Land of Make Believe...1

Austin & Ray on the lazyriver......
Austin.........
Tugboat ride...-Tim refused to do this.......
I hate this ride and Timmy does too-so we explored Jenny Jump Mountain legends, house, and pathway......
T-Rex.......we also tried this, but Timmy panicked and we got off before it started. We did do the Star Jet, roller-coaster (my fav.), and some of the water park. There is a new exhibit-The Mining company, which they loved! The next entry shows that! There was a lot to do there-petting zoo, mazes, Santa visit (Timmy was excited by this one), and other rides too. The water park was their favorite!

Land of make Believe...2

The train ride....
Pretty as a princess-slightly crooked.....
Mining for gems-lots of fun and learning too-the boys LOVED this new activity!
Waterpark-the lazy river.......
Merry-Go-Round ride.......

Austin.........
Waterpark........Austin did all, but one, waterslide(he was too young) and loved them-Timmy wouldn't do the waterslides-we stayed at the pirate playground, wading pool, lazyriver, and he took a nap!

Summer at Random....

Fireworks in the back yard....the legal in PA kind, which are soooo much fun! Ray puts them onto a board, and the kids stand behind orange "safety cones". They like to create a safe perimeter area. When it's all done to make sure the fires are out, the kids use their super soakers to soak the board!
Timmy swimming-not sure why the instructor is so close-he's swimming without assistance.
Timmy looks to be contemplating this dive, but he is not-He is the only one in his class who jumps off the board without any assistance.
Austin getting ready to do his seated dive... & the boys playing in the hot tub at Grandma's house in NY......

This is the first summer where I will be teaching 1 class for 1 week in August. In the past it was a multitude of reading/math camps, dance camps, summer dance classes, reading/writing classes, etc. This year it's just us! I am working an ANOTHER grad class in my attempt to obtain master's + 45. Austin and Timmy are reviewing math and reading at home, with some science mixed in too.......Click a photo to make it bigger.

Recommended Reading...pace yourself!

I just read a very difficult, yet profound book: Columbine by Dave Cullen. Columbine seriously affected me, as I was teaching at the time (in the Poconos) and I remember our principal coming to each of our doors saying "there's been a shooting in Colorado, some parents are picking up their kids" . Yes, parents picked up their kids in our small elementary school of K-3! Kids were absent the following school days. After that things really changed in schools! Doors were locked, Id's were checked, and schools now devised trauma bags, emergency plans, drills, and lock-down procedures. Now that I have children-they too are exposed to this and see it as a regular part of their day. As a teacher, I know these extremes have been beneficial to protecting our kids. For those of you in education, law enforcement, or are parents, this book is very interesting. Did you know that the previous protocol for a shooting is to secure the perimeter? (At Columbine, a teacher bled to death because help did not come for 3 hours-the shooters, Eric & Dylan, died shortly after the carnage began of self-inflicted gunshot wounds) Because of the Columbine investigations, SWAT teams and the FBI now recommend charging an active shooter- (this is what was done with the shooter at Virginia Tech).