Summer is here!!!

We had our annual last day of school surprise party. I know, kind of an oxymoron! We celebrated in the garage due to the pouring rain.

Our teachers were phenomenal! Ruby is sad that it is summer because she loved her teacher so much.

Geo-caching! We just learned about these fun treasure hunts using a GPS device.




Strawberry picking. I should have weighed Rocky before and after, then paid accordingly!

No MANNERS please!

We just celebrated our 2nd annual "No Manners Dinner". I can't tell you how much my kids love this.

Absolutely NO:

• dishes
• utensils
• please pass...
• thank yous

The only rule is if you make a mess, you clean it up. It is really hard for me to bite my tongue and let them go wild, the best way to surrender is to join the craziness! Every other dinner for the rest of the year is a Manners Dinner. It's great because when my kids are doing something inappropriate, I can tell them to save it for the next NMD!

Happy 13!

3 kids, 2 degrees, 4 states and tons of great memories later! Thanks for being my partner in crime for these last 13 years! I love you MUZZ!

My Daddy is my Favorite PAL

That little chunky profile sucking on the bottle is me. You can see where Rocky got his cheeks from!

I feel so blessed to have such an amazing dad. I have always been a daddy's girl, still am. My dad is my hero. He has been through a lot in his life. I have never heard him complain about any of his trials. Instead of asking why me, he asks what should I learn from this. My dad is one of the friendliest people you will ever meet. He can start up a conversation with just about anyone. He gives everyone the benefit of the doubt. He is always happy to share whatever he has with others. He is kind and gentle, but can give the greatest teddy bear hugs. I have always been his favorite daughter (I don't have any sisters).

Thanks for all you do! I love you Dad!

Dirty Deeds

While Matt was enjoying this crystal clear water in Vermont...
I was enjoying this filthy goop in my tub...



because of these 3 dirty birds! I am sure we had more fun!

Ready, Set, GO CARTS!

Our neighbor gave us these awesome little go carts! Matt and I are both over the weight limit but it hasn't slowed us down! VROOM!!!

Go RED!!

Wow what a FIELD DAY! We were on the RED team, if you can't tell.
Rocky cuttin a rug at the dance party.

Springfield Tornado

Wednesday I checked the weather app on my phone and it said there were 7 severe weather alerts. I was pretty much glued to the Doppler maps for a couple hours. It was cloudy with a slight breeze where we live. Minutes away, an F4 tornado ripped though Springfield, MA. I have been horrified to watch the news reports. Our church had trees knocked down, no building damage. Driving home from church we witnessed the devastation. I had my camera ready for a cool blog post. I never got my camera out, I couldn't take pictures of peoples ruined lives. I am feeling very blessed that we were not hit. My heart breaks for those that lost everything.

In Indiana the tornado sirens went off all the time. It was pretty expected because tornadoes are common in the Midwest. We never had any touch down very close to us while we were there. Unfortunately they were hit last week.

My first tornado was in Salt Lake City, where tornadoes never happen. I was teaching in a portable classroom. The tornado literally started on our playground. It was one of the scariest experiences of my life. I was traumatized for months by it.

My neighbors are wondering if we are bad luck! I hope I am not some sort of tornado magnet.

Wingaersheek Beach

(Giant oozing snail) YUCK!!




We finally made it to the beach! For most of us this was our first time seeing the Atlantic Ocean. Wingaersheek Beach is in Glouscter MA. It was beautiful. The tides were very dramatic. The water was very clear. Remember the part in the 5 Chinese Brothers where the brother swallows the sea and the whole sea floor is exposed? That is how this beach was minus all the trash. We found so many treasures. Coop was excited to spend all of his sand dollars. He was pretty bummed to find out you couldn't spend them (unless you are Percy Jackson). We found crabs (large and small), a starfish, and a giant snail. I even saw my very first light house.