Summer Break: Week Six

I know that the pictures I post here often look downright slow and relaxed. But trust me when I say that up in my head, it has been way, way, way too busy this Summer. I wanted a lot more down time, but I've been jumping from one big project to the next, and sometimes working on multiple projects simultaneously. I have succeeded in getting more play dates in for the kids during this school break (which isn't actually saying much, considering last year there was a grand total of ONE, due to my painful back problems). But there have been zero read-alouds on the picnic blanket in the front yard, zero trips to the city for smoothies, and so many other things I try to do with the kids during the "slow" months. Oh well... I do my best, and keep reminding them that the grand result of all of my busy working hours, we will be able to take a trip to Disneyland in the Fall. Worth it? Yes, I hope so.

My poor camera has had very little action; most of these came from my phone camera, which is always in my back pocket when the presence of mind to snap a picture comes around.

Summer Break: Week Five

I'm not sure why it is making sense to me to break my Summer down into weekly posts, but it seems to be helping me catch up a little, so I'm sticking to my plan.

This week brought a lot of the same... Sunshine (how many days has it been since it rained? Feels like forever!), kids playing in the pool (oh, how they're loving it!), trying (and failing) to stay one step ahead of the weeds, making raspberry jam, the corn finally reaching knee-high (not TOO long after the 4th of July), eating kale and peas straight out of the garden, putting in double time with the band to try to be ready for Twistapalooza (coming in two weeks!).

Summer Break: Week Four

The week started with a celebration/retirement dinner for our Senior Pastor, who has led the same congregation for 29 years. We've only been a part of the church for 2, but we thoroughly enjoyed hearing the stories and meeting the people that go back much further in life history with this man and his family. I volunteered as a photographer, so I got to roam the room, snapping photos to my heart's content. Which is probably partially to blame for the fact that I have very few pictures representing the rest of week 4 of Summer Break.

The next day, we hosted a gathering of all of my siblings (except the one that lives over-seas), together with their spouses and kids, plus my parents and an Uncle. We try to gather as often as we all can, which usually amounts to twice a year, when my Montana sister comes to visit. With 11 adults and 11 kids, I was very glad it was a sunny day so we didn't have to crown into my little house. The cousins had great fun running around, while the grown-ups sat in the shade and swapped stories. And I did more relaxing and hosting that photo snapping.

Two days later, our yard was full again, this time with friends, talking, laughing, eating, then going to see the local fireworks. We think we've finally found the best spot to view the display, after a few years of trial and error. 

The rest of the week included band practice, lots of pool time for the kids, printing and assembling a new design for y'all, harvesting the first of our raspberries, lots of work on renovating the back deck, and a trip to the city to visit my local needlework shop and pick up models from their trunk show. 

Methinks busy = less photographic evidence. 

Summer Break: Week Three

The week started out so stinking hot it made every part of me hurt. Not really, I don't suffer from chronic pain, so I don't want to make light of that statement. But heat and Beth do not mix well. And since the heat comes so rarely to our part of the world, most people don't have air conditioning. I make do by hanging quilts over all of the West-facing windows, basically turning the house into as dark and cool of a cave as possible. It always works well for the first day or two, but by the third and fourth day of a heat wave, it's pretty much impossible to bring the house down under 80 degrees. Which does not make me a happy girl.

Enter the new swimming pool. Which is still so cold from all of that well water, that thirty minutes soaking in it chilled me to the bone. Afterward, sitting in an 80 degree house, it took 3 hours for my feet to warm back up. It feels good knowing that I now have a legitimate coping mechanism for heat waves. :D

Other than trying to stay cool, there was VBS to take the kids to, and the usual errands to run. The Farmboy took the week off and started tearing the nearly-20-year-old deck off of the back of the house. We ate in the front yard almost every night and tried to relax as much as possible. I even dialed my work back quite a bit, only taking two runs into town to mail orders, and only answering the most pressing emails.

I ate the first blueberry of the season and showed up to band practice wearing the same shoes as the others (minus one) (yay for Converse!). There were two giant Jackfruits at the local Grocery, which impressed the kids. And I got to end the week with a tea date with my Mama and two Sisters and one highly squeezable Nephew.