Like Sands Through The Hourglass....

....so went the days of our summer.....

I tried a different approach to this summer: planning every day.  Honestly, I think I can count on one hand the number of times the boys claimed they were bored!  SUCCESS!  Gio's last day of school was a Thursday and the following Monday he began a two week science experiment class.  He loved it!  He tested the effects of soap on whole milk vs. skim milk; constructed and set off a volcano; created a lava lamp in a water bottle; made ice cream and performed many more experiments.  He was in heaven!

Volcano!

The next two weeks, Gio took Hip Hop Dance.  This was his 2nd round (he took it last summer, too) and he was pleased with the opportunity to shake his booty on the dance floor.

Following Hip Hop Dance, both boys took a month of swimming lessons.  Gio's fins have officially grown in, I swear - he swims like a fish!  Vinnie LOVED every minute and spent every lesson (when at the wall) dunking his head in and bobbing back up - over and over.  SO adorable!  Both boys really excelled this year and had a great time.

My fish!

Happiness is swimming lessons :)

Twice a week, in the evenings of all four weeks of swimming, BOTH boys played baseball.  FINALLY Vinnie got to participate, not just watch from the side lines!  Hooray!  Unfortunately, he's not so hot at following directions.  Oh, well, it was a fun introductory experience.

They were in 2 different divisions, same uniform

The last two weeks of baseball/swimming and the week after, Gio took an optional Spanish summer school program to help him brush up on his skills.  Even before that, I had him working in Spanish and math workbooks to keep caught up.  He seemed to enjoy getting ahead and didn't complain too much.

Gio had plenty of time to play with the neighborhood boys and even earned an allowance, for the first time, doing regular chores.  He had different assigned chores Monday through Friday and, yes, he pays tithing.  My policy was this:  do every chore, every day and earn $5 on Friday.  If he skipped even one day he earned nothing.  Hopefully, I am teaching my children to do a complete job and give it their all!

First tithing given!

There was lots of progress made this summer.  As mentioned above, Gio gained confidence in his swimming abilities.  Additionally, he finally believed me that he didn't need training wheels anymore.  Hooray!  His bike of choice is currently this beauty:

He's had it a while and it's been sitting in the garage so long it had flat tires.  So, we took it around the corner to the auto mechanic's and asked our good friend, Carlos, if he could pump it up.  He put it on the risers and lifted it a couple inches, filled the tires and gave it the whole treatment.  Gio was beaming!

It was a busy and rewarding summer :)