What a whirlwind of a season it has been. August seems ancient.
It is hard to believe it was only two short months ago.
This is how I want to remember my boys in the years to come. Roaming the yard with their Popsicle smiles, helmet hair and self-made fashion statements.
Claire and I attended a book discussion on "Charlotte's Web" at
Frederick Meijer Gardens. I love these Mommy-Daughter dates.
We had a nice discussion, acted out a scene from the book and made a craft.
As Claire still worked to get settled in her new bedroom, one thing on her wish list was a magnet board to hang her artwork. So naturally, we took a trip to Africa's Child. When we explained to Grandpa and Grandma P. what we were looking for, Grandma, with fierce excitement, rushed to the back room and came back with this perfect marker/magnet board. So much better than we had expected.
And a big thanks to Claire for being willing to share her new marker board so we could birth a new family tradition: Pictionary and Popcorn Nights
The first night we played as a family, boys against girls. The second night we invited the Baker family to join the fun. It was a great time.
Henry's word was "teeth". I think he captured his word wonderfully.
Oh this boy. If only he slept so well through the night!
One low point of August was some rather significant flooding we had in our basement. Even though the waterproofing had been done, there were still some odds and ends that needed to be done to seal everything off. So sadly, with a few big days of rain, the water literally poured into the basement.
Most of what we had down there had to be dumped, which was a hard loss. But mostly it was just a lot of cleaning that needed to be done.
With the kids watching a movie upstairs, I set off to begin the clean up.
Some hard apple cider and chocolate chips helped calm the angst.
Well, here's one little guy who was not bothered in the least by the flooding. As we all know by now, he loves a good project.
Our insurance agency requires pictures of the house as we complete projects, so here are some pictures following the completion of the waterproofing.
East Side
South Side
North Side
With the yard torn up from the water-proofing, it was time to do a bit of landscaping. We had gotten a quote from professionals to do some grading and plant some grass. Well, that came back thousands of dollars more than we wanted to spend. So thankfully, our dads stepped up to the plate and offered to help us get the job done at a fraction of the cost.
And of course, George! We couldn't do it without him.
This is his, "I have a job to do; I can't be bothered for a picture" look.
Grandpa S. feels more comfortable behind a power tool,
but the boys could play for a bit while Grandpa P. took a break.
Claire was also a big help with a shovel.
In the words of Grandpa P., "Claire shoveled more
dirt per pound than anyone else".
And now we know what young Joe wants for Christmas.
These two felt quite at home behind the wheel.
What will someday be our back steps is now a temporary
sand box. It was love at first sight.
After a long day...week...month...year of projects, I was feeling a bit overwhelmed and under-enthused when Joe had to spend a Saturday morning doing a bit of yard work. And then when it was taking a bit longer than expected, I spotted him across the street helping our neighbor with his project, and I was so amazed by him. He is a good man. I'm so glad to be married to him!
Back to School Open House
Henry and Griffyn were a hoot, as usual. When they saw each other across the room, they ran to each other and stopped just short of collision. Then very slowly, they both reached out to give each other a hug.
Henry's Kindergarten Class
(same as his pre-k class)
Claire's 2nd Grade Class
(same as her 1st grade class)
Another year older, but she still loves the swings!
Well, that's it for August. A full month, but it is a good thing I didn't know what September would bring or I may not have gotten out of bed! Stay tuned for those stories.
