Summertime

We've been enjoying the break from school/work. We've been sleeping in and having lots of "free" time. It's fabulous. I'm so blessed to be home with my boys during the summer. Here is a sample of the summertime activities we've been engaged in.

Just a little meditation by Nathan at the SplashPad.

Eva, Caleb and Christy stopped by for a night.

Watching our cousin, Caleb (a different Caleb!). Good ole Hungry, Hungry Hippo!

Swim Lessons at Westwood! Here's Nathan in mid-bob.

Here is Matthew learning to dive.

A little Patriotic Scout action. (Ben is on the far right).

Showtime

On Sunday, my Primary* class had Sharing Time. We re-enacted the conversion of Alma the Younger (found in Mosiah 27 in the Book of Mormon.)

Here is our narrator and the prophet, Alma:

Here is Alma teaching his son, Alma the Younger. Alma the Younger is rolling his eyes and calling his dad lame.
Alma the Younger and the son of Mosiah are partying and causing other to leave the Church and apparently throwing gang signs.

Alma prays for the welfare of his son's soul and the people of the Church.


An angel appears to Alma the Younger and the sons of Mosiah who fall as though they were dead.

For two days, Alma the Younger harrowed up in the bitterness of his sins and repents of his wrongs.


They all did a fabulous job. My mom had made these costumes for her Primary class a couple of years ago. I knew they would come in handy even if I had to get up in the HOT attic yesterday to retrieve them.

*Primary is the children's organization of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. We have age divided classes for 45 minutes and then a combined class consisting of Singing Time and Sharing Time for 45 minutes.

Super Kids Day

After two postponements due to rain, my boys finally got their Super Kids Day on the last day of school.

I had a supervision shift in the morning for 30 minutes. I was a wanderer to troubleshoot any problems. It took me forever to find Nathan and his partner, Jackson. They were, of course, not playing any games but getting snow cones and cookies. :-)

OK, I love this game. I "encouraged" them to go to this next. They both put socks on over their shoes.
Then, you have to stay on your stomach and try to move around to get the socks off you opponent's feet before they get your socks off your feet. Nathan triumphed!

They had fun playing with this thingie. I'm not sure what the object of the game was. (See the puddles of water in the background! Also, see our portables--we had 12 this past school year.)

In the afternoon, Matthew got his chance. He is waiting his turn to play the sock game with his friend, Katelyn. Yep, another mommy encouragement.


Squared off!
Flat, Matthew & Katelyn, flat. Matthew ended up victorious. So much fun! I tried the chicken toss. You see how far you can throw a rubber chicken. The verdict: not very far.

Nathan's Kindergarten Luau

The next to last day of school was the Kindergarten Luau at Truman.

Here is Nathan on the big water slide.

Oh, yeah! That was fun.

Gotta do some face painting.

Here he is in the middle of some classmates looking fierce.

Slip and slides down the hill!! So fast, so fun.

We need some refreshment!
Off to 1st Grade! (How on earth can my baby be that old?)

Meet Harriet and Lilly

In May, we became the proud owners of two guinea pigs. Matthew's teacher had too many pets at home and needed to find a new home for the guinea pigs. We were the lucky first ones to claim them. They are really wonderful pets. The boys can take them out and play with them. They can pet them. They learn some responsibility by feeding them and cleaning out the litter. Then, you can put them back in the cage for as long as needed. A nice balance between a fish and a dog.

This is Harriet. She is an albino. She is the calmer and "fluffier" of the two girls.

This is Lilly. She is feisty. She starts squeaking every morning as soon as she hears me out of bed to come feed her.

Nathan and Matthew play with them all the time. Sometimes I have to tell them to leave them alone, already.

Harriet's eyes are pink even without camera red eye.

On Saturday night, I lost Lilly for a while. I had cut their nails for the first time. Let me tell you, they are not fans of pedis and manis. I let them down to run around for a while afterwards. When I went to put them up, I couldn't find Lilly. Eventually, I heard her squeak. She had gone behind and under the entertainment center. She was too big to squeeze under the front, so I had to lure her out with lettuce from the back.

A Tribute to My Dad

Happy Father's Day! My father was Bobby Cephas Howell Avance. He was born in Slatterville, UT on March 3, 1933 (3-3-33 cool, huh?) His father, Oscar Omer Howell died just a few months later on June 30, 1933. His mother, Virginia Ebby Matheson was only 15 years old at the time and had two children! She married Robert Harris Avance, Jr on October 3, 1938 and moved the children to his home in Eufaula, OK where my dad grew up.

My dad LOVED sports. He was quite the athlete in his day. In high school, he was the football quarterback, the baseball catcher and also boxed. He won State Championships in boxing. As an adult, he was a superb golfer that he gave up after his house started filling up with kids. I have many memories of attending OKC 89er baseball games and high school basketball championships with my dad. My brother, Dwain, and my dad would discuss the Sports Page nearly every night over dinner.

My dad was also a stanch OSU supporter. Our VW van was bedecked in Pistol Pete stickers. He had attended OSU after serving in the Army. He raised us to despise the Sooners, but having been raised so close to Norman four of his children ended up with degrees from OU. He taught us the words to Boomer Sooner were "Beat the Sooners, Beat the Sooners . . ."

My dad also loved bluegrass music. He would take us to Carl Albert High School on some Saturday nights to hear local bluegrass bands. Our favorite band was Ummy and the Goodtimers.

My dad passed away on March 6, 1990 after battling colon cancer. I was only 14 years old at the time. I only have a kid's memory of my dad. I never knew him as an adult. It's hard for me to really understand the relationships my adult friends have with their dads now. However, I know my dad loved me and I'm grateful for all he has done for me. I took time today to visit the cemetery where his mortal remains were laid. Happy Father's Day, Dad.

Safety Town

OK, we will not mention the 4 month hiatus. I just ran out of steam the last few months of the school year.

The first week of Summer Break Nathan attended Safety Town. Sooner Mall and the Norman Police Department team up to bring this fabulous FREE program to 5 and 6 year olds every year. All of my boys have participated the two years they were eligible. This will be our last time!

Nathan is riding the bike following traffic laws.



Here he is with a green light! I like green lights. Boo, red lights.



It's hot in OK. You take a turn following pedestrian rules, too.


Here he is preparing for graduation.


After the ceremony, the family is invited in to walk around. They have a railroad crossing, but Nathan is driving the train. Boo, sitting at the railroad crossing waiting for a train. I'm knocking on wood as I type, but it has been a while since we have waited on a train. This is a miracle considering nearly everywhere we go we have to cross the tracks.