School Days!

It was off to school for all of our little squirts this year! Gabriella started a few days after the boys. The neighbor girl comes over to catch the bus with us, and the kids enjoy having someone new to play with.

Meanwhile, I am by myself during the day now. I have been able to volunteer in each of the kids' classrooms each week, and I also help out at a local food pantry. We also started a non-profit called Fostering Further, which supports foster care in our county. That takes up a big chunk of time, but it has been very worthwhile work.

The other advantage is that sometimes I get to meet this handsome man for lunch...

Kites

West Virginia

We met our sister-in-law Tabatha, along with her kids Logan and Audrey, for a quick day trip to West Virginia over the summer. It was fun to spend time with them, however short, and let the kids play with their cousins. Looking forward to having them back in the States sometime next year!

Birth Family

We try to get together with Chase's birth family every summer. They are wonderful people and we are so glad that Chase has this connection as he grows older.

Football

This is how one son plays football:

This is how the other one plays. And yes, his socks say "Genius".

Campfires

Every few weeks, we cooked something over a campfire this summer. The kids really enjoyed it.

Gabriella took to reading the kindling. I would make some joke about a Kindle here, but it wouldn't be very funny.

One evening, Chase was messing with the logs that were ready to be put on the fire. Suddenly he yells out,

"Mom! I'm shooting you with an Army gun! Tricked ya, it's just a piece of wood."

Staycation

My Aunt Lois, Uncle Victor, and Sarah made the long trip over here to see us in August. It happened to work out that Rebecca's family was here at the same time, and we all got to spend a few days together. We don't see them very often, but we had so much fun that I wish they lived next door. The kids really loved playing with Sarah, who was very patient with them and played more soccer than she probably wanted to.

Aunt Lois suggested visiting the Columbus statehouse, which we had never seen.

Here, the kids are lying on the floor, looking at the skylight, and listening to their audio tour guides.

While on the tour, Chase and Gabriella went to a closed door and started  rattling the handle really hard. Turns out, that's where the Governor's office is. We know this because a gentleman came out and invited us in for a special tour (I think he was escaping a boring meeting, but he was really nice). We got to see and touch the same desk that Abraham Lincoln was standing at when he found out that he had won the presidency. (Correct me if I'm wrong, Aunt Lois.)

We also made homemade ice cream and slime. Not at the same time.

Wishing we lived closer, but we are so glad that they were able to come out!