Monday Meanderings

I think "Junuary" is finally over and summer has begun. Everything is a month behind. I'm trying so hard to be patient with my garden. I've had to replant cukes and beans. Because not all my potatoes have come up, I decided to plant kale and perpetual spinach (leafy green chard) where the other potatoes were supposed to come up. We're managing to sneak in some family fun in the evenings. We got to fishing at our local lake one Sunday. The fish were biting like crazy and we had an awesome fish fry that night with friends. 

Here is the handmade adorable apron I bought for $6 while on vacation. I love it. Red, white and blue just in time for the 4th!

Hailey up at the lake. That kids knows how to make dirt look good, LOL!

Our elderly neighbor is teaching Josiah how to braid rugs with 4 strands of wool. He goes over nearly everyday while she teaches him how to do it perfectly. Every time he comes home, the rug looks better and better. What an awesome skill to learn and he's having fun learning. Sheila is a great teacher. She taught me how to quilt and she's a perfectionist, so you learn to do it right! 

Last Friday, Michael wanted to go camping, but we didn't have time to actually go anywhere, so he set up our tents in the backyard and built a fire on an old stump. We had fun roasting marshmallows around the campfire. Michael even made me get out the fiddle and play a few scratchy tunes. Kids had an absolute ball. I made it till 1:30AM before I went into the house and crawled into my bed ;)

Saturday morning Josiah was up bright and early. He set up a toy/book sale and made signs to put up. He priced everything himself. At the last minute, I baked some chocolate chip cookies for him. Good thing I did because he didn't sell very many toys or books, but every last cookie was gone by the end of the day. Business was slow, so he went door to door and invited all the neighbors to his sale. He lasted till noon. He had a few cookies left and so he sold every last one of them around the neighborhood, too. He even sold one to the mail man! He ended up making $18. Not too shabby! He definitely has an entrepreneurial bent. Gonna encourage that :)

Sunday afternoon we headed to Hermiston where my brother was getting his fire certification.  We met my dad there, too, and he gave us a ride from their hotel to the fire station in the '69 Chevelle. Yep, he peeled some rubber!

Jerry is in the light colored shirt to the right. He is a volunteer firefighter in a small community. The chief who helped train him couldn't say enough good things about him. Jerry and his friend came from the farthest distance, made every single training and were the first and the last to leave. We are very proud of him and also his wife, Sonya, for supporting his dream.

Hailey just loves her cousin, Noah, Jerry and Sonya's son. He's a cutie alright! 

My sister convinced me to take a summer break from homeschooling. I usually homeschool all year round, but I can see her point about both of us needing a break. I'm going to keep him reading everyday, and really focus on character instead of academics. I'm excited and a huge load is now off me, Praise God! The kids are having fun in Aikido twice a week and also are doing a bible study at the park on Wednesdays. I think that is plenty. Between chores, helping out with the garden and just good old fashioned playing, I have no doubt the kids will keep plenty occupied. 

Hope you are all enjoying the summer. We've now had 4 days without rain. It has been wonderful! I'm thinking summer might actually be here. I've got a yummy German Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe to share in my next post...

God Bless,

Jackie