First Day of Addison 2018

Tuesday August 14 was the big day that Liam started Kindergarten and Elsa started 3rd Grade! It was a very exciting day that started with pictures by the front door.

We then walked over to Addison Elementary! 

Elsa is in Room 18 with Ms. Cordova!

Liam in is Room 3 with Teacher Lee!

 He was first in line to meet the teacher.

 Then he headed right into the classroom.

A great start to a new school year. 



Summer 2018

We had a wonderful summer and it ended on August 13, when the kids headed to Addison for the first Addison Kids Club all day. The next day school started. The weekend before summer ended we headed up to Foothills regional park for a night of camping.  This has been our tradition for the last few years and it is nice to spend some time in nature before starting a new school year.   

The kids had a lot of fun climbing up the hills around the cabin.

 

The big hit was our hammock, which the kids enjoyed swinging on.

In the morning, Arne & Liam went to the lake for some fishing.

The summer was filled with the big trips like Alaska, Yosemite and Camp Blue, but also a lot of fun at camps and with family. Elsa had a great time at her first sleep away Girl Scout Camp, as well as at Peninsula Day Camp girl scout camp, where I volunteered. 

She also had fun at a Lego camp with her friend Raina.

Liam's last day of preschool was June 22.

He then headed off to Galileo camp with his sister. 

Liam loved his week of Uncle Erik camp with Grandma and Grandpa! Erik came all the way from England. The big project was Big Ben.

They found all the best monkey bars around town, had a one-of-kind tour of the UC Botanic Garden where Grandma volunteers, and went to the Oakland Zoo and the Lawrence Hall of Science.

 

The summer ended with a week of swim camp.  All the swimming has been great for Liam - he is now a level 3 swimmer.

Just after school started we went to Point Reyes Station for one last summer trip.  It was great to see our friends the Dumbras and their new house.  We had a great time swimming and seeing whales at Limantour Beach.

It was a busy and fun summer of outdoor time and exploration.

Camp Blue 2018

Another year, another Lair!  We were excited to drive up Rt. 108 to Camp Blue.  This year was amazing - the kids have become very independent lair campers.  Elsa participated in many fun group activities, like horseback riding, walk to the lake and paddle boating, and the favorite, panning for gold!  Elsa was also very excited to decorate the bear.

Liam was super excited to once again go fishing.  I was excited to see an eagle catch a fish.  We did not catch anything.

It was quite hot out, so we spent a lot of time at the pool.  The kids loved jumping off the diving board and swimming around.  This year, both of them had a pool party outing at the neighboring Lair Camp Gold.  It is great to see them go off and enjoy time with friends.

Like other years, this year we made our tie-dye.  I love this project with the kids.  Elsa seems to have a great design eye, and this year dyed pants too.  Liam just likes using bright "sun" colors on the front and dark "night" colors on the back of his shirts.

We had fun around camp and the cabin.  Liam played a lot of cards with my mom and chatted with friends.  Elsa had a lot of fun in our hammock.

It was also great to go explore the creek.

We once again had a Pinecrest Lake day.  This year, instead of paddle boating, we rented a motor boat and cruised around the lake, doing some fishing and swimming.

Sports are always fun at the Lair.  This year I played softball, inter-tube water polo and volleyball.  The kids enjoyed shuffleboard.  The team Arne and I were on won the volleyball tournament.

We enjoyed the show and for the talent show, Liam was excited to hold the box, and Elsa was excited to be a Rainbow Unicorn.

Before dinner, we enjoyed the parties, hanging out with friends and just having fun.  Overall, it was a great week.

What a difference 7 years makes!