And soccer begins

I found a great soccer program for Brenna and Aiden. Neither of them have played before, and this is pretty non-competitive. It's put on by a church, and before each game they have a Bible verse and truth to memorize.


Brenna is enjoying it, but said after the first game that it's harder than she expected it to be.

Aiden was slow to warm up to the game, but has really gotten excited about it in the last week.

This pic was taken right after he made his first goal.

Baseball ends

Usually we have 2 or 3 of our kids in summer baseball, but this year it was only Conner. It's his first year at the senior level which meant travelling to nearby cities for some of the games. A couple of them were not so nearby.

They finished the season with only 2 losses and went on to the playoffs which were held this weekend. Saturday his game was at 1:30 in Lyons -- an hour away. They won, which meant they'd played again Sunday. At 8 a.m. Again, an hour away. Ugh. So that meant a very early morning for us all. They also won that game and went on the the final game at 2 p.m.

The team played great and came out victorious! They took 1st place. Way to go Conner and the Angels!!

my boys are back

and they had a great time!

And now Brenna is off to camp. This is her first time and she was a bit nervous. But she has her good friend Anna with her and I know she'll do great. =)

Firefighters museum

While the older boys were away at camp this week, I tried to plan a couple outings the littler kids would enjoy. Today we saw "Horton hears a Who", one of the many free summer movies. Tuesday we went downtown to the Denver Firefighter's Museum. We were joined by a few people from our homeschool group and my 2 nieces.





I thought this was too cute: cousins Zane and Natalie.

Young firefighters

Sliding down the pole

"Driving" the truck

test time

Chase just finished 5th grade and Brenna 3rd, so they both needed to do state testing. I try to take them one day to someplace quiet where they can get a treat and work away from the loudness at home.



Chase and I went to Atlanta Bread Co. last week. He was able to finish his testing before leaving for camp which was a relief.

This week Brenna is doing her test. We went to Sonic on Monday and sat outside and she got a lot done, but I forgot my camera. This is her yesterday. She still has a little bit more to get done, and then we mail them off.

Project 365 - Day 125

Bloomin'.

Happy Campers...Sad Mom

Both of my older boys are off at church camp this week. Chase left Saturday night. He is going to a camp way out in Arizona, so they had an 18hr bus ride. This is him and his buddy Brian ready to board the bus.



And right before they pulled out:

Conner went to a much closer camp: only 1 hour away. Here he is this morning right before they left:

It's strange so far having both older kids gone at the same time. Brenna is really stepping up to help in their absence. In fact, she is taking care of both her brothers' dogs for them, and earning herself some money in the process.

I know the boys will have fun but I always have a slightly anxious feeling until all my kiddoes are safely home again.

Prayers for their safe travel are much appreciated!

Project 365 - Day 124

My flower garden continues to grow...



and the zinnias are this close to opening. Each morning Aiden checks to see if they've bloomed.

Tiny Town

Another of our fun summer outings...we visited Tiny Town. This is always a fun field trip for the younger kids. The older ones are pretty over it, but went along and were good sports about it. My nieces and nephew were able to go along with us.

This little schoolyard has always been my favorite.

We rode the little train, too, which Zane just loved. Then we finished the outing with a picnic lunch.

Beating the heat...

...at the waterpark.

just wring me out

It is hot, hot, hot here today. 99, I believe we hit. UGH. I don't do well with heat in the best of times, let alone when I'm 6 months pregnant.

We went to the zoo today. What were we thinking?? Actually, it wasn't as bad as it could have been since we went early in the morning. By noon, I was thoroughly wilted, it was scorching hot and we were out of there.

A friend and I do a kid swap each summer. One day she takes my girl to her house to play with her daughter and I take her 2 boys to play at my house with my sons. Another day, we do the opposite.

So today after the zoo, I brought her boys home with me and they fought off the heat in the pool. I hid inside with the swamp cooler on HIGH. In the afternoon we switched our kids back and then Chase was invited by another friend to go with his family to Lakeside amusement park for the evening.

I dropped him at their house and spent the rest of the evening taking Conner to baseball practice and Brenna to soccer practice.

Now it's quiet in the house. All are in bed, and I'm waiting up for Chase to get home.

And it's still hot. UGH.