Back to School

Even though Spencer went to preschool during the summer, we still had to commemorate the official first day of school for the fall. Is it just me or is he looking like a kindergartener here?

He'll have another "first day" in a few weeks when he starts at a new school (he'll go to his current one two mornings and the new one two mornings). We are super excited but more on that later.

Nature's Treasures

Yesterday we went to a really cool store called Nature's Treasures. They have all sorts of gems, minerals, fossils and even dinosaur poop! The giant crystals and geodes are so fun to look at. There was a great selection of dinosaur books - I will definitely be going back before Spencer's birthday.

We brought home a Blooming Rock - a rock that (we hope) will form tiny crystals after soaking in vinegar for a few days. We'll keep you posted...

More Swimming (This Time with Cousins)

Spencer's New York cousins come to Texas for camp each summer. Last week once everyone was done and back in San Antonio, Spencer and Dave went back so they could see Taylor, Audrey, Hyelom and of course Aunt Carol all together one last time before they headed home to NY. There was more swimming and a few more pictures I have to share.

I wish I had video to share of Spencer's synchronized swimming routine...it is not to be missed! Maybe I'll catch it before summer is over.

Top Chef

Yesterday morning right after we woke up, Spencer said, "Mommy, can we make soup tonight with potatoes, carrots, onions and garlic?" Well, of course!

We looked through some cookbooks and found a recipe that fit the bill. So last night we made Spencer's yummy potato soup. (He gave it a really funny name but I can't think of it now. Darn it!)

Using our handy garlic-skin-remover-gadget

Adding some salt

Stirring the soup

It was delicious! I love working with Spencer in the kitchen. It was really neat for him to initiate something so specific and then see that he could indeed make that very soup he dreamed up.

Staycation

I took off Monday and Tuesday this week so we decided to have a little staycation fun. We left Geep and Pop's Monday morning and headed to...

 ...Natural Bridge Caverns. We did a tour that lasted a little over an hour and descended 180 feet below ground. Spencer was a trooper and handled the walk very well. It must've taken a lot out of him because afterwards he ate two hotdogs in the snack bar!

It was a fun little outing. We had thought about going to Schlitterbahn the next day, but decided to just take it easy at home. It was a nice break from work for Mommy!

Diving into Summer

We went to Geep and Pop's on Sunday and had a great time visiting with them. And there was a major bonus - Hyelom was there, too! Spencer couldn't wait to play with his cousin. They played outside, did some fun iPad stuff and watched the Olympics.

We headed to the neighborhood pool that afternoon. Spencer decided he wanted to jump off the diving board. Of course I had my initial standard "mommy nervousness" about this, but man, he just climbed right up and dove off into Daddy's arms. That boy is getting fearless in his old age! Here's a video of his very first dive. At the end he's wondering why the board didn't bounce up and down. Love him.

And here's a little bit better quality video of a subsequent jump trying a different technique.

And a couple of pictures, of course.