Summer=Fun

We did so much this summer, I'm wishing I would have been blogging more. Here are the highlights:
-Meister family reunion in Hubbard, IA in June. Also celebrated Granny Lu's birthday. It was the kids' first time there and it was fun introducing them to family they've never met. All of the Matt's immediate family was there as well. After the reunion, we headed north to Lake Okoboji with Grammy and Poppy. We stayed at a great resort, Fillenwarth Beach, and though it rained a lot, it was a blast. Time on the lake, old fashioned amusement park, and unbeatable family time. Matt and I celebrated our 10th anniversary while there too with a day out and nice dinner, Hawaii will have to wait until year 15!
-Lots of pool time. Nathan really took off with his swimming this year, becoming a little fish. Whitney was so scared at the beginning of summer, she wouldn't hang onto the side of the pool during lessons. Huge improvement by the end of summer, she is swimming from the wall to us standing about 6 feet away if she's wearing her goggles. Confidence is growing in both of them.
-A few camping trips this summer in our big tent. We have a queen air mattress for mom and dad and toddler air mattresses for each of the kids. They love the adventure and we love getting them outdoors to enjoy this amazing state we live. One of our camping trips was to Glenwood for a getaway with the Ehmann side of the family.
-Fairs and rodeos are always a highlight of the summer. Nathan refused to Mutton Bust this year, must still be freaked out about getting trampled last year. Whitney's not interested...yet!!
-We took a break from sports this summer but Nathan played flag football in the spring and will again in the fall.

Kindergarten Time

Nathan's first day of kindergarten-Wednesday, August 17th, 2011
Just the kindergarteners started today, parents attended too. All the kids seemed so nervous including Nathan. He had red blotchy skin from the nerves. Four of the girls he already knows from preschool last year. His teacher is Mrs. Herd and he loves her already. She is very kind, I can tell she is very good at her job. He said on the way home that she is his favorite teacher ever:) He also said that this was the best day of his life, better than Christmas and birthdays!! Let's hope that lasts:)
Thursday was his first full day (12:05-3:30). He was very eager and excited, no emotion about it at all. He was elated that the whole school was full of kids today and he loves seeing those he already knows. Mommy was a little sad on Wednesday during the reading of 'The Kissing Hand' but I feel he is soooo ready, especially after 3 years of preschool. Looking forward to a great year.

Nathan turns 6

Wanted to write a little bit about Nathan since he just had a birthday and has changed so much this summer. The excitement about his birthday was almost more than he could stand, mostly about the presents. We had a fun party at Black Forest Regional Park with friends and some classmates from preschool. The balloon/magic man was very impressive and Nathan loved all that attention. Right now he is a big fan of ocean creatures, especially whales, so he got a killer whale cake. He is outgrowing his love of trains but is still very into playing with cars. I see this line on our cork floors where two pieces didn't come together well...he sees a perfect starting and finishing line. Nathan has become quite the swimmer this summer, passing level 3 on the first try last month and he did great in level 4 which ended today. I've even see a perfect dive off the diving board too! Better than mommy already. He also loves fishing, never gets board amazingly. He loved being out on Lake Okoboji in Iowa. He played flag football this spring with great joy, he kept a good attitude and played hard. Nato still has his moments of 'fits' that remind me he is still a little boy learning to deal with his emotions, but growing and maturing so fast it's unbelievable. As we get ready to send him to kindergarten, I can see that he is ready to take off with all that school has to offer. He is excited and I know he'll love it. I'm sure there will be some tears, I can't believe he is growing so fast.

6 year doctor checkup:
Weight 45lbs (46%)
Height 47.5" (85%)

Kindergarten starts Aug 17th. He'll be attending The Classical Academy Central Campus in the afternoons Mon-Thurs.

Nathan lost his first tooth

It's been loose a long time...finally so loose that we could tie the string and pull. He was so brave! Did you know the tooth fairy brings 2 gold dollar coins for the first lost tooth?

funny, awesome kids

Whitney in the last couple weeks, cutest comments:
"Mommy and daddy, I'm sorry I cried."
"Mommy, I'm sorry I got you my cold, I'm sorry I caught you my cold."
"We're fancy girls, that's what me and Berkley say. That's funny, huh?" (I need to record her saying fancy girls with such sass!)

I have to make note that Whitney seems to love the name Ashley; so just in case her future best friend or daughter is named Ashley, we will remember how young it started. Not necessarily an imaginary friend, but whenever she makes pretend phone calls, she calls Ashley, and likes to pretend her name Ashley. I have no idea where she has even heard that name before.


Nathan has learned to whistle, oh boy, that is a lot of fun. He can't seem to stop and doesn't even know he is going on and on and on. He is so hilarious with his imagination. He must say the words, "mom, pretend..." at least 25 times a day. I wish adults still had that kind of imagination, it would be easier to play along if we did:)
Nathan is reading exceptionally well. He has really taken off in the last month or so and seems to have developed a confidence in himself. He is loving school, they are studying the solar system right now and we can see a love of science emerging.
He went skiing with daddy and Uncle Geoff before Christmas. It was his first time up this year and after a great morning of more lessons, he went to the top with the guys and skied all the way down. I'm excited to see it for myself this weekend. We may put Whitney in her first lesson too.

Our Christmas Card