Summer Break 2026: Week 7

The highlight of the week was our church’s Vacation Bible School (VBS). With a “road trip” theme, the lessons, songs and Penny Campaign all connected to taking a road trip with the big ideas of God Calls, God Provides, God Guides, God Disciplines and God Delivers. The three younger cousins enjoyed participating this year while Zander was one of the youth photographers for the week! Aunt Lindsey, Grammy and I were guides so you can imagine we were busy from start to finish. The boys won the Penny Challenge which means three of the four cousins were excited about that result! ;) Since VBS was in the evenings, we fit in a couple pool days (one took us back to Tanglewood Park) and got to spend time with friends throughout the week. Sam and Jenn came into town and we were able to celebrate Sam’s birthday together (at Print Works Bistro for brunch and Fire and Sticks for dinner), take a tour of our college campus (posing for pictures outside our freshman and sophomore dorm rooms), take the kids to a trampoline park and simply enjoy catching up on the couch at our house (thanks to a rainy Monday). We are already counting down to next summer. I had lunch with Aunt Kelly and Carmen on two other days this week which means I got to see 5 of my closest friends within a 7 day period. This is such a blessing as many of them live out of town, the state or the country. Also, this past weekend, we got to have our annual lake day with the Badens. It was raining most of the morning so we opted to hang out at the house before catching a break in the weather and going out on the water for a few hours. We picked up a desk for Zander from Grannie’s house on the way back home and stopped at a 7-Eleven for free slurpees for 7/11 day!

Summer Break 2026: Week 6

The biggest adventure this week was that Zander went to FUGE camp with our youth group! He had a blast! He got to hang out with friends and even make new ones (including joining another church’s volleyball team and helping them win the overall bracket)! All of his chosen tracks were sports related (basketball, volleyball, pickleball, disc golf, etc). I didn’t get many pictures this week but based on how tired he is tonight, I think he soaked up all camp had to offer, growing closer to God and enjoying fellowship with others. While Zander was away, Maddox enjoyed “only child” status for a few days. We fit in a few pool days with friends and family including a trip to Tanglewood Park with his cousins as a highlight of the week. We also visited Carmen’s family coffee shop and continued our search for all the World Cup cups from McDonalds. Zack was out of town for a couple days for work so Maddox and Beau joined me for cuddles. Maddox even got a sweet treat from the ice cream truck at the pool (don’t tell Zander). Last weekend we celebrated the 4th of July with our town’s parade in the morning and a fireworks display in the evening. It was the 250th anniversary of our country’s independence so it was fun to mark this significant milestone with all the traditional fanfare. 

Summer Break 2026: Week 5

After our fun beach adventures the previous week, we enjoyed being home! Zander continues to enjoy his summer golf league on Sunday nights (thank you Grandpa for being his Uber driver… haha). On Sunday evening, both boys had their best friends (Jackson and Austin) spend the night. We went bowling on Monday and enjoyed time at our local recreation center (playing basketball and pickleball) due to really high temperatures outside. On Tuesday, Zander got his top braces put on. He will get his bottom braces after one last molar comes out. We met Aunt Kelly for lunch at Freddy’s and spent another afternoon at the recreation center, playing volleyball and basketball (thank you air conditioning). We celebrated my 43rd birthday with my side of the family that night at Kimonos with a Bundt cake and frozen yogurt (at Zack’s Treats) for dessert. We knocked out a 300 piece dog puzzle on Tuesday night while listening to Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.  Wednesday, we went to Quarry Park to enjoy some outside time before the over 100 degree temperatures came in. Wednesday afternoon, the Kennedy kids came for our annual summer sleepover. Due to the heat, we went to see Toy Story 5 in the theaters (with popcorn and drinks to share). We finished out the night at our church’s 4th of July picnic and then watched the USA in the World Cup (round of 32) while hanging out in the fort the kids created. The cousins slept downstairs (in or around their fort) and were ready to enjoy the day on Thursday (waking up bright and early). We played outside until it got too hot and took Beau for his walk before the heat settled in for the day. We went to the pool to escape the heat and finished our night watching more World Cup soccer. Today, we are taking it easy and trying to decide what fun we might get into before the holiday weekend! Fortunately, there is a lot of soccer matches this weekend as the round of 16 games continue, so if we aren't outside, you might find us watching soccer since we have two soccer players in our home! ;)

Summer Break 2026: Week 4

We got to enjoy week 4 of summer break with the Cantrell family in Charleston! This week gave us hours of fun in the sun at the beach or the pool, delicious food, fun games (both boys won in Left/Center/Right), golfing (for Zander with the guys), family birthday celebrations (including eating at Hyman’s in downtown Charleston on my actual birthday), miniature golf, fishing on the beach and countless memories made with our extended family. We enjoyed days without a schedule and making a plan each day as we went. We are so blessed to have this time with our family!

Summer Break 2026: Week 3

The highlight of this week was Maddox attending the junior retreat with our church’s children’s ministry. He spent 3 days and 2 nights in the mountains enjoying games, bible study, and camp like activities while he was away from home. A bonus was that Emmy was old enough to go this year so M & Em got to experience this adventure together. Maddox would want me to add that he won the duck race for the boys while at camp. We missed M & Em while they were gone but fit in some fun in their absence. Zander and I went to check out Carmen’s family coffee shop before their grand opening on Saturday! We actually went twice this week and took Grammy, Grandpa and Maddox with us the second time. After our Monday coffee visit, we fit in a little pool time.  Zander got to go golfing with Grandpa on Tuesday while I spent time with my friend, Kristen. It is rare to have kid free fun. Also this week, Zander had his first legitimate birdie on a par 3 at his summer junior golf league. Zander went to the Dash game on Wednesday night with his youth group. I got to see Anna for dinner while he was at the baseball game. I have enjoyed some reading time this week and got some of the things checked off the to do list (including my yearly physical). The boys completed a whole puzzle on one of the really hot afternoons. They also got summer hair cuts to help with fending off the heat. Last weekend, we got to visit Zack’s best friend, Ryan, for a pool day. We got home in time to have the Stanwoods stay with us on their way home from their vacation. We haven’t been as busy this week and have enjoyed watching sports in the evenings (The Carolina Hurricanes won the Stanley Cup in hockey). Beau continues to enjoy rest time with his favorite people!

Summer Break 2026: Week 2

 

Last weekend, we got to catch Eli in action on his 8U All Star team! (And yes, he is just 6 years old)!  No All Stars for Maddox this year since the tournament dates conflicted with our upcoming beach trip. It was fun to have one last weekend of baseball to kick off our summer and Eli’s team went undefeated in their opening weekend! We spent week #2 of summer break catching up with friends. On Monday, we met Aunt Kelly for lunch at Freddy’s. Tuesday, we went for our annual Waffle House outing for Mr. Ben’s birthday. Jackson, Zander’s best friend, spent the night after soccer practice on Tuesday evening. You can see we fit in grabbing our good grade donuts to finish out the school year after soccer practice. The Krispy Kreme was on the way home so it was perfect timing. Honor Roll for both boys with their final grades this year! Zander had all As for 7th grade and Maddox had all As and one B (in reading) for 4th grade. They have worked so hard all year and did amazing on their end of grade tests! I’m so proud of their determination and commitment to doing their best! For the first part of the week, I refurbished a coffee table we got from our friend, Sarah. Since the boys (with the help of a friend) have broken the last two coffee tables, I told myself I wasn’t buying a new one until these crazy boys “left the nest”. I think this is a good addition until that time comes! The boys and I met the Kennedys and Williams family at the pool on Wednesday afternoon before Zander and Jackson had youth group Wednesday night. Thursday held our biggest adventure of the week. We took the cousin crew to Great Wolf Lodge for the day! The three elementary kids had been given free day passes so we made our way to Concord for a day of water fun! The moms got a sweet treat for the drive which ensured spirits were high the whole day. We went on all the water slides, spent time in the wave pool, treehouse/bucket area, the basketball/lily pad pool and even checked out the outdoor water features since this is the first time we have been there in the summer. We spent 9 hours there and definitely got our moneys worth. Today, we don’t have plans on the summer agenda as we try to recover from the excitement yesterday and get ready for a fun and busy weekend ahead! Stay tuned….. we love summer break!

Summer Break 2026: Week 1

What a wonderful first week of summer?! I’m so very excited about all the plans we have for Summer 2026! We started off week one by checking off many of the activities we look forward to each year! On Monday, we played at Top Golf with Grandpa (and Grammy) as an early Father’s Day celebration. Monday night, the boys and I had our annual tent camping in the backyard adventure. The weather was perfect and I might have even gotten a few hours of sleep! We played Apples to Apples and listened to the fourth Harry Potter book as we settled in for the night. The boys are already asking if we can do it again this summer…. We’ll see! Haha On Tuesday, we ran errands (like getting my car serviced). We fit in some fun at the local recreation center and had some rest time at Grammy and Grandpa’s after a Chick-fil-A lunch. Three nights this week Zander has had volleyball camp at his school. On Thursday night, both boys had soccer practice. Zander also started playing in a junior golf league on Sunday nights (thanks to Grandpa)! I know it is the highlight of his week! We also have fit in some much needed rest time after an incredibly busy year and started learning how to type using an online typing program. The boys work each day on improving their accuracy and their speed (words per minute). On Wednesday, we stopped at 7 Brew for the first time ever to try the new Dude Perfect featured drinks for June. Then, we hosted a lemonade stand for the Harris family, raising funds to cover some of the expenses related to Mr. Harris’ cancer treatments. We had a great turnout and are so blessed by the village we have to step in and help others in need. On Thursday, the Bakewells girls enjoyed our annual spa day complete with massages, champagne, a relaxation room, time by the pool and a delicious dinner at Green Valley Grill. It is one of our favorite days of the year! Today (Friday), Zander met up with some of his buddies from school to play disc golf. I took most of them to grab lunch afterwards at Zaxby’s before shuttling them back to their houses. The boys were so polite and I continue to be thankful for the friends Zander is making in middle school. While they played disc golf, Maddox and I entertained ourselves in other areas of the park! We finished up the week with an afternoon at the pool with the Kennedys and the Williams family! This will be the last year for the swim test for Z as he will be headed to high school by next summer! Green bands for both boys and the swim test is officially checked off for the summer! As I type this, Zack is grilling dinner for us and we are having a relaxing summer evening at the house. Summer is my favorite season and I am so thankful we have many weeks of fun ahead!:)