Swimming

While we were still in Nebraska, Mzee had taken two different swim classes. One as a baby, and one again the summer of 2007. He did well in both classes and generally loved the water. Don found a Y in the next town over offering swimming classes, so we enrolled Mzee again to keep up his skills. The pictures here are of the first day of swimming class. He did well learning to use the "marshmallow stick" that allows them to float and kick in the water. As I am writing this post in the past, I will note that I attended the final swim class with him as a makeup since we would miss the last class during our summer vacation to Iowa. I am happy to report that he passed on from Pike I to Pike II and was the only child in his class to pass. It was great to see him jump off the diving board on that day of the last class!!


After class, Milan enjoyed playing basketball in the gym, since she was not enrolled in swimming classes at this time.

We decided to set up the swimming pool that Grandma and Grandpa bought on their visit. I set it up during their nap and unfortunately, they weren't in it long this day before a storm moved in and we had to cut the swimming fun short!

Milan pouring with her watering can. She really enjoyed herself as you can see by her expression.



It was all fun until her brother poured water on her...she was not amused!

jUNe Day

For the 43rd consecutive year, the town of Westport, Connecticut welcomed staff of the United Nations for jUNe Day. The day serves as a reminder of the importance of achieving peace through international friendships. The town of Westport is a quaint little town on the water. It was just a short drive from our house. It was a beautifully warm, sunny day. We started out at the opening ceremony where gifts were presented to the town by UN representative. Then we ventured to the beach, which is a private beach, reserved for Westport residents regularly. The kids, as usual, had a wonderful time playing in the sand. Many sand castles were constructed during this day! It was getting pretty warm and we were all getting hungry, so we headed over to the pool for lunch and swimming.

They had pizza provided, so we got some pizza and sat in the shade of some big trees and ate our lunch before venturing into the pool. They have two swimming pools, one regular pool and one dedicated kiddie pool that was about 2 feet deep throughout. The kids could play there without our assistance, which was great!

After the pool, we got our free ice cream, and managed to pack up and head home just as a rain storm moved in. You'll see below a collection of pictures from our day.

Sand castle building

Trying on Mzee's crocs

Check out that face!

Wading with Daddy

Cheese!

I've had enough Daddy!

Central Park with Grandma and Grandpa

On Grandma and Grandpa's last full day here, I took an afternoon off to take them to Central Park. Grandma and Grandpa commuted to the city with the kids by train. We met up at Grand Central and had lunch there in the terminal. Then we made our way to Central Park. We walked all the way there, as it was a nice day. The kids and I went to the zoo there since we had a membership. After the walk, Grandma and Grandpa took a break on one of the many benches outside the zoo. The kids had a great time at the zoo, we did a quick trip so we could get back to enjoying our time with Grandma and Grandpa.
About the time we were finishing at the zoo, the sky got very dark and it looked like rain...this is a recurring theme with us that has continued, every time we try to go to Central Park, it rains. We walked just past the zoo to this covered archway and sought shelter, which was a good thing because it ended up pouring rain for nearly 40 minutes. We managed to entertain the kids and made the best of it. Once the rain stopped we headed off through the park to find a playground. Of course, all the playground equipment was wet, but I had thankfully packed a change of clothes for the kids, so just let them play with the thought that they could change when they were finished playing and splashing in puddles. The playground we found had this great slide made out of stone and built into the side of a hill, Mzee really enjoyed this. Milan tried to go up once, but the steps were made of railroad ties and dirt and she slipped and fell in the mud and was so disgusted, she wouldn't try, considering she was covered in mud!

Swinging with Grandpa, before the mud incident.

We walked through a big portion of the park, after a change of clothes, Milan fell asleep in the stroller. We stopped by the big fountain and also went past Strawberry fields and then made our way back to Grand Central via subway. It was a long day!

Once back in town, we were going to stop at our local pizza shop but it was busy so we walked on down to this nice Italian place. Apparently, it was a little too nice for us with the too kids as we got really horrible service, which my Mom and I are pretty sure is because we were a large group with two kids. The good was good, but the overall experience could have been better. After dinner, we all walked home. Mzee and Grandma started out first and got home before us. Grandpa, Milan and I followed up after settling our bill at the restaurant. On the walk home we realized our local cafe is now open for dinner, and that probably would have been more our
speed on this night, so, next time.

Here are some fun pictures of the kids enjoying their last night with Grandma and Grandpa before they head home.