Kevin Turned 13!!!

We have a teenager. It is official. And we have one of the best teenagers.

Kevin has grown up to be very kind. He makes sure that he brings in treats to school to celebrate other kids, like if it is their last day. His teachers all say he is kind to others, even the kids that might be left out or awkward. He thinks about fairness, and asks questions about it. You can tell that he thinks about equity. I love that about him.  He is incredibly responsible. We no longer have to ask him to do chores. He just does them, and often volunteers to help me without being prompted. In fact, there are times where I tell Gwyn and Colin that Kevin is getting a break from clean up and dishes, because he does so much. I try to remember to acknowledge how much he does.

He has selected a great group of friends to hang out with. Over the summer, he went to the lake with these friends. (Kevin was about the same age as K2 was when he first went to the lake with Rob for the first time! That was a tradition Kevin and Rob kept until we all had too many babies to coordinate it anymore!) He started playing Dungeon and Dragon's with Colin and Alex once or twice a week, and really enjoys that. He was given the option of whether or not to invite Colin. I thought he was being nice, until he told me that they just needed more people in their group. Either way, Colin is enjoying it. They also play Bay Blades together with friends. They may not always get along, but they still share friends and do things together.

Kevin still reads more than anyone else I know. He reads a couple hundred pages a week. I can not keep up with books to even recommend anymore. When he goes to the library, the librarian spends a few minutes suggesting books and series he has already read.

He switched soccer teams last year to Lou Fusz. He and about 6 other kids moved to a new team with a different coach. The experience is much better, and his skills are improving. He currently plays defense, but wants to play offense. I think the coach needs him to chase down the other team, which he is able to do. Man, that kid can run! He scored in his game last weekend, and it was beautiful! (I wish I was there to see it.)

At the lake with friends

Haircuts for the new school year

He took his friends to an escape room for his birthday. The theme for the room was "The Office." They loved it.

Ice cream cake for his birthday.

His kick at the end of a cross country meet. This meet was his best time, and he got 20th place out of about 200 kids.

Pictures from Camp Lakewood

I am going to spend some time catching up. One of the events I want to remember is Camp Lakewood this past June.

It was the first year that all three kids could go! Kevin went with his friend Alex, and Gwyn's friend Maddie also went. Colin didn't have a friend this year, but he actually was in good spirits about it. The few weeks before camp his attitude grew more and more positive.

We split up for drop off. I took Gwyn, Kevin took Colin, and Alex's mom took Kevin and Alex. The kids were in great moods and ready for us to leave.

Pick up was AMAZING. The kids were so happy. Kevin's couselor pulled me aside and told me that he was such a great kid, and a good leader. Colin was so happy that he talked nonstop. Gwyneth said she wants to return. Kevin said that he wants to return every year and become a counselor!

Kevin's experience was probably so good beacuse he kept a good attitude. He said that a couple boys were loud at bedtime, even though everyone asked them to be quiet. They laughed and got louder, and were rude to others throughout the week. But he did his best to ignore it and hang out with his friends. Colin loved his counselors, and made friends. His favorite part was the nature center, where he touched animals and held a snake. Gwyneth said that she was sad at night, but her bunk mate would read her book aloud to her. (How sweet is that?)

My favorite part is that the kids all had a session together. Each kid gets to pick four sessions, like archery, riflery, swimming, arts and crafts, sports and nature center. All the kids picked gaga ball. So that means I saw pictures of them all together. I loved that.

Here are the pictures!

Alex, Kevin, Gwyn, and Colin!

Gwyn swimming with Maddie

It rained so much that none of the kids had to walk to East Camp to sleep outside. They had their cook out and banana boats at their cabins, and still got to sleep inside.

Playing the camp game.

At the dance party.

Trying out archery.

Kevin signed up for basketball, soccer, and gaga ball. He likes sports.

From the first night. They serve spaghetti and utensils are optional. His face didn't get too messy, though.

Opening night bonfire. Also Gwyn wore the same shirt for a couple days. It is funny to see what they do without parents!

His favorite part of camp - the nature center!

Look. At. His. Face.

Gwyn's counselor, Gru, and Colin.

Gwyn and Maddie.

Gwyn's bunk made name tags. The girls chose the only two bunks that were this close.

Alex and Kevin. I try to send the kids the first week for two reasons. One is that it isn't too hot yet. The other reason is that the bunks are usually not full. Most kids go in July. Alex and Kevin didn't have anyone in the lower bunks this year.

Colin's bunk. He did have someone on the lower bunk.

Skeptical optimism at drop off.

Bonfire shenanigans.

I love her summer hair here.

Pick up day.

Colin's friend in his bunk.

Kevin's bunk.

The ride home. (We rode with Dawn and Alex.)

Something I want to remember...

...is watching Gwyneth get her picture taken for 3rd grade.

School pictures this year were taken at Open House. For some reason, the photographer let parents back to look at the pictures and approve them. Well, Gwyn was ready for pictures in a shirt her friend's mom made for her. (It is cute.)

Her first smile was all front teeth. The picture looked.... toothy. So Kevin told her to open her mouth a little bit, which she did. So she had her toothy grin, her chin pulled back and tilted down, and her mouth strangely open.  She took two pictures like this. I told Kevin to keep the last one but he said no. Boring.

Anyway, we are obviously taking a long time. However, we are also laughing so hard that I am crying and my side hurts. Thankfully the parent in line after us was nice, and gave a look of understanding. In the end, I told Kevin that we need to just let her take a picture and stop telling her what to do.

She had no smile at all. I wish I had gotten the whole thing on video.

I still think we should have kept the funny photo. 

Gwyn lost a front tooth!

I received this message from her teacher. Look how happy she is!

Gwyn was eating a rice krispie treat for snack. When she took a bite, her tooth stayed in the rice krispie treat! And she got a little treasure box that the nurse gives you when you lose a tooth at school. She went to a friend's house after school to show it off, and left it there. They left to go out of town for the weekend, so she can't even show off her tooth! But she is still very excited. And you can sometimes tell she lost a tooth when you listen to her talk.

Talking Like a Kid

I am going to miss when Gwyn outgrows the little-kid things she says. She has already outgrown calling her brother Cow-lin. She still says usually with an L on the front - lusually. (That is one of my favorites.)

I remember how deep Colin's little voice was, and how seriously he would say normal things, and then cross his arms like he was so cool.

Colin (just now): Do any of them have beards?
Me: Yes.
Colin: Good, then that proves they are wise.

Remember when Kevin used to say "yestertime" when he talked about things that had already happened?

One time Colin yelled, in Target, "Mom! Who is that black guy? Who is the black guy that I like?" It was Batman.

I will post if I remember more. I just like them being little.

Colin's Star

The students at Becky-David get to sign their name on a star in the gym if they surpass all the fitness tests. It includes the mile run, sit and reach, and other tests.

Colin got his name on the star at the end of third grade! I was so excited for him, and he is so proud! Of course, he didn't tell us until the start of 4th grade, but I will take what I can get.

I went looking for the star after a PTO meeting, and didn't see it. Apparently, it is right next to the door and I overlooked it. (Reading teacher in the house!) He showed me at Parent Teacher Conferences.

Both boys are super proud of the mile times. Kevin is 6:29, and Colin is a few seconds slower. Both want to set the record in the school for their grades. There is one student faster than Kevin, and I think the same for Colin. Kevin is considering running track in the spring just to train for it.

Happy July 4th!

We had our typical 4th of July, and so far it is fantastic.

Today we did some things around the house (next post), and then headed to Frontier Park in St. Charles to watch the big fireworks.

The weather was AMAZING. There is little humidity, and it was almost cool. The kids rode carnival rides, and we ate funnel cake. Colin talked to me about Minecraft, Kevin read his book (He is reading the I Am Number Four series), and Gwyn just wandered around talking and whining. We even brought corn hole, so Kevin and I played that for about 45 minutes.

Tomorrow we are continuing the tradition of setting off fireworks and inviting neighbors. It started when the boys were pretty little and they went door-to-door inviting the houses around us. We did that for two years, and then figured the neighbors were tired of our kids. But the third year, a few neighbors asked us why they weren't invited. So it continues. I will spend some time making red, white and blue food with the kids, and Kevin will clean the house. This year I am not making strawberries. (They are so good.) But I am trying red, white and blue jello cups, chocolate covered pretzels, and rice krispie treats. No big deal, but a fun tradition for me and the kids.

I hope you have a great holiday!

Kevin is back from camp.

Yes, I started crying three times on the way to picking him up. I didn't talk about him much when he was gone because I prefer to be in denial about how much I miss my kids when they are gone. There is less crying for my husband to deal with. But the drive down was very exciting for me. I was nervous about his mood when I picked him up. I drove down with his friend's mom, so I had someone to talk to on the way, and the boys got to ride home together.

He was so freaking happy when I picked him up! He was telling me about how he went horse back riding (his favorite of the trip), zip lining twice, and rock wall climbing. (He made it to the top.) At the closing event, he and Alex and the others sang their chants from camp, and I wish I got it on video. He was so happy in it. (And he voice was horse when I picked him up.) By the time I asked to get his picture, he was exhausted and didn't want a picture taken. (I don't know how he didn't fall asleep on the way home.)

Here is what he has to say about Camp Lakewood -

Cabins: It was nice, we had 16 beds, including the counselors. There was plenty of space, the bathrooms were fine. We got to play hide-and-go-seek in our free time and there were plenty of places to hide. We played games in our free time. (His cabin group was the smallest as there were only 6 kids in his group. There were plenty of open beds, and one of the boys was special needs and slept separately. Kevin and Alex mentioned his name first when we asked about making friends. I am so glad that all the kids felt like part of a group.)

Food: The food was nice. I liked it all. They had good food.

Cabin mates: They were fun. Ramorie was a lot of fun. Jo Jo loved his music and he was so much fun. I want to see him again next year. Edison was fun when he wasn't angry. And you know Alex. (His friend.)

Counselors: Sassquatch was fun and did fun stuff. Mumble was fun and did fun stuff as well. Racoon helped mainly with Jo Jo.

(Me:You keep saying fun. K3:Because it was so fun! That is the best word to use!)

Clinics: They were good. The only one I will change is soccer, otherwise they were all really good. I liked basketball, floor hockey and flag football. I want to change soccer to something else so I can try something new.

Other activities: I mainly played Gaga since I liked it. We did an indoor Gaga with the other side of my cabin. I played Medic Ball once and we played counselors v campers. Campers won. My horse was named Charlie Brown and he was nicely trained. The zip lining was okay but it was sort.

Do you want to go back: YES!

We have been trying to get the boys to attend camp since they were 8. I am so happy that this was a wonderful experience for Kevin, and both boys will attend next year! We have to wait two more years for Gwyn to join since you must be 8 years old to attend.

Alex during the water fight. (Kevin said he stayed completely dry.)

All the Raptors. Kevin is in bright green in the center.

Kevin's cabin. (26L) Ramorie, Kevin, Edison, Alex and someone else. Jo Jo is not in the picture.