Days of Summer

Summer, wonderful Summer!

We have packed our summer full of fun!  I love that we still have more ahead as well!

I have lots of pictures from the activities and trips we have taken. 

Here's a walk through our days of summer.....

A visit from our dear friends in early June got us off to a wonderful start. 

Roger and Heather and the girls came over for lunch and we enjoyed our time talking and laughing....laughing a ton!!!  We miss them!

Strawberry picking, buying peaches from the back of a semi truck and picking produce from my garden makes it feel like summer!

A trip to Bay Beach is a summer must!  The girls and I took a road trip with Karen and her crew for a full day of rides and fun!  Thanks, Karen for taking one for the team on the slide!  I am afraid of heights and couldn't bring myself to climb up, so she took Layla for me!

A summer first was Adah going to day camp at Camp Forest Springs.  My friend Megan invited the girls and I to stay at her parents lake side home {down the road from CFS} while the older kids went to camp for the day.  It was so fun for Adah to be able to attend camp.  She loved it!!!! 
Thanks for the stay, Megan!


The girls have been so good about working on school each day so they can keep up their reading and math skills during summer.  They have been super self motivated!  In addition, they opened up their first ever lemonade stand at the end of our driveway.  Not much through traffic on our road so I was surprised when they actually made a sale to some passer-bys. :)

To get ready for kindergarten, we enrolled Layla in a safety city class.  She loved every minute of it!  It's a great program that teaches bus, road and bike safety.  And she got a kitty cat helmet!!!!  Grandma and Grandpa had arrived in time to be a part of her week as well!

Vacation!!!!!

Our family, along with my parents and Tim and Sue and their family, went to the Apostle Islands for a camping adventure.  Here is a group picture of our crew!

Our campsite and some cooking fun.

We caught one of the amazing sunsets while we were there.

Derek's vacation highlight was kayaking with Tim to these beautiful caves on Lake Superior.  They are so adventurous!  Sue and I thought they were crazy! YOLO!

There was a beautiful beach near our campsite that we spent many, many hours on.  The kids had a blast digging, building and swimming.  Very relaxing for the mommas!  Loved our talks, Sue!

 

 

More sightseeing in Bayfield.

 Our last day together {Tim and Sue left a few days before us} we all went for a 3 1/2 mile hike.  It was the only thing that Layla kept asking to do.   She loved every minute of it!  She lead the whole way and we NEVER heard a complaint from her!  We cooled off with an ice cream treat when we were finished.  Sweet victory!

Happy 14th Anniversary!

We vacationed over our anniversary so one evening my parents stayed back at the campsite and let Derek and I go out for a fancy dinner.  We went to dinner at a bed and breakfast called the Rittenhouse.  It was a gorgeous, old house.  We enjoyed a quiet evening and a very delicious meal.

Thank you Derek for 14 years of love, committment and memories!

 

*****

These last pictures lead us up to date.  My parents {they are totally amazing by the way!} offered to take our girls home with them for 2 weeks while Derek and I stayed here.  What a gift!
This was our second annual Grandparent Road trip!  They are currently still gone and they are having a blast with grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins!  What wonderful memories they are making.
I made a committment that I would value my time, treasure it and make the most of it; making every moment count.  I really feel like I accomplished that!  I feel good about it!
I have cleaned my house thoroughly, exercised, read a ton, studied my Bible way more, watched movies, went to Appleton with my friend Amanda, went out on some fun dates with Karen, hung out with quite a few friends for coffee {tea}, Rib Fest with our pals, concert on the square, double date with Ben and Meg, gardened, relaxed, oraganized my closets, and the best part was.....
a getaway with my hubby!!!!! 

Derek planned a wonderful trip to Stillwater, MN.  He has been crazy busy at work and so this came at a perfect time for the 2 of us.  Swimming, eating, talking, laughing, sitting, sleeping, smiling. 
We had a blast together! 
I am a blessed woman! 

 

 

Looking forward to enjoying the rest of the summer days ahead of us!  I am ready for my little girls to be home and the second half of our visit with my parents. 
God is teaching me to be content in every moment given.  I don't want to hurry through life or to the next thing and look back and realized I missed it all!
Cherish each day God has given, the good and the hard!