Welcome Summer!

Well, since my last post was welcoming the new year, it seemed appropriate to now be welcoming summer!  Purchases to prepare us for summer: White Water passes, a new grill for Dad, lots of sunscreen, salad fixings, lots of fruit!  A tradition we started a few years ago involves having a luau the last day of school.  The kids were invited to spend the night with  Mom and Dad the last night of school (date night for us-yeah~); and working around Austin’s vast social calendar meant we had to postpone our luau until tonight, our first official day of summer break!  When we started this tradition, I would decorate with tiki torches, lanterns, cook kabobs on the grill and have fun, frozen drinks.  This year, with the kids 15 and 11, they don’t quite appreciate the little touches and I, rather than be disappointed in this turn of events, enjoy the simpler side of this tradition.  We have kabobs and corn on the cob on the grill, a watermelon cooling in the fridge, and a internet search for making fun frozen drinks out of mountain dew!  Some things I get nostalgic about and insist on every detail of the tradition, even if it is just for me, and other things I am happy to remember in the past, but put to rest for the future.

So as we prepare to venture into the lazy, hazy days of summer (quite literally), I take a moment to reflect on the last few months of whirlwind activity that is our life.  We started our year off with my brand new high schooler turning the big 15.  Very hard age for Mom to watch him turn.  That realization of him being able to drive is pretty overwhelming. A week after his birthday, I let him lay out of school to go and take his test for his learner’s permit.  He passed (of course) and then refused to drive when we left the DMV!  I took him to Cracker Barrel for a celebratory breakfast (yummy) and offered the keys again.  Still no.  So I pulled over at Avery Elementary, which is just about 1/2 a mile from our house and made him take the keys.  He did great!  We also started the year out taking Mudd(our new puppy) to obedience class, although some days I stop and wonder if we learned anything (for those of you who don’t have pets or have pets and have never taken obedience, owners are the ones being trained, not the pets.  Pets know how to behave, it’s just a matter of us asking them the right things to do)  As I type this, Todd has just gone out on the porch to check on the very yummy smelling food, and Mudd ran back into the kitchen because he could see Todd through the window.  How cute!  He was adorable enough for Mom to let him go out with Daddy.  In February, the kids had a great time spending a week  in Disney with my Mom and Dad.  They visited every single park, twice and had a great time.  March helped Todd and I celebrate our 12 year anniversary (yeah).  The kids and I were off on a road trip for Spring break.  We went to Charleston, S.C. to see Chris Tomlin in concert.  Austin got 10th row tickets as one of his Christmas gifts and we enjoyed a truly powerful concert.

May helped us wrap up another school year, with superb grades, great friends and lots of wonderful memories.  Austin has been dating his first real girlfriend for the last few months and walks around much like a puppy dog in love!  Sydnie is very sweet and beautiful and seems to bring out the best in Austin, which I love to see!!

So I look forward to a restful summer with lots of fun and more wonderful memories!

Austin, Zach, Grand & Papa TJ @ Disney-Feb. 2009

Chris Tomlin concert