Little Peanut Update

 Our Little Peanut is still with us, and her future is still uncertain.  She has made huge progress this summer and grown up a ton.  She is almost 20 months. She's absolutely adorable, and I wish I could share her face with all of you.  Instead, you'll have to be satisfied with the back of her head.  ;)

Little smarty pants discovered she could use her chair to reach all sorts of things!

Between Miss Deb and the stove seems like the perfect place to color while she's trying to make dinner...

Toddlers trying to run is the cutest.

She loves to dance!

Finishing Summer and Starting School

 (Sorry these posts are a little out of order.)  Well, our summer ended with a bang (or maybe a fizzle?).  Micah got home from camp on a Friday afternoon.  He was exhausted, of course, and had a slightly runny nose.  I saw him briefly, then left the kids with a sitter while Scott and I went to a baby shower for the Hays.  (Surprise! Hays are having a little girl in a few months!)

The next morning, Jackson and McKinley came over while the rest of the Oysters volunteered at an event.  The boys decided to go disc golfing while the girls stayed behind and made cookies.

When the boys came back from disc-ing, Micah didn't feel well.  He had a headache and felt a little warm.  We sent him to his room and hoped that he was just exhausted from camp.  We found an appointment for a rapid test the next day.  Sadly, it was positive for covid.  Even more sad, we had to cancel our trip to New Hampshire.  There were/are a lot of layers of disappointment there, but we had to focus on the positive:

- Micah was uncomfortable and tired for a few days, but he didn't have any severe symptoms.

- He got sick before we went to NH, so we didn't expose my parents.

- No one else in the family got sick.

- None of the kids missed any games/meets, and Micah only had to miss one day of school

Micah was a trooper about staying in his room.  On Tuesday we had a campfire outside for family time, and he got tired just picking up sticks.  But each day he got a little stronger and had a little bit more energy.  By the end of the week, he was able to go for a jog, and by the following Tuesday he made it through school, cross country, and soccer practice.

First day of 8th grade 

Hannah and Matthew got to meet their teachers on Monday, then started school with a half day on Wednesday.  I can't believe this is Hannah's last year at Cornerstone!  She's in fifth grade this year, and Matthew is in second.

Random Hike

 Micah went back to school on Tuesday, and I decided to take the younger kids on a hike.  I have been wanting to hike to a waterfall, and Matthew wanted something "in the woods" (which I found out later meant that he wanted something where he could climb on logs and rocks).  Although I feel like I am pretty familiar with the hiking options around us, I stumbled across one I hadn't heard of before - a short hike not too far from us that had a "hidden waterfall"!  We gave it a try, and it turned out to be exactly what we were looking for.  

Here's the hidden waterfall!  (photo credit: Hannah)

Camp for Micah and Matthew

 After having camp cancelled last summer, the kids were extra excited for this year.  Micah decided to try water ski camp, and he went with his friends Henri and Owen.  They learned how to water ski every morning, then did other camp activities in the afternoons and evenings.  Since they were out on the water for half the day, the camp photographer didn't catch them often.  However, the instructor on the boat kindly texted Scott a couple of pictures and videos.  He said Micah was a natural and a really great kid (which we already knew).  He first skied off a boom on the side of the boat, then from the rope with trainer skis (with a bar across the tips of the skis to keep them from crossing), then on regular skis!  Micah had a great week and loved the skiing.

(Here's the video of his week, but he's not in it very much.)

Matthew has been looking forward to his turn at camp for a LONG time.  He did day camp, which is four days, 9-5.  It didn't work out for any of his friends to go with him the same week, but he was having a good attitude about not knowing anyone.  Monday morning, we signed him in and walked into the gym to find his group, and....there was one of his best friends from school!!  They were both so excited; they ran and gave each other a huge hug.  (There was also a friend from church in his group and a couple of kids whose parents I know.)  Matthew was a little disappointed that the day campers don't get to do everything that the overnight campers do, but he still had an amazing time and can't wait to go back.  (He's already trying to convince me that he can do overnight camp next summer.)

Here's the video of Matthew's week.  He's in it quite a bit.

OBX

 Three years ago we had our first ever family vacation in Duck, NC and loved it so much we couldn't wait to go back.  This July, we got to go back! Two wonderful families took care of Little Peanut for us, giving us time for respite and reconnecting.  

We learned from our last visit that having a house close to the beach wasn't as important if you had a golf cart.  So this time we got a house a little farther from the beach (still an easy walk, if you wanted to) and managed to snag the last golf cart rental available!  

Day 1 (Friday): Long day of driving, arriving at house, unpacking, and testing out the pool.

Day 2 (Saturday): First of two trips to Duck Donuts, shopping, walk to the beach, games, and Hannah's first injury.

Hannah caught a football in the pool with her face.  It snapped her goggles apart, causing some nice gashes on her eyelid and below her eye.  

Day 3 (Sunday): First of two rounds of putt-putt, go-karts (causing Hannah's second injury), first of ? times getting ice cream

Hannah got going too fast around a curve and slammed into a barrier.  I was intentionally staying close behind her, so I had a close view of my baby girl flying into the air and slamming back to the ground.  She was rightfully very shaken up.  She had a gash on her forehead, seatbelt mark across her shoulder, and marks across the fronts of her shins.  It was scary, but thankfully she was ok.  

Day 4 (Monday): To celebrate our 18th wedding anniversary, we took a walk on the beach by ourselves.  I don't really know what else we did that day; all I have pictures of is the beach.  Hannah's injury of the day was a certain brother hitting her in the injured eye with a sandy shovel.

Day 5 (Tuesday): Breakfast in town (yum!), more beach, probably more ice cream...and Hannah broke her injury streak!

Day 6 (Wednesday): This one might surprise you...we went parasailing!  Micah and I both love heights and thrills, Matthew and Hannah slightly less so, and Scott is scared of heights.  But we all went for it, and had a great time!  (I have a ton more pictures that I haven't uploaded, and Micah took video on his go-pro.)

On an earlier trip to the beach, I saw a boy doing what I later learned is called "skim boarding".  I knew that as soon as Micah saw it, he would want to try it, and I was not wrong.  Matthew and Hannah both chose shirts for their souvenirs, and Micah chose a beginner skim board.  He improved over the next few days, but here's a video of some of his first attempts.  

Day 7 (Thursday): Our last full day!

Day 8 (Friday) - After a long drive home, our wonderful vacation was complete.