We haven’t done a waffle brunch in a long time, but we had a niece with a birthday over today! So waffles were on the menu! It was delicious, but simple. Waffles, bacon, and fruit. It did NOT disappoint.
It was a really fun day, full of good food and rowdy activities, plus some nice downtime in the middle there. The kids played hard, and the adults visited loudly overtop the din. Such is life with many people in one space.
The day has wrapped up, and I’ll admit, I’m a touch on the frazzled side.
The day itself was lovely, but the come down here at home was a bit tough, and bedtime was rocky. I am so ready to be in my own bed, however, and watch a little of the Amy Bradley docuseries on Netflix. How are you letting down tonight?
This weekend, we are not at camp. My sister and her family are out for a few days, so we are staying home to spend that time together. They showed up mid-morning, and we chatted for about ten minutes before I stayed hauling out 🤣 Because despite the fact that we’re not spending the weekend at camp, Laela was still there this whole last week and needed to come home, lol!
The babies and I drove up to camp just in time to catch the closing program. As soon as I lay eyes on Laela, she lit right up. She was glowy, and dirty, and happy, and exhausted. It was all spread across her face, with candy blue teeth to top it all off.
Between Laela, Stacy, Avery, and Jaxon, we juggled the babies through the closing program and then went to gather up the girls things. We loaded Laela’s things into the van, had a quick bathroom break, and said our goodbyes. In total, I was at camp for one hour.
Its a two hour ish drive home, and Laela and I were both completely exhausted. At points, I was worried I would nod off. So, we ate and drank and I interviewed her about her week. She would just sigh and say “I had SO much fun.” Every story was a good one. It seemed like very little hardship, if any, befell her. My favorite story was the one about the boys who kept asking girls their names, and how her whole cabin made up fake names to mess with them, haha! Hers was Hailey.
We made it home without me falling asleep at the wheel. The kids were all happy and well at home, and it was really nice to have the gang all back together again.
I anticipate many shenanigans tomorrow. I’m ready. Or at least I will be ready after a good nights sleep. Cmon, Sugar Beet, I know you can do it!! 😴
As someone who cooking does not come naturally to, planning suppers isn’t always easy. The days have been worky this week, and my plans for meals have been more or less thrown together. Today, as I worked to tidy the island, I found a cloth grocery bag full of hot dog buns that were going to start going bad any day. So I figured we’d make someone with those. However, we have hot dogs often enough, and we just had grilled cheese. So I decided pizza buns would work.
Another fun challenge of cooking right now is Brady. His mouth hurts. Lots and lots of things hurt. And if it doesn’t hurt, it often tastes bad. Chocolate sometimes burns, or tastes like metal, or like soap. Things like that are so extra disappointing. Bacon tastes like nothing. Lots of things taste like nothing. But seasonings and sweets pretty much hurt all across the board. Celery burns, guys. Celery.
So I made a plan for pizza buns, knowing that bread works for Brady, as does cheese. Luckily, I was crazy behind, and he came home before I had built all the buns. He tasted a little shot of pizza sauce, and deemed it appropriate. Same with both ham and pineapple, which was totally unexpected for both Brady and I! So I kept things simple and decided everyone would have ham and pineapple.
I made two big pans worth and they went over great!
LD ate three halves and Spoons ate four!
I believe there was only one left. A great success! And we used up all the buns! Heyooo! Wins all around.
Me: There are never enough minutes in a day. As in ever. The goals are large. The dreams are even bigger. And the to-do lists are never fully completed. They just. Keep. Growing.
Also me: I went to PBR and it got out of control…..
This weekend at camp, Dekker and Rowan got into their first real batch of trouble together. These two don’t spend a ton of time together, but they seemed to click well this last weekend, and call me crazy but I think a core memory was made. At least it was for me as their mom.
There is a self propelled go kart that some friends at our campground have, and they let all the kids rip around on it. Dekker and Rowan got into it one morning, and they decided to go take it “down Jericho way, NO BRAKES!” I heard their plan, and decided not to stop them. They can give it a go, I figured. And they did! They had a great time, and came back wooping and hollering all the while about how fun it was, and took off to do it again!
And as you’d expect, they came back bleeding.
As the story goes, they took the go kart back down the hill, and decided to try to drift. So naturally, they rolled. Rowan dove off to save himself, and ripped open both of his palms, as well as beat up his ankle a bit. He milked his injuries pretty hard.
Dekker went down with the ship and rolled with it, ending up underneath it. He got some road rash on his arms and his butt. But if you think you’re seeing the look of pride on his face, you are entirely correct.
This was probably the first playfully reckless thing he had ever done, and he was totally pleased with the outcome.
As was I. In speaking to the boys (once Rowan wasn’t crying anymore) we all agreed that we know that kind of decision is risky and tends to end in blood or tears or both. So while normally, we would know better, sometimes we just go for it anyway, and the consequences turn out to be totally worth it. Both boys agreed they absolutely were worth it. No regrets.
Everyone is healing nicely, and it has since been a story we’ve all laughed about at the boys expense. But they’re not mad about it. They did a bro thing and it turned out pretty much as expected.
I love these guys. They might just end up being close someday. Dekker could keep Rowan a little grounded, and Rowan could break into Dekker’s playful side. I love it. I love them.
Laela and Avery have their camp this week! They had a LONG phone call last week, where they mostly talked in circles about their excitement for camp. They made plans to wear matching outfits as much as humanly possible, which they made good on the day they arrived with blue camp shirts from last year, and light blue jean shorts!
I’m going to miss these faces! 😍
However, I have been reassured that Laela will NOT be homesick 🤣 though promised that she will probably be happy to see me when I pick her up.
Well, friends. Laela wrapped grade six this year. In our small town, thats a biggish deal, because high school comes in grade seven! Every kid was dressed for the occasion to varying degrees. They each gave a speech. They were all in slideshows. Everyone got a gift, made a joke, and received applause. It was a really lovely event.
But the real thrill was after, when Laela went on a date with Auntie (Cher) where they got some snacks, treats, toured the university, read outside, but most importantly, took pictures of my beautiful Laela. And guys. She is SO beautiful 😍
I very lightly waved her hair in the morning. I had plans to add a little makeup or something to make her feel extra fancy, but I didn’t even think of it the morning of, and I’m so glad because I honestly think it might’ve cheapened the whole thing.
My twirly girly!
And the answer is NO, her dress could not be more beautiful. It is absolutely PERFECT for her. I would’ve killed for suck a dress at her age! Immense bonus points go to Cher and her mom for measuring things up and altering it to get it to that perfect point.
Ugh. I know I’m posting too many of these, but there are none I can really cut out!! She is TOO BEAUTIFUL! Because you can tell she FEELS beautiful!!!
Into the airplane room they went! Auntie’s favorite room!
Secret garden vibes 🍃
Aaaaand the flowerbed. Some inside jokes with this one 😏 Apparently the pair of them spent FAR too much time here for Laela’s liking, hahaha!
Ugh. Gorgeous, girl. As if you don’t already look like a university student.
Hey Laela, are you over it?
My reader 😍📚
They had the best time. I have it on good authority from both ladies that they LOVED their day together. The memories will indeed last forever, I have no doubt in my mind, and the insiders will live on. Remember that lifelong flowerbed, and the squirrel that was throwing sticks in anger. Remember all the sketchy things in the university gift shop. Remember the yummy drinks, and reading in the bowl. Remember feeling SO beautiful…
And (hopefully) so appreciated, and like you killed the photo sesh for your beautiful niece 😘
Thank you, Cher, for this incredible gift of love for Laela. This meant so very much to her.
Today is a chemo day for Brady. Its one of the big ones. A double whammy.
Every two weeks, he goes for treatment. We say chemo, but its actually technically immunotherapy. But once every six weeks, he takes a cytotoxin alongside the immunotherapy. That pill is the actual chemo part. And that is the HARD part.
And that day is today.
Today, the IV would not cooperate on his left side like usual, so his treatment is pouring in on the right. It feels appropriate 💜
This is his promise, and mine, to God Himself.
We’ll be off to the lake once Brady is home from treatment 💜 Lord protect us.
I promised. So here’s the story of how my family was asked to leave Value Village last week. I won’t lie – it left a really bad taste in my mouth, and I was rattled for a couple of days over it, just because of how strange it felt. I tried to type it out the next day, but we got a new baby and that beat out the weird VV experience. Anyway. I’m here now.
July 2nd, while Wavys birthday, was actually an incredibly challenging, disjointed day. Lots of things didn’t quite go as planned. It wasn’t all bad things, per se, but just unpredictable and lots of need to pivot and redirect. It wasn’t fun, but we rolled with it.
We had a longer stretch of time in the city that was unexpected and welcomed. I have quite a list of things I have my eye out for an Value Village, but the trips in are always rushed. That day, we had time! Wavy was with Cher, and Dekker is at camp, so I took the six in. Rowan had a cart with Spoons, and Solly pushed a cart with LD and Peanut.
If you’ve been out with us in public, you know I am very aware of my kids. I know kids get into mischief, and while some people love to say “let them be kids” and not teach them what is and isn’t socially acceptable, that is not how we do over here. As we walked down aisles, I was reminding kids not to touch everything they saw, to stay to one side when people came around, and to stay close. We went through the kitchen section, which I can really drag out. I picked up some pottery, and an electric frying pan for making roll kuchen. Decor is in the same area. Left most of that behind…
*ironic foreshadowing*
We made our way over to books, which we scoured through until we had read every title in the youth/childrens chapter books. I think we picked up 10ish books. We moved into blankets and toys, where we scope for specific things every time we go, and then over to shoes, where a couple of the kids eagerly looked for sandals. Rowan is fairly opinionated with shoes, so Value Village is great because there is always a wide variety. We finally found a pair he really liked that fit well, and they weren’t even crazy expensive. So into the cart they went!
As we went along, multiple people stopped us to engage with and compliment the kids and how well behaved they were. And I felt really proud of them, because I totally agreed! I kept them focused, but had to correct them very little. It was going smoother than usual.
At that point, I decided there was enough time left for us to head over to the activewear section so I could finally try to grab a few tank tops for the summer. I’ve tried a handful of times to no avail, because as you know, moms come last. But we had time this time!! So I walked over there. We went down the centre aisle through the clothing section, all the while reminding kids to stay close, please.
So here’s where it happened.
As I ushered the kids and carts into the aisle with me, an employee was part of the train of kids. She said something about driving, and my assumption was that she was referencing the kids being helpful, because that really seemed to be the theme that day. But when she repeated herself, she was loud and condescending, and said children were not permitted to push cart. She loudly, slowly said “YOU NEED TO BE DRIVING, MOM.”
I was quite surprised. I said to her “This is a policy? I have never heard of such a thing here, or anywhere else.”
“Yes, thats our policy” she barked back.
“Well. I have three babies, and your carts can only sit one. Can a person with three babies just not shop here?”
“Maybe!” she responded.
I was completely shocked. I looked at my kids, whose eyes were welling up out of total confusion, and I looked back at her. I said to her again “I have never heard of such a policy. We’ve never had a problem.”
And she raised her voice and waved her hand at us, loudly demanding we “take it to the front then!”
Looking at the kids, I knew there was no way I could make a scene with them. So I looked at our cart, and looked at the kids, and said “Well. I guess we have to leave then.”
“Great!” the cranky lady said, and promptly walked away from us.
Now, let’s pause for a second here.
I recognize that all parents think their kids are perfect, even when they’re being jerks.
I recognize that lots of parents are inattentive these days, and that lots of kids do come in and destroy stores. They make huge messes sometimes.
I recognize that people don’t always celebrate when a mom and 6-8 children enter a store.
I recognize that when you see enough bad, you stop seeing the good, and assume everyone sucks.
The thing is – my kids were not being jerks. They were not making a mess. They were not whipping around the aisles, riding carts, or pulling things off shelves and hangers. They weren’t being loud or disruptive. They were honestly just doing so unbelievably well, and I was watching it, SO impressed.
And then this lady came and just knocked them right down.
So I walked out of Value Village with my kids, tears streaming down most of their faces. We got to the van and everyone burst out crying. They were so upset. They couldn’t understand why this woman had been so mean and so mad at us. They were so obedient and somehow, still got punished.
They had their cry, and then I said it was time to call the manager. The kids were quiet instantly and waited eagerly. The store did not want to put me through to a manager, but they did it anyway. I spoke confidently and explained what had happened, and the managed was aghast. She was outwardly upset, and SO apologetic. She wanted to know what the employee looked like and what we remembered about her. I told her the section we had been in, and that it was literally within the last five minutes. I asked her directly if there was ANY policy about children pushing carts, and she said absolutely NOT. Not. At. All. She said never has anything resembling this issue come up, and it would not again. She promised me she was going to figure out who they were as soon as we were off the phone. She apologized again, and we hung up.
But then the kids remembered the stuff. Rowan wanted those sandals. And we had picked out awesome books. It was such a good haul to leave behind.
So I locked the van up with the AC on, and I went in. Our cart wasn’t cleaned up yet, so I grabbed it and zipped it through self check out. I didn’t look around. I just paid, packed, and left.
I got back in the van and the kids thanked me for going back for their things. We sat quiet for a minute, and I said I figured we should get lunch. Rowan sniffled from his spot and said “I’m feelin’ fries and shakes.” So thats what we did. McFlurry for me.
It was a VERY odd experience. I felt upset about this woman coming at us for literally no reason at all. But more than that, I felt SO protective of my children, and watching their confusion and hurt was devastating. Even once it was all resolved, Laela cried, and asked why this woman would say these things and want us to leave. She felt insulted, and it was so hard to watch.
Anyway. I hated it. I haven’t gone back. But its only been a week. I’m sure I’ll go back at some point. But it really rattled me, and its taken a little bit of time to come back from. I don’t think it will ever happen again, but I don’t desire to see that lady ever again either 😬 Was not our best day.
Luckily, its long gone already. But! Now you know!
