The Lazy Days of Summer

Family Update

Ahh.. the lazy days of summer. I have to admit, they have not been so lazy around here, though that’s something I’ve been craving. Between caring for our newborn, house work, a basement renovation, getting our oldest ready for college, chasing a toddler and spending time with our other children, it’s been a bit more busy than lazy. Of course all of these things we want to do, it’s just that, well all these things can wear you out.

Our precious baby girl is already 8 weeks old. I can see her growing up and leaving already. Of course that is an exaggeration, but seeing our first born leaving in a couple weeks really puts time into perspective. I think I have a fresh appreciation for this newborn stage.

So it seems the last few weeks have flown by. There are things I wanted to make sure we did before summer is over. I’ve now checked most of them off the list (so to speak). We’ve also had our share of birthdays. As soon as our baby was born, I was baking a cake later that week for our 5 year old’s birthday, after that was my husband’s birthday, then Father’s Day. In July was two more birthdays. Now we are on a birthday break til late August. Life is celebrated often around here.

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Storm

We had a powerful storm move through a few weeks ago. Everyone on our road had roof damage of some sort. Several trees were down all around our small village. Some were blocking roads and on top of houses. Thankfully, we had only minor damage to our home that we were quickly able to repair. Outside, however, took a couple days to clean up.

Picnics/Camping/Fishing

We’ve had a few picnics, which no summer vacation should be without, when the weather’s not so hot that is. We found a very cool tree for climbing at our last picnic spot. Even my toddler who just turned 2 could climb it. He is, however, a pretty amazing climber for his age, and of course he didn’t want to come out of the tree.

We also took some time to explore a few new fishing holes, and though they were duds, we had time together none the less. We had an unexpected break from the heat the last couple of days in June. It was the perfect time to do some camping.

We are blessed to own some property not far from our home where I grew up. It makes for a good, convenient place to camp, especially this time since I wasn’t going to be sleeping there. I opted to sleep at home with our baby and toddler. Though I love camping out, it was just easier this time.

I did a lot of the food prep, and later we joined them for some fireworks. Turns out my toddler is scared of fireworks right now, and we spent some time hiding from them in the truck. Mommy kept him safe.

We love cooking over a campfire. After an evening of fishing, my husband cooked and cleaned the boy’s catch, and that provided the main course for dinner. So I have to admit, he got the messiest food prep.

Hiking

I met them out there for a hike the next morning. I came bearing blueberry muffins so I was welcomed kindly. We got some hiking in before the heat wave came back that day. Hiking is one of my favorite things we do together.

Graduation Party

Well, after a week of my husband and older kids working at our church VBS, I went to work on something else, our daughter’s graduation party. We had the ceremony and went out to eat, but the party was on hold since, at the time, we were expecting the arrival of our 8th any day. After exploring my options in the midst of a heat wave with a bunch of kids, I landed on the idea of a pool party.

It was a hit with all the kids and some of the grown ups too. I knew I wanted to make cupcakes, but because of the excessive heat I had to leave out my buttercream recipes. It may have been a bit ambitious with a newborn, but I got it done. Links to some of my cupcake recipes are down below.

Anniversary

In the midst of the summer, we did manage to get away for our 21st wedding anniversary. We stayed at a beautiful bed and breakfast where they served us some pretty delicious waffles that I need to try and replicate. I have to admit, even though we had some good times together, we let outside stresses interfere with our celebration. Hey, this is real life. So we will be celebrating again soon. Besides, we should celebrate all year, if you ask me.

Alabama Bound

In the following days we will be taking our daughter to college and having a little vacation. Seems like yesterday we were driving home from the hospital with her wandering how someone could trust us to take home a baby. We felt somewhat unqualified to care for such a small, helpless human. Well, she was our first, and I think these are common feelings. Anyway, people always tell you how fast they grow up and it sounds so cliche, but I’m realizing how true that is.

Well, there is such a thing as good change, and I believe this is that sort of change. We are excited for her to spread her wings a little, and we look forward to seeing what lies ahead. She, of course, is not going to be entirely on her own yet, but it is a step in that direction. I often remind myself that God loves our children even more than we do, and there are no better hands for them to be in.

I encourage you, Mothers and Fathers, to pray for your children, even while they are yet babies. Pray that God’s will would be done in their life and that He would keep them in the palms of His hands all their days. Let them know that they are loved by their Creator and that they are loved by you.