We are really settling into a sweet little family of four. I think we will continue to take in foster children on a temporary basis as they need it, but I think 4 will be the magic number for us. Realistically if we want to keep traveling, seeing family as much and do assignments with Young Life, it works well for us both practically and financially. We are done with diapers, done with sippy cups and done with naps. Mommy is not as happy about the last one, but that may change once school kicks back in. I feel like there is this new found freedom, everything is becoming easier and so incredibly enjoyable.
Well Colorado surely did not disappoint. The girls soaked up every ounce that they could of Young Life camp,They got to ride horses, swim a ton and most of all enjoy the program that young life does so stinking well. We laughed a lot, swam a lot and played a lot. We met some sweet friends whose paths we are sure to cross again in this awesome mission that we hope to stay plugged into.
Our time in Breckenridge was relaxing and a good recovery from 4 weeks at camp. I did a lot of laundry, we relaxed, I cooked, we rode a gondola, an alpine slide, and even attempted mini golf for the first time. Then we were off to Wisconsin.
Wisconsin surely did not disappoint. We spent a lot of time at the ymca....swimming a lot with the girls, went to our fair share of Milwaukee Brewer games, the girls went to their first movie (Monsters University....and we are now obsessed with Mike Wysowski) ate many friday night fish fry's, and took a trip up north with my family to a cabin in the Northwoods. We were all together and did 2 puzzles, smoked delicious meat, swam in the freezing lake water, built a ton of camp fires, ate a lot of smores, and had some mad jenga games going. It was so fun. I was able to read a lot, the kids spent hours playing baseball with their cousins and catching all different types of bugs as well as trying to find a silly gnome that was always hiding around in the yard. One of the most special moments was when I got to take Chris and the girls to see a camp that I had spent many summers at. IT was a place I was not sure they would ever see, but the cabin we were staying in was just 45 minutes away, so we made the trek and I was so thankful. When we got back from our trip up North we stayed with my parents one more night and then began the trek back to FL. We were sad to leave, especially to leave the weather, but thankful to be sleeping in our beds.
Since we got back, we have had a lot of organizing to do. I had no idea how much junk I still had to get rid of. I have been organizing and going through closets and dressers and making sure we are all set for the fall. We did get a call to foster another little boy, the day we got back and we declined. Our hope is to do it again, but we are thinking we will wait until January, as we have 2 big weddings approaching. (I hold to this hope loosely, if a child that we really feel needs us comes along, we may take him/her in, stay tuned). Onto the weddings.....my brother Michael is getting married on Dec. 21st and Chris's sister Trista will be getting married soon, date to be announced.....and we are thrilled about both!!
So getting settled back in has been fun. The girls are all set with shoes, backpacks, lunch boxes, etc. to go off to school next week.....and what am I going to do.....well let me tell you to start I am going to do a whole lot of nothing, and I cannot wait. Chris predicts this will last about a month, TOPS. We'll see about that. I am not watching any children at the moment and feel ok about that. It worked great for when my kids were at home, but not what I want to do when they are in shcool. I have had an extra little 6 month old the past 2 weeks to help a good friend out, but again, I am only doing it to help folks out that are in a bind. I am hoping to put time into a small group at church and my Bible study I have been doing with a group of friends on Wed. mornings.
Chris and I are doing a 30 day challenge called Whole30....you can look it up if you want, but it basically consists of eating nothing but meat, limited fruit, nuts and vegis. It is pretty similar to paleo, just no sugar or dairy at all. So no honey, no vanilla, no beans, no peanuts, nothing processed, etc.....it has been great and fun to find some new recipes....and surprisingly the girls love almost everything we have made. We made our own mayonnaise, which is delicious and honestly it has not been that difficult. We grill a lot and I think we will take a lot from this program and use it throughout the year----heck we needed something to detox our bodies from one month at young life camp where there is dessert after every meal and one month in the state of WISCONSIN, seems like we always come back from there a little bit heavier than when we went.
Chris is gearing up for another school year. It looks like he will be coaching the St. Stephens girls basketball team as opposed to the boys, which will be an adjustment but he is up for the challenge and always really enjoyed coaching girls when he used to at BCS many years ago. This will also free him up a bit more, which we will never complain about!! It also looks like he will be teaching both MaryCate and Maggie....and they both are thrilled to have "Coach Daddy" as their PE teacher!!
We have enjoyed swimming in our blow up pool to keep cool from the heat and heading out to the beach in the evenings to enjoy building sand castles and collecting shells. The girls could entertain themselves for hours out there and mommy just brings a chair and a good book. Does not get much better than that. I am surely not thrilled to see this summer come to an end, can only hope that the summer of 2014 will be just as great. Here is to a great school year ahead for us all! Sorry the pictures uploaded in a strange way and are in no order at all.
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