Some Pictures from the Weekend

Spring Mill State Park is easily one of my favorite IN parks.  There is just so much to do that we could not get to it all in one weekend.

Above is the mill at the heart of the restored village.  In its day it was the hub of the area.  350 pigs also free ranged this area back in the day.  Something I'd like to have seen!  The mill was so successful in part because it was located next to an abundance of flowing water from a cave about 500 feet away.

The village also has a beautiful herb and flower garden.  The mill's owner didn't have to grow a garden of food as there were so many wagons of supplies coming into the village every day. Imagine that.  In the early 1800's, they didn't eat local.  (ha!)  The garden was used for parties, medicine, and there were pea fowl walking around as well.  The village owner was wealthy and was not the typical pioneer.  He had money to spend and wasn't afraid to spend it.  (I learned a lot on our walking tour of the village!) 

The park also has a memorial to a local hero, Virgil Grissom, the astronaut.

We also visited the nature center, which is situated next to a man made lake that went wonky due to sediment coming from the cave water.  This used to be the swimming beach. Now it is a favorite hang out of Great Blue Herons.

We spent most of Saturday keeping cool in the giant swimming pool. It got pretty warm, but the pool was delightful. 

 Here's the campsite...

Ryan got his own tent this trip.  It helped him have some private space away from siblings when he needed it.

Here they are in front of the camp store.  I just love their flowers!  

The sunset was very pretty Friday evening. 

Another view of camp site number 125.

Last time we camped here, in 2009, this is how the kids looked.  Amazing transformation in only three short years!

From 2009!

Today, I will joyfully wash and hang out all our blankets and sleeping bags, looking forward to our next camping trip in four short weeks!

This Week At Home: 2012, Number 29

Little notes written to remember each precious day... 

Monday...

Grandma came down from the lake today.  She took us out to lunch, and then we spent the afternoon playing Wii Sports Resort and Wii Music .  It reached 101 today, too hot to do much outside.  At least Wii is a little bit active.  I made a double batch of pizza dough as we hosted a little family dinner in the evening.

Cousins rock!  

Waiting their turn in the oven.  

The Grands!  

Grandma, friend, and Cousin.  

Tuesday...

Ugh!  Woke up to high humidity and muggy air.  And, it never cooled off last night, either.  It was 80+ in our room last night, and I just don't sleep well when it is that hot.  We were planning to go for a morning swim after Grandma went home, but decided to delay it a day, as the radar showed potential rain coming (that never came.)   There is a heat advisory today, too.  All those things added up to us needing a quiet day at home to work on projects... 

Took her a whole day, but it's finished!  

Ta da!  

Working on editing a video he made.  

Building birthday Legos together. 

Wednesday...

Today's high reached 103F!  But we didn't let that stop our fun.  We went swimming at Mom's pool in the morning and then enjoyed lunch afterwards.  The afternoon was spent on laundry and ignoring the heat.  Jeff had to work a little later than usual, so we had our dinner in front of the TV, which I normally hate, but it was cooler in that part of the house and we needed every degree of coolness we could get.  

The first ripe one! 

Thursday...

Today, we met up with friends at a splash park and then got groceries.  I have to report that our summer lessons were put on hold this week.  We've done well all summer.  I decided to take a week off.  Especially since we will be starting back for real in a couple weeks.  We may just take the next couple weeks off, too, for a real break.  Lots of reading is still happening, so that is just fine by me.

Jeff got home and we started gathering camping gear for the weekend camping trip.  The rain seems to have missed us today.  The weather forecasters were thinking we'd get at least another half an inch.  So sad.  

Baby girl doesn't want us to go camping. 

Friday...

We have a long list to take care of today before we head out this afternoon.  The list is a good thing, really, as we need to keep busy.  Waiting without being busy takes longer, right?  :-)  We've not gone camping as a family in 2 full months.  The weather this weekend will be hot, but is supposed to cool off in the evenings, so we can cope. We'll also be at a pool all day Saturday.  Yay!  There is also a living history village at this park with a tour Saturday morning.  There is a cave boat ride, mountain bike trails, and hay ride if we decide to do all that.  Most of all I am looking forward to sleeping in the camper with cooler temperatures!  Oh, and being with my family, too! 

Have a wonderful weekend!

~Jenn 

WW: Silly Boy

He's too young to have a drinking problem.  :-)

*Disclaimer:  This is a posed picture.  The idea was his.  That's how he roles. 

A Birthday To Remember

It was a delightful day to turn thirteen. 

Nana arrived well ahead of the guests in order to make the dainty cupcakes.  (Thank you, Mom! So glad you could be here for this special day.) 

The birthday girl was put to work, too.  She made a platter full of fruit kabobs. 

A gift of fresh lavender added charm to the table.  (It's now planted out front with the zinnias. )

One special touch to the hostess before guests arrived.

Good friends arrive to hang out, do crafts, play piano, paint nails, play goofy games, and eat lots of food!

And, I got a big thank you in the end!  
 

This Week At Home, 2012, Number 28

Little notes written to remember each precious day!

A favorite vantage point. 

Monday...

The drought and heatwave continues.  I'm starting to dread another hot week of high nineties and one hundreds. I've decided to put some effort into getting through this season without dread and lots of complaining.  One thing we are going to do is to get outside early in the morning.

Today, we went to a park.  It was already in the mid-80's and humid, but it wasn't too bad.  We walked around our favorite path and then took our shoes off to walk through the water feature.  We ended up at the park for over an hour.  It was just what we needed.  We'll go again and try to go earlier.

Swamp Rose-Mallow

After the park, we took showers and then got to work on our math.  We'd not picked them up in a week and it showed!  Thankfully, we got it done without too much trouble. (Love Math U See!)

I then made a batch of hummus for lunch.  Trevor and I love hummus for lunch.  We went a bit crazy over this batch because I've not made any in too long.  My it was good! 

Because we were out this morning, I don't feel so bad that we are inside all afternoon trying to avoid the hot sun.  There was much to be done inside.  Cleaning never ends!

Horsey time with noodles! 

Tuesday...

We escaped to my mom's pool in the morning to try to beat the extreme heat.  The water temperature was perfect.  We had the whole pool to ourselves!  I am so glad we were there early.  The high temperature ended up being 101, breaking the record, again.

We're starting to really miss Ryan.  He's having a great time with grandparents, though, so I try not to dwell on missing him.  Although, it makes me think about a time coming when I will no longer be a daily part of his life and that breaks my mommy heart!  How do you do it?

Baby loves her chair!

Wednesday...

Another hot day ahead.  Unfortunately, it is too hot and muggy to go out this morning.  I went out to water my tomatoes and refill the bird bath, and wanted to be back inside quickly.  The air felt heavy and unpleasant!  This drought and heat wave is really getting OLD. 

We still have some birthday party shopping to do today.  There is a big 13th birthday on Saturday to get ready for. She wants a "tea" theme.  Right now we are looking for an indoor activity, since it is to hot even for water fun in the afternoons.  And there are water use restrictions too. 

This evening is a cook out and concert at church.  I am thinking the heat is going to make that a challenge, but good fellowship and worship are worth it. (Update:  We didn't go!  Ryan came home earlier than expected and he was too tired to go, and we didn't want to be without him, so we stayed home and enjoyed a family night.)

The big news of the day is that it rained two tenths of an inch!  Woo hoo!  We are still needing so much more, but a little is appreciated, if only for a psychological lift! 

Breakfast or dessert? 

Beautiful rain! 

Thursday...

The big push is on to get all the stuff we need for the birthday girl's party.  So off we went early to another craft store and then onto the grocery stores, but wait, what is that dark sky?  Is it going to rain?  Yes! It rained another quarter of an inch, making our two day total half an inch!!!

The rest of our day was pretty quiet.  We worked on spelling and math a little.  I did laundry and dishes as usual.   I checked the radar on the hour to see if any storms were popping up.  (I am a little weather obsessed at the moment.) 

Surviving, but not producing. 

Friday...

We woke up to clouds, sprinkles, and cooler temperatures!  So, back to the park we went for another go around the pond.  What a lovely treat.  It was 73 degrees when we got to the park.  When we got home it was 69!  My kind of weather!

It's not all about fun today.  The big goal is to get the house clean and bake the cupcakes.  I also need to practice making icing roses.  It's been awhile.

The guys have extra special plans tonight, so we girls are having a pre-birthday  mother/daughter celebration on our own.

Saturday is Grace's party with friends.  Sunday we will go to worship and then spend our time in the afternoon just hanging out together. 

Live long and prosper! 

Almost WW: Summer Reading Finished

Trevor completed his summer reading program.  This is significant because it ends his elementary career.  Next year, he'll be in the "older" children's program.  *gulp*  He's been in the library's program every year of his life.  What a milestone! 

This Week (Not) At Home, 2012, Week 27

VBS week!  What more can I say?  Each day was about the same with all of us getting up EARLY (for us) and out the door to be at the main church, in our seats, before 8:20.  The teens had their own program in our separate ministry center a mile away, so I had to drop them off at 8 each day.  We also are dog sitting for neighbors, so we had to take care of them as well as water plants before we left.  

I had the privilege to work in the 5th grade with Trevor this year.  Each day we followed a similar schedule while at VBS. We'd meet in the big auditorium for singing and a skit.  We'd move down to our classroom for a lesson from the Bible, memorization of the Word, and then we'd move up to crafts, onto snacks, and recreation time outside.  While the kids were at recreation, we workers were treated to snacks in a break room.  After that, we'd gather our kids and take them back to our room for some time with a real life missionary.  And then it was time for parents to pick them up. 

After VBS, Trevor and I would head over to the Ministry Center to pick up Ryan and Grace, usually around 12:45.  Then, we'd come home to eat lunch.  Most afternoons we'd then just hang out trying to regroup.  We did go to the grocery store one day.  I was happy if I got all the dishes , laundry, and dinner done before Jeff came home each night.  That was my only assignment! 

VBS with 1300+ people is awesome and very draining if you are an introvert, so I did not over schedule us.  I am looking forward to having my life back next week!  And I am looking forward to next year, Trevor's last year of regular VBS! 

Finally, here are some pictures of the kids' ceramics, the almost finished products.  I had to wait to post them until Daddy saw the real items, per the kids' requests! 

A hanging thingy for his room. 

A very pretty plate. 

He says it's a nebula?

VBS ( So Far) in Pictures...

Our "Lodge"

Nifty balloon moose. 

The 5th Grader

Recreation

Worship with 1335 kids and volunteers.

My guy! 

Getting there pretty early!