July Financial Update

This is not a great update, but it holds me accountable.  For now, I have written "Content" on our chalkboard that sits on our dining room table.  Our needs are met and more, so there is little I need:-)

1. Get PMI taken off of our Home Loan -Done in February!

2. Pay off Alex's small student loan ($641.00 to be exact)-Done in June!

3. Save enough money to replace Jolie's car by November 1, 2012 in cash!
We actually went down this month to 30%.  We had to put new tires on my car which was unexpected.  We knew they were not in the best shape, but we were hoping to be able to trade in the G6 before we had to replace them. That just didn't happen, though.  The upside is that my car rides much more smoothly now, and I don't worry about my tires being unreliable.  We also had our living room painted this month.  This has been on our to-do list since we had finished the basement.  It looks amazing, but we took the money out of this account as well.  I'm okay with this.  I look at my living room walls a lot, and my heart is much happier with a lovely purple paint job then the icky beat up green paint job we had~


So there you have it!  We went back a few steps, but we are still plodding away:-)

Updated Summer Bucket List

Summer 2012 Bucket List

1. Swimming Lessons for Rowan- Done!


2. Science Camp for Rowan at Discovery Center- Done!


3. Vacation Bible Camp at SWUMC for Rowan and I'll volunteer as well.- Done! and exhausting!  I survived our week with nine 3 and 4 year olds, and we had a blast.  We were all exhausted by Thursday!  Even Row was crying by Wednesday evening that VBC made him "EXHAUSTED!"  Can't you just hear him pounding his feet in exclamation that "it is just TOO much fun, and I get exhausted!"  I got him there all 5 nights, though, and what a blessing it was.  It always moves me to tears to watch all of the children sing and do the actions at the end.  I honestly don't know the count for the year, but I would guess we were around 115.  Watching all of these pieces of God's creation stand in front and shout, "I want to choose. I want to follow, " just makes the tears roll out of me.  I was moved, and I hope their hearts were as well~


4. Camping as a family-this is out of my comfort zone- Done!  I did it, and I blogged about it!  I'm glad we did it, and Rowan has some awesome memories to go along with this weekend!

5. Read 6 books for pleasure.- Done! My total is still 8.  I haven't been reading.  Instead, I have been deep cleaning the house in preparation for my return to the working population;-) I've also been doing some selling on EBAY in an effort to boost my car fund! 


6. Run 3 times a week.- Fail!  Alex was in San Diego this week, so this just was not possible.  I'm going running tomorrow, so we will start over again!  Life happens, and I'm going to give myself some grace on this one for now.


7. Go on 2 dates with Big Al.- Done!  

One week is left of summer, and I have marked quite a lot off of the list!  This isn't everything we accomplished this summer, but it was a list to help me stay focused and accountable for my time!  I think it helped:-)

Daddy is Coming Home

Well, it has been a whirlwind week with Alex in San Diego.  As I type, he is in the air somewhere between Cali and Kansas City, and we are excited and tired:-)

Rowan spent part of the week at my parents' farm, so I only had Sassy on Monday and Tuesday.  He rejoined the family unit on Wednesday, and we have finished out the back half of the week.  We have cleaned, zooed it up, played on the playground, had a picnic, shopped, and cleaned some more.  In one sense it has gone by quickly, but in the other, I am just plain tired!

There is just something about having a partner at home to help make some of the decisions that I have missed.  Naturally, when that partner is gone, all of the decision making is left up to me;-)  That stress me out!  Well that, and the fact that I have a hard time sleeping when the other side of the bed is empty.  I swear someone is going to try to break in and get me when he isn't here.  Why is that?  That, and I see lots of shadows in my bedroom when he is gone!

Sassy has had a cold much of the week (thank you camping!).  Then, she started limping Wednesday night.  She had this weird gait going on.  When I tried to poke around to figure out what was hurt, she simply giggled because it tickled!  Do I take her to the doctor or not for the limp?  If Alex were here, he could look at her and be like, "Yeah!  You need to go!."  But he isn't, and I only go to the doctor if I can self diagnose something profound before I go.  It is always my fear that I will take someone to the doctor, and they will tell me nothing is wrong;-)  I don't want to be that mom, so I've just been watching her.  Her limp seems better, but it still isn't 100% okay.

So, we're excited to see Alex, and I'm excited to sleep soundly tonight!  He loves this trip, and I am thankful it is at least during the summer and not during the school year!  I'm pretty sure I'd have to recruit some massive help to do this solo for an entire week if I were working;-)

All is Quiet~

Alex is gone for the week to a conference in San Diego (sigh), and Rowan went home with my parents after our camping weekend.  It's just me and Sassy here at home.  Sassy goes to bed early, like 6:30 early, so it is a really quiet house here:-)  I'm trying to put on my teacher brain for a while and get some new inspiration for the impending year, and I'm trying not to miss my little Row.  I must remind myself that sending him to my parents' house allows him to form relationships with people outside of our immediate unit.  This is the same logic I use for sending my children to daycare-to expand those people they learn to love and care for!  I've only talked to my mom once since he left, and she assured me he was having a ball.  I'm sure he is, and I'm enjoying the quiet evening all to myself';-)

And I Camped~

On Friday, we set out for beautiful Milford Lake to meet up with some family friends as well as my parents and brothers.  All totaled there were 27 of us that met to camp!  There was even a sweet little 7 week old baby to snuggle;-)

 I've been dreading looking forward to this outing for some time.  In fact, we set it up clear back in November to reconnect with old friends!  How were we to know that the weekend we chose would be one of the hottest weekends of the summer?  Even so, we had a lot of fun!  I had a few revelations about this whole camping experience.  It was definitely a learning experience, but I'd quite possibly contemplate a repeat experience.

Camping is Cost Effective- Our parents had rented cabins to sleep in, but we slept under the stars.  We had reserved a shelter for the day, so there was really minimal cost associated with camping.  In terms of food, every sibling took a meal to buy groceries for and prepare.  This meant we only had to cook 1 out of 6 meals!  We had Saturday breakfast, and Alex made bisquits and gravy, scrambled eggs, danish rolls, granola bars, and juice.  We had done some prep work ahead of time to make it less time intensive at camp.

There is a peace with camping- There is just something about being around a beautiful body of water with little to do other than sit around and enjoy the company.  I loved that part!  I didn't feel the need to be connected to anything, and I just got to enjoy the moment.  Being rather high strung, this is a rare weekend for me, so I could definitely do that again!

Camping is Fun- We don't own a boat, but our friends did!  The kids loved riding on the boat, and then they did some swimming in the lake as well!  Rowan had a ball, and it was certainly an experience we could not provide him without friends!  I will say, I had fun!

Captain Rowan

Camping is NOT restful- We had Isla sleep in our tent the first night.  That's right folks, we "tent" camped.  Her pack n play was not level, so Isla kept rolling to a side of it in the night.  She had a stuffy nose due to the night air, and she pretty much cried the entire first night except for about 3 or 4 hours.  Alex and I took turns rocking her in a rocking chair down in the shelter, because she at least wouldn't cry there!  The second night we sent Miss Isla to my parents' cabin for the air conditioner.  She screamed for them for about an hour, but had a much better night, I think!

The tent-quite spacious!

There are BUGS camping- While we were camping, Isla got stung by a wasp!  It took us a while to figure out why she was screaming, and then her little finger became a little sausage.  The good news is she is not allergic to wasp stings, but it was unfun!  Rowan also got stung in the armpit by something creepy crawly.  He yelped, but we had medicine this time!  We found numerous ticks (Ewwww!), but at least no snakes were spotted!

Kids wear themselves out camping-There were many young kids in our group. They literally ran around chasing each other and playing from sun up until sun down!  They exhausted themselves and really needed little entertaining.  It was beautiful:-)

Rowan and his cousins!  Pure delight!

Rowan was taking a cold 5 gallon bucket bath!

Skipping rocks and the beautiful sunset!

Sassy was a fan of the rocks!

Talia and Baby Isla taking in the beauty.

She went swimming in her dress, and the dress had to go!

My mom, Isla, Jordyn, and Delilah looking out at the lake!

Rowan fishing~

Rowan was pretty unsure of swimming in a life jacket~

My mom and Delilah rode the "Hot Dog." 

There you have it!  My first camping experience revelations.  We made memories, and that was the whole point.  I'm glad we went, and I can cross it off of my summer list;-)

Week in Pictures!

It's Still Summer......

We had a great week this week!  We went to the North pool, zoo, mall playground, and it was VBC week at church!  Rowan was a busy guy this week, and VBC made for some late nights at our house for him!  We had lots of fun, though!  Here are the highlights:-)

We built a "fort."  The kids had a blast!

Rowan ready for "Operation Overboard!"  Look at that sweet grin.

In the sea!

Our goal was to fill the boat with hygiene kit items!  We did pretty well!

Rowan helped me paint a project for the bathroom!

Cute little penguins!

The zoo with our friends!  Four little boys!

SnAcKs!!!

Rowan took a nap this week!  I think this was the third time all summer~

Look!  A submarine at church!

What a cute little diver!

With the coral in the sea!

Rowan was done by day 3 of VBC.  So tired!

Upside down at the mall!

Sassy was flying the airplane!

Updated Bucket List

Summer 2012 Bucket List

1. Swimming Lessons for Rowan- Done!


2. Science Camp for Rowan at Discovery Center- Done!


3. Vacation Bible Camp at SWUMC for Rowan and I'll volunteer as well.-In progress.  This is the week!  The theme is Operation Overboard, and I have 10 little Tadpoles in my crew with another helper and 2 youth helpers.  Night one was fantastic!  We talked about Noah and the Ark, and we made rain sticks!  We have four more nights before we finish up on Thursday!


4. Camping as a family-this is out of my comfort zone-This next weekend is the big event!  We have borrowed a tent (thanks, Lindsey), and we need to purchase an air mattress.  We are responsible for a breakfast meal.  Alex wants to make biscuits and gravy, since I never make him that at home;-)  We will need to add some other goodness to that for those of us who aren't exactly biscuits and gravy material.  We leave Friday, and we will return on Sunday!  Don't worry!  I'll be sure to post a reflection on this exhausting  fabulous experience as well as some pictures from the weekend.  It will be fun!  (If I keep telling myself this, it is bound to come true, right?)

5. Read 6 books for pleasure.- Done! I read another book this week titled, You Take It From Here.  This book was recommended to me by a colleague.  It was the story of two childhood best friends who always celebrate the year with a big vacation!  They live hundreds of miles apart, but they always come together to reconnect.  This year, Smidge takes Danielle to a remote location, and she tells her she has stage 4 lung cancer.  The rest of the book outlines Smidge trying to get Danielle to step into her shoes when she dies (raise her daughter, marry her husband, etc).  The story was heartbreaking but also really thought provoking.  It made me really analyze my "Smidge's," and think about the relationships I have with those around me!  I would highly recommend the book!  My total for the summer is now 8 books! 


6. Run 3 times a week.- Can I get a "Woot!"  I ran three times last week on my own!  I was actually keeping about a 10:15 minute mile pace, which isn't bad for me!  It felt great, and I'm excited I did it.  But, it is hot again this week.  I'm going to have to get up and do this in the a.m. if it is going to happen!


7. Go on 2 dates with Big Al.- Done!  We also have a little marital getaway in a couple of weeks to Denver!  I'm pretty excited about his, although, I'm very nervous about leaving our children:-o

Week In Pictures

Another week down, and I'll share some of the highlights of the week!  Murphy visited us this week, and I'm still trying to stay optimistic about his appearance.  We are all healthy, happy, and loved, so there really can't be anything to complain about;-)

Isla is showing me that it is all in genetic makeup how we behave.  We have treated her no differently than her brother, but she loves to clean and take care of babies!  The other day she spent a good 20 minutes diapering her doll.  We didn't really have any doll toys, so I saw an ad in a local store for a doll stroller on Sunday.  I will say this has been the best $5.00 purchase we have made in a while.  Isla mostly played with the doll stroller this week and pushed anything she could find around in it (i.e. my phone, wipes, socks, shoes, bowls, etc).  It warmed my little maternal heart.

Isla and her prized possession at the moment!

 Alex's garden has started producing, and we are eating lots of corn and tomatoes!

Yum!

Rowan and I made home-ade goo.  It was a cornstarch mixture that changed consistency with temperature.  It was weird; I won't lie.  Rowan was a tropper, but after about 15 minutes he said, "Mom, this is gross."  I concurred, and we threw it away.  I tried;-)

Rowan's disgusted face!

Library visit!  This boy LOVES snakes~

The kids helped me make cookies!  I had lots of help!

They were chocolate mint, and they were yummy!

This makes my reading teacher heart simply smile:-)

 Alex and I each drink coffee in the mornings out of identical cups like the one in Rowan's hands.  He wanted "hot coffee" one morning this week.  He was so determined to have it, that I simply made him some hot chocolate and put it in the same cup.  He drank the whole thing!

"Are you looking at my bed head?"

 On Tuesday, I took the kids to the lake to play with some friends.  When I went to take Rowan's bike out of my car I noticed something :-(  My tire was low.  I went to a station and aired it up, but by the time I got home I knew I needed some help!

Murphy visited:-(

 My knight in shining armor came home about 5:00 and look at him.  This is why I love this man.  He changed my tire while letting Rowan help to learn too!  I love that!  Then he and Rowan ran it to the tire store to see if it could be repaired.  I wish I had a picture of the tire.  I was fairly certain it was a no-go, but Alex insisted on trying.  For the record, it was a no-go.  So, I have 4 new tires on my car as of Thursday;-)

My two main squeezes!

 Wednesday and Thursday we were home bound while we were waiting on tires.  No fun!  We played Candy Land!  The pictures speaks for how it went!

"But Mom, the green one is so yummy!"

 We water colored and drew with crayons...

So intent on working in the lines!

Drawing all over the paper!

 And this is what happened when I finally took the crayons away, because she wouldn't stop eating them!  So sad to be 19 months old!

"Mommmmm.."

We made pudding-purple pudding:-)  Rowan was my helper, and he was fairly helpful!

Stirring!

This is Rowan's eating face! 

 Today we were going to go to the pool-please note Rowan's swimming trunks.  Instead, we watched it rain for a while.  While a blessing to actually have rain, Rowan was a little sad that we couldn't go swimming:-(  We met Dad for lunch, though, and that perked him up a little bit.

Watching the rain!

See it really did rain!

 We also made a "List of Fun" for the last 3 weeks of summer.  Rowan made it with me.  It all seems doable except the beach.  I'm not sure how I'm going to get him to a beach, but maybe I'll get creative!

Rowan's to-do list!

 Since we got rained out for the pool, Lindsey said, "Let's go to the movie!"  We figured Ms. Isla out, and we met Lindsey, Gage, and Owen for a showing of Madagascar 3.  Look at those happy faces! 

Cheese!

There you have it!  The week in pictures.  Three more weeks until I go back to work.  That just means I need to be more mindful of my time to get everything done that I hoped to accomplish!