Dog Days of Summer.

The past two weeks have been super warm and hot outside!!!  After such an exhausting week last week, we opted to take it easy the past few days!!!  We kept cool and relaxed at the pool!  Three days in a row!  It's where the kids and I like to be and swimming and eating pool side foods is always a fun thing to do!!!

 

I try to balance the sleeping in with the house work with pool time.  I remind myself that we only have a few short months of swimming weather here where we live and if that's our 'happy place' ... then lets make the most of it!!!

 

Monday we were catching up with housework and laundry. 

 

Tuesday we didn't get to the pool until 2 PM but then we stayed until 7!!!  Mike met us there around 5:00 and we ate supper at the pool and then splashed in the pool.  It was SO much fun!!!  Austin really got the gist of his puddle jumper on Tuesday.  He suddenly was able to balance himself in the water much better and that helped him float and swim alone a lot easier!!!  Now I am even more relaxed at the pool!!!!

 

Wednesday Hadassah helped Lena clean houses in the morning while the boys played here at our house.  When they got back, we packed up for the pool and met them there for the afternoon!  It was so warm and so dipping in the pool was very refreshing!!!

 

These four have so much fun together!!!  Cousins are blessings!

Matthew likes the pool too but really likes it when he has a friend to swim with!!!  Relaxing in the kiddie pool is fun for him every now and then.

Ashlyn keeps getting a bruise on her fore head from her goggles.  She pushes them up and down so much that her fore head turns red and sore.  So, we bought her a new pair and now she is learning to swim with holding her nose and healing her fore head!  :)  And swimming with Hunter sure was a fun time!!!  Water ducks!

Adrian ... he likes to splash too.

This is the life!

On Thursday, the house got cleaned.  Ashlyn finished up her ballet with Sophia joining her!!!  Ashlyn skipped last weeks lesson because of the funeral and viewing arrangements for Daudy Lapp, so she was really excited to be able to go again!!!

This time the parents got to watch what the girls do.  So cute!!!

Pretty girls!!!

Thank you Teacher Amy for such a fun time learning ballet!

After ballet lessons, we came home and changed into our pool suits and we were off to enjoy the warmest afternoon yet in the sun!  This time Linda and her children met us there while Mike and Matthew took the day celebrating Matthew's birthday.  The boys went golfing and then ended at DJ's for Matthew's favorite burger!!!  Mike does such an amazing job at being a Dad and taking time out for the children!!!  These are childhood memories they will never forget!!!

Happy Birthday Matthew!

 

And this was one of the piles of laundry from yesterday.  Austin is in the beginning stages of potty training.  Even though he is doing pretty good with the concept, we still go through lots of shorts.

Moving on in life ...

Where do we start after such an exhausting week last week?  My thoughts are constantly with Mom Lapp!  I'm wondering what she's doing and how she starts her new life without Dad.  I dropped in Monday just a bit.  Her house was all back to normal order and it felt good to walk through her doors and have her relaxed!  We are missing Dad!!!

 

Mom helped me last week mow our lawn but the weeds didn't get pulled last week.  That's OK because there's always this week to get to them!  And the garden was calling my name.  The garden is looking pretty good.  Zucchini and tomatoes are growing.  I always struggle to have a nice pickle plant but there are a few cucumbers hanging on.  Ashlyn is always my helper and she was delighted to help pull out the red beets yesterday morning.  She pulled out the biggest one!  We cleaned them all, cooked them, cut them in small pieces and canned them.  These will taste so yummy!!!

 

The herb box is doing well!!!  Look at all that wonderful basil!!! 

And sunflowers are one of my all time favorite flowers!!!  We attempted to make a "sunflower house" for Ashlyn by the garden but one time Hadassah mowed over them and another time it was so dry and we kept forgetting to water the seeds and another time we reseeded and now we patiently wait for them to grow.  The ground is really hard where I planted this horse shoe shaped area and I'm so jealous of all the pretty sunflowers in other peoples gardens.  I am happy to finally see some blooms!  I think next year, I will work the dirt up really good before planting seeds!

This is the first year that we bought a membership at a pool.  The upfront price seems $$$ but we have been loving it!!!  Yesterday, we didn't get to the pool till 2 PM because I was canning our red beets.  The pool wasn't full at all and it was often that the little ones had the kiddie pool to themselves!!!  It was so relaxing!  I texted Mike and asked if he would like to join us there in the evening.  We had nothing planned in the evening and so sitting by the pool as a family seemed like a great idea!!!  And he said, "Yes!"

The kids loved him there!!!  And me too!!!  :)

"Just jump in Daddy!  Come on!!!"

Austin just started yesterday to really take off with his puddle jumper on.  Normally, I need to still watch him closely because if he tipped over, he would swallow water and panic.  Not yesterday!  He balanced himself real good and even went in the deep part with Matthew and floated alone.  This is just another step to growing up for Austin.  I still watch him like a hawk in the water but it is more relaxing knowing he can control his balance!!!

Such fun times!!!

 

 

We ate supper at the pool and enjoyed the sunshine!!!  Thank you Hun for meeting us there!!!

Matthew turns 12.

Matthew had a birthday last week and we tried our best to make it a good day! 

Normally, he starts his day with a stack of hot pancakes, spreads peanut butter on top and then drizzles them with syrup while jamming out on the "best birthday song" on YouTube.  Normally, he would go golfing with Mike in the afternoon and eat BBQ Chicken Wings.  Normally, Matthew would pick out a restaurant for us to eat supper at.  Usually, it's DJ's 50's Diner and Matthew loves, loves their burgers!  But, this year it was different.

Matthew's "Daudy Lapp" passed away the week of his birthday.  Dad Lapp went to be with the Lord on Wednesday and so that meant the funeral would be on Friday.  On Matthew's 12th birthday.  Honestly, Matthew was not impressed about this at all!  He asked us, "Who set the date for Daudy's funeral?  Why does it have to be on Friday?"  As we explained and gave a short sermon on how it's OK if things get changed up a bit for this birthday ... he understood! 

Matthew still requested hot pancakes for breakfast and I told him I would make that for him if he would get up early enough to eat them before heading off for Dad Lapp's funeral.  He agreed!  And he enjoyed his breakfast while I played happy birthday songs on the Internet. 

We arrived at Mom Lapp's around 8:30 AM for Dad's funeral.  Many people wished Matthew a happy birthday.  Then at the lunch/supper meal after Dad's funeral, we all sang Happy Birthday to Matthew and he blew out candles from a whoopee pie cake Aunt Carol provided for him!!!  (Thanks Merv and Carol)  There must have been 50 plus people singing for Matthew!  He smiled!!!  And, it poured down rain on the way back from the grave yard and Matthew said, "This would not have been the best day for golf anyway!"  That's my boy!!!!

And when we got home on Friday night, after the funeral, my sister Jody had this on the counter for Matthew!!!  Thanks Jody!  (Plus she cleaned my house and babysat our children all week and had my laundry done!!!  XOXO!!!)

Matthew is taking golf lessons this summer and so Mike purchased Matthew a new set of clubs earlier in the month.  He was so delighted to have this set and that was his birthday gift!!!

But, because it was still Matthew's birthday by the time we got home exhausted from all the viewing/funeral arrangements, we still agreed to order pizza and watch a movie with Matthew that night yet!  Mike and Matthew relaxed downstairs while they munched on pizza.  By the time the movie was half over, Mike was snoring.  Matthew and I sat together and watched the rest. 

We will never, ever forget Daudy Lapp's funeral date because it's now the same date Matthew was born.

We love you so much Matthew and we are so proud to have you as our son!!! 

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Matthew plays first base for the ball team called Tigers!  And he's a home run hitter!!!

He set up the sprinkler under the trampoline for him and Ashlyn to get wet on.

Matthew loves tools!!!  Here he helped Mike cut a chain when they hung up the porch swings.  One night when we were at Dad Lapp's, Matthew went out to Dad's tool box and came and said, "This place is awesome!!!"  :)))

Ball Coach Mike and great player Matthew!!!

Brothers!

Trying out the water slide in the back yard.

Matthew got a torch a few weeks ago.  He's been burning medal and making things so hot ever since!  He has the grill that don't work anymore, all set up for his working station.  Mike took him to a blacksmith close to home just to see his tools and she what he does.  Matthew loved that!!! 

And he's got someone really watching every move he makes!  :)

Matthew is my helper around the house.  He took apart Austin's crib the other week and now Austin is in a big bed.

And the day Austin training potty got shipped to our front door, Matthew got it all set up for Austin.  EXCEPT it does not belong in our bedroom!!!  :/  Now we have potty training on the list of things to get accomplished this summer!

Mike brought home a bunch of palates from work and Matthew is taking them apart and cutting them in little pieces for firewood.  He's hit his knee a few times with the ax and actually cut it once but again, he's got a little helper right beside him!!!

Cool hat "Little Man".  :)))

Love you Matthew!!!  Happy 12th Birthday!!!  Thank you for making the best out of your 12th birthday!!!