Four Days of Fantastic Family Reunion Fun

We just got back from having a fabulous time with these good folks.

Oh, what a time we had! Swimming, boating, hiking, fishing, riding quads, laughing, eating and SO much more. It's going to probably take about 10 different posts to cover all of the adventures we had. But first I have to sort through the hundreds of pictures I took, and get started on all the smelly laundry we brought back with us.

Summer stats

Here's a quick little "by the numbers" look at how our vacation is panning out.

Members of family who have thrown up more than once-3

Have run or are now running a fever- 4

Nights with little or no sleep- 3

Sore throats- 2

Ear aches- 2

Trips to Dr's office- 1

Prescriptions filled- 1


Days until relatives from Montana arrive- 2


***10PM update*** Add trip to Urgent Care and 2 more prescriptions to the list of fun.

Getting ready for the next chapter

I have lots of end of the school year posts to write, but for some reason seem to be having trouble doing it. This has been kind of an emotional time for me. It seems like our family is right on the cusp of so many changes. This year just flew by. It seems like just yesterday I was prying Rowan off my arm and handing him tearfully over to his kindergarten teacher. Now kindergarten is over. My half day snuggle friend will be off to ALL day school next fall.

Twelve and a half years ago I quit working to dive into the life of stay at home mom. There were times when it seemed like this phase of my life would last forever. That I would always have little ones home with me during the day. There were also times when I longed for them to all be away at school, just so I could have a few minutes of quiet. But now that it's almost here, I can't believe how fast this time has gone. I'm not ready to be away from all of them all day. I miss them already. Perhaps lots of togetherness this summer will cure me of that sadness.

Next fall will bring with it many big changes. Fuller will be off to the middle school, a scary prospect in several ways. He's reaching that point where he wants so much independence and less family time. Grayson will also be at a new school, ALL the way across town.(OK, I know it's only 5 minutes away, it just feels farther.)
Rowan will be in the big world of first grade, no longer my morning shadow. What will I do without morning story time and silly chats over tuna sandwiches?

And then that just leaves me. What will my fall look like? I always kind of assumed I'd go back to teaching once the kids were all in school, but now see little appeal in that(and little opportunity, given the cuts the school districts are making). So I guess that remains to be seen. Maybe I'll write the next great American novel, or finally make it to the bottom of my laundry pile. It just feels odd to be at this point in my life. After years of knowing pretty much what the plan was, I find myself suddenly not sure.

Just when I've gotten used to the idea of being 40, something else to figure out.

Getting ready for Summer

A new Summer picnic blanket, all stitched up and ready to go.

Good Things

A Farmer's Market $10 bouquet


Fresh local berries


Turned in to yummy freezer jam.


Three more market bags completed.


Final T-ball game of the season.


And a really cool trophy to put on the shelf.

A New Twist on an Old Favorite

For years now making homemade ice cream has been one of our favorite warm weather activities. We have 4 different ice cream makers, and are always on the look out for new and better recipes. On Monday night we decided it was time to kick off ice cream season 2009. For Christmas this year Paul's mom had gotten us a new ice cream maker. It's a Mega ice cream ball. You put the ice cream ingredients in one end, and the ice and salt in the other. Then you have to get to work mixing it.

The boys were disappointed that the directions said not to kick or throw the ball.

But you can shake it.

Or roll it back and forth.

And 35 minutes later-VOILA- ICE CREAM!

Unfortunately the boys got bored about 10 minutes in to the mixing process, so Paul and I ended up doing all the work. It sure tasted good, but next time we're using the electric one.

Nothing but Trouble

As the mother of three boys, let me just say this, girls are nothing but trouble.(This of course doesn't apply to any of the lovely girls I know, who are all exceptions to this fact.) I saw signs of this early on. When Fuller was in kindergarten there was a little girl who would mercilessly chase him, tackle him to the ground, and try to kiss him. By third grade girls were flirting with him during Spring music concert and telling him about the tattoos they wanted to get when they were older. When Grayson was in first grade there was a little girl who kept asking for his phone number, and once he gave it to her she started calling him. That ended badly when he said he liked another girl. I think a kick to the shins may have been involved.

The big problem with Grayson is that he really likes it when girls chase him. It's pretty much been his favorite recess activity since kindergarten. Sometimes when I'm volunteering at the school I spy at him at recess time. I've discovered something very interesting. If no girls are chasing him, he'll go and try to find some who are interested. He also likes clowning it up for the girls in his class and making them laugh. There are a few who have crushes on him. I can tell by the way they giggle when they talk to me about him. The trouble is, these girls are rough. In the last month Grayson has come home with at least three apology letters from girls who have hurt him, with everything from a punch in the back to yelling in his ear.

Today I got a call from the vice principal of their school saying that there had been an incident at recess and that Grayson was in the nurses office. ANOTHER run in with a girl. He had been playing tag with some boys, and a couple of girls in his class tried to get involved by grabbing Grayson. They pulled his shirt and ended up scratching his neck up with their finger nails. Hopefully now he will have learned his lesson, and will stay away from those girls!