The Last Few Weeks

 These last few weeks have felt like summer vacation for me. My teenagers have been sleeping like teenagers--late mornings and late night and our schedule has been busy but not overwhelming.

Evenings at the beach are our favorite. This time we watched a pod of dolphins swim by and even saw two jump completely out of the water.

A very overcast and rainy day at the beach with extended family led to artistic expressions in the sand.

We celebrated the graduation of Aliza's best friend.

Jeremy got to help Joel put a new electric battery in his car.

It was a beautiful weekend and we got to spend lots of time outside enjoying hanging out with Ronan.

On the way home we got to view the Chesapeake Bay from the top of the bridge in stand still traffic! We still got home in time for youth group which was all that mattered.

 

And then Monday Josiah woke up with a stomach sickness. Jeremy came home from work on Monday not feeling well. Aliza was sick Tuesday morning and then early Friday morning Isaiah got sick. Hopefully that is the end of the sickness here!

Camp Week

 Aliza, Josiah and Anna had the time of their lives at camp.

The youth that went to camp shared in church this morning. While they are at camp, they are expected to take notes during the sermons and small group times. They each picked a quote from their notes to share with the church this morning.

When they got home at 3:00, they just wanted to be quiet. We ate supper at 6:15 and they talked until the last one was tucked into bed at 11:40! 

The highlight of Isaiah's week was spending the night with Ezra.

He came home with these STATEMENT McDonald's Crocs and he is proud of them!

 

Joy Dare::June

 11,297. Making a connection with a young woman from Kenya
11,298. S'mores and deck lights
11,299. Unexpected time to have a good conversation with Aliza
11,300. Packing for a trip
11,301. A sister-in-law talk I needed
11,302. The girls got Grandma and Grandpa time
11,303. Family car time
11,304. A safe trip
11,305. An AirBnB that is just right for us
11,306. Touring
11,307. Picnic and getting to know the class
11,308. Greenville downtown
11,309. All the graduation day feelings
11,310. Thrifting with Anna
11,311. Watching my girl receive her diploma
11,312. Sleeping in
11,313. Finding a waterfall
11,314. NOT seeing any snakes
11,315. 4 drivers
11,316. Listening to the children laugh late at night
11,317. Safely home
11,318. Children that want to be home to go to church
11,319. Good conversations
11,320. Anna so excited

11,321. Indoor s'mores

11,322. Hearing guitar all evening
11,323. Doing different kinds of work
11,324. A beautiful spring day
11,325. Shopping and lunch with Isaiah
11,326. An afternoon to slow down
11,327. Dentist appointments check off the list
11,328. Opportunities for Josiah
11,329. Anna dancing without a care in the world
11,330. A smooth drive and arrived on time
11,331. The team worked well together
11,332. A quiet evening alone
11,333. Leading
11,334. Seeing some familiar faces
11,335. Talking to Aliza and Anna
11,336. College campus lunches are really good
11,337. A body that can work hard
11,338. Jeremy calmly solves my ridiculous technical issues
11,339. Podcasts to listen to on my drive home
11,340. Home with my family
11,341. Father's Day dinner
11,342. The Sheats cousins have so much fun
11,343. Almost felt back to normal after a nap
11,344. Breeze on very warm days
11,345. Cheering Aliza on
11,346. Summer mornings
11,347. Anna surprised me with a tidy living room and kitchen
11,348. School cabinet cleaned out
11,349. Everyone home for supper
11,350. A reading evening
11,351. The laundry room reorganized
11,352. Hammock on the porch has created a new space for sibling gathering
11,353. It was a lot cooler at the beach
11,354. Anna's first song on the electric guitar
11,355. Hamburgers and watermelon taste like summer
11,356. A Saturday with no big plans
11,357. Delivering supper and a window visit
11,358. A birthday celebration in Sunday School
11,359. Seeing some friends who were in town for the weekend
11,360. Bible study
11,361. Maria
11,362. Having Cheryl over for ice cream
11,363. Late night laughter
11,364. Josiah finding something he enjoys
11,365. Prayers answered
11,366. Lunch with Isaiah
11,367. Evenings that cool off
11,368. Rain
11,369. Cousin friendships
11,370. Isaiah had a great day and fell asleep immediately tonight
11,371. Spruced up the flowerbeds in an evening
11,372. My girls offering friendship
11,373. Jeremy and Josiah working together on the van
11,374. Breakfast with Janell
11,375. Isaiah so proud of his Jr. Park Ranger certificate
11,376. A break in the humidity
11,377. Family Pokemon outing
11,378. Ramen bowls before camp
11,379. Josiah's ideas
11,380. Saying good bye to very happy and excited youth
11,381. Me, Jeremy and Isaiah for a few days
11,382. Church adults that befriend Isaiah