Summertime and the livin' is...busy!

My first official day of summer vacation was Friday. The kiddos got out of school a week ago, but my mom and I presented some professional development this past week. The boys and I decided to pack the day with as much fun and as little work as we possibly could in celebration. We started by dropping into school, then went to the YMCA and home for naps (me, too!). After naps, we got up and headed to the pool for the first time this season.
After the pool, we grabbed dinner and then headed to watch the Bats play baseball with a group of teachers and families from school. We had a great time, the weather was perfect, and everybody got to visit with friends, including Sophie!

Saturday morning, both boys had baseball. Aidan's coach didn't come, so Tony and another parent stepped into help. Andrew was thrilled because he got to be the umpire (such that it is in coach-pitch).
Sophie and I left the guys and headed home to get ready for her dance recital. It took a LOT of gel and hairspray to get her hair in a bun. We also attempted some makeup, but had to redo the mascara twice. I'm pretty sure Toddlers and Tiaras won't be calling for us any time soon, but the bun stayed up and that's what mattered.
Sophie was so excited about dancing on the big stage! This is before the recital started:
And, after her fabulous stage debut:
I think she looks too grown up! Thanks to her abbreviated nap, though, she didn't act too grown up. After the recital ended, she threw a two year old tantrum in the lobby because she didn't want to take pictures, change clothes, or leave. This pictures shows the start of it.
Here's the diva, pacified for the moment by a present:
And speaking of pacifiers, Sophie has a bit of an addiction problem. She went for a long period of time where she only used them to sleep. Then, somehow, I became less vigilant and they were always in her mouth and her hand. The boys loved theirs, too, but I don't remember them needing them outside of bed as they got older. We let Santa Claus take their pacifiers away.
We'd been talking about breaking the pacifier habit this summer while I was home. Then, on Sunday the boys went to help Papa work in the yard and we had Sophie by ourselves. It seemed like the perfect time to start the pacifier project. Stealing advice from my cousin, we headed to Build a Bear. Sophie picked out a dog that she named Doggie.
Then the nice young lady helped Sophie stuff her pacis into Doggie's arms and legs so she could still hold them. She followed that with lots of stuffing.
Sophie got to give Doggie a 'bath'.
Then, she got to take Doggie home in his very own dog house. She was so excited!
Unfortunately, nap time arrived and she wanted those pacis out of Doggie right now. It was not a nice nap time. Bedtime went much better, but naptime today has been a fight again. She really wants to autopsy her dog for the sake of her pacifiers. But, it's getting easier and at least that will be one bad habit broken. We're starting on potty training next.