I was scared to actually come over to the computer and start this post. I was afraid to see how long it had been since my last post. Once upon a time I was a faithful blogger. And then....the life that I'd been blogging about got super crazy!! And I've struggled ever since to get back on the wagon. I don't know why. I guess reading and napping have taken priority in the afternoons.
I'll try to share what we've been doing the past few weeks.
The day we got back from my sister's wedding was the first day of our church's Sports Camp. It's kind of like VBS. It was 5 nights from 5-8. Both Kale and Kate did it this year. Kale did soccer and Kate did cheerleading. Here she is doing a cheer for us (she's the 4th little cheerleader from the left).
Also during Sports Camp week Kale had his last few baseball games. I don't have any pictures of his games but I did take one of the other 2 kids playing on a giant pile of wood chips (way more fun than watching big brother).
Kale did well in baseball but truth be told, we were all kinda glad to see the season end. It was fun but it was time-consuming and hot! He seems to like baseball okay but he doesn't LOVE it. We'll see what he decides next year.
This is a picture of m grumpy boys at dinner one night in Bayfield. Mark wanted in on the action...
Father's Day happened. Apparently the coffee theme stayed strong. We got Mark a french press coffee maker for his office. Yummy coffee during his work day!
Jack gave himself a faux- hawk. Love his grin!
Last Monday and Tuesday I spent at the hospital with my good friend Jinny (you may remember her from the wedding I posted about last year). She delivered this adorable little man Nathanial James. I was honored to be in the delivery room and help coach her. It was an amazing experience. Outside of giving birth it was one of the most difficult things I've done. But it was incredible to be on the other side of delivery! Now I have a special little connection with this little guy.
After watching the delivery I found this on Pinterest and laughed...I can so relate!
On Wednesday, after not a lot of sleep due to the hospital visit, I had the privilege (ahem) of taking my kids to Walmart to buy groceries for our camping trip. I was sleep-deprived and doing my best to not be the cranky mom and took them to Durango Joe's for coffee and smoothies. When we got into the store, Jack walked right up to their water bottle display and promptly put a water bottle into his mouth and started sucking on it! (what in the world?! I thought he was over that stage...) Needless to say we bought a new water bottle because I couldn't stand the thought of putting it back and having another poor soul buy a water bottle with my kids germs on it. After we walked out of the store a nice older gentleman came over to me and told me that he was impressed with my actions. He said he knew I didn't have to buy it but was glad I did. Made me feel nice to have someone thank me. Not that I needed it but it made the experience better.
And another card on Pinterest to cap off my day...Oh how I feel like this sometimes....
Found this huge, ugly thing on my back deck the other day. Promptly sent a picture of it to my spider fearing husband for fun.
Thursday we went camping with 2 families from our small group (they were the only ones who could go).
This cutie is Asher, the youngest camper. He did amazing!
Just off from our awesome campsite.
Looking down on the "kitchen" and "dining room"
From the kitchen up to our camper.
Boys learning how to shoot a BB gun properly. Gun etiquette :) This picture shows what not to do!
Hiking
Kate, Kale and Josh pausing for the camera while "hunting" chipmunks.
Camping was a blast and we definitely want to go again this summer. It was so nice to be outside in cooler weather and actually away from the smoke. Kate melted down a couple of times due to lack of sleep but overall they did great. We brought home buckets of dirt stuck to our bodies and clothes. Clean up was fun!
Speaking of smoke. We've had numerous fires burning around us for a while now. Four fairly big ones within 30 miles of us. Thankfully they are all much better and on their way to being out. Lack of rain and really hot temps have made this June quite miserable. I'm hoping we're getting into the monsoon season now and that that will help. Smoky skies and ash falling aren't fun for anyone!
This past Sunday was church in the park. Mark's first one. He did amazing. I really am so proud of him (I gotta brag on him in another post). Here are my tree climbers after the service.
I laughed when I read this. I am so that person who asks for a straw for my water at restaurants because I hate it when the ice attacks my face...
I gave the boys buzz cuts this morning. I couldn't stand the sweat sticky hair any longer.
Also, at my sister's wedding I got gel nails put on. I've never done that before and I have to say that after 3 weeks they still look alright. Here's my recent picture. You can tell they've grown out but compared to what they would look like after 3 days of me painting them they are incredible! I may just have to treat myself every once in a while to nice nails.
Found a recipe for iced coffee with my Keurig. Tried it this afternoon before I started blogging. Delicious! Not sure why I posted this other than it was on my phone. Aren't you happy you've seen this now?
As I finish this up I smell rain (Praise the Lord!!). Boy can we use it! Helps to cool off my greenhouse house in the afternoons. It's been 95* in here lately. Mark is on his way to Lake City, CO with some friends of ours to meet some people from a church in Texas. Make some connections. Learn some stuff. Have a mini-retreat. This was a last minute decision but one we felt he needed to experience. The kids and I could've gone but it was just too much. We needed some down time to clean, do school and relax. At least try to :)
I'll post more later about Mark and I. Hopefully for those of you who read this to know what's going on in my life this helps catch you up a bit.
