How bizarre that it can be SO fall one day and SO summery the next?!
It was sunny and still and lovely today at Kinasao. Not all the way summery, I suppose, but the sun was beautifully warm. We still enjoyed a hot fire and most of us wore hoodies. Still. It was so lovely.
We left the lake shortly after lunch. Everyone was game to go home and wash up and get ready for school tomorrow. Honourable mention goes to Dekker for being truly thoughtful and helpful with Bradys transfers and chair support. Once I help Brady into the van he does everything else, happily.
We got home. Unloaded. Unpacked. Kids washed up. Babies napped. We ate leftovers and easy extras. Dishes are doing and everyone is winding down. I’m ready to do much of the same.
Watch a little Wednesday. Snuggle up and eat toast with my man. Sounds like my favorite time of day is fast approaching!
It was all centred around a hot fire that burned all day long. We shivered outside while our heaters positively PUMPED inside the camper.
We had protein waffles dipped in syrup for breakfast. Easy and yummy.
Lunch was leftovers.
And supper was potatoes, ham, and carrots. Carrots done on the camp chef are SO good!!
As I’m sitting by the fire, with the sun all he way down and the site lit by beautiful hanging lights, a baby drinking a bottle in my arms, this is the natural time for LD to randomly have a pants free party 🤦🏼♀️ because why not? Oh. And LD has also pooped. Cool. Cool cool cool.
I’ve not always been very confident in the kitchen, as you likely know. Cooking on our camp chef griddle has been another learning experience for me, but I would say I’ve finally gotten in the groove of it. Cooking chicken will probably always scare me 🤣 but I even did that on the camp chef the other day! So I felt pretty proud of that, haha!
I realized yesterday just how far I’ve come when I got into making supper. I so badly wanted to go make it out on the deck on our Blackstone!! For a handful of reasons, I couldn’t right then, so I have a great big stove I can work with, and a convection oven that fits the bill as well. Even just typing that out, I almost feel guilty about having so many amazing options. Ugh. But anyway. I didn’t cook on the griddle, I just cooked inside. And I MISSED it!!!
Once upon a time, cooking on the griddle scared me, and now I miss it. I think thats pretty darn cool.
Welp. I have a handful of random stuff to show you that doesn’t fit together. But I’m gonna show you anyway 😅 Sorry not sorry.
First and foremost, someone wrote a greeting in our butter, lol!
Brady got all stocked up on some protein drinks, and I remembered I can stock his things in the island drawers so he can access them better!
Heyooo!
Cher brought garden tomatoes and cottage cheese over for lunch today!! YUM!!!!
Aaaaand this was a fun comparison to make during a discussion about the details in our children that look like which family members. Rowan mouth is ALL Brady 🙌
Ok. Thats it thats all! Nothing special! Just some observations from the day! Carry on.
The time has come, the walrus said, to send your kids to school!!
And we be listenin’ to that walrus, let me tell you! 🤣
I’ll admit I cheated on the pictures a little this year, since the elementary school had a welcome back BBQ early where the kids could meet their teacher, find their classroom, and drop their stuff off. So I took the backpack pictures last week. But. Still counts.
So! My youngens…
…their gigantic backpacks…
…and their grades!! Solly in 4, Wavy in 2, and Rowan in 5. Both of the boys are in 4/5 splits! Different classes tho.
Aaaaand today!!! TWO to high school!! 😵 My biggens…
… all of their stuff…
… and their grades! Dekker in 9, and Laela in 7!!!
Everyone had a great first day. Good teachers. Good friends. Birthday invites already floating around. Everyone is safe and tucked back at home now 💜 Thank you, Lord, for our small town and the happy schools we have.
Our family left camp early today, as did the Dahlsjos. We planned to meet at Lil Bean in Rosthern for ice cream around lunch time. Our family had never been there before, but likely like many of you, I have drooled over the pictures they have posted online and was eager to go!
Not only were we eager because who doesn’t want specialty ice cream for lunch, but also, this is our last weekend to see Piper before she leaves for college 💜💔
There are about a million pictures from this short hour together that I can’t show you, thanks to the rules of foster care, which I both respect and hate. Take my word for it when I tell you our group LOVES their group 💜 There is no shortage. Since I can’t show you much of Piper, I’ll show you my kids and the ice cream they got.
On our way back the vehicles, it seemed to strike Wavy the finality of Piper leaving. Not that we’ll never see her again, but her heart could barely take it that Piper was going to be gone now 💔
Goodness girl we’ll miss you 💜 It feels like we all JUST got you back from the busyness of summer only to say goodbye again so soon!
But.
I feel SO confident that you are heading to such good things, and I am really excited to hear about them along the way. Your new friends. The classes you take. The music you’ll inevitably get into. Books you read. Lessons you learn. All of it. I am committed to praying for you.
We already miss you, Pip.
Thanks for inviting us to ice cream today 💜 What a precious last date with you.
We had a beautiful dip at Bells Beach this evening 😍 Brady hung back and did some of his own stuff, evening routine, etc. while Stacy and I took the group just a couple of minutes away to Bells to wrap the day up. Everyone got in the water and played for an hour or so. It was chilly, and some of mine were wimps at first. But the babies joined the fun and the splashing got real. It was a total blast. We got there as many others were clearing out. We couldn’t have timed it better.
There are maybe a hundred pictures I can’t show you, but here are my beautiful children I can 💜
Thank you God for these summer memories. They are incredibly precious, and we do not take them for granted!
Today was my day. Finally. My favorite kind of beach day. A day that is way too warm to be out in it. A day where we all get a little heat exhaustion. A day where I can wear a bathing suit top on the beach and sweat and not worry that anyone is looking or judging my body. A day where sunburns were born and no amount of water or bubly could satisfy.
It hadn’t felt like summer. Not in all the ways. Definitely not in terms of temperature. I’ve said to Cher that I will be excited for fall with her once I’ve had my nice stretch of +30 at the lake. Well, Cher, it seems we can start talking pumpkins when I’m back. Because this right here 🙌 THIS is summer!! ☀️
Today marks the absolute final day of summer holidays for the school kiddos!!! There is still a long weekend to go, but this is the final weekday that they have off before they are back in class!
We went to the elementary school yesterday to meet the teachers, drop off school supplies, and eat hot dogs. They were all surprisingly happy to be back there, seeing all of their friends and being in the halls, classrooms, etc. Apparently also the lockers…
For the record, this was all WITHOUT my prompting 🤣 Bunch of weirdos!
We ate hot dogs, chatted with teachers, and passed around the babies. It was fun to be back, and to see the kids all pretty happy, too. Rowan’s teacher is familiar. Solly’s teacher is someone we’ve encountered in small amounts. And Wavy’s teacher is new to the school. Everyone seemed excited, though, for the year to begin! We got in some little chats with familiar faces from previous years as well. It felt good to be back in it.
While I am looking forward to finding the groove of the school routine again, I have truly enjoyed our summer holidays 💜 Last summer was a fairly difficult one, and I’ll admit that I was nervous going into this summer that it would be the same or harder. But it has been simpler, and sweeter, and full of better memories. Kids are that much older. Babies are more independent. And somehow Brady is managing better this summer, even considering all the huge changes he’s faced. God has taken beautiful care of us this summer. He always does, but it has felt more gentle, for which I am so grateful.
Its almost time to say goodbye to summer…
Its like when you go on a trip, and it was lovely and you really enjoyed your time, but you’re happy that its time to go home. Thats been summer.
