summer days... part 1

You've heard of drinking from a fire hose.  Well, this is blogging from a fire hose.  Or something like that.  

I really enjoy keeping track of our daily and weekly goings-on through this blog.  It's something I keep that I hope to be able to show our kids one day.  So that, when I look back at these days as one big blur of child rearing,  I'll have the pictures and the stories of those little things.  Little things that will hopefully remind me that these times were so much more than just a blur.  So much more.

But in the blurriness that sometimes is, there are just not enough hours in the day to capture these thoughts and pictures.  So, sometimes I have to do it all at once.  When the kids are sleeping and the wee hours allow.  So here goes... a start to our summer in review.

After a long roadtrip and lots of help from my father-in-law, we got here in June.  It was hot and has remained that way for most of the summer.  I know I should have expected this, but I think I've been in the north for too long.  I've grown rather fond on mild summers and this beautiful concept know as seasons.  But, none-the-less, we are in the south now. And in case we didn't realize it, there was a nice welcome sign to remind us.

I think I should have donned bare feet for this one.  But the baby on the hip should suffice, don't you think?

And another sign to make us aware of our proximity to the good ol' Mason-Dixon.

You just don't see signs like that in New England, folks.  You just don't.

Anyway, since we've been here.  We've been enjoying all the great things about Southern living... being close to home, good food, Southern accents, pick up trucks, awesome Walmarts, etc.

We've checked out the area and kept ourselves entertained this summer. 

We watched butterflies emerge from their chrysalis'. 

The kids named them Wisteria, Petunia and Spotty.  

Since we've freed them, the kids are sure that they can see them (and identify them by name) everytime we see a butterfly.

Filling the need to nurture, the girls have also collected a variety of other bugs.  But none of these were cuddly enough so....

We got Alfie.  Meet the newest member of our family... a grey tabby kitten we adopted from the local animal shelter.  Bless him, he is a patient cat.  He has been loved, toted, pushed in wagons and carried in every manner imaginable by lots of loving little hands.  Though we thought we would prefer a dog, we have discovered that a cat is just what our family needed right now.  Low on maintenance, high on love.

And speaking of love... Ken built the kids a great swing set for the backyard.

And he had lots of little hands to help.

Very little hands.

But mostly, everyone just enjoyed being outside with Daddy.  The smell of bug spray in the air.  Cheering him on, playing games.

Just enjoying summertime .....

and awaiting the completion of the new swingset.

Thanks, Daddy.  It's awesome.

Now that the weather is finally cooling off a bit, we've been able to spend more time enjoying the outdoors.  Playing basketball, riding bikes, the parks.

With summer ending, we're focusing on a whole new batch of new things coming up in the Fall.  God has been good to us as we've transitioned here. We've seen Him answer alot of prayers and are continuing to pray.  So much learning and changing.  So much more to catch up on.  But that will have to wait for another time.

More to come....