Our little guy Sol was gifted a scooter today!!! 🛴 He was SO excited!!!
Over time, Cher has bought a couple of the kids scooters, and being that it was just Sollys birthday, it was a very appropriate time to find another!! What a GREAT gift! 💜 He scooted to school with pride!
Aaaaand with his bike helmet that makes him look like a Mario mushroom.
He’s like an orange on a toothpick.
Double triple quadruple time gold stars go to the best auntie ever, Cher, for putting this skinny minnie on new wheels 😎 He feels like a rockstar. Or a race car. I haven’t listened yet to hear if he makes the noises but I’ll update you on that.
Observe the man I love more than every other 🙌 He took the day at home and joined us all on a morning walk on this beautiful day off of school.
The ensemble consists of the following highlights:
His WD40 mug
Grinch pants
and sheepskin booties.
I’m used to his hilarious mug. In fact, I take credit for its purchase. The pants were a bold move, and I was so stoked he didn’t change into real pants before we left for the walk. But those booties were the unexpected icing on the cake for me 🤣 I LOVE this guy.
The wind is loud and whippy but the clouds are fabulous! If you don’t want to be outside, at least take a peek 💜 Its beautiful out.
It was a lovely day outside. The promise of rain did not in fact deliver, but the sun was lovely 💜 Everyone played and was peaceful and fairly fight-free. The bugs were miserable this weekend but alas, we were still camping and still in our oasis that is Kinasao. Kinasaoasis? ☀️🍉😎
My Friday burn is still burning. Its ouchie. But less ouchie than yesterday, so I’ll take it. I have no regrets, haha! My skin is darker and my hair is fading super cool. I like it.
While Brady napped, I felt oddly inclined to play his guitar that he had hung up on the deck but hadn’t gotten to playing yet. I can’t tell you how long its been since I’ve played, but it was nice. Hours later, I still feel the ache in my left hand fingertips. One is even forming a blister. Yes, that’s how many years its been since I’ve played. I’m not good, but it was still nice. Simple. Worship music.
We came home a bit earlier today. Got unpacked. Bathed a couple of the babies who needed some relief from their bug bites. Got some simple supper going. Babies are down and the big kids are eating in the living room. Everything is relaxed, and everyone is tired, but in a nice way.
Camp is ALWAYS lovely, but nothing 🙌 beats home bed.
The mosquitos have been nuts today. It’s possible we ended up all piled into the camper through supper just to get a break from all the bugs. I literally had to call for backup as I cooked to have kids spray my back with bug spray. Even that was not deterrent enough. What a strange buggy day! 🦟
It was, however, a lovely day to reconnect with some friends from last summer! It is SUCH a treat to see how much everyone has grown and changed. It always feels like a reunion of sorts out here, and for that, I am SO grateful!!
Now just wish us luck for the night ahead 😅😬 as usual, night #1 was super rough so we are hopeful for an easier night tonight🤞
If you saw us at track and field today, you know that the goal of today was to get a sunburn. And WOW did the day deliver!!! I am cherry red 🍒 after the day in the sun, and I have no regrets. It sure beats the blizzard from may long. I’m ready for the sun! ☀️ my feet take the cake, though. Those suckers are going to HURT tomorrow!
Brady and I had a BABY FREE track day! What a win! Thank you, Cher, for being home with them so we could be hands free! 🙌 Brady left halfway through for treatment, and then I ran around a bit on my own but I made it to the kids priority events and it turned out well!
Dekkers class was on the books to help with the events this year. So he raked the running long jump pits for a few groups. None of our kids, but he had the rest of the day to just meander with us.
Laela didn’t participate at all today because it was for elementary kids and her class didn’t have a role. But she came out at one of her breaks to cheer Rowan on for his longer race. The 800m. She also came to find him at lunch and took him to get lunch at the high school instead of his school as a treat 💜 super sweet!
Rowan did great today. He struggled when he didn’t get first, because he knows he is one of the more athletic boys in his grade. But he was always able to rally and keep going to the next event. He got high ribbons in almost every event, placing really well in running and jumping.
Solly was a surprisingly good jumper and did GREAT in his jumps!! He ran beautifully too, and had a fabulous attitude whether he placed high or low. Outside food is the best part of track day anyway, isn’t it??
Wavy does every event with a giant smile on her face. She did beautiful in her events as well. Her longer race this year was the 400, of which she basically sprinted the first. She petered out hard by the end and was in a lot of pain. She was crying at the finish line, but the teacher keeping times was soft with her and she went for a little walk with another helper and gathered herself a bit. She came in second behind a good friend of hers.
It was a great day. I burnt to a crisp and I’m happy about it. We’ll see if I’m still happy about it tomorrow 😅😬
I hesitate to blog about this because I know lots of people have lots of opinions, but in the mornings, I put together some breakfast for the babies, and I LOVE that all three of my babes have different milk 🤣 Please don’t come for me about what they ingest. I’m SO on top of it, I promise. Just share in my joy!
So we have one kid who can drink whatever. Cows milk for that kid.
We have a dairy allergy here, so that kid gets oat milk. Yes, its got extra stuff in it. Its supposed to at this point, as requested by a doctor and workers.
And we have a formula kid. All of our foster babes use the same formula because, as we’ve learned through some trial and error, the majority of them come to us with some feeding issues. So we start with the sensitive brand in the concentrate form.
Don’t read into the colors 🤣 Irrelevant to gender.
Kid one bites the straw ends off, so that kid tends to get those cups.
Oat milk kid is next. Whatever cup.
And formula kid gets the colorful straw because its a lower flow.
The end. Thats all. I like this part 🙂 Three different milks is a very cute hassle to manage each day, and I wouldn’t change it.
I played yarn chicken today. I had four rows left on a blanket where I needed to use this color. I did not feel encouraged in the slightest, but I so wanted to win 😅
Indeed, I lost.
I made it almost three rows, but there was no saving it. Just no possible way. The thing is, I saw this probably would likely arise a good while ago, and I bought more of this yarn! However, it was a visibly different dye lot, and I couldn’t make it work.
I had the plan to run into the city and grab another ball of the right toned yarn. I was going in this afternoon anyway, so it was good timing. When I checked the Michaels locations, unlike the last time when both were well stocked with this exact kind and color, there was ONE skein of it left in the entire city. And it struck me that it was entirely possible that it would be the wrong dye lot again. Then my previous city engagement was cancelled. With the cost of gas being what it is, I couldn’t justify the risk of driving all the way in for something I already had.
So rather than do that, I took the yarn I did have and looked it over. One color in the yarn in particular was WAY brighter than in the rest of my project. But I was desperate enough to cut the yarn into pieces to remove that bright chunk, and then tie it together with the pieces that were closer in color. I left some of the bright tones in that I would cover with the next row. They won’t be visible after the next row. But you get the gist, right? They are SO much brighter. Nicer, even! But WAY too obvious to just start using that yarn partway through.
I’m repeating myself. You get it. I worked with what I had, and its going to turn out, even though the last row and a half were super annoying to put together 😅 I lost at yarn chicken, but it felt mildly victorious to use what I had rather than wasting time and money.
I’m sure I’ll have time to waste money on yarn again soon.
Today was nice. Munchie slept well last night, so I too could sleep well. Kids went to school in good moods. Cher came in the morning for coffee and chatting and then a day of work! We got kids up and settled in for breakfast, and then I took a nice long soak. It was SO peaceful in there! I am clean now 😁 Woop woop!
We lunched and watched a new episode of a funny YouTube series we watch from time to time. It was relaxing and restful. Then Cher went back to cleaning and I finished up a crochet project. We visited through the last half hour or so before school was out and the kids came home. It was nice to catch up a little bit. The weeks have sure been busy, so the time to sit and just talk was lovely 💜
The days without the kids can really go any and all different ways, but I’m so grateful when they end up being relaxing and peaceful. The rest of the week holds more busyness but it makes it nicer that I had some free time today. Thank you, Cher 💜
Don’t get me wrong. Together time with the kids is also super lovely. In fact, Laela, Rowan and I just lost track of time scrolling through old blogs to look at pictures of them when they were younger. It is ALWAYS nice to look back. A bummer to see how many photo links have been wrecked or pictures glitched and warped. But the memories still stand. I certainly have lovely children. Beautiful children. Some of the best people I’ve known. Thank you, Lord, for my family. Whether blood or otherwise, we are so fortunate to be surrounded by our family.
On our drives home from camp, as we round the corner from the 305 onto the last stretch of highway towards home, we always click the music off and have a chat about unloading. We go over the expectations.
What do we do with the things we unload from the van? ACTUALLY PUT THEM WHERE THEY GO!
Yes. We don’t just dump it all in the garage and run. Kids bring their bags to their rooms. The big laundry hamper goes in the laundry room. Cooler to the kitchen, but unpacked. Shoe bin in the garage. Freewheel up next to the garage door so we have it as a “just in case” but so we definitely don’t forget it next week. You get it. All the things.
The drive home this last weekend was later than usual and everyone was quite tired. So I tried to mitigate any arguments, I asked the kids who would do what. It started PERFECTLY.
I asked “Who will unload the cooler for me?” *dead silence* LD: MEEEEEEE!!!
For reference, LD is two and not very helpful 😂
Dekker volunteered, but I went along with LD just for humour.
Me: Thanks for offering!! Please don’t forget that there are freezer meals in the cooler that need to go in the freezer. Ok?? LD: Okeeeee! Me: That’s really nice that you want to help! LD: Welcome, mommy!
Ugh. My heart. I LOVE my kids. This was such an adorable little bright spot right at the end of the drive 😍 I am so grateful for the life we have.
Master Sollyman turns TEN today!!! He was welcomed to the day with the loud singing of the birthday song as well as an aggressive tickle from Rowan. He squealed happily and Rowan showed no mercy. It was a fabulous kick off to his day. Another year of Solomon in the books!
This last year, Solly has grown and changed in all kinds of beautiful ways, and in many other ways, he is still the same boy 💜 he is delighted by all kinds of fun things. Fidget toys. Playing with a soccer ball in the front yard. Biking. Reading Big Nate. Laying on the floor and chatting with Munchie.
In the recent months, he has a larger interest in helping with the handy jobs about the house. He will run any errand. Make any effort to pitch in. Any request I send his way is met with a hearty “aye aye, captain 🫡 .” He may get a little lost along the way sometimes. I can’t say he never defers off course and ends up talking to himself in a mirror for a cool 20 minutes before I realize. But alas, those are the details that make Solly Solly. I wouldn’t change him.
I love you, Solly boy. It is so easy to love you. You are so full of joy and wonder and kisses for your mom. Thank you for being so sweet and gracious to share your birthday with Sadie’s grad celebration at camp! Well get you all your birthday food going next weekend 😘💜🎂
