Young Grasshoppers: Nature Bound

We finally had some super duper warm weather for the first time this summer! We headed up to the Lewis River and had fun climbing around on the rocks and slipping and sliding through the river. It was good times! The kids were good little hikers and Cooper did a good job not being an idiot dog. We were all beat after the day but it was great to soak up all the warmth and getting away from the hustle and bustle and into the trees. It was gorgeous out there! It actually sparked us to book a camping trip for Ava's birthday in a few weeks. We can't wait to escape and have some more fun!

Jojo also celebrated her 5th birthday with a major water fight at the park. It was a blasty blast! Andy and I both got soaked!! Which was nice since it was 90 degrees out. I can't believe our "other daughter" is so big! She had this moment where it hit her that she was actually five - she just kept saying it over and over and laughing. I think we can all relate to that feeling! Directly afterwards Ava became really concerned with how much longer it would be till she turned five. I don't think she liked Jojo and her not being the same age. It rocked her world slightly! She's been crazy lately with reading and writing, too. She wasn't really all that interested in printing words on paper but all the sudden she just asked how to spell Mason and I spelled it for her and low and behold she had in her knowledge base the know-how to bust out his whole name without much help! She writes words backwards and I don't know if that's a lefty thing or what but we're sorting it out. She's also been reading a little and picking out words from her early reader books. Any concerns I had about her starting kindergarten as a younger kid - only being 5 for two weeks before starting - were diminished after seeing her interest and progress lately. We've started school shopping and can't wait to do a big shopping spree in the next few weeks to get the rest. It's all so much fun!