Summer Recap 2009

It is hard to believe that our summer is almost over. The boys returned to school at the end of this week . . . 2 months have flown by very quickly. The above collage is from pictures I took of the boys over the summer doing various things . . . I'm not very good at capturing every. single. moment of our lives on camera, so this is the best I've got for now. I actually quite regret not having taken more pictures.

So, here's a recap of the summer (more for posterity, but if you want to find out what we've done all summer, read on).

Last week of June, first week of July: I began the dreaded task of painting our "new" entrance way, with hopes of continuing on into the living/dining room area of the house. Unfortunately, after analyzing my color choice, I had second thoughts and decided to hold off on painting the largest area of the house. Good grief, it took me 3 days just to finish the teeny-tiny entrance way! During this time, my boys visited my parents so that I could focus on painting. The end of this week found us host and hostess to very good friends who decided to "camp out" at our place for the weekend. It was one of the best parts of my summer!

Second week of July: Mitchell was enrolled in swimming lessons in the city. I coordinated as many appointments as possible during the two weeks while he was in swimming, since I was driving in to the city anyway. We all got our bodies checked, eyes checked and teeth checked. Our dogs got to visit the groomer, and we visited the hairdresser!

Third week of July: Mitchell's swimming lessons continued and he & Ty attended Vacation Bible School at our church in the evening. I helped out with registration.

Fourth week of July: Finally, a bit of normalcy. We worked on entries for our local Agricultural Fair, some friends came to play, we attended our local parade, and prepared for our holiday excursion.

Last week of July: We headed to northern Alberta to visit my sister and her family for several days. We stopped in Lloydminster to visit some good friends . . . we stayed overnight in Edmonton and had supper with my sister and brother-in-law at Red Robin (I love that place!) . . . we travelled north all the way to LaGlace and stayed at my sister's "Hotel". She lives on an acreage as well, but seriously, we felt like we were at a luxury resort. She had a pool and trampoline for the boys as well as horses and archery. We had access to a two-person jacuzzi tub and were treated to great food and fellowship. Yes, it was a great time!

First week of August: Upon returning from Alberta, my entire family (minus two), eventually arrived at my parents' house located about 45 minutes away from where we live. It was great to see everyone, play games, talk and laugh. We celebrated several family birthdays as well and it was great to reconnect with everyone again.

Second week of August: Wayne's holidays ended and he had to return to reality. The boys both had a friend over for a sleepover during the week and I got to play with them and their friends. My parents treated us to a showing of the Lipizzaner Stallions, which was excellent.

Third week of August: Unfortunately for me, my focus had to turn to studying for my final exam in the course I'm taking in order to work towards my official Educational Associate certification. Once again, my boys left to go visit their Grandma and Grandpa for a few days so that I could study without interruption. The exam went well; now I have to wait for my final mark.

Fourth week of August: This week we returned to normal school life again. I started work on Wednesday and the boys returned on Thursday for their first full day of classes. On Sunday we will be finishing off our summer with a jam-packed day . . . going to church, going out for lunch, celebrating with a friend on her 50th birthday, watching the movie "Up", followed by supper and a play at "The Barn Playhouse". Yep, jam-packed . . . and most of it courtesy of gifts/gift certificates.

So, that's the summer of 2009 in a nutshell. Of course we had many great immediate family-times together as well, sitting by the campfire, roasting marshmallows . . . playing games, watching movies, and of course, target-shooting. The boys really seemed to bond more this summer as well, which warms my heart!