Summer Swimming!

The girls have been excited for MONTHS about taking swimming lessons. They have had to watch Connor in the pool & sit out on the side for far too long. Finally, this summer they were old enough to take lessons all on their own & they were thrilled. Until they found out that swimming involves putting their WHOLE head under water. Apparently I didn't really clarify that part specifically. Oops.

They were no longer thrilled, but Kaia & Ashlyn did both participate in all of the head-out-of-the-water-activities...

 This summer Connor learned to swim about 10+ ft "alligator" style, and about the same distance on his back. Here he is almost submerged but still floating. Barely. Connor is a bit of a sinker in the pool, like his dad.

 

Here's an after swimming shot. Those Cunningham kids 

really know how to lounge around after a tough day in the pool!

The Things They Say...

Me: Ashlyn, Keysa says you look just like me! Do you think you do?
Ashlyn: No. I look different. 
Me: Who do you think you look like then? Daddy?
Ashlyn: No. 
Me: Like Kaia?
Ashlyn: No. I look like Ashlyn. She is my favorite girl. 

Apparently, at least one of our identical twins has a strong sense of her own individual identity and is also working on developing a good self esteem. PHEW!

Later as we are headed out to door to swimming lessons:
Me: Girls, do you want your sweatshirts? Its kinda cold today?
Girls: No! We will not be cold!
Me: Okay, lets go outside & see. 
Ashlyn (outside): I am SOOOOO cold. I need my sweatshirt!
Me: Okay, I will go back in to get it. Kaia, would you like to wear yours too?
Kaia: No! I am not cold (as she is shivering).
Connor: Mom - I really think you should get two sweatshirts. Kaia will change her mind as soon as you put one on Ashlyn. She always does. 

I just love it when Connor provides me with wise parenting advice. Just like in this example, it is usually SPOT. ON.

Six!

The night before the big day, we planned a little surprise for our six year old..

 Fortunately, we heard him waking up in his room & sprinted outside his door to watch his face. He was totally surprised and said, "You guys REALLY got me good on that one, Mom & Dad!"

 The big day brought one new Lego set which he completed before 10am, so we could be first in line at the Lego store to use his new gift cards to get a set he has had his eye on for a while! Basically it was a Lego building marathon for the smallest Cunningham Lego Maniac...BEST. DAY. EVER!

 Then a few days later we hosted 13 five and six year olds at Connor's Super Hero Party...

 The kids threw some batarangs at the bad guys...

 Pinned the Batman symbol on Batman...

 Ran through the super hero obstacle course...

 Complete with an attack by a silly string shooting "bad guy"

 Brick wall to knock over...you know, the usual super hero obstacle course.

 Those bad guys were REALLY serious about it...so much so that some of the girls asked for "no silly string!" Way to really play your part, Dads. I mean, really get into it. Don't. Hold. Back.

And a Happy Happy Birthday it was!

Kindergarten Celebration

And in the blink of an eye, it was the last day of Kindergarten. Connor was super excited for us to come to his school for celebration day & so were we! Connor even smiled a bit for our early morning pictures.

 Probably the saddest part for C, was that he will not be riding the bus for quite a while. So, we all 5 headed out to see him off...

 Here's Connor & our neighbor who shared our bus stop.

 And off they go in the big yellow bus to the last day of school!

Celebration was a hit! We did NOT get kicked out for bringing too many guests (and I happened to notice that we did not have the most peeps in tow). But it WAS crowded. I mean there are a lot of people who like to celebrate Kindergarten, apparently. The kids memorized a short program for us, sang songs, and we had cake -of course the kids favorite part!

(Connor is about in the middle of the video, the tallest to the right of the dark haired dad up front)

After the celebration, one of the super organized Moms from class invited everyone to the park for a picnic. What a fun way to celebrate the last day together this year!

Connor & his BFF Jake

The Girls & Jake's sister Charlotte

I decided that no end of Kindergarten post would be complete without a short Q & A from Connor. Here is a summary of  

Connor's Favorite Things About Kindergarten:

Favorite Day of Kindergarten: playing in the leaves

Subject: PE

Kindergarten Snack: plain round cookies

Friend on the bus: Cailey

Friends at school: Jake, Cailey, Drew, Connor M.

Field trip: The one that got us home at 2:30 (Wildlife refuge)

Books: The ones you helped me with at home (Oh good, I'm still his favorite teacher:)

Circle Time Activity: 2-4-6-8

Reading Group Activity: Activity room, where we just play, play, play!

I think its safe to say that Connor has come a long way since the First Day of Kindergarten!

Cunningham Kids Annual Family Birthday Party!

I can't think of a single thing more fun to a bunch of kids than a birthday party. Except maybe a party for three kids. At the same time. "Beach" Themed. That way you have three VERY excited children. In swimsuits. Running. And Screaming. And "waiting" - which is the hardest part, clearly.

 

 

Lights, Camera, Cake! We are all set. 

 

First, I gave Connor the job of greeting the guests with party leis. 

 

  

Which was his most favorite job E.V.E.R.

 

 Next the girls figured out where their gifts were, and started snooping.

 We wore swimsuits, ate, had cake, opened gifts, played with cousins, and THOROUGHLY enjoyed the Cunningham Kids Annual Family Birthday Party!

 Cheers to cousin Scottie, who won the prize for the best beach attire! (a.k.a. The only person over age 6 to dress in traditional beach get-up. Although Scott & I did enjoy commenting on the "beach attire" of everyone else. Apparently a lot of folks like to head to the beach in jeans, romeos, tennis shoes, etc. They must have been headed to a different beach than we were. Who knew?) 

Little Slugger

Welcome to another season of 5-year-old baseball! Since Connor is a t-ball veteran, he has moved up to the coach-pitch league. This league consists of 5, 6, & 7 year olds, & he is the youngest person on the team (by a few weeks). Clearly at this level, the coach (Connor's Dad) takes his job very seriously. Just look at the way he commands all of their attention during a very serious pep-talk:

 Here is Connor playing first base...Completely focused on the hitter. Ready. For. Anything. That's how you roll in 5-year old baseball, obviously.

 Good catch! Almost an out! They started calling outs half way through the season, which is pretty exciting if you are playing defense. But P.S. - getting called out is kinda rough when you are five.

 Our little Slugger!

Of course the fans insist on being photographed too. I use the word "fans" loosely. They watch approximately 4 minutes of each game, then roam around the grass and get into anything they can find. I spend approximately 87% of the game keeping track of them.

Cheers to another great season!