sneaking in a little bit of culture

The Clark Art Institute had a Family Day on Sunday….a little bit of a drive for us…..but so much fun!!!

The day was filled with dance and music performances, endless creative crafts for the kids, free admission to the museum and so much more!!!!  The whole day was inspired by Picasso and Degas.

We recognized Caroline’s irish step teacher who dances for the Albany Ballet.

the swing was a big hit….suspended from 2 trees… they harnessed the kids up and gave them a big push.

face painting…or arm painting for my 2 kiddos….and hair wrapping for Caroline.

 

we painted….

and sculpted….

and created

after watching her older cousin ride the bull…Caroline had to try…a testament to her strong willed personality she held on so tight, determined not to let go!!! After hanging off the side for what seemed like forever…i finally had to tell her it was ok to let go!!!

 

we watched in awe as the Castellers de Boston Circus Guild created a human tower!!!

I was amazed how fast 5 hours went by…..in the crazy heat…not one whine from the kiddos….we were on the go the whole time except for a lunch and ice cream break…..can’t wait till next year!!!

we took our monkeys to the zoo

a perfect day at Forest Park with friends!!!

i bet this little guy LISTENS to his MOMMA!

Llamas should have a warning label on them…..this one kept sneezing…yuck!

why can’t boys just smile normal for a picture? he was a little excited about the train ride!

  

i took a million pictures but zero time to go through them all!!! our summer days have been busy ones!!!

rainbow cupcakes

 

While Cooper was at preschool, Caroline and i decided to do a little baking.

We thought we would surprise Cooper with rainbow cupcakes for his last day….and to celebrate the official start to summer!

all set to go in the oven…Caroline had fun deciding what color combinations to make….

Hello Summer!!!

hello lazy mornings and sleeping in

hello sunny days at the beach

hello summer fun!!!

these lucky kiddos!!!  don’t ya wish we had these water slides and bouncy houses when we were kids!!! my kids bounced for 3 hours straight….and slept really good that night!

recital time

 

Father’s day around here was quickly taken over by Caroline’s recital.

 

Cooper patiently waits around as we get Caroline all ready….he told me he would like to do a recital so he can get flowers….I told him he has to go to dance class every week and wear a costume…he doesn’t mind as long as its not pink.

she was so excited and amazingly CALM….me, not so much!

      

oh the pressure of getting the perfect ballerina bun!!

this year she danced 2 routines, tap and ballet.

so poised

so confident

so focused!      

i am one proud mamma!

all smiles after the show!!

and time to watch the older girls.

Friday morning we took a trip down a local river.

We were all so excited to go on an adventure!!

i have no idea why they are both tilting their heads and caroline seems to have crazy hair….but isn’t that sky amazing!

the morning was beautiful and we had the whole river to ourselves! This trip was our longest yet…we paddled 4.6 miles in about an hour and a half. 

we talked about the river, the hills, the wildlife…and they loved seeing the reflections on the water.

 

we saw geese,a goose egg on the shore, turtles, yellow finch, muskrat and a pink plastic flamingo! 

and they loved it when we stopped paddling to listen to all the sounds….so peaceful…so calm.