Bucket List Finale

Here we are at the final week before school starts and our Bucket List is less than half complete. This is to be expected for us though; the last three years have found the same result. We make such a big list and then things like camps and swim team and fun random play dates happen and the big stuff gets pushed to the back burner.

I'm totally ok with that though. I love the unscheduled moments of summer. Going to the pool for a quick dip and meeting several friends there which leads to us staying the entire afternoon. Or playing in the front yard before we run an errand only to remain in the yard, the cul-de-sac, the garage for the better part of a day, drawing with chalk and playing whiffle ball and throwing water balloons.

This year I very intentionally made NO plans for the final week of summer. No camps, no meet-ups with friends, no appointments. This allowed for us to pull out a few big ticket items at the last minute.

Monday night we got a sitter for Ruby and took the big kids to Stone Mountain. They've been once or twice, but just to barely walk around the bottom village area. They've never seen the laser/firework show. They had a great time lounging on the green with us and identifying the Confederate soldiers before it got dark. (OK, that was just Eli....he identified them for all of us.)

Tuesday I took them to the pool for a guaranteed three hours AND told them we could get a treat from the ice cream truck. Of course, that was the one day in the history of our neighborhood that the truck didn't show up. Usually it's there about once an hour! We played with friends and ate lunch and just enjoyed not looking at the clock.

Wednesday I took the kids to the Aquarium. It had been at least two years since we'd been; Maddux didn't even really remember it. We had a lot of fun going through all of the exhibits, and we ended with the dolphin show. Eli and Maddux had never seen dolphins perform in any way, so they absolutely loved the show with it's fin waving and spinning and jumping. Good stuff.

Thursday morning we went to Gigi's for Ruby, and then met Daddy for lunch. That's always a treat for the kids because we get to meet him at his office and walk to a restaurant.  When we got home, I filled up Ruby's plastic pool. And pulled out the tarp for a slip-n-slide. And turned on the sprinkler. Back yard fun, to the max.

We had to do the school Meet-n-Greet on Friday, so that ate up most of our day. By then we were tired from the week's events anyway :)

Bucket List

Just as we did last year, the first thing we did when school let out was make our Summer Bucket List. The kids loved it last summer, even though we barely made it through half of the list. This year we had many repeats and a few unfinished items from last year, along with some new ones (i.e. "Have Baby").

So far, in just over a week's time, we've checked off four items. Two of those got checked off today: 'Breakfast at West Egg' and 'Biking at the River'. The kids love the breakfast spot on the west side of town, so after swim team this morning, we drove over for brunch. Since it was the same time Lehr usually gets lunch, he even joined us - the kids LOVED that.

I already had the bikes packed in the car, so on the way home, we stopped at the river and rode about two miles. (I did not ride; I walked.) Eli and Maddux were awesome. Usually when we visit the 5K-ish loop, I let them ride ahead and check back with me from time to time as I run. This time, there would be no running, and given how close we are to my due date (and the heat!) I asked them to check back more frequently since I may have to turn back to the car at any time. They were awesome. They stuck together, got along, and checked back so often that I never went more than two minutes without seeing them or talking to them. Bucket List is getting shorter...