Meanwhile, In Their Professional Careers...

Both kids have been getting pretty involved in extra curricular activities this year.  I know I've mentioned a few times the time demands that these activities have cost us.  For me, it's easy to become frustrated when my "idea" of what a good time looks like, becomes disrupted.   I've made it no secret that I'm a big fan of lounging around the house, with my people close by, enjoying good food in comfortable clothing.  While my kids also enjoy these activities, they also like to do other things too.  Darn.  Actually, I'm thrilled that they are forming new interests.  I just wish there was adequate time in the day to do both really well. 

At first, it was hard for me to adjust to this new life of busy activity schedules.  I may have grumbled a few times *ahem*.  But when you get to see the end product, it makes it all worth it.  I've really been learning that we aren't made to be idle (unless in a season of rest, of course), but to do good works.  My kids have been doing just that in their activities.  God has given them a small section of the world to be salt and light in, and staying at home each night being comfortable, is like keeping the salt in the salt shaker, and the light under a bowl. 

I'm working on this. I'm learning...maybe slowly? I'm growing, thankfully.  I'm thankful to see Him work through my kids.

First, The Girl.  She was recently Gaston in a shortened version of Beauty and the Beast.  At first, she was very reluctant to be a boy, when clearly, she would have been a perfect fit for Beauty (HA!).  However, after a short chat about developing your craft, growing and learning, and stepping outside of your comfort zone (maybe I was just talking to myself), she came around, and really gave it all she had.  The result, was the best performance I have seen from her yet! 

 

That last picture?  It's my favorite.  My girl is getting a "Tommy Award".  Not for her performance, but for the way she helped others, was committed to learning, helped out when needed, and was an example of responsibility and respect.  

I think my heart expanded out of my chest in that moment.  My girl.  Salt and light in her small corner of the world.

Next, The Little Man.  As you can tell from his "Thankfuls" he's got a one-track mind for basketball these days.  He was asked by some friends at school to join a basketball team at the rec center in our community.  Usually, we only play basketball for one season through Upward sports.  We have thoroughly enjoyed this organization not just because of friends we get to play with, but also for the Christ-like characteristics that they instill and acknowledge even before the child's basketball skills (or lack thereof).  So, the rec team with school friends was new to us, but exciting.  It was also one. more. thing. to add to the list of things to get done during the week and weekend, but we thought the importance of continuing to build friendships outside of the classroom with his classmates was important.  

When he came home from the first practice a bit miffed, I was a little concerned.  He was upset that there seemed to be a bunch of "ball hogs" and no one played together well.  Knowing the first day of practice with a new team can be a bit challenging, I encouraged him to keep with it, and try to do what he knows how to do, and maybe the others will catch on in time.  Now, my boy is NOT the best player on the team, but I have loved watching him play.  I have seen him a few times pass the ball off to someone else when the shot was clearly his.  Instead of taking an easy shot and running up his points, he passes the ball off.  Soon after, others started doing the same.  It may have been a coincidence in timing with what the coach was teaching as well, but I love watching him think of others before himself.  He may not be the most aggressive player on the team (someone said, "Once that boy gets a bit more aggressive, he'll be an awesome player."), but he values others feelings above the things that the world values.  I like him like that.  Salt and light.  In his small corner of the world.

¹³ “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
¹⁴ “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵ Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven."--Jesus, Matthew 5:13-16

Around Here...

Taking a break from all the riveting reading that has been posted here in the last few weeks *cough* to show some of what we've been up  to.

Going Old School and playing with Lincoln Logs.  You gotta love grandma!  She has all the cool old toys!

 Eating lots of carrots from our garden.

 Wrapping up a great cross country season:

 Taking some time to make our favorite fall treat.

Writing God's word on the floor of the new church wing before it was carpeted over.  (He wrote John 3:16 when we asked him what he wanted the people who might one day be standing in that very place to know.  My heart melted.)

 Basketball, basketball, and some more basketball.  Good thing it's a sport I like to watch!  Bonus points for it being indoors so I don't have to freeze my booty off.

 Earning their 4th stripe in Jiu Jitsu.  Next up: Yellow white belts!

 Someone KILLED it as Gaston in Beauty and the Beast.

Yes, that's my beautiful baby girl dressed as a man.

 The tree in front of our house looks Ah-Mazing.  I've been feeling a bit nostalgic at the the thought of this being our last fall in our home of 10 years. 

I know it's not much, but I'm hoping that the saying "Less is more" is true.  Because it's all I have right now! 

Just When You Thought You Caught Your Breath-Part 2

I know I left you all hanging.  Waiting with baited breath, if you will.  Wait no more! Part two of the "Great Photo Catch-Up" is here.

First up:  Pictures I never thought I would take.

It is a well known fact that I am no bird lover.  Since I was very young, I have never been fond of birds.  Their flapping wings, unpredictability, and pecking beaks absolutely freak me out.  However.  This summer a momma bird Robin made herself a nest under our deck.  Since The Girl is a lover of all nature (and anything that needs nurturing), she was beside herself with excitement over this nest.  She was just sure that meant babies.

And she was right.

Within a day or so of noticing the nest, Momma Bird (we called her MB out of our deep fondness for her) had started laying eggs.  The Girl went right into research mode and found out that Robins lay one egg a day up to about four eggs.  Once the last egg is laid, we have a seven to nine day wait before little baby birds hatch.

Wait we did!  And somehow, I kind of grew fond of MB, and her little bundles of joy that were on the way.  When they arrived, I lost all semblance of myself, and just went into crazy bird lover mode.  No one could recognize me.  Not even myself.

Here is MB and her sweet little bundles:

The first time we noticed that MB was acting a little different, we waited for her to leave the nest and when we did we found these guys:

Here's MB (she even looks like a good momma bird, right?):

 The next day:

 And then there were four:

After waiting we met these three guys (sadly not all the eggs hatched, which we learned is normal):

These guys are a little older than freshly hatched.  We aren't sure how old, though, because we were in Orlando when they hatched.  We decided they were so ugly they were cute.

We decided it was the most cute when we could get them to open their mouths for food at us.  I know it sounds mean to trick these little guys like that, but we were careful not to bug them too much.

 

This is literally the next day.  These guys don't mess around.  They grow super fast.  I love their little bald heads.  Also, their opened eyes make them not so freaky looking.

 

Just two days later.  Not as cute, right?  Too birdy for my taste.

 

Then we left for our South Dakota trip and when we returned our babies had left the nest.  I was a little sad.  However, MB returned a couple weeks ago!  She rebuilt her nest, and laid three more eggs.  Just yesterday we watched as two more babies hatched and we are hoping for a third by the end of today.  I haven't taken anymore bird pictures yet.  I may have gotten my bird fill with the last batch.  The Girl, however, is in LOVE and has practically video taped the babies every waking breath.  I love that girl.

Before baby robins invaded our hearts, we had reserved almost all of our summer hearts to swimming.  This year has been a bit off swimming wise.  We were traveling a lot of the time that we had really nice weather, and then my kids have changed things up on me.  Turns out, they only like to go swimming when their friends can also come with them.  So while we have been to the pool maybe two times without friends, the rest of the time we are towing people along.  Which is great, however, we aren't at the pool all that often anymore.  Again, I can barley recognize myself.

What you can't see is all of the wildfire smoke we endured this day in order to take a dip.  The things I do for birthdays.

He calls this: Up From the Deep

Here are the kids with their dear friends from birth:

All boys love to perfect their cannon balls:

We took a break from all the wedding planning to go with this guy to the pool:

Some sort of trick:

 

We've even had time to spend with cousins at their grandma's private pool.  Private pool is also known as: "Do whatever tricks you've ever wanted to try in a pool".

Lastly, we celebrated The Little Man's birthday.  Hey, we were only a month late.  He wanted to take his buddies to see Despicable Me 2.  So, that meant we had to wait a month for opening day and then the holiday weekend to pass.  The movie was great, the kids were awesome, and there were lots of laughs and frozen yogurt to be had. 

All these boys, self-serving themselves frozen yogurt.  You should be afraid.  But we had fun and that's what matters, right?

 A group of happy boys after a hilarious movie:

I think the initial powerful force of the fire hydrant of photos has slowed down.  From here on out, I am hoping for a slow stream or trickle of pictures.  

You're welcome.

 

Unleashing the Fire Hydrant o'Photos

Since June was such a whirlwind of travel, preparing to travel, and coming home from traveling, I never wanted to took the time to share some pics from our adventures.  Because, let's face it, I've never been a great friend with uploading tons of pics to Blogger.  That's not to say I've shied away, just that I put it off until there are so many pictures to share that it is like unleashing a fire hydrant.  

Hold still, you're going to get wet!

First up, I hosted a bridal shower for my youngest sister who is now just a mere few weeks away from her wedding day (yay!).  It was a vintage-garden-themed-brunch shower.  We were to all wear big floppy hats, sip mimosas or tea, and nibble on fruit, bagels, and sweets while enjoying conversation, gifts, and a game all out in my backyard.  June can be a little tricky weather wise around here, and especially the first part of June.  True to it's past history, the day turned out to be a bit blustery.  We tried so hard to keep with the outdoor theme, but at some point, you just have to count your losses and invite people, you don't really know very well, into your home which hasn't been cleaned or prepped for visitors.  Bliss.

Afterwards, we sat on the porch and enjoyed some sunshine:

The bride and the bridesmaids (except one)

The bride, myself, and my mini shower helper

And then we were off!  Universal Studios Florida and Disney World were calling our names.  We spent eight days hitting the parks, swimming in the pool, and just hanging out as a family of four.  This was the first trip (longer than just a night) were it was just the four of us.  Can you believe that?  I guess you can say we like to travel with people.  It was nice to be just the four of us and do whatever the four of us wanted, whenever we wanted.   Not that traveling with others has been bad, this was just different.  And nice.

Here are some of my favorite pics (although we are missing a large number of pics due to getting the wrong disc from USF):

 Be still my beating heart, we made it to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.  This was the main focus for the entire eight days.  It was amazing.  The details were spectacular, and in general we ran around like little geeky wizards and witches for two days.  Fun.

We rode rides so many times, that I literally had to call it quits.  The kids and The Hubs never say die, though, so they kept on going until the park closed.  I guess the Butterbeer kept them fueled.

Besides Wizarding World of Harry Potter, there was other fun to be had:

A little bit of Mexico the Epcot version

New York City

The Hubs thought he would try out for Fear Factor, but missed the final cut for casting.

Animal Kingdom

My roller-coaster riding junkies.

Ah, yes.  The Tower of Terror.  Back row, baby! (at least that's what the kids said)

Purposely acting silly on the Revenge of the Mummy roller coaster

I sprung for the digital PhotoPass so I could be part of the pics this time.

Saying good-bye was sad, alas, it was good to get home.

Home brought us laundry, more laundry, and a quick turn around time before we headed back on the road again.  This time the kids and I hit up South Dakota.  This is where my paternal grandma lives along with much of my dad's side of the family.   We road-tripped it, saw almost all the family, ate a lot of burgers, and the kids watched a lot of Netflix courtesy of The Hubs's Hotspot which brought wi-fi wherever we went.

(Seriously, these kids these days!  We had Barbies, coloring books, and our imaginations.  That's it!)

We still had a good time as a family (my parents and uncle joined us), and it was very special to see my grandma, who is 96.

We heart you Netflix

How cute is she?

Four generations

The Little Man's favorite part: 4 Wheeling

The Girl's favorite: Catching frogs

Grandpa's favorite: Driving tractors with the grand kids

As an aside, I've road-tripped it out to good ol' SD probably about 25 times in my life.  In all those times we've never stopped at the Ft. Kearney museum.  If you aren't familiar with I-80, in Ft Kearney, Nebraska, there is an overpass that spans over the entire highway that has been made into a transportation/Westward expansion museum.   I think my dad was motivated with having the grand kids along, as on this trip, he decided making a stop might be fun. And it was!

The headphones were for a self-guided tour.  We also got to weave our way around a fort-type maze where you punched a card at the start, at designated points in the middle, and at the end.  It got a little competitive at that point, and there may have been a couple of tears, but all in all, it was the best rest stop I've ever been to.

And speaking of rest stops...here's a good place for a rest.

Up next: pictures I can't believe I even took, swimming, and a birthday boy.

June, you were so busy!