Another summer week

 Last Friday we had Joel here for the day and we tried to go to the pool until a random rain storm kicked us out after 20 minutes. So we came home and made peanut butter Oreo ice cream that was so delicious! I had invited Sam and Joel to stay for dinner so Josh grilled us some delicious fiesta lime chicken and we had dinner and then Emma, Brandon and I went to see Ethan in Bye Bye Birdie. It is not my favorite show and I really would not have gone unless the Howells offered us free tickets but Ethan really wanted Brandon to come see it so that was sweet. Rachael and Ethan were both great and the show overall was well done; it was just far away and late and some parts of the show really bug me but Ethan was so happy to see Brandon afterwards and it was so kind of them to share their comp tickets with us. 

Saturday morning we went over to the Hendersons for some wake boarding. It was such a beautiful day and a perfect one for sitting on the dock and watching the kids go zooming around. Mark pulls them with his jet ski and Curtis, Brandon and Josh all made it up on the wake board. Emma was super close but gave up and poor Lily just was not getting it at all and kept getting dumped over. Mark was so patient and also so excited when they would get up. He even had Curtis doing tricks before we left, although I think Brandon won for staying up the longest. We swam around the dock and the kids jumped off and did flips and we floated and talked with Amy and it really was so fun. There were some jellyfish out and everyone got stung a bit but it didn't really hurt and the discomfort didn't even last long so they didn't spoil our fun too much. Then we picked some blackberries and chatted some more and thanked them profusely for their generosity and got home around 3pm. 

 

Everyone was pretty tired so no one was excited when I mentioned we had free tickets to the Blue Crabs game that night (and fireworks!). I would have liked to go but only Brandon was excited and another late night didn't seem like a good idea for him. Although he did fall asleep on the couch for a bit in the afternoon so he probably would have been okay. I am just kind of tired of having to push my family to have fun. They seem pretty content not doing much of anything or just doing their own thing instead of being together and I get that I am home the most but it would be nice for someone to be excited about my fun ideas. Anyway, we grilled hamburgers and hot dogs for the first time this summer and the kids played a game together while Josh and I went over to Solomon's to go on a long walk and have some alone time. 

Sunday I really enjoyed teaching my primary lesson and I brought doughnuts for my class. They earned them by passing off the 4th article of faith but then I also used them as part of my lesson on the three degrees of glory. They had some good questions about what happens after we die and I used the doughnuts to represent the celestial kingdom, a small little chunk to represent the terrestrial kingdom and then a crumb for the telestial. As we read the scriptures that describe those who will be in the celestial kingdom there was this cool moment where they realized that the list is pretty much the 4th article of faith (faith in Jesus Christ, repentance, baptism by immersion, gift of the Holy Ghost and then being sealed in the temple). We talked about the joy of being with our families forever and also Jesus and Heavenly Father and having the whole doughnut. It was also Danny's birthday this week and he is always asking me for doughnuts so it all worked out pretty perfectly. We have such a sweet class and I enjoy being able to teach because it is my favorite thing to do in the church (other than planning Christmas music for sacrament meeting :).  That evening Lily made blackberry crumble and we watched 17 Miracles. 

Monday morning I took Noreen to an appointment so I got to read for awhile and visit with her, which was great. Tuesday morning Josh, Lily and Curtis left for youth conference. They met up at the stake center and then took buses to Kirtland. I've heard pretty much only good things about their experiences. Lily didn't have a roommate and enjoyed her family and the temple, Curtis played a good amount of ping pong and sounds like his family was a  little less engaging, Josh felt a little out of place sometimes but enjoyed being with all the youth and exploring Kirtland (we haven't been there since right after we got married) and both he and Lily shared their testimonies at the meeting in the temple. 

While they were gone Emma was doing a dance intensive so she was gone every day from 9-3. Brandon and I pretty much just hung out Tuesday. I finished my book for book club that night, we watched Tarzan and he played with Legos and practiced the piano. Then we went to the grocery store and got Emma and had dinner and then I went to book club. I left early because I promised them I would be home to tuck them in but I'm glad I got to go and that they were fine without me. Being the younger two they aren't used to being on their own very often, especially at night. Wednesday I went to the gym and then Brandon and I went to the pool, where we stayed for four hours. Lots of friends were there so we had a fun time. Then Joel came over for a bit and then it was church activities that night and when we got back we started Frozen: The Broadway Musical.  Thursday I went for a nice walk with Michelle and we caught up and then Brandon and I decided to go back to the pool and we stayed for another three hours. We got Emma and had dinner, made some blackberry ice cream and finished watching Frozen and I really enjoyed it. I wish it weren't so expensive to go see shows like that or we would have gone last year when it came to the Kennedy Center. It is great to see it on TV but in person is so much better.

That night the big kids came home and we listened to their youth conference report and then yesterday was super chill. Curtis went to baseball, Emma had dance, Brandon went to a birthday party and Lily worked on her health class and did a lot of babysitting. This summer has been strange with so many activities and my kids in all different directions but it is still going by too fast!