The Show

 

Ally has been attending a 5 week summer camp. July 26 is the last day. The camp focuses on all kinds of Art and culminated in a performance this week. It was at 7:00pm. The teachers established a theme for  the summer and they the students came up with group names, and developed a musical theater presentation.

They have had Art classes, dance, music, acting – its been a wonderful experience for Ally and she is already talking about going back next year!

First up was walking thru the Art Gallery where every camper had several pieces of Art on display.

Apparently our home means a castle in the mountains with an outdoor bedroom to Ally!

I love her picture of the tortuga (turtle) and the landscape out of watercolors is beautiful.

The theme this year was the Earth (Eco) and below is the synopsis of  the performance.

Ally was a Fire Puppy and was quite adorable in her costume.

After the show we went our for ice cream.

Becky and I are so proud of Ally. She sang along to the songs and she was proud of herself and the work she and her friends did to put on the show.

Trying out something new

My boss Charlie and his daughter Gwei Gwei have a really cute Schnoodle that we took care of for a few days. A Schnoodle is a Schnauzer-Poodle highbred dog. Pacey is a small black ball of fur!

Can you tell Ally loves dogs?

Pacey spent one night at our house and Ally was in her glory playing with her.

She was happy to walk the dog even in 95 degree heat!

Then in a surprise move, our Cat Nali explored Pacey’s cage when Pacey was out for a walk with Ally and Becky.

We have not told Ally yet, but we’re looking into adopting an older dog. So far we’ve completed the application and have a home visit scheduled for August. Becky and I are not sure if we’re ready yet, and we’ve always said we would get a dog when we only had 1 cat, and we still have 2. But Nali is getting really old, and we might be ready. No rush and no hurry and certainly no puppy!

Quick Visit

Aunt Beth came for a quick visit last month. But as usual we packed a lot into a short time! Ally had swimming lessons, and always a good sport, Beth went swimming with Ally before class started. I just love how long Ally’s hair looks. And they did hand stands in the water.

Later in the day Becky and I went out for a while and the picture above is the exact scene of what we saw when we got home! It was salon time. And they were not finished, so Becky and I were told to stay away for a while longer. Another Aunt of the year moment if you ask me. Aunt Beth let Ally spray her hair with water and de-tangler and comb her hair until it was drenched! Beth painted Ally’s toes and then braided Ally’s hair.

Fun was had!

Lemonade Stand

For months All8y and Lauren have been talking about having a lemonade stand. On a Tuesday evening in July they finally did.

It was also Ally and Lauren’s last babysitting date for a very long time. Lauren got a full time amazing job as a Production Assistant on the TV show Hawaii Five-O! We are so thrilled for Lauren, but we miss her. She found out on June 25 that she got the job and had to be in Hawaii by July 8. So we talked and decided that having the lemonade stand would be a fantastic last date foe the two of them.

There was a list they crafted weeks ago that stated all of the things they would need for the stand and so we assembled everything in advance and they had a blast.

Lauren sent us the picture above half way thru the sale. (yes it’s a sale – there is an E after the SAL you just have to look carefully). Ally worked on the sign for a week to get ready, and Lauren helped her add glitter and the pricing.

 

Ally was thrilled that her kindergarten teacher Jim stopped by and bought some from her, and in 3 hours she made $15.00.

Reading

Becky and I are so excited that Ally is finally showing some serious interest in reading. Becky took Ally to the library so Ally could sign up for the summer reading program. Her own stated goals are to read 4 books by herself each week and read 20 minutes every day. The 20 minutes can be with us or by herself.

I also want to point out that Becky made the dress Ally is wearing in the pictures above. Pretty snazzy!

Spontaneous Puppet Show

One of the hardest things for me about the summer is that I usually spend less time with Ally. During the school year, I pick her up every afternoon and we typically spend 1 weekend afternoon together while Becky does school work. But in the summer it’s the 3 of us most of the time, Ally, Becky and me. This is great, but I do miss my Ally and Mommy time.

Recently Becky had something she had to take care of so Ally and I had a Sunday afternoon together. We did some craft projects. First up was completed a modge-podge box (which I don’t have pictures of) and then we made finger puppets from a craft kit.

After completing several puppets Ally declared we should have a show, and the kitchen counter made a great stage.

Puppeteer Ally!

We took turns being the puppet master. It was pretty fun and we had a great time.

Feeling Better

Thank you to everyone for your get well wishes. Its Monday and Ally is finally starting to feel better. She drank (sucked down) her first cup of chocolate milk since Thursday this morning so I think that is a really good sign.

The rest of the weekend was pretty tame for us. Lots of crafts, lots of TV and a quick visit to a new park.

A visit to a new park that just opened up down the street from us:

When she started turning cart wheels I knew all was good!

Saturday night Ally took a bubble bath. Can you tell she loved it?

Sunday night Becky went to a party for some friends of ours and Ally and I stayed home. I let Ally eat on the kitchen counter picnic style! And a close up of her lip. It is healing very nicely.

No if only I could get some sleep we’d be alright. I don’t usually complain on this blog, but I have only been getting about 4 hours of sleep a night and its killing me.  I’m back at work today and going to try really hard to stay awake and focused but I am tempted to go home for a nap. We’ll see how it goes.