End of summer post...finally!

So this summer really got away from us here at the Caruth house! So much so that a blog post hasn't been posted since June! Oops! I made a vow to get it in before October so September 30th it is! It was a jammed packed summer with a move, trips, sports and camps! The boys had a great time, but are also doing well settling back in to the school year!

We moved from our beloved little Richfield house at the end of June. All the moving and several new home projects kept us really busy. The boys love the new house and all the extra space we have now. They especially enjoy having their own rooms and a huge fenced in back yard! Here are a few pics of the boys showing where they spend their time.

The boys made huge gains in their swimming skills this summer! Both are swimming more independently. Owen can now go off the diving board and high dive! Gavin can now jump into the deep end and swim a few feet on his own. Owen also loved playing soccer and attending a engineering camp in July. As always we had so much fun meeting buddies at the park, zoo and pool!

       
                                         

As I mentioned the new 1st grader and Pre K students are doing well! Owen is continuing in a spanish immersion program but changed to our now local Eden Prairie school, Eagle Heights.

Gavin continues at Bernie's Montessori with sweet Ms Bonnie Jo!

We look forward to wrapping up 2013 enjoying our new house getting to know our new community.

Enjoy ALL the pics!

School's Out!

The boys are officially out of school for the summer! We are so proud of how far they have come this past school year. Both have learned so much and grown in many ways. Here are a few things about each of them.

We'll start with Gavin who is now a 3 ft 6 1/2 in tall 4 yr old who weighs 38 lbs. He has grown over 3 1/2 inches in the last year and I think these first and last day of school comparison shots confirm just how much he has grown up these past few months.

While it took Gavin some time to adjust to going to preschool, he has learned to love it! He has also learned to do so many new skills. Gavin loves drawing and writing. He has very nice handwriting and can write his name, all letters and even most numbers. He enjoys drawing pictures of people and animals. Gavin continues to be interested in music and dancing. This past month he participated in his school's 25th anniversary program. He was chosen to learn a special jazz dance routine and he had a blast doing it. Gavin also continues to enjoy building and creating with legos and blocks, putting together puzzles and of course playing trains! He is still our sweet, happy go lucky little guy. His teachers say that he is a kind friend and very good listener. We are glad that Gavin will be able to continue with the same teachers next year.


On to our practically 4ft tall, 6yr old, soon to be 1st grader Owen!

Owen has come so far this past year! He has become quite comfortable in his spanish immersion setting. He understands, speaks, reads and writes in spanish. Owen's teachers are amazed at how much he has learned this past year. He is now doing a great job using all spanish to participate in class discussions. He is also using a lot more spanish at home. It is really fun to chat with him in spanish or to hear him speak with Aunt Cailin & Uncle Adam. 

Owen still LOVES reading and hasn't met a dinosaur book or Magic Tree House book he doesn't like. He continues to be interested in all things science. This past year he has thoroughly enjoyed his school's partnership with Woodlake Nature Center. They were able to go there 6 times and focus on different topics. He loved it! 

This last week Owen's school held a Kindergarten concert and graduation ceremony. The program was very nice and the kids did a great job. Below are some pictures and a cute video from the concert.

Kindergarten Graduation Video

Owen with his teacher, Sra Amy

  

Owen with his favorite Amity teacher Jennifer.

Owen had a truly wonderful experience at RDLS. His teacher was simply the best! He will dearly miss his friends and school community. We hope that our move to Eden Prairie and Eagle Heights Spanish Immersion will be equally as positive and full of new opportunities.

Gavin's 4th Birthday

Well the little guy in our house just turned 4 yrs old! We started the celebration with a yummy birthday breakfast here at home. We had him answer his birthday questionnaire. Pretty cute stuff! Then he got his birthday gift from mom and dad, a new bike. He was so excited that he wanted to ride it right away.

Later that day he had a super fun joint birthday party with his good friend Addy. The two buddies are only 2 days apart and are playing T-ball on the same team this spring. So it seemed only natural to have a joint t-ball birthday party! It was a great success other than the cool, rainy weather. The rain didn't stop the kids from playing and running around. They had a blast eating ball park food, playing a little baseball and then heading over to the playground.

Happy Birthday my sweet Punky!

Easter!

The boys had a ton of fun visiting all the grandmas and grandpas in IA this past weekend. They did something different and fun everywhere we went.

The weather was so nice it was great to get outside to play and go for a nature walk with Grandma Theresie.

They also continued to work on their box forts which become more and more accessorized each visit.

The boys broadened their musical knowledge by watching Daddy and Grandpa Carroll play trombone.

 They also each gave it a shot and realized it's not as easy as it looks!

They had a lot of fun finding Easter eggs at Grandpa Mike and Grandma Jeanie's.

They also found new, less safe ways to drive around in the mustang...

On Easter Sunday they had a fun time looking "fancy" like Grandpa and Daddy. They enjoyed a delicious brunch after church and a lovely visit with Great Grandma Flattery.

All in all a great weekend!

Happy St Patty's Day!

Our little leprechauns had a fun St Patricks Day! The boys embraced their Irish heritage and dressed up in their festive green shirts and hats borrowed from Aunt Cailin & Uncle Adam. They went on a rainbow themed scavenger hunt which led them to a delicious snack and pot of gold! 

We feel so lucky to have our happy, healthy, sweet, creative, fun no so little boys! Wishing everyone else all the Irish luck you can hold! Happy St. Patrick's Day!