Holly
Kaitlyn has been so excited for camp, but yesterday and today she did mention being a little nervous. This year she is attending without knowing anyone. We went out to lunch in town and happened to meet another family that was taking their son and daughter to the same camp. Our girls are the same age and were enjoying talking to each other before we left the restaurant.
Kaitlyn’s nervousness completely disappeared the minute we walked into her cabin and she realized all of the other girls arrived without knowing each other too. Just like last year, setting Kaitlyn up in her cabin was an insanely hot experience. We knew it going in so we tried to do it as quickly as possible, but wow!
Today’s adventure was all Wade’s idea. He hyped it up and along we went. Wade and I were thinking we would rent three kayaks, but the littles had other ideas. Kaitlyn has had an irrational fear of small water craft since adventure camp several years ago. (She didn’t have a bad experience or even fall in the water, but has zero interest in being on the water.) Ben saw the paddle boats and that’s all he wanted. To make everyone happy, we ended up with one kayak and one paddle boat.
I remember taking paddle boats out when I was a kid. I remember them being fun, so maybe the adult I was with did all the work? Because this time I was the adult and they were hard work! It was a hot sunny day and I was worn out by the time we got back to the dock. Thankfully at the end I had Alex and Teague with me and I made them do some paddling.
Several months ago, an old friend asked if Kaitlyn and I would be interested in participating in MudGirl with her and her daughter. I had no idea how Kaitlyn would react and was a little surprised when she was excited to say yes after seeing all the pictures from previous years. A third mother and daughter ended up joining our group before we registered.
The day of the race, we dressed in matching purple tanks. We carpooled together. It was awesome! We can’t wait to go back next year.
We started the day by taking everyone on a Dune Buggy ride through the sand dunes. It was great!
Then the big boys bailed on activities for the rest of the day. We took the rest of the kids back to the dunes. It was a crazy hike to reach the beach!
The girls had been begging to go the Family Fun Center so we ended the evening with an outing there. The girls surprised us all by wanting to do the big drop!
Today was the day to celebrate Ben. The schools call it Move Up Day. There was a ceremony for the parents to attend and it was adorable. The parents assembled in the cafeteria and then the kindergarteners came in class by class. Once they were all up on the stage, as a group they sang four songs. Then they were called name by name and received their certificates for completing kindergarten.
The parents were then invited back to the classroom to take pictures with their kids. Ben got a picture with his teacher too!
Once a year, our PTG buys a group of tickets to the Woo Sox and then school families can buy them. We always attend and tonight was the night. Alex slept through the game (due to his mouth work earlier) so we were a family of five for this outing. Last year we were rained out but this time there were only a few light sprinkles – thank goodness. Ben dressed for the game in his baseball gear and brought his mit. He was able to retrieve some of the soft balls they throw out for one of the activities. The kids had a blast and the fireworks at the end were excellent.
I had always planned to volunteer for Ben’s field day today. I knew it would be in the morning and I got my station assignment last night. I was pretty happy to be assigned to a water station. (I had the parachute station when Kaitlyn was in 1st grade and it was brutally hot!). I loved seeing all the kindergarteners but especially Ben and his friends.
I slipped away from my station for a quick break when Ben’s class did Popsicles and Pictures on the front lawn. That’s the time parents who aren’t volunteering can come and see their kids and grab a few pictures. Ben’s class loves the camera.
Somewhere along the way, Kaitlyn’s field day got rescheduled to be on the same day. I just assumed I wouldn’t be able to volunteer and didn’t look into it further. Last night I happened to sit down and actually look at the sign ups. I realized it was possible (barely) to volunteer at both if I hurried from one school to the other. More amazing was that Kaitlyn’s field day still needed volunteers.
Today was the second biggest fundraising event of the year for the PTG, and the biggest when it comes to the amount of work. The weather was not on our side and it rained all day. We had planned for that, unfortunately, and set up everything inside or under tents. I sat the entire day at the front ticket table and handled the money. Wade spent the entire day outside directing parking. Alex spent the day doing various jobs as needed. Teague spent most of the day watching Ben and a small part of the day volunteering. Kaitlyn spent the day running wild and getting every penny out of her all-pass bracelet. Ben also ran wild with minimal oversight by Teague and all the other adults and teachers that know him. (It takes a village.)
Kaitlyn’s grade had one of their field trips today and I was able to chaperone. The day is called Grafton History Day. The kids walk around downtown Grafton, make one other stop, and learn all about the history of Grafton. We had wonderful history and I learned quite a bit about Grafton that I didn’t know. We visited with the Grafton Historical society in one of the older churches on the Common, the library, the Gazebo, and then took a bus to the Willard Clock Museum.
Ben has been saying for days that he wanted to make me breakfast for Mother’s Day. I knew he was going to need some help so I kept waiting to see what was going to happen. Finally Alex offered to get up early and help him. They were cute trying to work together. Alex was grumpy and short on patience. Ben was his normal exuberant self. They did eventually figure out how to work together and delivered me some delicious double chocolate chip muffins.
The rest of the day was a lovely lazy day. We went to church where the moms were treated to bouquets of flowers and the children made treats for us in Sunday School. I had a wonderful nap when we got home and then my children gifted me flowers and chocolate. The day ended with a trip to my favorite Mexican restaurant. Perfection. (The picture of just the kids was the picture we sent to the grandmothers for Mother’s Day.)
I woke up this morning to pumpkin chocolate chip bread. Alex made it last night and had it waiting for me when I woke up this morning. Things worked out even better when the weather meant Ben’s soccer was cancelled and we could have a leisurely morning.
Ben had a friend over for a playdate and they were so cute together. They played wonderfully and required minimal oversight.
After Ben’s friend had gone home and Kaitlyn’s soccer game was over, we went to Dairy Queen. For months, Ben had been telling me he was going to take me to DQ for my birthday. He had won a gift card during bingo at Gram’s house and had saved it to treat me to ice cream. He asked me several times if there would be enough on it for the entire family. I assured him we would make sure everyone got ice cream. I was impressed when most people tried something new. Alex tried a cherry dipped cone. Ben saw a picture of a banana split and fell in love. Wade agreed to split it with him.
My pick for dinner was Cheesecake Factory. We had a wonderful dinner and then fabulous desserts. Then we went back home for presents. Kaitlyn made me the sweetest bag with an IOU for a lunch date, a handmade bracelet, and an adorable stuffed puppy. Teague gave me two boxes of my favorite chocolates. I was so impressed that all of my kids made such an effort this year.
I had warned my kids that we were doing some serious Spring Cleaning this week. We spent most of the day sorting and cleaning – mostly Ben’s and Kaitlyn’s rooms. Everyone was worn out by dinner so we decided a change of scenery was in order.
Teague had mountain biking and I was pretty sure there were some hiking trails at the same location so we went with high hopes. Everything worked out perfectly. The hike we chose took exactly 1.5 hours, which was exactly the amount of time that Teague was with his group.
Kaitlyn was a little grumpy initially, but quickly found a pretty white rock. She picked up every single one she found until her jacket pockets couldn’t hold any more. Then Ben decided to be a sweet brother and started picking up the white rocks for her and putting them in his pockets. He picked up so many that his pants were falling down.
The big news everywhere is the solar eclipse. Grafton was getting a deep partial (with a magnitude of 93.4%) but Wade and I decided to take the kids out of school and drive far enough north to see the total eclipse – at least that was the plan. Kaitlyn had a play this morning that she wanted to attend and Wade had a phone call he had to take. Alex and Ben stayed home from school. I picked up Teague and Kaitlyn after just a few hours. The plan was to leave by 10, which we managed. We did not count on the traffic. It was terrible!
Our goal destination was Burlington, VT (normally a 3.5 hour drive). We ended up in Haverhill, NH at an adorable park (after driving almost 4 hours). The kids loved playing and running as the eclipse progressed. What we saw was incredible, but not quite a total eclipse. We saw a deep partial (with a magnitude of 99%). Before we left the town, we visited the cutest covered bridge and stopped for ice cream. All in all it was a fun day and definitely an adventure.
Easter Sundays are always really busy (at least for the first half of the day). We agreed as a family to get up at 6:30 and see what the Easter bunny had brought. Then some people could start getting ready and the ones who needed a quick nap could take one. This year we all remembered to put Pepper in the kennel the night before so that she wouldn’t get into the chocolate. The kids were excited for their baskets and it was fun to watch them dig into them.
Then we got dressed up, attended church, and took the Sunday picture. I needed to get a few of our lunch things underway and then we went outside for the kids to hunt eggs. The kids all found their special eggs pretty quickly, but the chicken egg was a little tricky this year. Alex finally found it with quite a bit of “hot-cold” help from Wade.
Tonight was one of our adult only fundraisers for the PTG. We ate, laughed, drank, bid, and had a great evening with friends. There was a 90s band playing and the music was amazing. I came home with a gift basket from Apex (a local entertainment center) which the children were so excited to see the next morning.
I’m not sure if the time change hit Ben extra hard or if he just really loved his back rub, but we were ready for church early this morning. I sat down on the couch to read, Ben crawled in my lap, pulled up his shirt, and asked for a back rub. It was only a few minutes before I realized he was asleep.
Tonight we had a dinner and game night at the elementary school to raise money for the 6th graders trip to Nature’s Classroom. I went to the school early afternoon to help set up and work the cashbox behind the bake sale. Wade showed up with all the kids (after Alex plainly told me he would not attend earlier in the week) for the second seating and I did take a short break to sit with them. The littles immediately checked out the prize table and couldn’t wait for Bingo to start. Ben seemed to have the worst luck and couldn’t fill a single square in on his card. Amazingly, Alex got a Bingo and immediately gave it to Ben. Before too long Kaitlyn won and got her desired prize (which one of the principals had hidden behind the table to keep safe.) The kids had a great night and it was fun to see some friends and raise some money for the sixth graders!
It occurred to me recently that Ben has never been to Build-A-Bear. Then we were planning out this week and I realized Ben wouldn’t be able to attend the evening fun at Apex with Teague and his friends. Taking him for a one-on-one trip this morning seemed like perfect timing. Ben had a lot of fun going through all the animals and finally chose Longhorn. I let him choose one outfit and Ben picked a Marvel outfit (from Black Panther) because it had a spear. Definitely a successful trip!
Our church has community events every month or two. Tonight they had a hoe down. I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect but it sounded like fun so we dressed almost everyone up, took a few pictures, and headed to the church. (Note in the first picture Ben is wearing a gun and holster. He found it in the barn earlier today in B’s old toys. We agreed to let him wear the holster to the Hoe Down but he left the gun at home.) We ended up having a great time and did quite a bit of dancing – Ben and Kaitlyn loved it and danced with everybody!
(Note Ben’s belt – that is a hand-me-down from Alex’s second Halloween costume. See here)
Today we had all kinds of extra kids in the house! Kaitlyn had a friend over. Ben had a friend over. Then Alex had two friends over to spend the night.
We made cookies. Played games. Built forts. Danced. Jumped on the trampoline. Cleaned up. And then Alex’s friends arrived right after we finished dinner. I got the little kids in bed and then took Alex and his friends out to load up on snacks before they stayed up all night playing games.
After the littles’ playdate but before dinner, I laid down on the couch to take a quick nap. When I woke up, I had sleeping kids beside me and Wade was watching TV. He later sent me this video and it cracked me up.
This is the first year that I woke up before everyone else on Christmas morning. If I hadn’t left our bedroom to see if anyone was awake (and waiting in their room as requested), then KitKat wouldn’t have gotten up and started meowing, and everyone would have slept later. Instead, Ben and Kaitlyn were woken up so then everyone was up. Then we all went downstairs to see what Santa had brought.
Then we had our traditional Christmas breakfast, got dressed, and took a few family pictures. Then we moved on to opening presents. The kids are always fun to watch. Teague and Alex had very sad want lists this year so Gram gave them mostly money, but delivered it in a creative way. She put cash in balloons but the boys had to find the balloons with their names on them and then pop them before they could count their money. It was a wonderful day and we ended it with naps for the adults while the kids were entertained with all their new things.
Ben’s winter class party was today. The other class mom wasn’t able to attend so Wade agreed to help me out. We came prepared with the always popular Snowman building relay race and the materials to make Snowman shooters. Wade and I had a great time with the kids and are ready for break to begin!
Basket presents have been a thing in the Harper house since I was a toddler. My mom has gone from making two sets of basket presents (14 presents total) to now creating 10 sets (70 presents total). She often says she feels like she has completed Christmas shopping before she even begins. My kids love them and today we opened them almost as a family and got lots of pictures.
Kaitlyn has been running all fall with her Girls On The Run team. When we were in Memphis, Kaitlyn and I went out twice on practice runs. On the first, Kaitlyn didn’t like the cold and ran less than half a mile of the three. On the second, Kaitlyn did much better but only ran a few blocks at a time before walking. I decided at that point that the run was not something to worry about and that we would be walking more than running.
Today we woke up to a cold, rainy morning. We dressed in layers and headed to the course. The boys were grumpy, but they knew when they signed up (and I paid) that they were committing regardless of the weather. We started all together but Kaitlyn was motivated. She ran at a speed that I haven’t seen before. She also ran a ton! There was some walking but not very much. The last mile (which also means the last loop of three) Kaitlyn saw that there were medals at the finish line. That motivated her even further and I had trouble keeping up with her. I was surprised and very impressed with how Kaitlyn ran her race! We waited at the finish line for Alex and Teague. We tried to cheer them on, but they were too grumpy to want cheering.
On the way home we stopped for donuts and hot chocolate. Then we all took hot showers and had a short rest. Kaitlyn, Ben, and I then met up with some friends to tour some of the Frosty Stops for “Grafton Celebrates the Holidays.” Due to the weather, there were a lot less people out so there were almost no lines. The kids had a great time and got bags full of goodies.
Wade helped my mom bring in her tree last night and the kids were very insistent that they needed to help her start decorating. We finally convinced the kids to go to bed with promises of decorating the tree in the morning.
Kaitlyn and Ben ran right to the tree to start decorating this morning. There were only a few ornament casualties and a mostly decorated tree by the time we had to leave.
We started the morning with crepes – made by Alex and David. Alex loves to make them at home, but we heard that Uncle David was a true expert. He was so nice to teach Alex some tips. Kaitlyn helped with some of the toppings. Ben was happy to be the taster.
We then ate a wonderful meal and went to the square for some pictures:
Other parts of the day were spent visiting, playing games, and Uncle John gave us some of his handmade goodies.
Kaitlyn had a cheer competition today in Lowell. We got up and were out of the house before 8. Thankfully we’ve been to the same place numerous times so we knew where to park and how things work. The girls did a great job and were fun to watch, but they didn’t place.
Kaitlyn and I stopped for lunch on the way home and then it was back to life per normal in the Burch household.
Kaitlyn and her friend were thrilled last night when they went to put on pajamas and realized they had matching pjs. This morning they made pumpkin-shaped pancakes and ate them our favorite way – with cinnamon sugar and powdered sugar (hold the syrup). Then it was time for the trip across the street. I looked outside to see that the girls had attempted to dress alike and were driving all the overnight items in the Jeep.
Then Ben and I wanted to introduce Kaitlyn to Mount Watatic and its incredible view. The big boys were adamant that once (see here) was enough and they would rather stay home. Last time we hiked there was no one on the trail. This time we passed quite a few people and the top was almost crowded. Kaitlyn once again started out running and was determined to stay ahead of the rest of us the entire hike. Because the top had so many people, there were lots of people offering to take pictures. I rarely get a picture with all of us on a hike that isn’t a selfie (which means the view is never included).
This fall is one of the busiest we have had. Because we actually wanted to be able to enjoy Korea Day, we pushed our celebration from September 26 to a few days later. We tried to order takeout from our favorite Korean restaurant and were sad to hear that it had recently been sold and was under new management. We tried a new Korean restaurant and some new dishes!
Wade’s Father’s Day gift was a trip to the Ecotarium to feed the Otters. We had to reschedule once due to Kaitlyn’s unexpected excursion to sleep away camp, but today was the day! We went to feed the otters – Slydell and Daisy. I’ll admit it was a pretty awesome experience.
Wade and the big boys headed home and I stayed with the littles. They had been wanting to visit the Ecotarium for ages.
Today was our last day in Acadia. We woke up to a chilly, dreary day. We had a slow morning and the kids enjoyed the perks of our house.
I voted for a short hike before our lobster voting adventure and most everyone agreed. (The ones who didn’t were outvoted.)
Then we headed to Bar Harbor and our Lobster Boat tour. I have never been so glad to see a covered boat! Our captain was a character and made the trip very entertaining. I’m sure he had to work much harder than normal due to visability being almost zero, but we still pulled lobsters up from traps, saw some seals, and even a dolphin.
We decided to take it a little easier today. We had breakfast at a local diner. Then we took an easy hike on the Schoodic Peninsula. The big kids were grumpy (because they are teens) but the little kids love all the rock hopping.
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While some of us were still getting ready, Alex, Kaitlyn, and Wade went exploring.
Today we hiked – again! The plan was a loop trail to The Bubble starting from Jordan Pond. The loop around Jordan Pond was a really easy hike and just fun to walk. Then we took the path off towards The Bubble. That’s when things got fun. Fairly quickly things got steep, very steep. We went from hiking to climbing. Kaitlyn immediately took the lead and I couldn’t see her in seconds. We quickly established the rule I just needed to be able to hear her. She never seemed to tire or be bothered by the hike. Alex and I were next. It was definitely one of the harder hikes I have done, but I enjoyed it. I think Alex just wanted to get it over with. Wade was quite a bit behind with Ben and Teague. I wasn’t sure if they would make it to the top with Wade’s knees and toes and Ben’s shorter legs, but they didn’t end up being as far behind us as I anticipated.
We all walked to the “bubble” and tried to push it off. Then we hiked down the other side of the Bubble loop. The difference in the terrain was hilarious. It was such a gentle slope. We finished the Jordan Pond loop and then got a snack before heading back to the car. Everyone was definitely done hiking for the day!
We decided on a seafood dinner. Wade ordered a Lobster Boil so he could try it out. Kaitlyn wanted to try something new and ordered a crab cake. The boys all got hamburgers or hotdogs. I got my favorite – a lobster roll.
Wade and I had planned to make a leisurely drive to Acadia this morning after Teague’s dentist appointment. We were going to take two cars so that Wade could pick up his parents in Bar Harbor, but while Teague was at the dentist, we got word that his parents would no longer be able to join us. We changed our plans a bit and decided on one car.
When we reached Acadia, we decided to go ahead and explore some of the park before finding the house we rented. The kids loved “rock hopping” and visiting Thunder Hole.
We grabbed dinner in Bar Harbor and then drove to Schoodic and our house for the next few days.
We planned the dates for this trip very carefully. We wanted to be sure we could visit the State Fair! The big boys had no interest in the Fair so we left them with Tony (which they loved). We took the rest of the group and spent the day eating food, seeing animals, and riding rides. Everyone was quite worn-out by the time we left!
I picked Kaitlyn up today from Camp Hayward. I went to the office to check her out and then walked to her cabin. She came running at me and gave me the biggest hug. I missed my girl!
She evidently had a great time and can’t wait to go back next year. (I couldn’t wait to get her home and in the shower. She was filthy!)
I scheduled family pictures and picked a random evening in early July. (Year before last we schedule summer pictures and the rain forced us to reschedule so many times they became fall pictures.) It worked out that Judy and Jerry were able to schedule a visit over the time we were having the pictures. Then as luck would have it, our picture day turned out to be one of the hottest, muggiest days of the summer. We managed to make it through everyone was wilted by the end and some people were very grumpy (understandably).
Thankfully I love the pictures and promised no more mid-summer photo sessions in the future.
I told the boys we were going hiking today. Ben was immediately excited. The big boys agreed a little less excitedly. We made the drive to Mount Watatic and set off on the trail. I had warned all three of them it would be longer than our normal hikes and it was a mountain so it would be steep at some parts. I had also showed them pictures of the top so they could see the awesome view we were hiking towards.
After a week at home, due to Ben’s illness and getting Kaitlyn ready for camp, we were all looking forward to resuming some of our normal summer activities. I think the lake was at the top of everyone’s list (except maybe Alex’s). Our plan was to head to the lake after my workout and lunch. I happened to be on Facebook (looking for pictures of Kaitlyn) and saw the notice that the lake was closed due to bacteria. Suddenly we had to come up with a new activity for the day.
Then I remembered our local ski hill has tubing in the summer. I know the last time I looked into the activity, Ben was too young, but I thought surely by now he would be old enough. Teague, Ben, and I went to check it out and it was the perfect thing! For an hour we tubed. There were four runs and a light mist of water is sprayed on you as you slide down the hill. There were only a few other people there so we had no lines and a great afternoon.
We started the day with a family breakfast at IHOP. It always amuses me to take the kids out to a restaurant – especially one we don’t eat at on a regular basis. Normally I would have had the two littles share but they were adamant about having their own meal and we let them. (They each ate half of what was on their plate.) Teague decided he needed a meal not on the kid’s menu and he is right on the line of being able to order from it. I was adamant that he order from the kid’s menu, especially if he wanted the 4 extra pieces of sausage. I got overruled and he ordered a large breakfast plus 4 sausages. (He downed the sausages and ate 2 bites of the meal.) Alex ate all of his meal and the rest of Teague’s.
When we got back to the house, the weather was looking like a storm, but we decided to walk up to the Common for the Parade. Kaitlyn decided not to join us because she still hates to be outside in the rain. Alex wanted to stay home. That left Teague and Ben to join the adults at the parade. We have never been to the parade before and it was the cutest small town affair. Ben loved the vehicles and the candy everyone threw. Teague was a little disappointed that most of it was not braces-friendly.
We planned a girls outing this morning to downtown Paducah. The first stop was to get permanent bracelets.
and then we took a carriage tour around downtown.
We had a little downtime and then we loaded everyone up and headed to the McCracken County Fair. The big boys were once again bored in no time at all. The rest of the kids we bought unlimited ride bracelets and they would have stayed even longer. We got there almost when the gates opened and it definitely got more crowded as it got later.
Ben had his final soccer of the season this morning. The theory was to play every team in mini-games. We ended up playing every team but one and the boys had a great time. I normally only take my sport lens but I figured there would be a team picture at the end and I would need my shorter lens so I brought both. However, in a major mom fail, I somehow managed to end up with eight blurry pictures and not a single clear one. That hasn’t happened to me in years and I would love to know what I did to mess that up…
We have a local Grafton Facebook page called “Buy Nothing.” You can request or gift anything as long as it is free. A local man often gives away tickets to local events. Last week he offered tickets to Dave Matthews Band in Hartford, CT. I put our name in and our name was picked! We left the kids with dinner cooking and instructions for bedtime. We went out to dinner and then took a little drive. We had a great time reliving some songs from our past!
Ben and I had a list of things to do today and we decided to make hiking the last thing on our list. Ben was asking for the Duck Trail again, but I convinced him we should return to Mill Pond. We decided we would hike in 30 minutes before turning around to hike out. We had a great time and met a cute couple with the sweetest dog.
As part of their graduation from Middle School, the school put on a Luau tonight. Alex decided to go instead of joining the family at the Woo Sox Game. He also demanded a Hawaiian shirt. The choices were extremely limited when it came to Amazon and the necessary delivery window, but he liked the one we found. He tried it on and I think would happily wear it daily. Because we were going to be gone, I arranged a ride with one of Alex’s friends. She also agreed to send me pictures. My favorite was the first one, which showed that Alex and Justin had the same shirt!