Now that I've given myself that little pep talk, here is July's recap in a kind of bulleted list:
July was full on summer mode in our house. It was kind of humorous in its stereotypical summer-ness. Here are a few of the things we got to do in July:
- See a fireworks show on the 4th...our first 4th of July fireworks show with the kids! We saw a show at Disney, but this was the first time for this occasion. They loved it and did fantastic even at the late hour. Quick story from the event: We met up with some friends from our small group and as the show started, Audrey, Luke, and their little seven year old friend Michelle sat in chairs in front of us. Luke was close to me but a few minutes in he looks back and asks "Mommy? Can I go sit beside Michelle?" Well, sure kid. Just put a knife in my heart. He left being near me to go cozy up next to Michelle and when they all laid down on the blanket for a minute, I swear I saw him snuggle closer to her. Eventually he came back to his Mama and sat on my lap at the end, but man, did that sting. It was like he recognized this was a magical evening and wanted to share it with a beautiful girl...that was not his mother. It was a glimpse into the future that I did not care to see! Still, it was a great night and I love doing fun stuff like that with them now that they're old enough to handle it without us paying for it in crankiness for the next two days.
- We went to David's Great Aunt Joy's annual family reunion the next day and enjoyed catching up with everyone that we don't get to see nearly often enough. The weather forecast was bleak so we didn't pack their bathing suits, but it ended up being a beautiful sunny day. They didn't complain, though, because there were plenty of friendly faces to hang out with and be entertained by (or, more accurately, to entertain!)
- The kids had a dentist appointment (Luke's first) and did fine, though Audrey did have a cavity. While that probably would've sent me on a guilt trip a year ago, hello perspective of Celiac Disease and amblyopia and toe-walking. Cavity? Fine, let's just fill it and up our brushing game. By the way, the doc did it without any numbing because he said that shot/needles are often what make people terrified of the dentist and, because of the cavity's location and size, he wanted to try it first without anything. I was sitting beside her and fully prepared to interject and demand drugs for her, but she never even winced. The fully grown, burly man in the next little room was audibly impressed when he heard about the six year old girl getting a cavity filled without any meds.
- On the third weekend of the month, we went up to visit our friends the Taylors at their home in South Carolina. It was so very, very good to spend 24 consecutive hours with them. The kids played together so well, the guys got in a round of golf, and Kara and I had hours of conversation. We didn't get to go on the boat ride we had planned because the weather didn't cooperate, but we had a terrific view of the storm from a covered porch and then went out for pizza in our bathing suits, which was probably way more memorable. :)
- We went to our second Gwinnett Braves game and this year we sat in the stands (as opposed to the open field they have behind the outfield.) The kids really enjoyed it...even after their Dippin' Dots were finished! They cheered and tomahawk chopped with the best of them. We left around the 8th inning and rode home with the windows down and Kirk Franklin blaring while they threw their hands in the air like they just didn't care. Yeah, it was as awesome as it sounds.
- Audrey spent the night at my mom's house and loved it. We spent the morning at my mom's neighborhood pool and ate a picnic lunch. Afterward, Luke and I drove home for Mommy-Daddy-Son date night and left Audrey for an evening of crafts, reading, and treats...her favorite things in the whole world. We met my mom and AJ for lunch the next day to pick her up.
- We had lunch with David at his work and the kids loved being introduced to his coworkers and seeing him in action.
- I drove the kids out to my dad and stepmom's one morning to spend some time with them. We played croquet, ate lunch, and then the kids took turns sitting in my lap while we cruised around the neighborhood in Grandpa's convertible. They had a blast!
- David and I got to take an INCREDIBLE cruise to the Bahamas, in case you missed that story.
- I had my last day of work at Sideways 8, in case you missed that too.
- David and I celebrated 11 years of marriage on the 31st. (By the way, for some reason, 11 sounds like a lot longer than 10.) We got to celebrate with the cruise a couple of weeks before, so on the day of, we celebrated as a family by taking the kids down to the Georgia Aquarium and out for lunch at Yeah! Burger. Visiting the aquarium was the one "big thing" besides the beach that AJ had requested to put on our bucket list for the summer and I don't think she was disappointed.
So yes, fireworks, swimming, vacation, baseball, slip n' slide...I told you it was full of quintessential summer stuff!
There was also a lot of hard work going on as well, though. I covered a ton of ground trying to drum up sponsorships for the race and worked my tail off on other event details. The HOA Board surprised me by setting a meeting for August, so my timeline got cut in half and I had to bust it to make sure stuff was pulled together in time. On top of that, the consignment sale I sell in was earlier than usual this year, so July meant prepping and tagging for that. I kept telling David that it was definitely God's perfect guidance that I quit work when I did because there was no way I could've pulled it off otherwise! Keep praying for the race, please, as there are a lot of things that still need to come together!
I'll leave you with some cute quips and quotes from the kids to close:
- Luke sometimes likes to enthusiastically yell "ON IT!" when he's asked to do something.
- AJ asked me the other day if I remembered the store that had the spiral staircase and the beds upstairs. After racking my brain I realized she was talking about a furniture store we visited...in March of 2013. What a memory!
- We've been doing our "Virtue/Verse of the Month" and June's was perseverance. After church, we dropped David off at home so he could cut the grass while I took the kids to the grocery store. After David explained what all he was going to be working on (cutting, weeding, trimming, blowing, etc.) Luke said, "Wow Daddy! I hope you have your perseverance with you!"
- I can't remember if I posted this before or not, but it bears repeating: One day Audrey innocently referred to the space behind her knee as a "leg pit" and I couldn't stop laughing! Why isn't it called that? It's perfect!
- We've been trying to focus on a few chivalrous habits with Luke lately...things like holding the door, letting girls go first, and putting the seat down. Once I asked him to go get something and he said "No thanks. I'm going to be a gentleman and let you do that for me." We may have some work left to do.
- To redeem Luke, I'll close with this one: Luke and Audrey love wrestling and rough-housing with David. David had Audrey pinned one time (unharmed, of course) and she was yelling for Luke to help her. Luke raced over, threw himself on David, and yelled "Take me! Take me! Run away, Audrey! Go! Go!" Yeah, I totally teared up over their wrestling match.
Happy Back-to-School season and come check here again soon for how the kiddos are handling the new school year!
