I feel like I have really immersed myself into mothering and such things, and I haven't documented things because of that. I have taken pictures, done some journaling but my poor, poor blog. Summer was great but fast. Teenagers are tricky. All children will devour as much screen time as you allow (we have officially waged war against it; our kids aren't having a whole lot of tech). Some phases of life make for ultra-sweet sibling relationships, and some make for a wretched dynamic that involves a lot of fighting, tears, and some pain. Lucas going to school AND working a job with on-call weeks is rough, mostly for him (but I DO feel sorry for me too).
I think I will do a separate post for each kiddo, but here is a general summer post.
Aside from usual swim lessons, we spent our 4th of July in our favorite place to spend it, Ely. There was a car incident when I was practicing driving with Lily, but that has been documented quite enough in my personal journal. Suffice it to say, it was rough, but the positives were realizing we have the most fabulous family. My MIL, Laura, my bro and sis-in-law, Jim, Uncle Randy and Aunt Lori, wow! They really showed a lot of love and saved the day when we were in a bind. We did have another epic waterfight. Cameras would not be safe in this environment, and generally I enjoy myself so much I don't whip out my phone sadly enough. It was also a special trip because we met our nephew, Jon. !!!! Can't wait to see him again. He's a smart little cutie and well loved. The only pics I did take were tired Shawn and Ben lying on the front room floor being some of the first to wake up.
We managed an after church shot. I am so glad we go to church together as a family. It is quite a precious time, even if during the sit still parts the kids can drive me a bit bonkers. They are learning things at home and at church. They have teachers who love and care about them, and they HAVE TESTIMONIES of Jesus Christ, God's plan and his love for them and all of God's children. What more could I ask for? Knowing that those who go out from our home will be the ones who love others even when its hard, will sacrifice for others and will turn the other cheek but also speak up when there is wrong in the world, that means everything to me.
Part of our ongoing house switcharoo projects. The kids were enlisted to tear off wallpaper in the future Matt's room/guest room which is currently our office. Lily and Daphne saw it through to the end. Daphne is especially obsessed and still peels off the last bits lingering behind my computer whenever she can reach them. I always feel a sense of pride when I see my family working together. The moments are not as often as I'd like, however.
A second part of the project is doing our new office in our front room. I made an ottoman that I quite like. Bad lighting but you get the general idea.
BEFORE:
AFTER:
We have officially installed the floor. Have a sofa and throw pillows, plus the ottoman. Still painting, lighting, getting internet in there, trim, and built-in bookshelves/desks, highback chair...the list goes on and it's slow because Lucas is such a hard worker and intense student. At least the painting I can handle. The floor was intimidating because me and saws....IDK.
The total eclipse 2017...near total for us. Lily was at teen swim party down the street having a great time. I was supposed to be working as much as possible (darnit) so just made sure kids had eclipse glasses on and ran out every few minutes to check progress. The little eclipse shaped shadows filtering through tree leaves onto the sidewalk were what I'll remember best. Pretty awesome time to be alive. God's creations and how they all work is AHMAZING!
The kids waiting for the eclipse. I LOVE IT WHEN THEY ARE CALM AND PLAY TOGETHER. Matt usually leads these pleasant moments. The chaotic ones are typically led by my eldest, who, obviously was gone a lot this summer. Teenagers disappear more, but I promise she was around a lot.
In conclusion, it was a fast summer, a good summer. A challenging summer in that Daph and Shawn get on each others nerves at times, Lily and Ben AND Ben and Shawn with everyone just fighting here and there for the heck of it. I love my kids. I think they will grow up to be good people. I hope they will grow up to be hardworking people who always value people (all people) over things. As Lucas and I said in a conversation this week. We have the best kids with the biggest hearts and good citizenship skills. They struggle sometimes because they are rule followers in a flash the middle finger at everyone kind of world, but they know WHO THEY ARE and WHAT THEY SHOULD BE DOING, so they'll be okay. Big hearts, good kids, but kind of sloppy. It could be much worse. I LOVE THEM SO MUCH!
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