Other Stuff We've Been Up To

So what other stuff have we been up to? Otherwise titled even though the blog had no updates we still did stuff that wasn't VBS related. 

We went strawberry picking! 

And it was SO much fun. I am so happy we were able to go this year after last year's hiatus. 

We did actually decide that we weren't going to make jam this year so we picked less that typical and actually that was really great.

We went to the Farm and Fleet store and my Goose wanted to take home some geese. We said no.

I got some work done while eating Circus Peanuts. A very divisive candy. But I love them. 

We also did a science experiment to see how long it would take a circus peanut to dissolve and it took almost a whole week!! So that was shocking to me, to be honest. Yay for science. 

We got the special Disney 100 Spot It. And we've played it a lot. 

I mean. Spot It is already a favorite. And add in Disney characters and it's a hit! 

M got her haircut! Very dramatically!! Her shampoo, which is the best part!

Look at all that?!

And even after you'd still say her hair was pretty long! Lol. But a more manageable long. Which was the main goal. 

She got a new dress. Stay tuned for why!! 

My friend hosted some of us for a girl's night in her dreamy backyard. And you can't really tell but there were two doe deer who joined us and we thought that was hilarious... it really was a girl's night. 

M and I went to see Footloose the Musical. 

We went to the Beyond Van Gough experience. And it was so dreamy. 

I am a total sucker for blue. So to have blue swirling around me was the best. 

But seriously. We stayed for 2.5 of the 37-minute loops and I think 3/4 of us would have stayed longer. M had completely reached her threshold however so we had to take off. It was 100% worth it though and I am so glad we didn't miss it. 

We went to the museum with M's friend G. 

How absolutely sweet is this picture? I melt. 

And that pretty much sums up the fun things we've done in the past few weeks. In there has also been plenty of cleaning, tidying, loads of laundry, complaining, mosquito bites, and playing outside. But that's not as photo-worthy however real it is. 

And that's what we've been doing! 

Stellar VBS 2023

 I survived Stellar VBS week! 

We (Mostly I) started set up on Friday the 23. One of the first things I did was set up the galaxy lights. They really did look awesome!

We spent a ton of time setting up over the weekend. Here was our photo booth area. It was a hit. I was really proud of it!

VBS was in full swing. Monday, June 26-June 30

Me and my kiddos. C was a helper this year! And the VBS shirts glow in the dark! 

Thursday night, we had an ice cream social, and watching a segment of the kids singing about Jesus was so good. It honestly made me tear up and was the moment I felt the most pride in all I had accomplished. 

Our moonscape was pretty cool and I enjoyed it!

And by 2:48 pm Friday afternoon the hall was back to normal as we officially rolled out. 

VBS is a large part of my job. This year we had 134 participants and over 80 volunteers in some capacity. It is a huge undertaking and I am glad it went so well. But it is also worth mentioning that I had some really complicated feelings about it this year. For the first time ever I don't know that I enjoyed the VBS with the pressure to keep everything under control. 

There were a lot of plan B's over the week when especially the weather got in the way. (WHY did it need to rain only during drop off or pick up?!) 

But God is good. And the kids had fun. So even if it wasn't my favorite VBS we've done, I am still proud of it. 

So that's where I was for the end of June. Running all of that. From beginning to end. 

How We 4thed

After my not completely unexpected blogging hiatus for VBS (more on that later), I decided it's time to get to updating on our goings-on. 

Obviously, Tuesday was the 4th of July and we celebrated exactly how we normally do. Which is to say, if you've ever read a post of mine about Independence Day... this one is going to seem awfully familiar. 

As it happens I did actually suggest we mix it up this year and go to watch fireworks. I was vetoed. Traditions clearly run deep. And you know what? I didn't mind one bit. 

We took it nice and easy. We worked on a Lego. 

We made a strawberry lasagna that looked like a flag. Weirdly this wasn't on my radar at all. Nor Husband's but C was at the grocery store, saw the Golden Oreos and grabbed them, and said "We need these for the strawberry lasagna for 4th of July!" 

It was on our radar then. And it was delicious again. 

I texted with my family group text. And laughed out loud when my brother clearly won 4th of July patriotism. 

We had grilled ribs and mac and cheese for dinner. And watched The Music Man as we do annually. 

Then Macy's fireworks with glowsticks. 

No bugs. No crowds. No extreme heat. I was content. And so were they! Crazy we've been doing this since 2015. I really figured they would have outgrown it but nope, I actually think there would be a revolt if I forced a change. 

When they were 8 months (M) and 3 (C). 

That was our 4th of July in a nutshell. 

A Sneak Peek of a Week

Here's a little glimpse into our week. 

Monday the kids started Oceanographer's camp at the museum. 

Tuesday I cleaned out the basement at work. It doesn't look like much in this picture but I promise you, it looks SO much better now. 

Wednesday night I spent the evening hanging with M outside. It was beautiful. She was hula hooping and I timed her. 

2:46 is pretty good for hula hooping. So she ran around and practiced some soccer drills. Then decided she wanted me to time her again. So we did.

17:38!!!!!!!! I was excited when she beat her time but I didn't tell her because I wanted her to keep going and then thought, "maybe she can get to 5 minutes." And she was just hooping and talking to me. 5 minutes came and went and at one point she said, "I think I beat my time." It had been like 8 minutes at that point. So she decided to go for 10 minutes. 

And we just kept giggling to each other. I walked the fine line between telling her how long it had been vs. not letting her give up. By 15 minutes I was calling C downstairs to watch. Spoiler alert: he didn't make it in time. But come on, 17 minutes of hula hooping is impressive. 

Last night, Thursday, the kids went to the art museum to see the Charles Shultz exhibit. You know C loves Charles Shultz. 

I met up with some friends at their country club (I was a guest!) and we swam and chatted and it was SO good. 

And now it's Friday. I am so glad. Happy Weekend friends! 

A Weekend of Work and Fun

 Friday night for Family Movie Night we went as a family to see The Little Mermaid. 

We liked it! It's not as funny as the animated one. But it wasn't bad. We liked the new songs quite well and even though we did miss Chef Louie I get that it wouldn't have made sense. 

BUT my one criticism was the seven sisters being all different races with the same dad. It doesn't even make sense and just felt forced. (Is it like Jacob and the tribes of Israel? 7 wives? Even still... it left far more questions than answers for me.) Don't want the mermaids to just be white? Fine by me. But the sisters should've looked like siblings and that's how I feel about it. 

Saturday I spent the day getting things ready for VBS. Because it's that season. This year we teamed up with some other parishes so I had to have a couple things ready for their VBS that started this morning.

So here is my Mars Rover. 

Saturday night we went to Smoothie King as a treat/dinner for one little Miss who is obsessed with Smoothie King. Then we went to see Two Gentlemen of Verona in the park. 

Yesterday after a long Mass (we had someone come into full communion, receiving confirmation, Eucharist and they had their marriage blessed) I got back to work to create a control panel. 

Then I wrapped the weekend up by hanging with a group of kids for confirmation large group. So plenty of work but we mixed in some fun too and that's good! 

Summer!

So how has summer gone so far? Pretty good over here. 

The big second-grade end-of-school bash was a blast! 

We went out to dinner to celebrate a good year!

M and I went to see Hello Dolly!

The kids have already had their first pool afternoon. That's always a treat! 

We saw baby robins. Man are they ugly. But it was neat!

And Husband had his piano recital last night! 

With that, we officially ended all the extracurricular activities and school-year stuff. So now it is really and truly summer. 

We Made It

 School's Out for the Summer! 

A little first day, last day action.