This summer has really flown by. The kids have been busy and we have enjoyed the adventures this summer has brought so far, despite all of the rain we have gotten. We recently took the kids to Santa's Village, the Flume Gorge hike, Clark's Trading Post and Loon Mountain (where we got married). The kids loved the trip and so did we. They were amazing. It was their first time sharing a room and they loved it and did so well. Both kids are daredevils and loved all the rides at Santa's Village. Avery started off her summer with space camp. She had a blast! (No pun intended) Her friend Shae was with her and they had the best time together learning about planets, rockets and outer space. At the end of camp they got to shoot off their own rockets which was fun to see. It was Avery's first camp experience and she was the youngest camper in her group. She held her own, made friends and had a lot of fun. I was proud of her and excited for the independence that shown through in her that week. She has one more camp this summer before she goes back to school: gymnastics camp - which she is very excited about! It has been very nice having all of this extra time with her this summer, especially since she is starting kindergarten this year. Avery has worked on her swimming and bike riding skills this summer. Her personality always has me in awe and at times, tests my patience. She has always been a kid that follows her own path. She does not care what others are doing, or saying. She just does what she wants to do because she wants to. She is not a follower, that's for sure. Me being more of a follower and a people pleaser, watching her really does amaze me. I admire her for doing things because of internal desires and not because anyone else wants her to. I always put emphasis on how proud I am of her (and her brother, of course) but I also emphasize that she should be proud of herself. Because bottom line, that is what is most important. What she thinks and how she feels, not anyone else's opinion. I want her to be proud of herself for the things she accomplishes, not just happy because someone else is proud of her. This idea is something that I have admired about her but has already tested my patience. Potty training, for example. Do you think bribery of ANY kind worked for her? Nope. Nothing. Nada. But the minute she was determined that she wanted to do it. Boom, it was done. Then she was all about the prizes, of course. She does not care about bribes, she does not care about what others are doing. If she does not want to do something, she isn't gonna do it. Period. I love this about her, but Lord please help me. As always, she is my pride and joy. She is sensitive, silly, smart, loving, fun and so incredibly caring. Love this girl with my entire being.
Oliver, in a lot of ways, is polar opposite. He is a brute. He is rough, he is crazy. He is a troublemaker!! He is also so incredibly sweet and caring too. But man he's got energy. He is very laid back. In fact we are potty training him at the moment with ZERO incentives required. That's right. He just wants to be like sister and enjoys when we yell "Hooray!" and boom he is trained. He made up for the amount of torture it was to train his sister! He goes with the flow, will be happy doing whatever. BUT. He is Mister Independent. I can't do anything for him anymore. He wants to do ev-er-y-th-ing by himself. Which is great, but also not great. I love watching his personality blossom. He is a goofball and might be a class clown when he is in school. He tries to get you to laugh and will say "I'm funny!" One time I asked him "Hey Ollie, are you a ham?" He responded with "A ham and cheese!" and that's how he responds every time someone calls him a ham now. He is really cute to watch with Avery because he wants to be just like her. It melts my heart. He has been a joy to watch grow. I'm in love with his crazy, silly, loving self. Love this boy with my entire being.
