"As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."
Joshua 24:15
What with summer trips, summer calm, summer craziness, and computer issues, I've been away from this blog for quite a while. It's time for a quick update.
When we left for our Smoky Mountain vacation in early June, the tadpoles had developed back legs and were resting on them, as well as hop/walking a bit.
Unfortunately, the froglets began another die-off. One expired the day before our departure. As time passed, each morning and afternoon Marianna's best friend would find a new group of corpses, 5-10 at a time! Yes, we had many creatures in that habitat.
Even though they changed the water every day (not a simple task, carrying two pitchers from the creek), fed the living, and removed the dead, our intrepid sitter and her mom couldn't end the carnage. Perhaps the habitat was too crowded, or maybe a disease was running through the population. Eventually we all agreed that it was time for an early release. The remaining adolescents were carried to a calm spot and set free into the creek. We'll probably never know what went wrong, but hopefully we'll have more success next time. Yes, we hope to try again.
In June our family spent a week in the Carolinas, mostly in the Smoky Mountains. We hiked, ate out, tubed, ate in, watched movies, visited family, played mini golf, swam, kayaked, biked, etc. It was great! That postcard photo above is the view from the deck of our vacation home. Not too shabby, eh? The fog is an almost daily occurrence, hence the name Smoky Mountains.
Over 4th of July week, we all spent some time in NY. There was no Saranac trip this year, but we had a family reunion of sorts at my sister's house (and my parents' and other sister's, too). She and her husband and children live in a charming old house
on several acres
complete with a large garden and chickens.
There's also an idyllic swimming hole at the creek down the hill.
Family time--gotta love it!
Rebecca enjoyed a one week visit from her favorite cousin just before our NY trip. She's become a bookworm, and this summer is tearing through American Girl stories, Charlotte's Web, and other chapter books. Now she's in the midst of dance/gymnastics camp, and is loving her first all-day-away experience.
Marianna's favorite girl cousin (from FL) spent 2 weeks in NY, so she was there, too. Then came a week at camp in MD (close to
David's college). It was a Catholic camp, and the girls had so much fun! Swimming, canoeing, daily mass, gospel reflections, Messy Olympics, games, songs, etc. kept them busy and entertained. The Messy Olympics sound amazing--the girls ended up covered in food from various events: spaghetti, peanut butter, ketchup, syrup and flour, eggs, and on and on. Eventually a fire truck came to hose them off. Really! Marianna has two more 1/2 day camps coming up this summer: Irish dance and basketball.
Ready for Marianna's final mass at camp
It seems that our youngest children are the busiest this summer. Joseph spent two weeks in NY and is now on a two week scout trip in Alaska! He'll have a week of camp in August followed by a pre-Labor Day school start.
On his way to the carpool to the airport to Denver to Fairbanks.
Daniel is working as part of the summer maintenance crew at our parish, painting, moving furniture in and out of classrooms, weeding, cutting grass, etc. This means he can participate in fewer trips and camps, although he did manage a weekend in NY, a retreat in Steubenville (OH), and an August trip to World Youth Day. Then comes junior year, with SATs, college visits, etc. Here we go again!
David's job at the bike shop gives him a little more flexibility, so he was able to spend some time at the beach with his favorite cousin (are you sensing a summer theme?) after our NY reunion. He developed (or modified--it's not quite clear) a role playing game and has enjoyed hosting a group of friends for weekly gaming sessions. In June Dave hosted a bonfire that turned into a sleepover, since so many of the guests were college friends, driving two hours to attend. We enjoyed spending time with such great teens.
Since her nannying job is in the neighborhood, we're seeing more of Lauren than in some previous summers. She's been working hard on the personal front, too--getting her class schedule taken care of (so she will--God willing--graduate on time) and making wedding plans.
In this beginning stage, she's been concentrating on reserving a date and a hall. Lauren has put in untold hours researching the possibilities while taking into account budget, beauty, distance, etc. She found a lovely space in DC, which will hopefully be ours very soon. We're planning a late summer 2012 wedding.
Meanwhile, at the beach, Lauren was dragged (kicking and screaming I'm sure--not!) to a bridal store by my aunt, cousins, and niece for her first dress try-ons. (No, I missed it . . .) My cousin took some pix with her phone, which I can't resist posting.
My baby!
Len's summer has been busy with work, leisure, and maintenance projects. He and his partner hired a new veterinary graduate, who started working at
Towne this month. February (the clinic moving time) was not the best time for an open house, so that was also in July. It was a fun afternoon with tours, raffles, children's activities, etc.
Len did almost all the organizing of our Smoky Mountain trip. When we returned home he decided it was time to relax by refurbishing the deck. This long overdue project (I won't lie, but I don't help much, either) involved power washing 17 years of weathering followed by staining/sealing. Len dismantled the homemade table, found a new one on Craig's List, and built a gate for the stairs so that Dusty can join us for dinner without the otherwise inevitable deer chase. It feels like a new, and newly welcoming, space.
And after a few too many "blue screens of death," our hero researched, bought, and installed a new computer. Two interesting aspects of this projects are its speed (Len mentioned to Daniel one morning that we "would probably need to get a new computer," and by the time he returned from work, there it was!) and the fact that David approves of Len's choice. Sometimes it's a challenge to keep up with our tech-savvy progeny!
My summer sounds quite dull compared to the rest of my crew's. Keeping the house tidy, laundry done, and food on the table seems to be more challenging than expected. We've been eating mostly dinners that can be yanked out of the freezer or whipped up quickly from staples on hand. The freezer is almost out of last minute saves, so I'll have to start planning again soon.
Planning school is next on my agenda. This year I'll have "just" a 2nd and 6th grader at home, but I want to do it right, which for me means having the game plan in place before we start.
In between driving, homemaking, and pooling (okay, not really a verb . . .) I have managed some knitting and more reading than usual. I'm a bookworm at heart, but often don't read because a good book might not be put down, leading to several days of nothing getting done, which I can't afford any more. And a book marginal enough that I can put it down means that I often do so, without picking it up again.
This summer I've indulged myself. Many of the books I've read are at the tween and teen level (checking them out for Marianna or reading along with the boys), which makes them quick. The latest grown-up book I read is
Unbroken, about an American captured by the Japanese in WWII. Wow! What a book! Laura Hillenbrand is an engaging, thoughtful, and thorough author. When I finished reading (after a few late nights and barely-there parenting), Len told me he was glad to have his wife back. ;-) You may be on the waiting list a long time (I was), but do put this in your library queue.
I hope you've enjoyed this rather long catch-up session. Maybe next time we can visit over tea and scones. Give me a call or drop by!
