Summer - Week 8

Our 8th week of summer was mostly full with VBS, but we also managed to fit in some more fun here and there.  This week ran from July 10 - 16.  Here's what we were up to:

Monday

This morning kicked off our first day of VBS.  This was Cooper's first year to go to VBS.  I also volunteered to work in the snack area.  Since it was Cooper's first year, I wanted to be able to be there and check on him if he needed it!

Excited and ready to go!

I loved being able to see the kids when they came through for their snack!

LL was so so happy to have some friends there with her!

Cooper got in line with all the boys to see Darth Vader - haha.

We all made it through day 1!

We were all tired that afternoon, so I got some snuggles in with my best girl.

After the kids went to bed, Matt and I got to work painting shirts for Cow Appreciation Day the next day!

Tuesday

Both kids were so excited to get up and moving for VBS!

That evening, we all got dressed up to head to Chick-Fil-A for some free food!

Cooper usually only likes to see the cow from a distance.  He surprised us all when he was super into the cow this visit!

Hugs and everything!

A fun dress-up night and free food - we are a happy bunch!

The bulls.  :)

The girl cows.  :)

The Parker's came in as we were finishing up, and I am proud to say that all of my persistence with Tess has paid off this summer; she will now let me hold her!

Cow kids!

I started book #42 for the year on Tuesday - this one is a good one!

Wednesday

Middle of the week and ready for another morning at VBS!

Seeing both of them at snack time was my favorite part of the morning!

I'd like to say that seeing me was Cooper's favorite part of the morning was seeing me....but I'm pretty sure it was the nachos.

The snack squad!

Emily posted a picture of sushi a few days before and got me craving it so bad.  The kids and I stopped to pick some up on the way home from VBS - and it was so good!

Thursday

While I was getting ready for VBS this morning, Hulk showed up!

Thursday evening, I was just going stir crazy after every afternoon in the house.  Matt is so sweet and took over for me and let me take off once he got home.  I went into town by myself and did some shopping and picked up dinner - it was so nice and exactly what I needed!

Friday

We were ready for our last day!  LL asked for a picture of her and Lovie.  :)

Meg and I had a great week hanging out with almost 400 kids and Darth Vader - haha.

After VBS, we went to lunch and Zaxby's with Gigi and then to her house for nap time.  While Cooper napped, LL showed me all of her crafts she made during the week.  This astronaut helmet was so cute!

That afternoon, Matt met me at Gigi's.  We left LL there to spend the night and took Cooper in to town to do some school shopping.  After we shopped, we went to dinner at Olive Garden.  While we were there, Gigi and Poppy came in with LL!  We switched tables around and ended up all sitting together.

Saturday

Saturday morning we had to pick up LL from mom's, so we went over there early to let the kids swim for a few hours!

I started book #43!  I always love James Patterson and am rarely disappointed.

I did a cleansing mask while I read.  ;)

Aspyn did not quite know what to think about it!

Sunday

Sunday morning Grammy and Pop came to church with us to see the new building.  When church was over, we all went to lunch together!

We spent the rest of the evening at home, and I fixed a yummy acai bowl for myself for dinner.

Here's a video of some of our other moments from the week:

That's a wrap for week 8!  You can see our past weeks from this summer here:
Week 7
Week 6
Week 5
Week 4
Week 3
Week 2
Week 1

Summer - Week 7

Our seventh week of summer was from July 3 - 9 and was full of so much fun!  Here's what we were up to:

Monday

My sister and Ben were in town for the 4th of July, so we decided to spend the day at the water park together!  Meghan and Luke came, too, and met us there.  I was not anticipating it being so busy the day before the 4th, but I was very wrong!  It was way more crowded than usual, but we still had a lot of fun!

This girl is so brave and surprises me all the time.  She just - to her core- loves animals so much.  She didn't even hesitate to hold this snake!

The water park is alllll the way in the back of the park (that walk is the worst!) so we always stop and ride some rides on the way there.  LL said she wanted to do this one, but then chickened out at the last minute (she gets it from her Momma).  Laura, Cooper, Ben, Luke, and Meghan were not afraid and went for it!

The two chickens that decided not to participate.  :)

We got changed and situated at the water park and immediately found a rock!  We just re-hid it in the same area.

My water park crew!

You know your aunt loves you a whole lot when you convince her to carry you piggy back out of the park.  It was a looooong way to go with a heavy boy!

We were all very hot and tired when we left, and we decided we deserved a treat!  We took a vote in the car, and The Mix won out.

Hot and happy!

Tuesday

We celebrated the 4th of July with friends and family on Tuesday.  You can read all about it here.

Wednesday

The next morning was like a party hangover - wearing the same shirt as the day before and dead-glow stick glasses.  ;)

Some of Matt's extended family was in town on Wednesday, so the kids and I went there for a few hours so they could visit.

I dropped the kids off at Grammy and Pop's and hit the gym.

With all the excitement, this one insisted that he didn't need a nap.  For some reason, I didn't believe him - haha.

Both of my kids absolutely adore Gray.  They haven't seen him all summer, so they were so happy to spend the day with him.  The next time we see him, he'll be a big brother!

Thursday

Thursday we made plans with a friend from LL's school to come and swim.  They weren't coming until after lunch, but we went ahead and went to Gigi's to get in as much pool time as we could.

This is perfection for me - kids happy in the pool and a good book!

Why is summer flying by so quickly?!

We rarely do this because it's usually so hot, but we ate lunch outside.  The kids got out of the pool, scarfed down lunch, and then went right back in!

Friday

This is my "mom uniform" in summer.  Jean shorts, flip flops, and a comfy shirt.  #winning

LL spent the night with Gigi the night before, and Matt and I headed to Cooper's 5 year well-check on Friday morning.  You can read all about his check-up here!

After his check-up, Matt went to work, LL was still at Gigi's, and so this boy and I ran some errands.

Cooper wanted to go to the donut store as his treat for doing well at the doctor.  When we go there, he decided he didn't want a donut, he wanted a cinnamon ("sim-a-nim") roll the size of his head instead.

Dude shocked me when he ate the entire thing!!  Hey - you don't get to be off the growth chart by slacking off in the eating department.  And not shockily - he didn't eat lunch later because he was so full - haha. (We also found this rock on the way in)

We had a yummy, simple dinner that night - bbq sauce, chicken, and sauteed mushrooms and onions in a wrap.  So.  Good.

Saturday

Saturday morning we got up and moving for a birthday party for John Aiden.  They had all of these tiles set up, and LL loved playing with them and making things!

They also had a really cute "make a mask" station.

I started book #41 for the year on Saturday.

We had a "leftover" dinner night and I made myself a grilled cheese.  It was my first one in over a year, and it was so crazy good!

While LL was in the bath, Cooper watched ninja turtles while dressed up as a ninja turtle.  I love having a 5 year old boy - this stage is so fun!

Sunday

Sunday morning we stuck around the house to get quite a few things done around the house that had been neglected.  While Matt did yard work and I did laundry and cleaning, these two played pirates!

We went to Grammy and Pop's house around lunch time to spend the rest of the day there.  The kids absolutely destroyed the playroom, but that just means that they're using their imagination, right??

Grammy made them an "ocean" for dinner - it grosses me out to no end, but the kids absolutely love it!  (Hotdog, ramen noodes with blue food cooring, black olives, and goldfish)

Here's our video for the week!