cookie baking season

We had our first 'cookie marathon' last Saturday. Made two batches of sugar cookies and one batch of chocolate chunk cookies. Yum Yum!!


Yes, the only icing on hand was pink. The pumpkins and leaves tasted good no matter what color they were!



Another swim lesson day. #4's first day. I am such a nervous wreck on swim lesson days...I know these are highly qualified ladies teaching our kids...but the water is so deep and I'm so far away....must release the control issues.....
So everyone survived another day of lessons ;) Today was a Safety day in which they went over rules and skills in which they could help someone in the water even if the lifeguard wasn't around.
Yes, the pictures are from a distance. I need to stay back, so I don't become that parent.

#4 jumped off the diving board twice. I was glad to see a bit of caution in the boy. He is a busy, adventurous boy in general!

#2 pulling someone in.

Swim time

It's been a busy week, but what week isn't!? I think the humidity and no wind has made it seem longer. Having sick kids too. Today was the first day of swim lessons, we enrolled the older 3 in but #2 didn't swim today as she's been sick since Wednesday night and decided she didn't feel up to it. Of course once we arrived she was upset she didn't bring her suit because she felt better! She watched intently and I'm sure will practice at our pool this week. #1 took to it like a duck in water. (Our kids know the basics of swimming but have never had formal lessons so I put them in the beginner class until the instructor says otherwise) #3 cried once we arrived and he realized he didn't have his floaties. I have been unsuccessful with getting him in the water without the floats. Then he decides to get in the water only to find out the hard way that the shallow water is deeper than our pool at home. Poor kid! But he had a great instructor who put him on her back and went about her business teaching the other kids and slow and steady got #3 swimming around too! Wish I had some pictures but I was too busy making sure #4 didn't fall in. He would lay close to the edge and watch what the other kids were doing. I did find out I can enroll him in too, so next month all 4 will be in the class. They had two teachers today, one worked with the 2 younger ones and the other had 4 older ones.

week of photo's by #1

What follows is some of the photo's that #1 has taken this week. Many got deleted by me but there are still quite a few to show!
We have many new lego creations. Which I'd describe in more detail but that was at the beginning of the week and I've already forgotten some of it.
Today we put some shaving cream on a couple cookie sheets. This was mainly for #3 as a fun way to practice writing letters. But we did let everyone have some fun playing in the shaving cream.
The older kids and I went swimming in the afternoon, James and #4 were suppose to join us but they ended up taking a long nap! Looking forward to improving everyones swimming skills this summer.
#2 is planning on having a tea party next Sunday. She picked out many craft projects to work on this next week so that we'll have proper decorations for a princess-like tea. We are thinking of making some cucumber sandwiches also. The kids have been talking in loud whispers about what kinds of treats they want to make for a mother's day surprise, so I'm not sure if we'll be making any other treats for the tea.