Camping Experience at Hartt Island......

Our latest camping trip was to Hartt Island (Fredericton NB). The kids said it was their favorite next to Yogi Bear. For $10 a day per person you can have unlimited access to the water part, mini golf, bike trails, kayaks or canoes if you are a camper. Of course we did all:) The kids were tuckered out every day.
Mommy and Daddy loved that we could have a bonfire as long as we wanted in the evening because after the kids have their smores and settle to bed, it is nice to have some time for us. The only thing we didn't like were the insane amount of flies there were--yuck! When we asked the seasonal campers next to us why there were so many they said that they were only bad when hay was cut close by the campground and that was the last week of July and the first week of August. So next year we will keep that in mind but it is definitley a place we would recommend for children and adults!
As you can see, they kids had a blast.......

Swimming Lessons....Are They Worth It?

I have had my kiddos in swimming lessons since they were 2. Having not had the opportunity when I was a kid made me want to provide that to my kids as I am not a great swimmer. We chose to do them in the summer so that they were going everyday instead of once a week because when asking around that is the advice other parents had given us because they found their kids retained the lesson better. My girls are 6 and 4 now and what a huge difference it has made! They can both swim over their heads and do not use life jackets when they are in our pool, which we just purchased this year (52 inches deep). I still make them wear life jackets when I am not near them as safety always comes first but the peace of mind knowing how much their confidence is boosted is priceless! Thankfully I work a lot from home in the summer so I was able to take them everyday for 4 weeks. I would highly recommend swimming lessons daily to anyone! They are even confident enough to go down a fast slide without being caught at the end!
We just finished our 4 weeks on Friday and I have seen my oldest have so much more endurance this year and can swim 8-10 meters and my youngest can swim 3 meters without a break and she can dive for those little swim toys at the bottom of our pool. So we are very happy with what they have learned this year and proud too!