Desert Botanical Gardens (She attended preschool classes there last year, and she's going to miss that this year -- but hopefully she can head back next summer for another camp.)
• Nate attended soccer camp with Challenger Sports and practiced with his club soccer team.
• Nate took private bass lessons to boost his skills.
• We took in a bunch of movies at the local cheap show
• We swam (we'll keep swimming for a couple months . . . )
• Nate & I headed to St. Petersburg, FL for the National Stuttering Association Conference
• Colin attended camp at the Challenger Space Center (which he declared absolutely awesome! They did math every day! It really challenged the kids to think about astronomy.  To see him so excited about camp, it was well worth the tuition and the long drive.)
• Spent a weekend at a local resort so the kids could enjoy the fancy pools.  We tried Hilton Squaw Peak this year, and found it okay. The kids prefer the water features at Arizona Grand.  Next year, we'll be at the Kierland Scottsdale for the National Stuttering Conference.
• Bo & I celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary, which means that in a couple weeks we'll celebrate 17 years since our first blind date.  My parents have graciously offered to watch the kids for the night in a few weeks so we can get away.

The school year has begun, and our calendar is filling up quickly.  Lydia has started tball, Nate's club soccer team joined a league so they can play more often, musical group opportunities are going to open up, and who knows what else.  I'm excited about this year, and can't wait to see what it brings!