Summer Vacation???

Today was the first official day of summer vacation for Kelly!  Wow...it sure didn't feel like it!  We have been planning on going to the Dyersville pool for over a week.....well 55 degrees, rainy, and COLD is not what we expected on the first day of summer vacation!  Kelly still had her friend Cambrie over for an "inside" day!  The did hair, nails, make-up, crafts, and cheerleading from 8:30-noon.  We then headed to McDonald's Playland for 1.5 hours followed by the library for 2 hours.  We came back home and the girls danced and put on a routine for me.  Too fun!  The TV was only on for one hour this morning before Cambrie came......the girls had a wonderful time....even though our plans changed!

 Kelly doing Cambrie's hair this morning....Miss Kelly was still in PJs!

 Painting toenails!

**MAKE-UP!!!**

Molly wanted a friend over too...so Lexi came to play house and babies with Miss Molly!

Last Day of School

Kelly is officially a 1st Grader now.....CRAZY!!!  Time sure flies!  She had a wonderful year in Kindergarten at Xavier and learned SO MUCH!!!  Here she is with some of her friends after their last day of Kindergarten!

Maria, Reese, Courtney, Kelly, Cambrie, & Sophia

**All of these girls will be celebrating Kelly turning SIX in a few weeks! 

Kelly with her Kindergarten teacher, Mrs.Wubbena

**In the van leaving school today Kelly looked sad.  I asked her if she was ok and she said "I am going to miss Mrs. Wubbena!  Too cute!!!!

6th Grade Sisters

Xavier has a wonderful 6th grade buddy program.  The Kindergartners get paired with a 6th grade sibling on the first day of school.  They get together with their siblings at least once a week throughout the school year.  Their match ended today as the Kindergartners were able to celebrate with the 6th graders during their graduation mass.  The 6th graders now move onto junior high at Beckman.  The 6th grade class was unusually large this year (4 classes) and the Kindergarten class was unusually small (2 classes) so each of the Kindergartners had TWO siblings!  Kelly was lucky to have two BIG SISTERS - Jackie & Mariah!  She loved them both and has formed a wonderful relationship with them throughout the year.  She sees Jackie multiple times a day as she is a car rider like Kelly.  Mariah is also in girl scouts so she has seen her at multiple girl scout events this year too.  Mariah has even asked her troop leader if Kelly could be in her group for girl scout day camp this summer!  These two sisters have been wonderful!!!

 Kelly walking in hand and hand with her sisters at church this morning

 Walking out with her newly graduated 6th grade sisters!

Kelly & Mariah after mass

**Mariah gave Kelly this fun new pink pillow for her upcoming birthday in a few weeks!

Family Bike Ride

We had a little surprise fall into our hands this weekend.....as one of my swimmers parents gave us a bike carrier for Miss Molly!  Brian and I were just talking about how we would like to get our bikes out more this summer....

We took a short little ride tonight to try it out!  Molly LOVED it....we just need to work on Kelly's stamina to ride a little farther!  It should be a great bike-riding summer for the Snyder family!

Molly holding Baby Alive on our little bike ride.

Beecher's Ice Cream

We met up with Grandma Peggy & Papa Michael later in the afternoon on Memorial Day to enjoy Beecher's Ice Cream for the first time this summer! YUMMY!

Memorial Day

We spent Memorial Day at Eagle Point Park with the Salow family!  The weather was beautiful and the kids had a lot of fun!  We had a picnic lunch and after we finished eating.....

 ...the ice cream truck showed up!

 The girls both picked the Bratz girl with blonde hair and blue bubble gum eyes!

 The four older kids with the ice cream treats they picked out!

 Daddy & Molly walking down the path together - cute!

 The Salow family

 Our family

 The girls and I have matching pink flip-flops!

 The kids watching a boat go through the lock and dam on the Mississippi River

 Molly having fun!

 Kelly digging in the sand!

 Molly had a different approach to dig in the sand....

 ...but it worked!

 Logan & Kelly had this idea to dig a BIG HOLE....

 ...and then Logan thought it would be fun to be buried in it!!!!

 All the girls helped bury Logan.....

 HE IS BURIED!!!!

 Too cute!

Breaking out of the sand.....the kids had a lot of fun and it kept them working together and occupied for a LONG TIME!

Backyard Pool fun

We got our pool out Sunday morning as it was over 90 degrees!  The kids had a blast and we in the pool ALL DAY!  Kelly was in by 10am and it was 5:30pm before she came inside.  Molly took a little break from the pool, but went right back outside after lunch.  It was a perfect water day!!!

 Logan, Kelly, Lexi, & Molly

Play Dates

Molly and I have enjoyed our weekly play dates with her 3 year old friends from the library.  Today we had our last one before a lot of our older school-age big kids join in the mix!  We went to a different park (Farley) and had a treasure "scavenger" hunt!  The 3 year olds loved it!  They had to find things like a rock, flower, leaf, feather, something square, something round, etc.  The kids really enjoyed it!  We all enjoyed a picnic at the park too!  It was a fun morning with just our younger kids!

 Molly finding her rock...

 ...and her flower!

 Molly found something SQUARE - the sandbox!!!

 **The kids LOVED playing in the sandbox!!!!**

Alaina & Molly

**These two get along great!!!**

New Bike Helmet

Dyersville has a Bike Rodeo each summer where the kids are able to learn about bike safety, do a little obstacle course, and get fitted for a new bike helmet!  We have always missed it due to different summer obligations, being out of town, etc.  I was really hoping to make it this year as BOTH the girls really need new helmets....that fit good!  I called up to city hall to find out when the bike rodeo was going to be this summer so I could plan accordingly.....and of course, it is on June 16!!!

**The day of Kelly's family birthday party, T-Ball game, Loras Sports Camp orientation, AND Molly's pediatric eye specialist appointment too!!! 

The city secretary said "I hope to see you there!"  I said my 6 year old could make it in the morning that day, but not my 3 year old as she had an eye specialist appointment that morning.  She was SO NICE and said she would ask the police department if they could get her a helmet ahead of time!  The city secretary called me back the next day and said a police officer would LOVE to fit Molly with a bike helmet!!!  We went to city hall and Molly LOVES her new helmet!!!

**Brian is going to take Kelly up the morning of her birthday party to get a new helmet as well....while I'm with Molly at her eye specialist appointment in Dubuque.

 We went outside right away to try out her bike with her new helmet!

 Grinning at me.....she was trying to show me that her helmet has PINK FAIRIES on it! :)

 CHEESE!!!

I like that the helmet has a place for ponytails to go through!

**Molly's first helmet fits great!

(She has used Kelly's and Lexi's old ones in the past)

A BIG Hole, Camping, & Friends

It was a busy weekend here!  Brian and a bunch of guys dug a 7 foot hole in our backyard to fix a crack in our basement wall that was leaking.  It was a rough, dirty, and not so fun job!  Thanks to Craig, Matt, Dave, Jim, and Tom for helping us out!  After the hole was dug, Brian scraped, grinded, and cleaned the crack.  He applied mortar and let that dry overnight.  Today he applied the tar-type stuff to the wall.  It will now have to dry for 24-48 hours before we can fill the hole back in (and get our AC back!)  It will be a great job completed off the to do list SOON!

We took a break and met up with the Salow family (who were camping) on Saturday night.  We grilled out, Molly played with Lexi, and we all had some fun around the campfire.  

Kelly went out on the river with her friend Cambrie on Saturday and then had a sleepover at her house that evening after the boating/river fun day!  (Her second sleep-over in a week!)  She is growing up too fast!!!  I picked her up this morning at 9:30am.  She left again at 11am for her friend Maria's 6th birthday party!  She is a busy little girl!!!  This is her 3rd birthday party in 5 weeks!  Most of her friends are young for their grade, and they are all turning 6 now! 

***Ellie (April 11), Sophia (May 8), Maria (May 20), Kelly (June 17), & Cambrie (June 22)***

Kelly is counting down the days until she turns SIX!

 Our back yard hole on Saturday afternoon after Mortar was applied

 My exhausted husband with the hole today after the tar stuff was applied

(He is standing on a bucket and gravel...otherwise you would only see the top of his head!)

The finished product....now waiting for it to dry before we can fill it back in.

Molly & Lexi playing with the chipmunks at the camp site

Molly, Natalie, & Lexi around the camp fire

Cambrie & Kelly on the river

Kelly, Sophia, Maria, & Hope playing make-up & dress-up at Maria's birthday party!

**The busy social schedule for my soon to be 6 year old had her falling asleep at 6:10pm tonight!  She had so much fun with her friends this weekend!  She is one lucky little girl with some amazing friends!  One more full week of school left and she will be a FIRST GRADER!

Mother's Day Weekend

My Mom & I spent Mother's Day weekend with the girls in Chicago.  We had tickets to see the play "Pinkalicious" on Sunday at 10am.  We arrived at a hotel outside the city later in the afternoon on Saturday.  We enjoyed LOTS of swimming and playing in the pool with a break for a later dinner (McDonald's for the girls and room service for the Moms) followed by some more pool time!  We were up and checked out of the hotel by 8:15am on Sunday to head to Chicago for the play.  The play was ADORABLE.....the girls both really enjoyed it!

The girls gave me a couple Mother's Day presents in the hotel room.  Kelly made me a recipe book in her Kindergarten class at school.  Both girls made me a hand print plate at our neighbor's house.

(Emily runs a daycare and she made them with all her daycare kids.  She made them with my girls on Wednesday night when I was gone teaching Ally private swim lessons).  A cute little surprise!

Swimming with my girls!

Molly is a great little kicker!  She loves using a kick board!

Kelly holding our pink roses...with the Pinkalicious set in the background.

(They gave all the Moms one pink rose!  A nice little Mother's Day touch!)

Kelly with PINKALICIOUS during the autograph session after the play!

Molly wasn't so sure about meeting Pinkalicious!

Kelly went back through the autograph line again....so she could get a picture with Pinkalicious and her brother Peter!

The girls with McKenna at the American Girl store in Chicago.  They both LOVED it there and WANTED a doll, clothes, accessories, etc.....