Summertime: Water, Rocks, Swings, Popsicles, and Band-Aids

     The days have been non-stop since school let out. Right now, as I sit at my computer, there are two piles of "stuff" dumped on the floor beside me. I was frantically looking for two baskets with which to serve snacks at our church's Fine Arts Camp yesterday. I saw these two baskets in the office; one held wool and the other held baby toys. I dumped the contents and ran with them. I mention this only because this is what the days feel like right now. Dump and run.
     We've had so much rain that I haven't been able to mow the lawn. It's thick and lush...and ankle deep. Mr. B. was finally able to mow our field yesterday and the making of hay has commenced in the neighborhood. I should be able to take care of our lawn today.
     After our New York trip, we had Claire's three children come and stay for a week. It was the absolute prettiest week of weather we've had all season and we had a blast. We hiked and swam, went out for ice cream, swung on the tree swing, picked wildflowers in the field, invited a cousin for a sleepover, watched movies, ate lots of Popsicles, built Playmobil and Thomas train tracks, and ate some hearty dinners. I was amazed by the children's appetites! I flopped into bed each night and slept well. Now I know the secret for a good night's sleep: try and keep up with three active children all day : ) One of my favorite memories of the week was sitting on the porch one evening while the children played outside. The sound of their little voices out and about on the property was so sweet. Huddling together and reading books at bedtime was a close second favorite for me.
     The same morning the children went home, I drove three hours south to Boone and Blowing Rock, NC. I needed to swap cars back with Tess after Steve had done some repairs on hers. I spent the night at her apartment and we had a great time walking around the beautiful village of Blowing Rock and dining at Moon Thai and Sushi restaurant. I brought home an unusual antique table that Tess found for me in a Thrift Store. I placed it on the porch for now since it serves a good purpose out there for the summer.
     We are in "Fine Arts Camp" week at church now and Steve and I both go over each late afternoon/evening and help out with that. The views on our church's property are outstanding and I've enjoyed watching the children have fun and being outside each evening with that view. I think all the activity is catching up and I'm ready to spend some quiet time around the house, perhaps gardening and reading a good book.

Our hike to Roaring Run

 

Audrey and Violet hiked too!

We had the best time playing in the pools and seeing who could make the biggest splash with rocks.

We went through almost an entire box of Band-aids for Matthew by weeks' end : )

We collected a lot of rocks.

Frequent visits to the swing

Mari playing dress-up and picking flowers. Mari's aunts wore this dress when they were little.

We found this beauty in the field!

Mari made the boys' headdresses. She said she wanted them to be like a gymnasts' hair : )

Steve tosses pennies in the yard then gives the boys a metal detector wand. Jack LOVES hunting for pennies.

Sunset from Wellspring's parking lot.