Memorial Day in Michigan

Escaping the 90+ degree heat of Washington, we visited Mimi Pauline in Michigan over the Memorial Day weekend.  The kids had a great time riding Mimi Pauline’s Green Gator, looking for frogs in the pond and watching the horses from the nearby stables.  Henry even helped Mimi Pauline feed her 14 labradors one morning!  Remembering Henry’s fondness for dog toys, Mimi Pauline had a whole basket of squeaky (and sanitized) rubber bones and chickens waiting for the kids.  While in town, we also visited the Hands-On Museum in Ann Arbor (after lunch at Zingerman’s Deli) and caught up with our friends the Macys in Plymouth.  Sunday was Elise’s birthday, so we celebrated on our last night with cake at Mimi Pauline’s.  In case you’re wondering, for her birthday Elise received an heirloom clock from Aunt Pauline, a spa gift certificate from her in-laws, and a garden composter from her loving husband (hey, it’s what she asked for!).  Below are some photos from the weekend:

 

 

Spring Activities

Henry and Vivian have been keeping themselves (and their parents) busy with a variety of “extracurricular” activities this spring.  In May, Henry started an afterschool soccer program with his classmates from St. Anthony’s.  The program is run by Khary Stockton soccer and meets in the park across from the school.  The focus is on introducing basic skills rather than actually playing soccer, which is probably best given the attention spans involved.  Henry has certainly enjoyed running around the field with his classmates, though his technique at times has seemed closer to rugby than soccer.  By the last few sessions, he started to actually dribble (as opposed to run with) the ball.  In any case, we’ll likely do more classes this fall.  Around the same time, Vivian started swim lessons at the Mount Vernon RECenter.  Elise has been attending class with Vivian and reports that she’s done a great job in the water.  A few times, she even asked to stay behind and swim more!  Vivian is especially proud of her kicking skills, which she likens to those of Ariel (The Little Mermaid).  Next up for Vivian may be ballet dancing, if we can get her a spot in Alexandria’s popular Tiny Dancers program.  And it hasn’t been only athletics for the Morris children: Henry has been attending Spanish class on Sunday afternoons at the local Language Stars center.  Somewhat to our surprise, Henry has really enjoyed the 1.5 hour, Spanish-only sessions.  We’ve signed him up for more classes this summer.

Below is a photo of Henry receiving his soccer t-shirt and trophy from Coach K: