Wednesday

Elizabeth took the boys to Strength and Conditioning, then picked Ana and Bailey up. The girls did fun things together. :-)

After lunch, I took the boys to soccer camp which is held on the soccer field. When I got back, Elizabeth drove Ana and Bailey to the Oakwood Mall. There, they met Justin and his friend, and they "hung out", together.

William, Javier, Hannah and I played a few games of Rumicube. This is the first we have played it, this year, with Javier!

Ana stayed for dinner, and Elizabeth drove her home while Don and I went to a class.

Tuesday

The boys went to their Strength and Conditioning class after trying to finish their game of Monopoly. Christian, a nice young man who has played soccer with Parks and Rec and knows Javier, came up to talk to them as he was waiting to play tennis. :-)

After they got back home, the boys finished the game (Javier won!) and started a new game again with Hannah (William won!). During the game, they ate Natchoes. Elizabeth then left to go somewhere with Bailey.

The boys listened to their ipods and William started drawing. Then they played soccer inside!!! :-D They did this the other day, too, but not for as long. :-} Javier got hit in the eye with the ball, but he's okay. :-}

We had a casserole for dinner (something I just made up, so I don't have a name for it!), then the boys played soccer inside, again. Then they went outside and kicked the ball around while waiting to leave for their soccer game.

At the game, I finally realized that the girl who looked like Ana really was Ana! Eva was kind enough to drive her over to the soccer field so she could watch William, Javier, and Jaime play. Eva's family is also friends with the Cramers, so we all had fun talking while watching the game. They won by one point! :-) Actually, it was the only goal that was made by either team. All the Parks and Rec teams for this older age group are very good. :-)

We got home, and the children played on their ipods and watched a show on tv before going to bed.

Monday

Very, very early this morning, we had a windy thunder and lightning storm. William and I were the only ones who heard the storm! Everyone else slept through it. :-) A few trees and branches fell down. It also knocked out our internet service for a long time. Ana said she did not have internet, either. :-}

Later in the morning, Elizabeth drove Javier and William to Strength and Conditioning. Then she went to pick up Ana. Ana's host family was not home because they were all working. Ana and Elizabeth got lost, but had fun driving around the town of Altoona. They also stopped at Lake Altoona and went onto the beach. :-)

Elizabeth and Ana both picked the boys up and drove them home. Ana helped me release two Monarch butterflies. Then we ate a Salmon mixture on crackers (but mine was on a salad)! :-)

Don came home early and took us all to Big Falls. The water was even lower than the last time we were there, but it was fun! William and Javier tossed the football around with Josiah, a friend of William's from school who was also there. The girls sat in what I call my "spa", and talked. :-) It was 82F and mostly sunny.

Afterward, we drove up to Chippewa Falls to get ice cream at Olson's. They have very good ice cream. We all love it! :-)

We drove Ana back to the Hambrick's home where she is staying. When we got home, we took quick showers. Javier helped William saute onions on the stove top, and everyone helped prepare other ingredients for Fajitas. Fajitas are like a soft shelled Taco.

William, Javier, and Hannah played Spanish Monopoly. They didn't finish the game, so will continue it tomorrow! :-)

Sunday

This morning, we went to Calvary Baptist Church. It is right by Memorial High School where Elizabeth and William go to school. Memorial High is also where we meet for events for the Spanish Exchange group.

Then we drove over to Festival to the Brat Barn where Don's students are having a fundraiser selling brats. The children ate in the car as we drove home. The boys got ready for soccer camp. It is a hot day, but they both said they had fun! :-)

We had pork roast for an early dinner with carrots and potatoes. The boys listened to their ipods, then played several games of Checkers. Then they wrestled, and Earl joined in. :-) It was funny to watch!!! :-)

We went to an adult Bible Study at the Thompson's house. We did not go when everyone was eating because we had already eaten. That did not stop William or Javier from getting some dessert! :-D

Hannah and Natalie played together while Javier, William, and Snyder played video games. Elizabeth did not go with us. She and her friend Bailey instead went to a friend's house.

The children watched a little tv when we got home, before going to bed.

Saturday

Elizabeth, William, and Javier went shopping with Don to Sheels, a sports store. They then had pizza for lunch.

Later, Don played a game of basketball against the boys and won! Don then took them to get ice cream at Cold Stone.

We had steak and potatoes for dinner. Then we watched the movie Star Trek, and another one called Megamind.

Friday

The boys played on their ipods, on the computer, and basketball. They also watched a little bit of tv. For lunch, Don bought brats from his student's fundraiser, and the children ate them at home.

Elizabeth's friend Bailey came over in the afternoon. She will be sleeping over night. We had hamburgers, sausage, and baked beans for dinner.

Damien and Dan, two friends of Elizabeth and Bailey's, came over after dinner. When it got dark, everyone went outside for a bonfire. They made s'mores to eat, and talked. It was almost midnight before everyone went home! They were having too much fun. They were very quiet and well-behaved, so we did not mind. :-)

Thursday

This morning, the boys went to Strength and Conditioning while the girls slept in. :-) It was a real work out for the boys! Javier is more used to doing this than William. :-}

For lunch, we had Natchoes, and corn chips with salsa.

Elizabeth and Ana went to Oakwood Mall while the boys played games on the computer and their ipods.

We ate Lasagna and a salad for dinner. We then went to Bowl Winkles for a night of bowling. Jaime, Paloma, Javier, Ryan, and William bowled together, and Ana, Hannah, Elizabeth, and Ana's friends bowled together. I bounced back between the two lanes taking photos and talking to them all. It was fun!!! :-)

Shelby took Ana and Elizabeth to Eva's softball game in Seymor, Wisconsin. The Cramer's also took Jaime and Ryan to the game because Eva and Kendall play on the same softball team!!! :-) Lesa Cramer, too, knows Eva's family, so Ana is going to a family that is known and who has hosted before. :-) Several years ago, Eva, her mom Teresa, and their sweet Spanish student Paula had come to our house to release butterflies in our back yard. :-)

After Shelby brought Elizabeth home, she went to her room, then came out and sadly said, "My room is empty, again. Everyone is leaving me!" :-{ Two weeks ago, Eugenie left us after staying with us for two months. Eugenie lives in Switzerland.

Elizabeth, Ana, and Eva hope to do things together, so Elizabeth and Ana are happy. I'm sure Eva will be, too! :-)