Berries

 We found a great new berry farm. $10 and then fill and keep the bucket!

It was a fun afternoon getting some fresh air and getting some yummy rasberries!

Fourth of July 2020

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA!

COVID once again has made celebrating our nation's birthday a bit different. We don't usually do a whole lot, but still..it just felt different. But we ended up having a fun evening. 

Doug's aunt Mary came over for dinner (she's a fantastic member of our "quaran-team") and stayed for our backyard fireworks show.

Love these two patriotic big kids!

Our stuff to blow up...haha!

Someone was super excited..

This picture cracks me up!

Not a fireworks fan, can you tell?

Our neighbors were out front with a fire pit and setting off fireworks, and there were lots of bigger fireworks going off that you could see in the sky. We ended up walking down the street to the McKendry's and spending the rest of the evening talking to several of our neighbors and it was so lovely to see everyone! 

All in all fun 4th of July!

Raccoon Gun

We've some raccoons come visit the trees in our years the past few weeks. One of them squared off with Bodie.. thankfully we saw it and got Bodie away before anything bad happened. As you may recall.. he got into a fight with a raccoon last halloween and it was an expensive and unpleasant experience for us all... so we are a little apprehensive about raccoons. 

When we saw Bodie and the raccoon in the tree, Doug got the hose to scare one or both of them out of the tree. The hose isn't super powerful and in the end it really didn't do much.  

Doug decided to make a high pressure "raccoon blaster" that will deliver a higher punch of water to a masked critter who chooses to come into our yard. If you know my dear husband, this should come as no shock to you...haha!

The kids helped him measure the distance of the stream at different air compressor pressures. "It's science!" HAHA!!

OK raccoons... we're ready for you! 

Muddy Fun

We went to Eichler Park today with our neighbors. (Cannon and Matthew haven't seen much of each other since quarantine began, and we now have the McKendry's as part of our "quaran-team" much to the delight of the boys!) Eichler Park is also known as the "dirt bike park" and since the sun finally came out after a week or so of rain, we headed over there this morning so the boys could play. 

 They had SO much fun.. but oh my goodness were they muddy when it was all said and done! HA! 

Father's Day 2020

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY  

We hope you felt the love of ALL of us in an extra special way today. We enjoyed showering you with some of your favorite things. We love you so much!

Last Day of School 2020

We did it!! Today seemed anticlimactic and surreal... but is was still very emotional for this momma, for lots of different reasons. I am so very proud of  Evelyn and Matthew for continuing to work hard at their studies from home and finishing the school year strong. 

Love these goobers!!

Morning hot cocoa for the win!

Not what the "last day of school picture with the teacher" was supposed to look like, but here we are. Fir Grove had a little parade today for families to come say goodbye to the amazing teachers and staff. It was sweet and well done. Yes, I cried (shocker)! I am thankful for Ms. Calafet, for her care, creativity and leadership, especially in the past few months. Matthew loved being in her class and grew in so many ways. 

We met Jen and the Stenehjem kids for ice cream and a walk this afternoon to celebrate the end of the year. 

SO thankful for these friends and this crew!

While this summer will continue will be different and quieter, I am looking forward to making more memories with my crew.

Black Lives Matter

There is so much tension in our county right now. So much sadness. So much division. It is just heartbreaking. 

BUT... things are being talked about that have needed to be talked about for a LONG time. I confess I tend to not think about it.. racial injustice... and tend to just stay in my little world. But that in and of itself is white privilege... something that I am working on and learning about. We have had difficult but good talks with the kids and hope to grow as a family as we learn about this issue and how prevalent is still is.

Tonight we walked as as family with our community to stand up against racism. It was peaceful and meaningful. I wasn't sure about going (mostly because of COVID), but Matthew was adamant that we go. For his black friends. For their future. For the love of our neighbors.

 

Thankful for this kid and his big heart!