July activites!

I feel like I am back tracking with this blog right now but even if it's 'old news' or events from the past few weeks, I still want to blog about them.  Because, I know that one day when the kids are all grown up we will pull these blog books off the shelves and look, laugh and amuse at all the pictures!!!  :)

 

Austin turned 1 year old and with that came a doctors visit.  He loved the little chair and really was so cute for his whole visit!  Everything went well until it was time for shots.  Of course he cried, but not for long.  He's brave and tough.  He weighs 18 lbs., 9 oz..  Height is 2'5".  He is a healthy growing boy and we are ready for him to start walking and eat more foods!  :))))  Come on kid ... it's time to expand your horizons!!!

 

We pulled out the popsicle mold the other day and filled them with fresh fruits and then topped it with coconut water.  Ashlyn really liked these!!!

I bought a jeep at a garage sale last month but it needs a battery.  We are now borrowing Colson's battery to make sure the jeep works before buying a new battery.  It does work and the Ashlyn is now busy giving lots of rides to Austin.  It's way too cute!!!  We have a battery ordered and hoping it gets delivered very soon!!!

 

It took Austin a little to get used to the jerky start and stop.  He is strapped with a bungy strap and does like his rides even though he is crying here on this picture!!!

 

Mike had a birthday the end of June and we went to Iron Hill Brewery for a supper date.  It was exactly what we needed even though we would have had excuses to stay at home.  Austin was feverish on Saturday but Mike's mom said she will care for him.  Many thanks!  The other children stayed home and enjoyed a relaxing evening together.  Mike and I are living out our dream lives right now but sometimes we need to remind ourselves that these are the good ol' days.  :)  The daily grind of juggling teenager events and baby naps and challenges can wear me out pretty fast.  I think more mentally than even physically.  However, I am ready to get back into shape and do exercising once again.  My belly rolls are totally starting to bother me!!!  :(((  I've been saying to my family that I need to get out and run again and one of these days it's gonna happen!  Anyway, Mike and I are living our busiest parenting days ever right now.  So nights out with just him and I are refreshing!!!  We ate great food.  We took a walk in the city.  We played romantic music as we drove back home!  I am so blessed to have a man that loves God, loves me and loves his family more than anything else in the whole wide world!!!  Happy birthday, Babe!!!

And on the subject of birthdays, Matthew turned 11!!!  He had a great birthday and loves playing with the lacrosse sticks from Mommy Lapp!!!  He spent the whole day with his daddy!!!  A dream come true for him!  Mike left it up to Matthew as to what they did.  He chose to go to the driving range and then golf a whole golf game.  Mike says that Matthew just swings the club and gets great hits!!!  A natural!!!  Time spent together was wonderful for these two and Matthew totally thrives on one on one time!  So this filled his love tank for sure!!!  He thinks and believes what is true ... that his daddy is really best daddy out there!!!

Then we all went to Matthew's favorite place to eat ... DJ's 50's Dinner!!!

He loves their "mile high burger".

And their "bomb" ice cream sundae.

 We are so blessed to be Matthews parents!!!  He adds so much to our family and we love him more than we could ever express!!!  He loves his family and cares for his siblings so caringly!  Entering middle school will be both a stretch and an exciting event for him in a few weeks!  I am confident that he will continue to do well in school!  Right now Matthew loves soft ball, riding the moped, being with his dad and family and eating egg sandwiches for breakfast!!!

Ashlyn keeps picking foods from the garden.  I am OK with harvesting foods that we grow but I keep reminding her that we need to wait to pull the beets and onions until we are ready to can or use them.  Not this one at a time stuff!!!  However, the garden is doing really well and we have zucchini, onions, tomatoes and beets that are ready!

I also made our first batch of Kombucha Tea!  Suz keeps saying how good this tea is for your health and all the benefits and so when Mike was diagnosed with Lymes, I went running to her for a mushroom Scooby!  Now we have our own tea ready to drink.  It's a taste that we will have to learn to enjoy but Mike has already drank a good amount and is learning to like it!!!  Thanks Suz!!!!

Summer foods are all around us!!!  It's the all time best season of the year!!!  Fresh berries with baked oatmeal and yogurt makes for a great, fast breakfast!!!  Yummy!!!

July has more fun events planned for us and I'm sure we will be enjoying more pool days!!!  We are loving summer!!!