TGIF

It's Friday....and I couldn't be happier. Although I have 5689 things to do before the days end, I'm trying to calmly move through them and not be subjected to procrastination. Um, clearly not working since I'm blogging.

Cooper has been going to Chess Camp all week- and has hated every second of it. It does sound terrible, doesn't it. I had such high expectations- he loves to play chess with Jon and he's pretty good. So, I figured it would be a great change to his normal summer routine. Plus, his friend P was going and that meant he'd have a friend.

You can do anything if you have a friend.
Evidently, anything but Chess Camp.

He said it was the hardest thing he's ever done in his whole life.
And the thing that was the worst?

The algebraic notations.
WHAT???? I had no idea there was algebra involved.

My childhood was not spent at Chess Camp- which is why I had higher hopes for my child. Ah well, not to be.

Everyday can't be filled with a cup of dry ice and wonder!!!


Can you even stand that tooth???
It makes me laugh (and a visit last week to the dentist did confirm that another will soon join the existing chic-let!)

Hope you had a great Friday.

(and ps- I didn't even come close to getting through my list today)

Two Word Tuesday

Love zinnias!!

3 generations

My brother was in from California this weekend. I should have had my camera at the ready but was a little lacking on the upswing.

The shadows are a nightmare in this photo but it's going to have its place in our history based on the subject alone.

My dad, my brother and my son....



Love you all!

Harvest Time

Last week we picked 100 of these!



It's one of my favorite parts of summer...



And this year, we've got a fabulous little picker who's quite eager to help.



Sadly, he's not much on eating.
Unless it's one of these....



Hope you're enjoying the taste of summer too!!

jaws

i was playing dominos with the girls last night and got the following text message.

is is ok for us to watch jaws?

i almost choked on my tortilla chip.
and many response options ran through my head....

my 1st response...have you LOST your mind?? was quickly replaced (at the guidance of my friends) with-

no- bad idea.

i'll give him credit for asking- but really?? jaws?

in the middle of the summer
for an newly turned 8 year old
with an over active imagination and a tad of anxiety thrown in for good measure
when we have a boat
and routinely travel in deep salty water???

yeah- bad idea.
silly daddy.

Have Passport, Will Travel

They arrived yesterday via overnight mail.



Never ones to plan in advance, we had to expedite them to ensure they arrived in time. And now that we've got them, I have promised myself that we will never let our passports expire again. EVER.

We're going here-



And I simply cannot wait.
I have memories of going as a kid....and having a ball. Jon has never been. To me, its one of those rite of passage type deals and Cooper's just the right age to love it too.

Glamorous vacation? Nope, not by a long shot.
Good old fashioned road trip with the family? Absolutely.

The countdown begins!

Long time, no post

I'm a weekend behind....or maybe 2.
We passed a milestone- Cooper invited a friend to come to the river with us. And I'm not sure I'll ever be the same.

Talk about stressful. How do people take other kids on vacation with them for an entire week? My word- I'd need medication.

On the way down, I thought about every terrible circumstance possible...and then said little prayers that everything would end up ok.

Clearly, Cooper was thrilled to have a pal-


They were non-stop the entire time.


E was chosen based on a few key criteria. 1) he's a sweet kid 2) he tends not to get homesick (key because there was travel involved) 3) E's the youngest...and as such, his mom has been through a lot and is very calm and super easy going about everything 4) Cooper's been asking me since March whether we can take him.

The dates finally worked out.

Just in time to go to the work boat races.
The local watermen come out and race their work boats. It's a ton of fun- and really something to see.



The more weight on the back of the boat, the better. There are easily 3 generations on the back of this one!


There were more boats watching then actually racing but nobody cared at all.


Weekends are always better with a friend.


Especially if there are dolphins!


The boys had a blast- with a few minor exceptions. Will I do it again- I'm sure. The super great outweighed the extreme stress.

As soon as we dropped E off Cooper said, "Momma, when can he come again?"

When I'm recovered little kid, when I'm recovered!!

Someone Bought Our Dream

This could have been our view....the view from the windows of the house that was our dream.

Instead, this is all we see-



And the name at the bottom of the contract isn't ours.
It's sad.
But clearly, not meant to be.
At least not yet, and not this house.

At one time or another since we've had our river house either Jon or I have decided that we want to move there. But our decisions haven't aligned. If he wants to, I couldn't imagine it or if I've wanted to, he's not ready.

And then this past fall, we realized that our heads were in the same place.
And the sweetest little fixer upper was for sale and it was calling our name.



By no means perfect....but with potential, and a view and a promise of simple that we both were craving.

So we looked and talked and researched and tried to figure out how we could make it happen. And there were 3485 things that stood between us and it.

We both knew that if it was meant to be, it would happen.
And things were happening....

But then the sold sign appeared.
And our dream belongs to someone else.

It's ok- because when one door closes another opens and we'll just have to work on another dream.

I wonder what they're like....the new owners.



I hope they love it as much as we do.

Teeth (or lack there of)

When my parents came down in June, my dad pulled me aside and relayed a concern.

Seems that he was worried about the fact that Cooper's had a giant gap where his 2nd front tooth should be for quite some time.

Really, since Christmas (I think).

I assured him that all was fine and Cooper's gap was something that all 7/8 year olds go through. He wasn't completely convinced.

Fast forward to Friday afternoon....when Cooper lost another tooth. The tooth to the right of his only other top tooth. If the gap was big before, it's even bigger now. And it brings to light the fact that the kid is indeed missing a little something.

He looks adorable (in a gappy toothless sort of way)!!



I can't help but smile.

Hope your week starts off with a big gappy smile too!!

#176

This is my niece Katie- at our Easter celebration.



Technically, I suppose Katie is really Jon's niece- and I get to count her because I'm married to him. I LOVE counting her!

I fancy myself as Katie's favorite aunt (at least on her mother's side!). It's a running joke and it makes us laugh ALL the time. Actually, Katie has 2 awesome aunts on her mothers side...

Anywhooo- evidently Katie was in a triathlon this past weekend.
WHAT???

One would think that one would let ones favorite aunt on ones mother's side know that one is in a TRIATHLON.

Hmmmph!
Perhaps I'm not as great an aunt as I fancy myself!


Katie- I am so, so proud of you.



WE are ALL so, so proud of you
(we're proud of #100 too- although she's a mystery to us!)

This guy is proud too.


Goodness, ya'll are adorable.


Katie- You worked so hard & it paid off.
Bravo!!

With Love,
Your favorite aunt on your mothers side

Thankful Friday

I've fallen from my Thankful Thursday wagon and really need to get back on board! Thankful Friday will have to suffice.

Cooper took lacrosse lessons this week and adored it. Really truly couldn't get enough of it. I'm thankful that he's found something that excites him and that he is enjoying participating in a team activity.

I made it through this 4 day week that actually felt like 20. I am thankful that I got to the end relatively unscathed and am still employed. Really, it wasn't that terrible- but my biggest at work supporters were on vacation this week and there were some challenges that I've not before faced. I could have used a lunch buddy to make it all better.

I love that my hubby makes me laugh. His crazy antics and nutty stories are part of the reason that I fell in love with him and why I stay that way. I'm pretty thankful for him.

We had such a great 4th of July weekend- we spent time with friends we don't often see and everything turned out perfectly. The weather was amazing, the kids got along, the food was incredible and everyone had the best time. I'm thankful for our friends and the ability to make memories with them.

Although it now looks like the wreck of the hesperus, I am so thankful for our home. We don't spend as much time here in the summer as we do in the winter but I do love how it makes me feel to be here with my boys.

Did your mom ever tell you that your room looked like the wreck of the hesperus? Mine did- and she was right. Not a lot has changed over the years.....oh well.
Love you Ma, I'm SO thankful for you and Dad!

Have a wonderful weekend-

Who's There??

During the summer months, Jon paints houses.
He usually lines up about 3-4 so that he's got something to keep him busy when school is out. He is strictly an exterior painter- and loves the time that he gets to spend outside and being his own boss.

Sometimes, there are funny stories that accompany his daily routine.

Like the time that he was up on a 32 foot ladder and he dropped a hammer. And how that hook part of the hammer somehow got caught on his shorts and pulled both the shorts and his boxers straight down to his ankles.

And how he froze when he realized what had happened and was literally naked 2 stories up and had to slowly reach down and pull up his pants and then hope that nobody had seen him!

Yeah- stuff like that.
It's comical.

This year, he's painting a house that belongs to some friends of ours. And they very kindly gave him the security code to their house so that he could use the bathroom if he needed to while he was there.

And yesterday, he needed to take advantage of that code.

Evidently, he was in a position much like this one-


(and probably wearing the exact same outfit)

And he was minding his own business when he heard a rustle coming from the bathtub.
And then he realized that there was someone, or something hiding behind the shower curtain.

And of course, his shorts were again around his ankles.
(is this verging on too much information??)

So he begins to panic a bit because he's thinking- well, if someone's hiding in there, I'm pretty much a goner.

And he says, "who's there"
And there is more rustling and some sort of a struggle.

And then all of a sudden.....



Their dog emerges from the bathtub where evidently he sleeps during the day because it's cooler.

And Jon's heart started to beat again.

Goodness, I couldn't stop laughing when he was telling me- and I'm having a hard time not cracking myself up as I type.

All in a days work, I guess!

1st Pick (& a new love)

They're here!

Our 1st tomatoes are delish! They're called sweet cherry 100's and certainly live up to their name.

In other news, Cooper is newly obsessed with lacrosse.

Obsessed!!

He started lessons yesterday and could hardly wait to get there- hooray.
I just love summer.