Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Safety First

Taylor, her good friend Skylar, and about 200 other kids spent the last couple of weeks at Grant Wood Elementary in Iowa City for Safety Camp.

This is fabulous program put on by emergency services, the school, and many other volunteers. During the two weeks, the children learn about safety with regards to electricity, traffic, fire, strangers, weather, etc.

The most exciting part of Safety Camp is the Safety Village that is built behind the school. This Village consists of city streets (and cars) with pavement markings, traffic signals, traffic signs, a railroad crossing, as well as numerous buildings including a replica Old Capitol.

This place was really fantastic. On the last day of camp, parents were invited for a one hour tour of what the kids do on a daily basis at camp, as well as tour the Village.


Taylor was lucky enough to be in the same Orange group as Skylar, which they truly loved.
Tay's brother's were definitely jealous when they found out she was able to wear a true fireman suit.

What a wonderful program that we would recommend to everyone. Tay is already looking forward to next year and we can't wait to get the boys enrolled. God knows that the boys definitely need to learn about safety!

Friday, June 5, 2009

How Fast They Grow

In catching up over the past several weeks, we have had a couple of major end of the year events with the kids. First of all, Taylor had her dance recital to end her year long dance classes. Taylor was blessed to have both sets of grandparents as well as her Aunt Beth come to the recital as well as go out for dinner prior to the show.

Mom fixed her hair up all nice with curls, and of course she was the cutest girl in the building.

The dresses were certainly entertaining and the costumes adorable.

We are very proud of Tay for both her dance recital and her first year of school in which she was a fabulous success.
In the morning on the same day as Tay's recital, the boys had graduation from their daycare/preschool.

Though we thought they were graduating in hopes to be joining the pre-kindergarten class at West Branch Elementary, it appears the class will not be available due to lack of room and staff at the school.

So, we're not exactly sure where the boys will be in the fall yet as they are right on the cut-off date for birthdays and kindergarten. Either way, the ceremony and the whole morning were wonderful to watch and very enjoyable.

The kids sang several songs together, presented themselves in front of everyone at the speaker, and walked up front to receive their diplomas. Following the ceremony was cake and treats as part of the celebration. We too are very proud of the boys and look forward to whatever the future brings in the fall as they will bring a smile to our face no matter what.