Week Thirty/The Final Week of Summer

 

Everyone is happy to see Ben again. We picked him up for what was supposed to be two days on Monday. He packed church clothes, "just in case."

Those storm clouds though.....

This one located Ty's Daniel Boone hat from San Antonio. 

Her momma found dog nail polish.

Greg and I traveled out of town for a funeral last Saturday and stopped at Buccees for the first time. Austin is always talking about the spiced almonds he calls, "beefer nuts." Beefer is his mispronunciation of beaver and the effect is hilarious. So we bought him some. As for Buccees as a whole, I was seriously overwhelmed in there. The brisket was delicious though.

Erin and Evan allowed retakes. Thank goodness.

This one loved Deam Lake. His mom cannot believe we do. I guess Hawaii ruined it for her. Her friend teased her, "it's the Honolulu of Indiana."

He emerged at one point exclaiming, "I almost drained my whole entire life away!" It was thick with a Georgia accent and meant that he thought he almost drowned. 

This one finally joined us for something this summer. She has worked kids camp through June and most of July. I love seeing her again.
She was wearing super cute pants on Wednesday and commented on them. She complained she had to buy them two sizes smaller than her usual size to get them to fit right. Lauren and I locked eyes. We both could use that particular ego boost right now. We refrained from shopping though.

Makenna celebrated her birthday in Myrtle Beach as her final tribute to summer. We have brunch planned after her return this coming weekend.

Road rash on his back, stomach, legs and arms from a dramatic tumble off his skateboard. 

And a very sore wrist. Awesome.
When he fell, a neighbor asked if she could call parents for him and Ben let her know on no uncertain terms he had the situation under control for his "brother." He adopted the title in second grade and it stuck.

I stained the first two and then took the kids to Deam Lake. Greg finished the chore in punishing heat. We are happy with the result. A neighbor is breaking up and dividing her gorgeous tall grass lillies and we are using them to flank all the edges. By next summer, the effect will be lovely. 

Just admiring those blond highlights as he laid on my lap one morning. Don't let this angelic face fool you. He ordered a margarita in a restaurant this week. 🤦

He decided my resistance bands were fascinating and was occupied for an extended period of time.

Off to show Pops his ninja belt and new ninja moves.....
And declared he really wants to play hockey so he can throw off his gloves and punch people.

Lauren's car was finally towed out of our driveway on Thursday. Unfortunately it appears it will be another six weeks before it's worked on. The back up in auto body shops is wild.

Trying to avoid some of the heat, we took the boys out for blacklight Putt-Putt on Thursday.

Pops tried to change the way Austin and the dogs greeted me this week by having Austin bring me a cup of tea and then leave the room to feed the dogs. He noted the chaos of the dogs wrestling on my bed while Austin yelled for the space closest to me and declared it unnecessary. I'm not going to lie, I love both kinds of morning. 

Week Twenty-nine

Presoak 

Laughing in the rain

The happy ending 

Saturday, Greg and I spent the morning in a canoe on a local river as a delayed anniversary date. It poured rain and we paddled like maniacs to get off that river for more than the first half of our seven mile float. Once the rain lifted our "romantic picnic" was quickly inhaled before it resumed raining again. We ended the cruise in dry weather and laughed as we realized the anticipated four hour tour took us under two and a half. Misery is a motivator. However, we both said we'd do it again on a dry day. 

Remi came to live with us when Taylor visited from Hawaii. Austin loves her and is so excited to have her back in his life. Diesel is smitten and has both shown off for her and protected her. Neither behavior is appreciated around here. We met a neighbor because he charged into their yard and frightened their little girl. I was horrified. The neighbor was beyond gracious but I once again wrote an apology letter on his behalf. I'm getting entirely too much experience with these. 

Tuesday Erin invited us to dinner at her house. Evan also joined us and they reluctantly allowed me to take a couple pictures of them for an engagement announcement. The lighting was terrible and they have less patience than the average toddler in front of my camera, so we are accepting what we captured. Wedding photos should be hilarious.

He built a moat for the little fish to escape sharks. 

Wednesday Ty, Austin and I met the Rentschlers for an afternoon on the lake. We have so many fond memories together in this location and wrapping up our "see you laters" is a bit tough on me. These are my people and I love having them near. 

This is his newest strange pose. The dog is weird.

Austin finds painting as therapeutic as his Aunt Kate and Mimi. This beautiful piece was created on the heels of an emotional meltdown; his, not mine.

Some of us are beyond relaxed about life right now.

We spent time this week helping friends move, kept little voices occupied while virtual interviews transpired and processed even more changes for the upcoming school year. After hashing out my grief with God last week, this one was met with supernatural peace and I'm grateful. "Give your burdens to the Lord, and He will take care of you." Psalm 55:22

Week Twenty-eight

The drive home from Cleveland reached a breaking point for me just north of Mason, Ohio where I sat in a Starbucks eating a grown-up lunchable and sipping chai tea. I needed to wait out a storm and the hour spent with a book was a safe option considering the number of accidents still being cleaned up when I re-entered the highway. I needed the couple of days to clear my noisier than usual brain. Life has continued throwing curve balls and there are times I look around and think I cannot handle one more. And then I do. 

Saturday evening Lauren hit a deer in her brand new car. The damage was significant and her tolerance for accepting another let-down remains low. At first she felt awful for the deer. Then she felt pretty melancholy for herself.  Of course we are grateful everyone was safe and she was able to get home. But this seems unnecessary. Finding out no one can even look at it for another month was a bit more than we expected. Four drivers are now sharing two vehicles. 

Sunday was our twenty-ninth wedding anniversary and we were supposed to spend it on a local river in a canoe with a picnic but we received a text that morning canceling our date due to high water levels. Instead we worked on the yard and supported friends who have the audacity to up and move away from us. Clearly, I have complicated feelings about this. Taylor stopped by with Austin and the dog which was chaotic. Then our daughter called with exciting news of her own. Evan chose our anniversary to propose. During pillow talk time that night, I stated it would be quiet and peaceful in another twenty-nine years for our anniversary. I'll likely be deaf by then. 

He is officially an inch taller than me and finds this delightful.

We celebrated Ty's fourteenth birthday by taking four sweaty teens to the trampoline park and then making Ty's annual request of homemade pizza. He allowed exactly zero photos with his friends. I keep questioning how I will keep up with my scrapbook tradition of one final book for each child as they transition through the high school years if he never allows photos. I'm writing this here as evidence I am not the one neglecting the task. It's going to be a very small book at this rate. Stubborn boy.

Wednesday our world was once again rocked. We were well loved on by friends who dropped off sugar and shared words of encouragement. Others sent Greg's resume up the hiring chain and offered referrals. We are grateful. God and I quietly hashed out my feelings and frustration. It was a long day but God's peace settled my heart on Thursday and Friday. Again, I'm grateful. 

Today we finished the screens in the backyard. I will be staining the treated wood black once it weathers some. I'm hoping it is ready this fall when working outside is considerably more comfortable. I've got lillies coming to flank all the support posts. The tall leafy grass that accompanies the flowers will fill in the space nicely if I can keep them alive. Time will tell.