On the last day of first grade, I sneaked off to the store and purchased a bag of water balloons, which I filled up while Aidyn and his pals were playing outside. I launched one from our patio, and the kids went wild.
I opened the door and asked, "Is it raining water balloons or something?" and laughed, bringing out two laundry baskets full of colorful water bombs.
The kids separated into teams of three and battled 'til they were drenched.
On the whole, they had a blast, but Aidyn got a bit upset when he was struck on the back with a water balloon. That's the point of the game, dude! : )
I took Aidyn and his upstairs neighbor-friend to a local library program where Ravioli the Clown was doing magic tricks.
Fire coming out one of his books about dragons...
Ravioli handing out candy to each child individually.
We have also spent many days swimming (though I'm usually in the water and, therefore, not taking pictures). Aidyn has relearned to swim at the level he was at last summer, and so far this summer has ditched the swimming vest for two arm floaties, learned to hold his breath underwater, and learned to "dive" with his goggles and see underwater. Most days his friends are at the pool, too, and they all play and splash together.
On another day, Aidyn and two of his friends came in to paint. We just got a book from the library about how to paint animals using your hands.
We made peacocks, like the one in the center, but alas, no pictures because my hands were a blue and green mess.
We're having fun this summer, and this is just the start!
What are you doing this summer?
by Sonia Levitin,
and eventually an episode of 
in which they read 
