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! 

This Week At Home, 2012, Number 26

Little notes I write each day to remember each precious one!

This week was kind of a special one with lots of extended family time.

Monday...

The big news of the day is that Grandma (Jeff's mom) is finally able to come down for her regular summer visits. We're going to the ceramic store and Panera!  Daddy was able to join us at lunch, as well, since he is still working at a nearby client's office again this week.

The heat remains a factor this week.  It's going to be in the upper 90's and 100's all week.  All I can think is,"Lord have mercy on us!"  If only the 20% chance of thunder storms would turn into something, I could bare it better.  The last one we had cooled things off for a little while.  I feel sorry for so many of my local friends who did not get any rain this past weekend.

Tuesday...

Going swimming with good friends to beat the heat!  Oh the pool was so lovely!  The water temperature was perfect, not too hot, not too cold.  I only regret that we could not stay more than a couple hours, which actually turned out to be enough.  We also had to go do a little cook out shopping and Grace needed to get her friend a birthday present as she is going to a slumber party Thursday evening.

The heat is really difficult this week.  I am eager for a change in this pattern.  It's so hard to take the humidity and soaring temperatures.  It's like the dead of winter and we can't enjoy being outside! 

Wednesday...

Happy 4th of July, America!  We had family over for a very hot cook out.  Then at 9:45 and still near 90 degrees, we saw fireworks in town.  Not much else to report about this very laid back day.  Oh, we did go for a nice bike ride in the morning before the heat of the day. 

Thursday...

Today was our day to visit Grandma at the nursing home with Mom. Grandma is physically doing OK, but mentally, she is not the same as even a month ago.  She is still all smiles, but making even less sense, if that is possible.  I know she enjoys our visits.  She doesn't want us to leave.  On the way home, Mom treated us to Starbucks, such a treat on yet another hot day.  I could drink decaf iced coffee all day! 

Friday...

I had a VBS meeting in the morning. I picked up Grace from a slumber party.  I dropped her off at home so I could go get some fruit and vegetables, and then, called it day!  Well, not actually, but my running in the hot outdoors was over.  Jeff came home for lunch and then Grace and I watched two episodes of Little House on the Prairie, while the boys did their computer games.  Tonight will be a quiet evening at home, as there is no small group tonight since all our other small group members are out of town.    

Saturday will be a simple day to enjoy one another.  Jeff wants to take us all Frisbee golfing in the morning.  I know he's very excited about this, but if it is 80 degrees and 90% humidity, I will pass.  The course is in the full sun, too.  Thankfully, we don't need to do a lot of running on Saturday.  Maybe we can go to the library, too.   

Sunday afternoon is all hands on deck for VBS.  I am going to be working in Trevor's 5th grade class.  I love those kids!  So, next week, I am not going to be around the blog world much.  I will do Facebook and Twitter as I can do those from my couch on my phone! Yes, I will be on the couch a couple hours each day trying to recover and rest up for the next day!  Those 1000+ kids will keep us 300 workers hopping all week.   So please don't think me rude if I don't visit your blog and leave comments next week!  If you want to follow me on Facebook, send me an email! ( jenn4him at gmail dot com )

Have a great weekend!  

Wordless Wednesday: Life in Action Shot

Some words are needed, I think.   Here we have a rare picture of the three of them interacting.  I chose this picture, not for its quality, because that is clearly poor,  but for the fact that is shows Ryan helping Grace with her water gun as well as giving computer instruction to Trevor, a rare moment of sibling harmony! 

I wish you all a very happy Independence Day!  We'll be grilling in the 100 degree heat and then off to see fire works, if they are not baned due to the drought.