Youth temple trip

My calling is with the youth right now, so I went with them to the temple.

Ali had a previous commitment, but I was glad to be there with two of my favorite boys!

Dunes

We found a rare Saturday when no one had plans, and we went to the Dunes in Michigan. We got there early and got a great spot on the beach, and then left when it started to get really crowded early afternoon. It was the first time we've been when all our kids were able to swim, so I had the loveliest time reading while my family played:)

Brand New Car

This summer we bought Jason a new car and gave the kids his old Civic. We'd had the car for exactly one month when on the way home from the temple we got a flat tire! Seconds after the low tire pressure warning came on, we were driving on the rim. Jason made his way over to the shoulder, and to our horror, we learned that our new car didn't come with a spare tire (they often don't anymore, we've come to find out!). It was a whole drama getting it towed, and when Jason went back to the store the next day to get the tire fixed, we learned that the saga wasn't over: the tow truck must have damaged the steering rod and a whole host of other things. The first quote said it would cost $11,000 to fix and for a couple days it seemed like the insurance company was going to try and say they didn't need to pay, and also they had a ridiculously hard time finding the place we'd left the car. LONG story short, we did end up only paying a deductible and finally got the car back. It took me a little while to trust our new car again...but I think we can...

Extra time

Ali sometimes will play a game with Jake when he is looking for a way to earn extra time- "meme the game" is a favorite.

FSY (aka the week of Jake)

For the Strength of Youth camp was a great experience for Ali, Logan, and Eli. They all came home having made new friends, strengthened their testimonies, and tired!

It was Eli's first time going, and he loved it. I heard from him the least of all of them!

He spent a lot of his free time learning to swing dance with some new friends from his group.

Logan really enjoyed the boys in his company. He said they were a great group of guys, and they got really deep in conversations when it was just the guys especially. He's the only one of my kids who called me while they were gone!

Ali enjoyed the classes and the musical presentation her company took part in. She liked getting to know her company and growing friendships with kids in our ward.

Since Jake was the only kid at home, he and I did all the fun younger kid things he wanted to do. We went to Blackberry Farm, The Children's Museum, met a friend at Phillip's Park Pool, he had a magic class, we went to 2 different libraries, got him a bigger bike and went for rides, had a movie night picnic with a movie of his choice...it was great fun!

It was much quieter with all the teens gone, but it was good to have them come home at the end of the week. Grateful for a great FSY!

DnD Cookbook

Eli bought a Dungeons and Dragons cookbook and has been enjoying trying out recipes. He's made a dinner called Miner's Pie, some cinnamon bread, cookies, and candied apples. It's a yummy new hobby we're all enjoying.

Family Temple Trip

Usually when we take the older kids to the temple to do baptisms, Jake stays with a friend. But this time we decided to bring him with us, and Jason and I took turns hanging out with him outside the temple and in the waiting room. I really, really loved being at the temple with my whole family.

Congratulations!

We tried out a new ice cream place near us to celebrate great school grades this year, and Ali and Logan both getting 5s (!) on their AP Government class test! Way to go you guys!!

Wisconsin Dells

We went to Wisconsin Dells this summer for our family vacation. It was under a three-hour drive, and it was so nice to not lose the whole first day of our vacation driving like we usually do! Our resort had 7 waterparks (3 indoor and 4 outdoor). The last time we went, Ali and Logan were 4 and Eli was 2...needless to say, we spent our time this time in very different areas! It was so nice that Jake has finally mastered swimming (after a lot of hard work on his part over the last few years). We loved the waterslides (even Jake who was much braver than I thought he would be, and often wanted to go again on rides I didn't think he would like in the first place) and the huge wave pool. Logan and Eli loved the rides where you stood in the tube and then the floor dropped out from under you...once on that was enough for me and Jason. Jake, Ali, and I loved the rides where you raced the person next to you. One of the days we were there it rained all day, but that was no problem because of the indoor parks!

We also got the fun passes that gave us access to 2 mini golf courses, 2 go cart courses, a high-up ropes course, laser tag, arcades, and rock climbing which were nice when we needed a break from the water. 

 

We had a great time!

Galena Rodeo

We decided on a whim this summer to go back to a rodeo in Galena (about 2.5 hours away) that we'd been to several times with our good friends the Andersons before they moved away. We hadn't been in 7 years and decided it was time to go back. A few weeks after we decided to go, JaNae texted me and said they'd be in town in early July and wanted to stop by and say hi. I told them we'd love that, and in fact, they'd been on our minds lately because we were going to the rodeo...and she responded that they were going to be there too! It was SO MUCH FUN to be there with them again after all those years! They're the kind of friends that it seems like no time has passed when you see them again. Even the kids, who barely remember each other, fall back into easy conversations. 

Oh, Jake.

The first half of the rodeo was so fun and we had beautiful weather. But then, out of nowhere, it started to rain. We were sitting on tarps because the ground was wet from the previous day's rain, so we just pulled them over our heads and waited. After maybe 10 minutes or so it stopped- no big deal, right?

But then about 30 minutes later it started raining again, and then kept raining, and then rained harder...Jake couldn't handle it after a few minutes so he and I walked back (in the pouring rain) to our car where we waited a long time for the rain to stop. We'd come all that way, and we wanted to see the bull riding and the fireworks show, so we waited it out.

Well, it turned out the ground was now a muddy mess and was too dangerous to bull ride in, and the fireworks show was not that impressive. And then it was time to leave, from the pastures we'd all parked in, that we also now a muddy mess. LOTS of cars were stuck, including the Andersons. Logan and Jason helped them (and a few other cars) get unstuck and then we all tried to not get mud all over the car as we got in and drove the 2.5 hours home, still soaking wet.

Funny enough, we all agreed we'd had a good time, though not for the reasons we expected to. Seeing the Andersons and getting to spend all that time with them was a huge tender mercy, and pushing out the cars was actually kind of fun...  it was memorable for sure! When the Andersons stopped by Sunday, they brought us a bag of Muddy Buddies they'd stopped at the store the night before (despite their own wetness), to thank us! Oh, how we love these good friends!

(Also, it was Jason's birthday the day we went! Happy birthday to the love of my life!)

Puzzle Buddy

I found a new puzzle buddy this summer in Logan! We've had fun putting several together.