July - A Blast and a Blur!

July FLEW by and I can't believe it is August already! Our friends Kim and Zack flew up to see her mom in Dundee for a week. We got to go to her house in Bay City and spend the night and suffer through 2 long beach visits to please the children. I am not kidding either...it was windy and cold and not what I am used to the beach being in July! But they loved it and I don't have pictures because we used her camera. Big mistake on the camera...but it was fun! I probably won't get those pictures until I see them again:)

Then those dear friends were kind enough to give up a cushy seat on a quick airplane flight and sit in my Honda Odyssey (although I must say pretty cushy too) for over 16 hours to drive with us to California! What a trip! The kids were amazing, the dog even did good, and we made great time.


Once we got there the clock started ticking to get everything done on Connor's list. Actually it was all of our list, but he was the only that wrote them down! These are in no particular order...let's see how we did!



1. Swim Anywhere
We definitely got to enjoy a few great swim days at Papa Jerry's (Kim's dad) and the boys did great. Brody is so much more confident than he was last year and Connor improves each time and even discovered how fun jumping in is, once he got past the scary part!








2. Pick cherries

Nope. Connor was hoping that The Loomis's would have cherries on their trees but they didn't produce this year. We did get some yummy plums though! Oh yeah, and awesome tomatoes from Kim too!


3. Sleepover at Caleb and Luke's

I couldn't get them to come home! They had so much fun and got to spend a whole afternoon and evening with all the Loomis clan. They even went back after church for another round! We sent our Wii over and they camped out in the tent in the living room! Great stuff! I lucked out too and got to have some time with 3 of my special girlfriends while the boys were with their friends!




4. Sleepover at Zack's
With the exception of leaving behind the special stuffed Blackie Gorilla, this was of course a lot of fun too. They love going to Zack's house and I am sure there were a few games of sword fighting and shoot outs too. Kim even stayed up late so they could get a turn on Guitar Hero in slow mode...took awhile! We got to spend a lot of great quality time with The LeVesque's even with Connnor's run in with the stomach flu and Kim's run in with a migraine on steroids!

5. Go raspberry and blackberry picking.
Nope. Didn't do it. Didn't ask once we got there.

6. Have a football party with Caleb and Josiah at the park.
We had a few opportunities to play football at the park with The Barker Family! The best one was probably at I street park when the sprinklers went on! They had so much fun and it was so hot and a great day to get wet! We also got to enjoy a home made pizza night at their house which I especially loved! I haven't had an oven for months and really miss my pizza! It is so special to see the boys bond with all their good friends and for me to be with mine!








7. Play guitar hero with Zack.
See number 3. Done.

8. Go to Grandma & Pa's for breakfast.
It is so nice to have such a great place to stay when we visit. That apartment works out perfect for us and Grandma and Pa even let us bring the dog! We have our own space, which means they do too, but we are not to far away to walk over for breakfast. Grandma made the boys french toast which they devoured...now I know why .....sugar, the secret ingredient! She did that a couple of days and it made them feel so special. We got to spend some great quality time watching movies, playing the Wii, and even playing outside. They got the boys some special toys to have outside; a slip and slide and a game called Jarts. We enjoyed some great mornings hanging out and some wonderful afternoons on the patio!








9. Go to Oak House with Grandma and Pa
We only did this once which surprised me, but it was good. Connor especially talks about The Oak House all the time and they are his favorite pancakes!


10. Go to Dana Point Beach with my friends
We were so blessed to enjoy two special days at our favorite beach, Doheny in Dana Point. We went once with Kim and Zack, and once with Marianne, Caleb, Luke and Lillie! The weather was awesome, the beach was beautiful and even the drive wasn't to bad!




Connor, Caleb and Brody were making a huge pile of sea weed and this score was their biggest challenge! They worked SO hard to get this to "the spot" and it was hysterical! Luke thought they were crazy and wanted no part in the work, but was very encouraging pointing occasionally and saying..."you're almost there". It was so funny!

BONUS!

One day we got a special treat and met some of the moms from our old homeschool group at the Oak Glen Schoolhouse park. We all had so much fun and it was so great to see them and catch up on their lives too! I know we are all missing the fun park days and events that we had with that group so it was a special time for me!

Joanna C, Lisa S., Sonya G., Liz A., Beth B., and me!

So, that is some of the fun stuff, but there is more to come. Aunt Lara met us in California, drove up with us and I will update on her visit and the remodel project! Told you it was a lot!