Bickmore Buzz July 17, 2016

By Lesley - July 17, 2016

This week we did a lot of things on our summer bucket list. We don't actually have a formal list, but I've had some things rolling around in my mind that I wanted to do with the boys before school starts.

This is what we got to do:

1. We saw Paddington in the theater for the discounted summer movie price!

2. We did a service project that we found on justserve.org We visited a home about 3 miles from us that houses elderly people called "Blessings of Joy". We weren't sure what to expect so we took some games and picture books. It turns out, the patients couldn't play the games we brought so we read them the stories and then Will and Van sang some primary songs. Then Van wanted to perform two of his songs that he wrote himself titled "Do you even know me?" and "Mommy, I love you." Van is our little performer. Once he sang those songs, he then wanted to dance for the patients. So, I turned on "Uptown Funk" from my phone, he put on my sunglasses and proceeded to bust a move. Most of the patients were just staring with confused looks on their faces, but there was one lady in the corner that thoroughly enjoyed it and was cracking up the whole time.Van has asked more than once if we can go back. Now that we know what to expect, we're going to prepare a few musical numbers with Isaac's ukulele.

3. We drove to Payson, AZ to see the Tonto Natural Bridge. The drive was beautiful and the bridge was amazing! These pictures do not do it justice. William asked, "Mom, do you think this is what heaven is like?" Once you're inside the cave, there are some pools that you can swim in. Again, we didn't know what to expect so next time we go we are bringing our bathing suits! There were people there swimming in the natural pools. It looked so refreshing! We did take our socks and shoes off and waded in the water. The rocks were a lot of fun to climb. Will commented, "This is way easier than Donut Falls!" I said, "If you can do a Utah hike, you can do any hike." or at least I like to think so.

4. We swam with friends--the Davis family and the Birds.

5. Isaac and I watched the Batman trilogy. I've been wanting to watch a trilogy this summer.

6. We went to the Chandler mall. I bought some cute shirts at H&M. Isaac and the boys built a lego set at the Lego store and played the iPads at the Apple store.

7. We wrote and mailed a letter to Garrett and Sadie. Sorry it took us so long to write back!

8. We made a chocolate cake--it was more like a chocolate sponge-- in Van's Easy Bake Oven.

9. We found some awesome graphic novels at the library thanks to the google search, "What are some good books for 7 year old boys that like to play Minecraft?" I can't believe how much I love reading the graphic novels to Will and Van. We also found The Diary of a Minecraft Zombie.

Overheard at our house:

Van : "I'm worried about getting hair on my legs because I don't wanna be a little parent."
Van: "I want to help poor people and give them my money."
Van: "I miss Grandpa Garrett. Wait, did I know him?" Me: "No, I was pregnant with you when Grandpa died but I bet you talked to Grandpa in heaven and promised him that you would tell me how much you love me and that I'm the best mom." Van is so good about expressing his love and saying that I'm the best. I don't ever want him to grow out of it!
William loves showing me his Lego Minecraft creations and explaining the intricate details of each set. He looks taller everyday. He loves to groove to songs in his head like Watch me Whip or he'll make up raps about random things.
When Justin Bird asked Van, "What are you most excited about for Kindergarten?" he said, "I get to play with my brother." Awwww! That made my day! I registered them for Kids Zone, the before and after school program. Will's been getting Van all excited about it. Van can't wait to play with Will before school everyday.