I hate to admit it, but summer is on it’s way out. With only three weeks left, I figured I’d catch up on the blog and share what we’ve been doing for the summer so far! It’s been a lot of just fun around town. We’ve hit the beach up a lot and the pool even more! My two girls are quite the fishies!! We’ve been to parks, the library, PlayWerx, and a few other randoms in between!! We have three more weeks to keep having fun in the sun and making the most of our time… Just us three!

Swimm Lessons:

The girls are working on their third year of swim lessons with Miss Claudia. Kloey has just flourished like none other! When we began swim lessons in May, Kloey was crab walking along the side of the pool and playing on/around the stairs. After today’s lesson, Kloey is DIVING!, swimming across the pool (the long way!), swimming on her back, doing cannon balls, diving for toys, and most importantly, having a GREAT time!! Kayden, who is far less motivated, is chugging along and doing all of the above too. Kloey wants nothing more than to be in the pool. Kayden feels the same way about being in the pool, but she’d rather play mermaids and just frolick around. I get it! Both girls are doing excellent in swim!

Apparently I only take videos at swim lessons. Hope this one works!

Beachin’ It:

We love the beach!! We go in the mornings on the weekends during our walk/run excercise. We go during the day and bring a picnic lunch. And we go before dinner to play one last time! The girls love squealing as the jump waves. They love digging (aka getting dirty!), and sometimes they enjoy just laying in the sun.

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Swimming:

As I mentioned, the girls are little fishies!! We finally put up our backyard pool and it gets SO MUCH use!! They are in the pool for hours almost every day. The water is super warm, so that means I even get in!! We’ve all 4 gotten great use out of that pool so far!

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Yeah, summer is pretty good for the Hatcher girls!!

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We had so much fun in Idaho in the winter time that we decided (while we were still there!) that we wanted to go back in the summer. What better time than over the 4th of July?! Fireworks are legal there so naturally, the boys were very excited to go! The trip was so much fun!

Here are some of our highlights:

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Ahhh sweet Kloey!! She had a great time fishing, shooting daddy’s BB gun, running, eating ice cream, and exploring the ranch. But what did she love the MOST about the trip? Buddy!! She had her flirting game on the whole time we were there! We’d catch her wresting with Buddy, giving him a back rub (under his shirt!) in the back of the car, teasing him, snuggling him, and joking around with him. It was a total flirtmance and we thought it was hilarious…. Kinda! 😉

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I don’t have as many pictures of Kayden because she was busy taking care of the kids. Seriously! We heard Buddy say, “Okay Kayden, you are in charge!” And she was! She made sure the littles didn’t fall behind. She made sure no one unintentionally went swimming in the lake. And she made sure everyone was nice to each other! Kayden and Matelle were as attached as Kloey and Buddy, but not in the weird, flirty way!

One day I gave Kayden my phone to take ‘some pictures’. I didn’t realize just how long she had my phone for based on how many pictures she took! One of the nice things about being at the ranch is no service on our phones. Most of the days no one had any idea where their phones were. Unplugged for 5 days was pretty awesome! Here are a few of Kayden’s artistic shots of the beautiful flowers and the wild life… Inside!

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And finally… The snakes!!! I had never seen a snake that wasn’t in a cage or at the zoo. So it was a real treat to be walking outside and come across a gardener snake. Yeah, it was heart stopping, but I survived! One morning there were a TON just hanging out in the bushes. Scotty even caught one!!

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Congratulations Kayden on ‘graduating’ Kindergarten!!! You did it! You finished your FIRST year of full-time school. While I don’t buy into the whole ‘graduation’ theme for Kindergarten, because it should be reserved for real accomplishments made by much older people, I do find pride in my heart for Kayden. This year was the first year she attended school full time (6 hours without me 😢). This was a year of major growth for her (and me!). It was a tough transition, but one that she made with strength and bravery. Yes, school is a scary place!! Through the year, Kayden learned A TON academically, but she also learned just as much socially and emotionally. Change is hard for my sweet introvert. She is quiet. Most kids are not. She is shy. Most kids are not. She is sensitive. She is compassionate. She is caring. But most of all, she is a child of good character. From taking in the new girl who came all the way from China and knew no English, to choosing to play with the Littles at recess so the would feel like one of the big kids, Kayden is a good human. I could honestly go on and on about how wonderful she is, but then I’d have to follow up with how imperfect she can be… At times… Not often… But sometimes 😉. With all that, let me say it again, Congratulations Kayden on how far you have come in your FIRST year of school. You nailed it!!

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Short Videos 🎓

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6 years ago, REALLY?! What the heck?? I asked for a baby. I wanted a baby. I couldn’t wait for a toddler. Was excited for a little one. But certainly did not sign up for a full on KID! That probably  sounds weird. What’s the difference between a toddler and a little one and what the heck is a ‘KID’? Such different stages, that’s what the difference is!! I love, love, love the ‘kid’ Kayden has turned in to…. but while I am proud and happy and delighted and everything else, I am scared. 6 means my kid is going into the world. She is gaining independence. She is venturing off and making decisions. She is learning. She is losing teeth. She is developing a personality. She is pushing limits. She is developing her personal space in this world. She is learning where she fits in in this world and learning how to either fit in perfectly or be a little mismatched and fitting in the way she wants to. To this point in her life she has done nothing but make us proud and excited for what she is going to do and be in this world. Nothing in life is promised, so for where we are today, we are thankful and proud! Thank you Kayden for being everything to us. You (and your sister… Sorry, had to add her in here too!) make us incredibly proud of all that you have become and we’re super excited for what’s awaiting us in the future…. (Be good to us and please may you look back on this incredibly sweet post and remember how much we love you and dote on you, and may you never have a mean thing to say to us…. Even in the teenage years… We already fear the teenage years!!)

 

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My sweet, sweet Kloey… You are 4 today. Where in the heck did the time go?? I remember the very first words  that came out of my mouth (mumbled by tears and medication) when I met you were, “I want another one!” Scotty calmly (through his own tears of ‘oh shit she’s already crazy!’) told me that we should go ahead and take care of and love you for a little bit before we made that huge decision. From the moment I met you, I loved you hard. You have taught me A LOT in your four, brief years in our family! You have taught me so much, in fact, that I have dedicated quite a few blogs to such lessons! You give the best hugs, warmest kisses, most generous compliments, and so many funny stories to to pass along. You have your own style (tu-tus, wings, nothing else), AH-MAZING hair (it’s your power), personality for days (lots of demands, needs, must do’s NOW, and requests that cannot be denied), and a true passion for whatever YOU want to do (albeit setting up paint minutes before we need to leave the house (because you ain’t leaving the house until you paint!), refusing to clean up a mess, (that YOU made by yourself!) finishing your plate at dinner (because you know Mommy made it and want to make her happy!), ride your bike (because you want to do it like Kayden does), etc. We have learned to come to you with a calm energy (even if Mommy is anything but calm) because we know that’s how to speak to your heart. You are truly one of the most amazing humans I know, Kloey! Stay strong willed. Stay passionate. Back down to no one. Rock your power. And, please, keep being you!! People remember you when they meet you in the store. I can’t go anywhere without being told how darn cute you are. Keep. Being. You. ALWAYS!!!!!!!!!!