Lake Compounce

 We picked Brian up at the airport in Hartford and spent the day at Lake Compounce Amusement Park in Bristol, Connecticut (state 26).

Lake Compounce is a very small park, but we wanted to visit for two reasons. The first reason is that this is the oldest amusement park in the country, so it has historical value.

The second reason is that it is home to one of the best wooden coasters in the world- Boulder Dash.  It is currently the #4 ranked wooden coaster in the world.  We had several rides on this coaster and it definitely lived up to the hype.

While at Lake Compounce, we learned that the infamous Milli Vanilli "lip syncing" controversy occurred here.  I'm so glad that there was a plaque to commemorate this historic event (ha ha).

 Upon leaving the park, we drove to Mystic, CT which was going to be our base for the next few days.  We had dinner at Mystic Pizza and it was actually very good.

 After our meal, we walked around historic downtown Mystic checking out the shops and the bascule bridge.  I really liked the feel of this old town.  It reminded me a bit of downtown Fernandina.

New England Road Trip

 This year's summer road trip took us to the lower New England states.  The kids and I drove to Hartford, CT where Brian flew in to meet us.  On the way up, we made a stop to visit Poppy and Nana. It was a short visit, but we were glad that we got to see them.

 We also made a stop at one of our favorite amusement parks- Six Flags Great Adventure.  We road all of our favorite coasters, went on the animal safari, and visited some of our other favorite attractions.  After a long trip and a horrible drive through NYC that I will never do again, we arrived at our destination of Hartford ready to pick up Brian.

Summer Kick-off at Universal

On our first day of summer vacation, the kids and I headed down to Universal for the day.  We've been wanting to use our passes again and decided it would be best to go before it got too hot and before the crowds got too crazy.  We did not encounter large crowds- I think 30 minutes was the longest we waited for anything- but it was hot as hades.  We left the house around 6:30, arrived at Universal around 10:30 stayed til 4:00, and were home by 8:00.   It was a full day to be sure, but we had a good time. 

 We've decided that each time we visit we'll each pick one thing that we definitely must do.  We've also decided to eat somewhere different and to have our picture made with a new character each time.  On this trip my choice of activity was to ride the Kong ride because we've never ridden it.  Olivia wanted to go walk around in Harry Potter World and Owen wanted to ride the Transformers ride.  We ended up doing everything we set out to do and more.  We ate at the Three Broomsticks, which was very good.  I about busted out laughing at what Owen ordered for his lunch- a turkey leg and butterbeer. 

 We saw Doc Brown walking down the path toward the DeLorean and the kids ran to have their picture made with him.  They were so excited.

We ended up cooling off in the American Tale play area where the kids found a waterslide that I had never noticed before.  It was a big hit.

Before leaving, we stopped by Toothsome Chocolate Emporium to get a milkshake.  We ate at Toothsome's on our last trip and saw these yummy desserts, but were too full to order one.  We were sure to leave room in bellies so that we could get one this time.  They were amazing. 

Owen's Elementary Graduation

 Owen's fifth-grade graduation and honor's day was held on the last day of school.  He finished elementary school with all A's and in the top 10% of his class.  The ceremony was great and included a slideshow and class song sung by the students.  We are so proud of our little buddy.  He works hard in school, and it's nice to see him be recognized for it.  I must admit that I was a little sad as we pulled out of Wacona for the last time.  I have been dropping kids off at this wonderful school for the last seven years, and it will feel weird to not have to go here next year. 

Olivia's Honors Day

 Olivia has had a wonderful sixth-grade year.  I was a little worried at first because the school is so much bigger than her elementary school and because she would be meeting all types of new people.  And while this year was not without its challenges, Olivia seemed to find her way rather well.  She received several awards at her end-of-the-year honors day.  She was recognized for earning nothing but As all year, for having perfect attendance, for being the system winner of the Fair Bear writing contest, and for participation in tech fair and robotics.  She also received a Principal's Award which is based on a combination of grades, attendance, and behavior.  We are super proud of our girl and of all her hard work.

...And since she has been so responsible all year, we went to the Verizon store and made a very special purchase.  I guess she is no longer "the only kid in her class" without a phone.

Summer Waves Blast

 This is Owen's last year in the Blast program at church.  To celebrate a successful year, the kids took a day trip to Summer Waves.  Since their parents were chaperones, Olivia and some of the other youth were able to tag along.  We had a great time.  We left after the church service, arrived around 2, and stayed until closing.  We will definitely miss being in the Blast program.

End of Year Band Activities

Olivia has really enjoyed her first year of band.  She has gotten better with her French horn and even made the sixth-grade district honor band.  She really liked this because she got to miss a day of school to participate in the honor band clinic.  Owen and I were able to attend the concert at the end of the clinic.  Her group performed several songs- including "We Will Rock You", "Another One Bites the Dust", and the "Mickey Mouse Club March".  Olivia saw several of her friends from other schools and really enjoyed this experience.

 A week after her honor band concert, her school presented their spring concert.  The sixth-grade band played several songs including the theme from "Star Wars".  At the end of her school concert, there was an award presentation.  Olivia received recognition for participating in honor band and she also won "Outstanding Band Member" for her class.  We are so proud of the progress she has made this year.