A Friday in August

On Tuesday, we met my parents and children in Mason City at Music Man Square.

C went to an OPUS Choir Camp. OPUS is an all-state choir. C has auditioned for the past few years but hasn't made it. He would really like to this year, and so we are working hard. When I saw this camp, I thought it couldn't hurt to get a jump start. 

He (and M) actually have our OPUS camp next week. M's age group at the Music Man Square was in the morning and I didn't think we could get her there in time since everyone had to drive a lot of hours. So to be clear, I wasn't trying to play favorites with my kids. 

It wasn't until nearly the end when I realized it was actually a 2-day camp. Well... we didn't attend the second day since it's 3 and a half hours from home. 

While C was off singing, M, Husband, and I did the museum and boyhood home again. 

This is our second year of Meredith with Meredith in August. It may just have to become a thing. 

We were just there last year, and there were changes to the museum AND the house tour was completely different. I mean, obviously the house was the same, but the stories told in the house were different. 

M got a shirt. 

 In a true example of her "Iowa Stubborn," this is THE EXACT shirt I wanted to buy her last year, and she flat out REFUSED because there's an emblem on the back of it. I couldn't even make that up. 

On Wednesday, I had a string art class. I have been to a lot of string art classes in the past few years, and generally I whip through them. So I invited the fam to come and hang at the library while I did my string art, and then we'd do something. 

Well... it was an advanced class. 

And even though I was the first person done BY A LOT, it still took the full hour and a half. 

My children were famished. 

So we stopped at a local burger establishment. Which was not my plan, but sometimes... people just need to eat and we were long past dinner time. 

Luckily, I do really love how my string art turned out! From this:

To this! 

Yesterday, the children went with Husband to work, and they painted a backdrop. 

And today is Friday. I have a funeral to work today. Oh, it's the saddest/most beautiful. 

T had been sick for a long time, and he passed away on a Saturday. That Monday, the family met with the funeral home, and an hour later his wife, G, had a heart issue and was rushed to the hospital. She continued to have heart issues and never regained consciousness. But the doctors couldn't actually find anything wrong. It was literal broken heart syndrome, and her children removed her from the vent Thursday, and she passed peacefully. 

So devastating for their relatives. And yet, so comforting to know how much they loved each other. 

And C has a choir rehearsal because he sings on Sunday at a brunch. 

And that's what we did on this first week of August. 

If You Give A Mouse A Cookie

August kicked off in a most unimpressive/impressive way. 

We deep-cleaned our bedroom. 

It was an entire If You Give A Mouse A Cookie saga.

If you start to deep-clean your bedroom, you will have to deep-clean your closet. 

And if you deep-clean your closet, you will have to deep-clean your linen storage. 

And once you've done all that deep-cleaning, you will want a shower and will discover that your shower head is leaking. 

You will first try to descale it and then determine at an unreasonable hour that it needs replacement. 

You figure if you're going to replace the shower head, you may as well get new shower curtain liners and a new non-slip bath mat as well. 

And if you're going to do that, you should probably deep clean the bathroom. 

And so with exactly no pictures of the before, during, or after, please know that: 

• Our bedroom hasn't been this clean or organized in actual years. 
• It only took 2 trips to Lowes for cleaning supplies, storage bins, and bathroom items.
• We only bought a few storage bins for things that we 100% are sure we want to keep, including two under-the-bed storage bins for off-season clothes. (Having the sweaters out of the way right now makes life so much easier!) 
• This morning was our trash day, and we put out 8 extra bags of trash, plus a gross plastic drawer thing that I am pretty sure was from my college days and a broken suitcase that I am not sure why we still had. 
• There are still some items to be dropped off for donations, but it feels great to be purged of so much stuff that we don't need or want in our lives. (Why do we keep things that are literal trash?)
• The joy I got waking up this morning in a clean room with a clean bathroom was not small.

And this was all made possible by my parents taking our children for a few days. We all know that even helpful kids are unhelpful in these situations. They would have certainly been more precious with pieces of artwork and other knickknacks we relinquished. 

Even if they had let us do what we needed to upstairs, the downstairs would become a disaster area, I am sure. 

And that is how our month kicked off. We worked our tails off and were rewarded with cleanliness. Yay! 

End of July

And we have once again come to the end of another fine month. The school year is coming. And it's coming quickly. 

I ordered the school shoes today. And the last pieces of uniforms. 

We need to go to the store and buy a few other things: earbuds, a black 3-ring binder, and then we will be all set. 

It's not like school starts tomorrow. (First of all, it's Saturday.) But I just want to be able to check that box and know that we are all set. 

I do not want a rushed and panicked August. Not even a little bit. 

We have been saving Scoopie Tokens from Culver's for a long time. A long time. Yesterday, M turned 10 of them in to get a hamburger stuffie. She saw it on the way to camp, but we didn't have our entire collection of Scoopie Tokens with us at the time. 

In other news, we also have 32 scoops of custard coming to us... so we should probably start just bringing the kids there when they ask for ice cream. 

Speaking of Ice Cream... did you see what Colleen's Ice Cream Cottage is serving up currently?! 

I have never in my life hated living in Iowa and being so far away from Fairhaven, MA before. But this will do it. I think this is the fruity/chocolatey blend of ice cream of my dreams. 

Today is a dreary, rainy day that strongly suggests staying home and napping. Alas... the workplace demands that I show up in order to earn the paycheck... rude. 

Both of these Babylon Bee "article" headlines made me honestly laugh out loud. 

This may be a church employee niche. But so so so so so so true. And since I have sat in multiple meetings in the last 2 weeks discussing programs and volunteers, it's as funny as it is sad. 

This one just genuinely cracked me up. 

Last week, the theater programs finally announced their Fall season, and C is of the magical age where he is eligible for ALL THREE SHOWS! And so then I was looking at the calendar and trying to figure out what would be our best option and... I said to a friend, "Is this what Sports parents do as they're trying to figure out if they can join another team?" 

As it happens, Husband and I prayerfully decided to take the Fall off of theater. C will be taking Algebra at the high school this year as an 8th grader. He will have to work hard, and that will be a stressor for him. (Hard doesn't equal bad, but hard does stress his brain out.) And so rather than pile a bunch of extracurriculars on top, we decided to stick with voice lessons and choir. And let theater rest until spring, and he is in his flow of how algebra works. 

Because even though both Husband and I went to college on theater scholarships... they aren't worth stressing over at this age. 

Speaking of this age... this kid is finally growing! He gained an inch and a half in the last 6 months! He is still tiny but we are happy to see the growth!! 

We haven't gone into it on the blog because there are things that just don't need to be on the internet, but rest assured, we are quite sure he falls into the "late bloomer" camp based on genetics and other tests, and we have no reason to worry about his height. 

Happy Friday! Get ready August! Here we come! 

Voice Recital

On Sunday, C had his voice recital! 

He did such a nice job! 

The livestream feed did not work as planned, and these videos are all I've got. M's videographer skills need some work, but it sounds good, and that's what counts. 

 Laudaute Dominium from Vesperae Solennes De Confessore by Mozart. It translates to Psalm 117: 

"Praise the Lord, all nations, praise Him all peoples. For his loving mercy has bestowed upon us, and the truth of the Lord endures for eternity. Amen." 

Then he also sang "Suppertime" from You're a Good Man Charlie Brown, and Husband took on the role of Charlie Brown. 

This is him and all of the youngest kids in the studio. (There are actually 5 recitals; they go by age.) 

We are so very proud of him and his hard work. 

Looking back, I would like to remember how the AC died in that church midway through the recital, and we were all melting. But the music was so lovely. 

It's so very impressive what this group is capable of. 

And also, that voice recital... was the last scheduled activity for summer. We officially, officially made it to the "lazy, hazy, crazy, days of summer!" 

Camp 2026

Last week the kids were at camp! 

They had a great time! 

Here is some proof! 

This was the 4th year my children have attended this camp, and this is the first time I have ever heard that when they challenge another cabin to do something, and it takes too long, everyone starts chanting "seminary's faster!" Catholic humor at its finest, folks. 

Both kids went to reconciliation while they were there, and I also didn't know there is an outdoor gazebo they use especially for that sacrament. But I love that they can experience the Grace of God in his majesty. 

It's nice to have them home again, though! 

Friday Update

Y'all, I don't even know what to post. 

This has been a week. 

I had some comp time at work, and rather than stay home, I went to my old work for the family law attorney (my friend). And it was like a vacation. 

Husband was more than a little horrified that going and doing different work felt like a vacation, but it did. I can't explain it. I liked it, though. 

We went to Texas Roadhouse the other day since I had some gift cards stocked up. 

M's skirts came for school. (Elementary is jumpers, middle school is skirts.) I have a lot of feelings about this. 

In other news, for the last 11 days I have been driving a NEW 2026 VW Atlas as the dealership has my car for repairs under warranty. 

This has partially stressed me out because it's a BRAND NEW CAR with like 2000 miles on it. I have literally never had a new car and don't anticipate getting one realistically. 

It has so many lovely features, including this, which has no bearing on the car's performance, but I love that when the front car doors open a little VW logo shines on the ground like a bat signal. 

This has also partially motivated me because, other than the fact that the car I am driving is white and I am a black car girly, I love this vehicle so much. There's literally nothing I don't like about it. And it feels like me. Is that weird to say? Probably yes. 

So I am now manifesting this car. I am telling the universe I would like it. And God is going to need to sort that out for me. 

Dare to Dream!

This weekend was M's show. It was super cute! 

Dare to Dream is a Disney review show... all the Imagineers in Training are learning about following their dreams in order to become Imagineers. 

Miss M was Player 2, which is one of two Senior Imagineers. I wouldn't go so far as to say it was a lead, but she definitely had more lines than many. 

The show featured many fun Disney songs. My top 5 in order of "songs I would actually listen to at home" were: 

1. Let It Go
2. Try Everything
3. Go the Distance
4. How Far I'll Go
5. Remember Me

None of those are M's songs. She sang "Be Our Guest" "A Dream is A Wish Your Heart Makes" and "Hakuna Matata"

It was a very fun weekend but the AC in the theater was broken so it was HOT and STUFFY. Never the less, we are so proud. 

And this wraps up the "performing arts" section of the summer. 

Show choir camp turned into SpongeBob, which went right into VBS (where she was a sing and play assistant, so singing and dancing the whole time), which went directly into Dare to Dream. 6 weeks of fun!