This summer is speeding by faster than I would like. Does summer ever last long enough? No. But we have made the most of each relaxing day. Here are a bunch of random phone pics of what we've been up to this month.
Donovan wrapped up his baseball season with an epic inning of pitching. I am so proud of him and how he's developed this year despite all of the ups and downs of the pandemic. He's loved this time playing with his buddies and learned a lot from his coaches.
My crafty Emmerson made a hobby of transforming all of our delivery packages into very detailed horse stables. Her imagination is just the best!
She took these pictures and I think they're so cute. This is the tack room complete with every little detail you can imagine.
Most recently now, she has taken an interest in making anything she can think of for her Barbie. Slipper, croissants, dog beds... you name it. She is my craft loving girl!
At the beginning of the month, we finally got the house painted. It was in dire need and we've been so happy with the transformation. What a difference paint makes!
We bought a little fountain for the backyard and I have been running it non stop this whole summer. I love the sound of the water. It's so peaceful and makes this little outdoor spot the perfect place for my morning devotional time.
This picture is so sad! Poor Taylor had her first cavity and when the numbed her mouth, she bit so much on her lip that it swelled up for days. It was just awful! Thankfully we are completely back to normal now. But man, this one had to hurt!
The kids had a wonderful sleepover at Oma and Grampie's with their cousins.
Oma and Grampie purchased the new Spirit movie for the kids to enjoy with popcorn and sweets!
Sugar and sleepovers... never the best mix. Ha!
The after picture.
Donovan started his own business painting curbs this summer. He started with just a few neighbors and his grandparents.
Then he started to advertise.
And he got lots and lots of customers! He was so excited and we were so proud of him for managing all of his purchases, supply costs and saving his earnings responsibly. He even made a donation to the MMRF, in honor of the cancer his Poppa passed away from.
We have spending countless days at our neighbor's pool. Seriously, soooo thankful for these friends that make their home so open to all of us. It has made for the most incredible memories this summer.
I mean, look at these views!
On the 3rd of July, our friends celebrated their joint birthdays at their new home in carlsbad. Does it get any more fun than giant water slides and Kona Ice?
The kids had a blast!
4th of July was spent here at home with our neighbors.
We spent the entire day and well into the night in our neighbors' pool yet again. It was such a fun time.
Dustin and I got on a card kick. We spent some seriously relaxing days listening to Hawaiian radio and playing back to back games. One night Donovan even made us dinner while we played. It's so nice having big kids!
Speaking of big kids... They pretty much run the show around here.
On the 6th, Dustin and I celebrated our 14th anniversary. Oma and Grampie came to babysit while we snuck away for a fancy dinner and a walk on the beach.
To say I am thankful for this man is the world's biggest understatement. I love him more and more with each passing year. He has been a rock for me this year and is just the best Dad to our kids. There are simply no words. I just love him a whole lot.
I got into reading for pleasure again and oh my gosh, it is run! I think I have read 4 novels in the last three weeks and it feels so good! Each one I pick up I have had a hard time putting down. I love getting lost in the plots and the characters. It's been so long since I've done this kind of reading and I really hope I can keep it up when school returns. It's such a treat!
Emmerson has become such a reader this summer too! We have loved reading these Spirit chapter books together. This is the first chapter book she read entirely on her own. I am so proud of her!
A few very generous families of my students gifted us with Padres tickets this summer. The boys went to the first game a few weeks ago and we have our next one coming up in a few days. I am so thankful to have baseball back normally this summer!
We've snuck in a handful of beach days.
And camped in our backyard. This night was especially fun because we awoke to a surprise of a rainstorm in the middle of the night. There wasn't a lot of sleep happening but it sure was memorable.
The neighbors have been playing wiffle ball non stop. In fact. Donovan and his buddies have a full blown spreadsheet with a detailed schedule that they adhere to. They each have their own "stadium" at their respective front yard.
Donovan was thrilled to use some of his curb painting money to buy this personalized jersey online for his wiffle ball team.
The neighbor crew makes themselves at home in our messy garage of all places. On this day I came outside and they informed me that they were venturing off to space. Then it became an airline where they had tickets and snacks and all the like. Today it is a beauty salon. Oh to be young and have imaginations that run wild.
Once a week, we've been taking advantage of our Legoland passes. It feels so good to have this back in our lives again. It's such a fun park and we always look forward to our days spent here and at their waterpark.
This picture, just because I adore her little smirk. This is so her!
Donovan and our neighbor Kinley could run their own bakery. They made delicious chocolate chip cookies for our neighborhood movie night.
And here was our movie night. We watched the new Space Jam movie. It was such a fun night!