The Jones Team: She's In the Study Doing her Homework

The girls have been doing school work all summer. My mom helped prep it this year (and last, though I did it the year prior). They have been learning "their, they're, and there", "to, too, and two" and doing addition, multiplication, and States. Nothing too fancy, actually, and I probably would have done it a bit different (like repeating the work from the school year in Lucia's case), but keeps their brains engaged. Piano has gone to an every other day thing, though it's really been more like 2-3 times per week. Sigh. We'll get back into lessons in the school year!

This summer we've not done a ton - just got back from a week road trip to San Francisco. Did some camping, including the annual Daddy-Daughter (girls LOVED again - 2nd one). Victoria is so articulate it's scary - the title of this blog was a line out of her this morning when I asked where Lucia was. :-) She can go get her own big girl panties... though really needs a diaper still (she'll go when you sit her there if she has to, but rarely tells us before). She is so cute - one of her phrases is: "Where is him?" or "Where is her?" She loves to "brush" my hair... but she's not as gentle as she could be!

JP loves to brush my hair too, though I really think it's just a way to be close to me. The four kids and I will lie on the floor in the older girls' room at night when I read to them, and Magdalena will draw, Lucia will lie next to me, JP and Victoria will take turns sitting on my back and brushing my hair or playing. Sometimes the turns aren't quite so congenial and a few tears/fights erupt. Oh well!

Things are overall great - our Au Pair, Carla, from South Africa, is hopefully going to stay with us for a full year more from now (extending by 6 months), which would be terrific.

Other things this summer (sorry for the ramble) - Lucia was in Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat with the YPTP. She also did golf camp and two weeks of Girl Camp. Magdalena did a Broadway musical theater camp and two weeks of Girl Camp as well. JP did a week of Sprouts camp with two of his preschool friends, which was a great success (his first week of camp!). All three older kids did swimming lessons in July and passed their respective levels. We tried to increase going to the pool at the club in August which worked until vacation, and now soccer has started for Magdalena and volleyball for Lucia, so we're back to four days of practice per week. Lucia will do Glee in the school year, but not sure if Magdalena will do Girl Choir again owing to the time commitment. It's not a ton - just 30 minutes of lessons a week - but is downtown and basically occupies one day after school until 5 pm. Hoping to get all the girls into a dance class, and maybe JP into a class as well. We'll see what I can find.

My brother is engaged to a beautiful woman named Vanessa, and they are getting married on Sept 10 here in Portland. All the kids will be in the wedding, and they tried on their outfits last night (pic below). They are so beautiful and handsome, it makes me tear up - so proud and love them so much!

That's it for now... hopefully more later. :-)