Fleeting Moments of Summer

We all head off to school tomorrow morning.  Connor starts Kindergarten, Caroline goes for her 2nd week of PreK3 at First Baptist Wildwood, and I'll start with my new batch of 5th graders.  Tonight we went swimming in Mrs. Tina's pool next door and enjoying the last fleeting moments of summer.  I took some video of the kids swimming with my new flip video camera given to me by my soon-to-be sister-in-law, Pam. 

We have loved our summer break.  Spending time at the beach, camping in the backyard, celebrating the boys birthdays, going to SeaWorld, having fun at VBS, learning how to swim in the neighbor's pool, eating popsicles with friends, staying up late watching movies, & so much more. 

Caroline has loved school so far.  She comes home everyday sharing some new rule that she has learned at school.  Miss Rule Follower, I didn't know she had it in her.  It helps having her best bud Jakey in there with her.  Connor is excited about starting Kindergarten he met his teacher on Thursday and loved the fact that she had two baby frogs in a tank in the class.  He just doesn't scare easy so once again I'll be the one crying tomorrow as I drop him off. 

I'm thrilled to be back in 5th grade.  I met my new students on Thursday.  They really are a good group of students.  I can't wait to share some cool reading strategies with them and read them a good book they can handle it unlike my 2nd graders last year.  That's what I missed the most. 

So I look forward to hearing more stories about what my children have learned and watching them develop.  There is something so special about school time that I adore.  I leave you with a new video from my flip video camera.  It is of the kids showing off their swimming skills.

Backyard Camping

Backyard camping was on the agenda this past weekend.  We set up tent and played in the backyard on Saturday.  I thought it would be a fun thing to do this summer while I had the time off.  I knew if I went camping in a tent there had to be some stipulations.  First being I needed an air conditioner.  Craig took care of that with a portable air-conditioner that he had in his shed.  We were all set up with a DVD player and a Queen mattress (not an air mattress a real one.) We roasted marshmallows after a scrumptious dinner of grilled chicken, mashed potatoes, and steamed broccoli.  MawMaw & PawPaw & Uncle Brant & Aunt Pam came over with Chloe to enjoy the marshmallowy treats.  Chloe even snuck a few licks of PawPaw's skewer when no one was looking.
Craig took the twin air mattress with Connor and I slept on the queen with Coop and Caroline.  I think he got the better deal because Caroline and Coop squirmed all night long.  Coop even fell off the mattress during the night he was moving around so much.  We had a lot of fun but I sure did enjoy sleeping in my bed the next night as did they.

Sanibel Beach

We took our annual summer trip to Sanibel last week and celebrated Connor's 5th birthday while we were there.  Uncle Brant came and brought his boat with him so we took a few boat rides as well.  We had a great time soaking up the sun, finding shells at low tide, and swimming without floaties in the pool.  We also took a trip over to a children's museum in Fort Myers that had a lot of neat things to see and do.  Connor actually held a very large snake around his neck.  I had to look just for a second so I could take the picture, yuck.  We also watched a short 3D movie and they really cracked me up trying on those glasses. We had a wonderful time, I just sad I'm not there right now. 

She ran in her room and grabbed her tennis shoes and put them on herself, notice they're on the wrong feet and then she pranced out ready to go so proud of herself.  We laughed so hard at her.  What a silly girl!

Summer Check Off List

Sad to say, as my summer begins so does my list of things to accomplish.  I've already started checking off items on this list but it keeps growing. 

1. Spend as much time as possible in the pool with my kids and hopefully by the end of the summer I'll have a kickin' tan and some children who can swim without floaties.
2. Get my new 5th grade classroom organized.  I'm super excited to be teaching a more mature audience next year. 
3. Clean out closets, dressers, and under beds.  Yuck!
4. Clean out our bedroom and reorganize it.
5. Read all 2010-2011 Sunshine State Young Readers Award books.  Three down and 12 to go!  May I recommend The Girl Who Could Fly by Victoria Forester. Awesome summer read. 

      6. Take the kids to a VBS or two.

      7. Enjoy a week at Sanibel, I can't wait!

      8. Make a few trips over to SeaWorld.

      9. Enjoy my days with my husband since I haven't seen him much with him working nights.

    10. Finish Competency 3 of my Reading Endorsement classes.  It goes all summer long, bummer!

    11. Sleep in!

So what about you? Any summer plans you'd like to share?

Kindergarten, Here we come!

A, B, C's and 1, 2, 3's that what my teacher taught to me!  Today I got the privilege of watching Connor's End of the Year Program at school.  He was so . . . cute. Each student got to be a part of a little play in which they acted out a nursery rhyme.  He was part of the Humpty Dumpty group.  All the Kings Men consisted of Connor Cannon, with a mustache to prove it.  Adorable!  They also sang a couple of songs and at the very end of the program the students who've been taking violin lessons this year got to show off what they've learned.  I was just beaming watching him work that violin.  Before they played she quizzed them on music theory and they knew all kinds of things about notes and rests.  I was amazed!

Beach Babes

We took a quick trip last weekend to Fort DeSoto.  It was very crowded but still a beautiful beach.  It sure made me ready for summer break and a week at Sanibel.  The water was still a little too cold for me but Caroline could not get enough of it.  Connor buddied up with the family sitting next to us and we had a hard time talking him into spending time with his own family.  Cooper was busy but always took a break to hang out on his Mommy's lap.  Here are some pictures of the kids.

Spring

Spring is in the air so I thought I'd share what the Cannon's have been up to since the warm weather has finally shown up. 

It's been a crazy couple of weeks around here.  My kids have been sick since St. Patrick's Day.  From strep to ear infections, to a contusion on the foot bone they've had it all. We are finally on the mend & I am sure Dr. Albino is glad to have a break from my kids cause she's been seeing their faces quite a bit lately.  During that time my Granny passed away so I took a quick trip up to Alabama to be a pall bearer in her funeral.  She always had a good sense of humor and decided that she wanted her granddaughters to be her pall bearers and wear her favorite color red with jeans.  It was a beautiful service and I was honored to be a part of it. While I was up in Bama my mom showed me this picture of my Granny and I just loved it.  It depicts her in her element.  She loved being outdoors - hunting, taking care of her flowers, or leading her unassuming grandchildren to "the branch" to romp in the water.  We loved spending our time at Granny's with our cousins.  We always had a good time. 

 

My mom came back to Florida with me and spent Easter with us.  We had an egg hunt at MawMaw & PawPaw's on Saturday.  We went to church with them on Sunday.  The kids had a great Easter they really enjoyed having their Nannie here with them.  Monday morning we woke up early to watch the shuttle launch from our backyard.  It's so neat to watch it launch while it is still dark outside.  It's incredible that we have such a good view from way over here.

 

I only have a few more days of Spring Break left, it has gone by so fast. We still have plans to finish remodeling Caroline's room with a paint job.  We finally got her toddler bed out so now all that's left is some paint.  I did get the chance to clean out & reorganize the kids' closets.  Wow, that was a task.  So it's off to spend the last few days of Spring Break with my family & eat the rest of my kids' Easter candy.  Watch out Lifesaver Gummies - Here I come!