July...Already?!?!

Why is it that the summer months seem to pass by much more quickly than the winter months?!  June came and went within a blink of an eye and now here we are....in July...Already?!?!

Kyle received his Black Belt on June 28th!  The test was long and somewhat grueling, as Kyle had to accurately/precisely "perform" his Karate moves for well over 3 hours but the end result was so worth it!  A Black Belt at 10 years old - way to go, Kyle!!  After watching the Black Belt Presentation we returned to our backyard for a special, surprise party - Kyle was *thrilled*!  He was especially thrilled when his cousin Lawrence arrived with his overnight bag - ready to have some fun AND spend the night!!  The entire party went off without a hitch - from the weather (sunny and picture perfect temps!) to the kid (and adult!) friendly food (lots and lots of pizza that Uncle Frank was able to get for us at a discounted rate, chips, cookies, etc.)!  The kids had a blast playing in the tree fort, building sand castles, swimming and running around the yard while the adults relaxed under the tents and umbrella's.  Me, Jim, Mike, Joan and Carole presented Kyle with our special gift to him - an engraved Sword.  Mike and Joan also gave Kyle a couple of "extra" gifts - some really neat Transformer Lego's!  Nana Borrelli paid for the party AND gave Kyle $$.  He also received $$ from other people who attended the party, which was really nice.  Initially he was going to use the money he received at the party to attend a week of Karate Camp but after giving it some thought we've decided it would be best if he saved the money and put it towards something else.  His (and our) summer days are already pretty full and we're all in agreement that a week of Karate camp would likely be a bit too much this year. 
Kyle, here is a list of people who came to celebrate your big accomplishment:
Mike and Joan, Auntie Carole, Nana Borrelli, Auntie Leslee, Uncle Mike, Brandon, Sarah, Matthew, Auntie Gina, Uncle Brad, Valerie, Natalie, Vincent, Angela, Auntie Melanie, Uncle David, Lawrence, Michelle, Julie, Andrew, Uncle Frank, Ivy, Gary and Ina.
An extra-special thank you to Mike and Joan for helping us set up before the party and clean up after the party, too!  As usual they were kind enough to let us borrow some of their tables, chairs and tent - all of which came in handy during the party!

A few days after the big party we (rather, *I*) packed up the van and headed to Vermont for 3 nights, 4 days.  The day before we left proved to be a challenging one for me, as the weather reminded me that Summer is in full swing - it was hot, hazy and humid - and I was miserable.  Earlier that week, per my request, Jim had installed the a/c's up in the kids room but, due to the fact that we spend much of our time outside during the day AND the fact that Jim is rarely home to experience the heat in the house, he decided to hold off on installing the main a/c unit in the living room.  At first I was fine with this because in typical summer fashion we were infact spending most of our time outside - but then we were forced to stay inside the day before we left because I needed to get us all packed up.  I felt hot, sticky and nauseous for much of the day, which made the packing process take ten times longer than usual.  By the time I went to bed we STILL weren't 100% packed - so I had to wake up early to finish and once again, felt hot, sticky and nauseous!  Suffice to say, by the time we left that morning, the a/c in the van was pumping so it felt like a brisk 50 degree's and I was *finally* feeling more comfortable!
Our ride to (and from!) Vermont was blessedly uneventful!  The kids (even Savannah!) were blessedly good, which made the ride very pleasant!  We pulled up the driveway and were greeted by Grampy, who had arrived 20 minutes before us - and thus began our vacation!  The next couple of days were full of smiles, laughter and fun as the kids went for mini hikes, played at Auntie Joan's, swam in the pool, played in the river and enjoyed all of their "Vermont toys" (toys that I've purposely left at the house in Vermont so A. It's less things I have to pack and B. They always have something to look forward to playing with when we arrive!).  On Friday Uncle Danny's family arrived, which made for an enjoyable afternoon, and then on Saturday some of my Aunts, plus Sandy, Ed and Eli, joined us for a sunny, relaxing day! 
The kids had SO MUCH fun playing together and rarely had any tantrums or meltdowns.  They slept great, ate well and played hard - a perfect vacation!