We survived another season of baseball in the Cody household! May and June proved to be really busy with Andrew in baseball and taekwando, plus Leah in two different dance classes and finishing up school on top of that. It was a good kind of busy, though, and I loved that Andrew was active and outside. This was his first year of coach-pitched ball-- it was all 1st & 2nd graders. They didn't really keep score, and everyone got a chance to bat each inning. So Andrew had a chance to learn the game without the pressure of outs and strikes and scores. It was sometimes funny to watch!
My littlest fan was dragged to every home and away game (thankfully there was only 5 or 6 since his team was so large they had to be divided into two smaller teams). My bag stayed packed with plenty of snacks and sunscreen. But doesn't he look cute?
I can hardly believe we've wrapped up another year of school and summer is upon us! Here is what has been happening at the Cody house!
We put in a garden this year. The kids are learning about plants in science, and what better way than hands-on, watching it grow from seed to something edible! It's always a big undertaking but we will see what "fruits" we can reap from our labor.
Before we started our plant unit, we finished a Human Anatomy unit. We made life-sized posters of the human body with all the organs attached-- a fun project over the course of 6 or 7 weeks.
I really like how Jacob's turned out! :)
This school year we also took a "trip" around the US, visiting each state to learn a little more about the geography and culture of each. At the end of the year I let Leah do a video report about her favorite state. Here is what she learned:
Abi finished her second year of preschool at the local public school and it was exactly what she needed. She really needed those two years to grow socially and come out of her shell. We have seen big changes in her speech and her interactions with others. She made a few friends that she even has playdates with on a regular basis. This is her friend Bailey, who literally lives next door to us on our street.
Abi's teacher, Ms. Kim, was great! She always took time to make each kid feel special. At the end of this year she won me over even more by helping Abi make the transition to being homeschooled. When they went to visit the kindergarten class, she talked with Abi about how her school might look different, but she would still get to see her friends other places and really showed that she valued all types of schooling. We are sad she is leaving Whiting this year and won't be there when Jacob gets to preschool, but so thankful Abi got to be with her these last two years.
The kids have all really started developing some physical skills that seem small but are probably really important for their development. The girls both love gymnastics (even though I doubt we'll put them into any formal classes) and Andrew loves doing parkour. They always work hard on their cartwheels and flips and headstands.
Abi mastered crossing the monkey bars at the playground.
We've never really attempted bikes until this year, since we don't really have much of a place to ride, but after only a few tries Leah picked it up, mostly on her own!
And Andrew is still rocking it at taekwando.
Of course a favorite end-of-school year activity is ice cream at A&W, since it is only open in warm weather!
The third year of AWANA at church finished with a bang! We are growing in leaps and bounds and average about 20-25 kids a night. It's crazy and chaotic but we love the opportunity to minister to so many kids and see them memorize so much Scripture.
Abi finished her 3rd year of Cubbies-- an extra year more than most Cubbies, but she needed it and is now excited about moving up to Sparks. I think she'll do well!
Andrew finished his third year of Sparks and earned the Sparkie award for finishing all three Sparks books. He works really hard on his verses and even got to work some on an extra credit book after finishing his book early.
Leah finished her second year of T&T. She was excited to have her two girl friends join her this year so she wasn't the only one in T&T. She also finished her whole book and got an Excellence Award for finishing her 2nd book.
The kids enjoyed Game Time outside at our huge AWANA Game Circle on the last club day. They definitely have a lot of energy!
I am so glad that my girls have the opportunity to participate in dance class. Leah has been dancing for 6 years now! She's really got a knack for it-- she enjoys it and does pretty well. It has been amazing to see her growth. And this year her love for dance spread to her little sister. After trying it out when she was just 4, she wasn't quite ready to get out there and be the center of attention. But we tried again this year and though it took a few weeks, she ended up thriving. Her teacher saw the growth & change in her and said she has promise as a good little dancer. The best part for Abi was the change in her I saw socially. By the end of the year she was asking her friends if she could play with them before class.
I love their small little dance studio, where Abi and Leah both had the same teacher, just in different classes. Leah got to tap with adults this year and fit it perfectly well as the youngest in her class. Their teacher expects them to be their best and gets much respect from the girls because she just doesn't allow them to do less than that.
Both girls were a little nervous before the show this year, but also excited and didn't need me to stay back with them.
Abigail's jazz number was "Under the Sea" from the Little Mermaid. I took most of these pictures during the dress rehearsal, rather than the actual recital, which is why you see most of them looking off to their teacher on the side!
Her tap number was "Lollipop"-- I mean, who can resist five and six year olds in frilly skirts with lollipops? They did such a great job and barely missed a step! For mostly first year dancers, they sure did seem like they knew exactly what to do!
Leah's tap number, with the adult class, was 42nd Street, a broadway show from the 20's. I tried to upload to YouTube but they are apparently pretty strict with copyright laws and muted the music. Just watching this dance amazed me! I don't know how anyone can move their feet that fast!
Leah's jazz number was from The Greatest Showman-- hence the circus-themed costumes. It was a really great song and fit this age group perfectly. They had so much fun learning this and adding in the sticks and other props.
And a comparison shot-- Leah's first recital, vs. her sixth!
Apparently since there is Mother's Day and there is Father's Day, Vermont also feels the need to celebrate Kids' Day. And we joined in the fun! Kids rode free this past weekend on the Green Mountain Railroad (grown ups could tag along for a pretty cheap price). It was a pretty cool train. We rode about 45 minutes out and back-- not too much to see, but it was still really fun to see out the wide open windows and spend time together at the table on the train.
After the train ride we went to the Kids' Day carnival events downtown. Leah held a snake.
Jacob was a little grouchy because the sun was hot and, well, he's 2. The bubbles helped a little.
We sat on a fire truck and an ambulance. The paramedic in the ambulance was really nice and the kids enjoyed seeing some of the things they've been learning about the human body in science class!
Of course no Kids Day would be complete without creemees. Our first of the season!
