Summer Break 2023: Week Three

I cannot believe that we are halfway through our summer break together.  The boys will have a few more weeks with Grammy and Grandpa before they officially head back to school but as I am typing this post, the boys and I have hit the halfway point of our summer adventures.  It makes me so sad to be counting down to school already but I know we are having a blast making memories along the way.  This past week, I was able to spend 48 hours with two of my very best friends from college!  Since all of us turned 40 within a two month span, we wanted to do something fun to celebrate together.  We have had many adventures over the years through dorm life, apartment living, figuring out life on our own, getting married, traveling to NYC twice while Jenn was living there, having kids and even moving far away from each other.  Jenn currently lives in Madagascar and Sam lives in South Georgia.  All of these reasons make it incredibly special that we could find time to spend together for a couple days.  I treasured each conversation we had and the ability to be completely myself with their company.  I guess that is what happens when you share a dorm room for two years or live across the hall from each other for that amount of time.  We picked up right where we left off and are already thinking this might need to be an annual tradition when Jenn comes to visit in the states.  The girls spent the night at my house and we enjoyed a day at the spa.  We talked for hours into the evening and enjoyed dinner at a local Japanese restaurant just like we would do for our birthdays every year!  I am so thankful for their friendship and to celebrate this birthday milestone together! 

The boys and I enjoyed a laid back week at home!  We went to the track to play baseball one morning before it got too hot and Zander carved designs into the track.  Can you see their initials?  We also spent three afternoons at the pool and went to the local bowling alley on the other two afternoons.  I LOVED not having any specific plans this week with time schedules that sometimes stress me out. We moved through each day at our own pace with schoolwork in the morning (yes, I make them do a little bit of work each day when we are home to stay fresh), a fun activity in the afternoon and then some technology time to finish out the evening.  It has been the best week at home!

Summer Break 2023: Week Two

Over the weekend, prior to the 4th of July holiday, we enjoyed some quality family time at home.  We had a laid back pace for the weekend, went to the pool with friends and attended our church's 4th of July cookout on Sunday evening.  (no pictures were taken over the weekend... haha)

On Monday, we went to spend the afternoon at Mia's pool.  The kids had fun swimming for hours and I got to catch up with Carmen.... it was a win win!

Burke enjoying some relaxation time ;)

On Tuesday, we celebrated Independence Day by attending our small town parade in the morning and having the Whites over for dinner that evening.  Zack fired up the grill, cooking hotdogs and hamburgers.  We went to watch the fireworks together that evening!  Grammy came with us to the firework show as well!  Sophie has now decided that "Uncle" Zack is her favorite. ;)  Uncle Chris and Zander recreated a picture from 2015 where Z was scared of the fireworks and Uncle Chris held him for the duration of the show that year.

On Wednesday, we headed back home for a few days since the Stanwoods were in town from Georgia.  It was the perfect opportunity to get the cousins together for some adventures.  We met at Grandfather Mountain and enjoyed looking at the views and wildlife in the area.

On Thursday, we met up with one of my best friends, Ginny, and her boys for a pool day.  Henry tagged along with the big boys for an afternoon of fun! Since Ginny lives in Kansas, it is rare we are back home at the same time.  I'm so thankful it worked out to get our boys together.  The moms enjoyed catching up as well! ;)

Grannie also had a few art projects for the boys to complete while we were visiting.

Uncle Jay and I took the boys to a local park to get some energy out and on Friday we went to a local splash pad to beat the heat!  I think these cousins enjoyed their time together.  

We were able to visit Granny V and PawPaw while we were in town.  Unfortunately, PawPaw isn't feeling 100% so our visit had to be brief on two of the days we were in town as he is in the local hospital.  We are praying for a speedy recovery and more ping pong playing with PawPaw when he comes home.  It was sweet to see PawPaw's smile when the boys came into the hospital room.  Granny V gave us money to go out to lunch since she couldn't spoil us at the house like she typically does.  I love the way all of the boys' grandparents love them so much!  These boys are so incredibly blessed!

Summer Break 2023: Week One

We finished celebrating the big 4-0 with friends and family with a backyard party at our house.  We had appetizers, pizza, fruit, veggies, drinks and a delicious cake that Grammy had made for the occasion! I am so thankful for each person that helped me celebrate!  It was truly a memorable day!

We had some cousin time on Monday and Tuesday with a pool day and a movie day.  I love how these four kiddos love each other! :)  

Maddox pulled a muscle near his groin at some point this past weekend so we tried to keep him rested in between all our summer fun.  It is hard to slow him down but he would take breaks when needed as he was in a lot of pain.  It seems he is almost back to normal as I'm typing this.

Maddox had one of his best friends, Austin, spend the night after bible school on Monday evening.  The three boys (Z included) enjoyed sleeping in the living room on the pull out couch, watching the Super Mario Bros movie as they were winding down for the evening.  Austin joined us for the cousin movie on Tuesday to see "Megamind" and then we went to the pool for the afternoon before returning to church that evening.

On Wednesday, we decided to have a lemonade stand.  It was rather spontaneous and we don't get much traffic on our street but with a few texts to some friends, we had quite a turnout for the boys' first lemonade stand.  They decided to hand out free lemonade to anyone that walked by (or drove by ... i.e. the Amazon truck) and took any donations from friends or neighbors as they handed out the lemonade.  Money collected went to their summer fun, the Ronald McDonald House and a portion went to our church.  I'm so proud of our boys for their generosity on a hot day and their enthusiasm toward collecting money for a good cause (and to have a little spending money this summer).

  

On Wednesday night, we camped in a tent in our backyard.  This is a yearly tradition that I'm excited to say we continued.  We enjoyed taking silly selfies as we drifted off to sleep and were back in the house by about 6:00 a.m. the following morning.  Burke missed us as we decided to let him sleep inside this year with daddy as he is getting a little older and gets up frequently through the night to use the bathroom.  I was afraid he would wake up the boys and it would be hard for them to get back to sleep. 

On Thursday, we wen to the lake with the Williams family.  We love spending the day with some of our very best friends!  Josh asked if any of the kids wanted to try skiing this time and Zander enthusiastically accepted the offer.  (I was glad that Maddox didn't ask as he was still healing from his pulled muscle).  Zander tried water skiing for the very first time and got up on his third attempt (with adult skis)!  It was the perfect combination with Josh helping him in the water, Sarah navigating the boat and Mommy jumping in when needed to wait with him after he fell down after skiing for a bit while Josh was picked up further down the lake to rejoin the fun.  I am so thankful for our friends giving Zander this opportunity to try a new activity.  He talked about it the whole way home!

Last night we finished out bible school at a local church near our house.  The boys loved going each night with some of their friends from school.  I would get pictures from the volunteers who are also some of my closest friends.  They especially enjoyed the foam party at the end of the night, and I somehow let them ride home with me! haha

Today we are finishing out our first week of summer break by meeting one of Zander's friends from school to go out to lunch and catch a matinee movie! I think these boys are loving our summer adventures so far! ;)

Grandparents' Camp!

Mommy had to finish a couple weeks of work before I was officially on summer break with my boys! I am blessed to have approximately six weeks off with the boys each summer, and I don't take a single day for granted as I know it is a blessing to make all these memories with them.   The boys enjoyed time with their grandparents while I was busy finishing out the school year.  They spent the first three days with Grannie.  Then, they spent two days with Grammy and finished it out with time with Grandpa.  With swimming at the lake and pool, going to the movies, going to an adventure gym and completing projects here and there, I think they enjoyed their time with their grandparents! :)

I was at a leadership retreat with my colleagues for two days.  I enjoyed attending sessions with them and eating the delicious food that was provided.  Burke enjoyed being an "only child" for a few days as well.  He got more walks and cuddles while the boys were out of town.

We got to attend a minor league baseball game with our friends last weekend!  The kids each got a baseball, Zander caught a shirt, Maddox got a Bolt stuffed animal and allllll the snacks were consumed!

We celebrated Father's Day after church with some of our favorite dads! We are so thankful for their leadership in our family and for all the fun we have when they are around! ;)

I got to grab dinner out with friends last week as well! ;)

It has been so wet here all week which hasn't been an ideal way to start our summer break together! However, we made the most of it with a trip to the trampoline park with the Kennedys and a visit to the science center with Aunt Kelly and her nieces.  We finished out our Friday afternoon with a park date with the Williams family.  We are looking forward to some sunnier weather next week in the hopes of some pool days in our future!

I have officially hit the 4-0 milestone! I've been counting down to this birthday all year!  Excited about the future and equally proud of the 40 years that have gotten me to this point!  In the weeks leading up to this birthday, I found out I have an astigmatism which is making it hard to see at night when driving and also has slightly impacted my far-sighted vision.  No "readers" yet as my near-sighted vision is still 20-15 (better than perfect;)) but you might see this new accessory when I am cheering on the boys at the ball field or driving in the evening hours.... I guess this is 40!?;)  Linds and I went for an 8 mile run on my birthday morning and took a picture mid-run (around the seven mile mark) at the exact time I was born 40 years ago! Ignore the frizzy hair as it was quite humid but having a June birthday means I'm used to the heat! ;)  I also made it to the goal of running 1000 miles during the year leading up to my 40th birthday (to prove I could still do it).  I hit 1,050 miles on my birthday!  My legs are definitely feeling it and I think this is now the time to scale back my running and move to other forms of working out for my physical and mental well-being!  Stay tuned for what the next decade holds!