New Youth Group Leader (Summer)

For my birthday, Carrie made a giant frosted brownie-cake! The frosting was mint.

I'm a fan of the classics and normally don't want frosting on brownies, but Carrie was determined to do something special! I loved the card she made for her "scruffy nerf herder," too.

We went as a family to Youth Group to further celebrate (Hooray for Christian childca...er, COMMUNITY!). Carrie and I watched Shane outside and talked to Andrew for a little bit.

Today's Youth Group was an introduction for the church's new Youth Pastor, Matt. There were a lot of parents and kids, so Carrie hung out in the car when Shane and I went in. Shane sat all the way up front and I dropped in behind him.

There was a chat with the whole group and then we broke off into kids and parents to finish the night.

Carrie was starving, so we grabbed Bojangles on the way home! I haven't been there in years. Shane wanted ketchup, so I said, "Go in and get it."

"Alone?"

"Yes! Go!"

They grow up so fast....or maybe that's my mid-life crisis kicking in.

Summer Swim Team (Summer!)

I thought I was being proactive looking up swim teams for Shane at the start of May. I was late to the pool party. Proactive parents started looking in March and April! There were multiple teams that told me they were full. Of the teams that were left, ACAC wanted me to sign up Shane as a member at ~$70 a month for 6 months to pay $250 to be on their team for the summer! Yikes!

Instead, we signed up with Elks. They were way more affordable at $110 for members and $160 for nonmembers (us). Further in Elks favor, was they were next to where played soccer all season. It would take about half an hour each way, but that was one of the best options out there for us.

Practice started Tuesday night, May 30th at 6 PM. I drove Shane back into town after he hopped off the bus, ate, and changed.

Ka's kids inspired me to try a swim team this year. Cole, Evey, and Tenley all improved tremendously when the joined their neighborhood swim team last summer. Our nearby pool didn't have a swim team (it's not set up for lanes). Also, the discounted early-bird price for pool membership was $333 for a family of 2 this year! I figured we'd try something new, make Shane an even stronger swimmer, and save a few dollars (Though, the local pool was ~2 miles away and the Elks were ~20 miles away...that's a big difference in time and gas!).

We recognized a few people from school and the local pool when we got there (though they were all girls and Shane wasn't thrilled - I saw E sneak take a pick of Shane with her phone).

I was excited for Shane to show his stuff. He's a good swimmer already and I hope that the team will refine his technique (He pops his whole head up to breath in freestyle rather than simply turning it).

I watched intently for the first practice and discovered swimming laps in lanes isn't conducive to amazing photography.

It went well for Shane. Even being a newbie he wasn't the slowest one out there! 

Before the school year ends, there's practice 3 nights a week for about an hour. We'll spend that much time in the car, but I have plenty of audibooks stored up for the occasion! I'm hoping there will be more practice options as summer opens up (particularly morning ones).

Cats and Dogs Living Together? Pandemonium! (Summer)

Who says cats and dogs can't be friends? 

Pip has decided he likes to wrestle with Kila.

Kila wasn't sure what to do with it at first.

She wasn't upset, just unsure of herself.

This looks like Pip is trying to heel-hook her!

Kila eventually started playing back.

I have minutes and minutes of these two going at it. Loki's mainly an observer, but he'll start barking if there's too much running around.

Carrie thinks it's cute and is happy to instigate. Flying cat bomb!

I could have peppered this whole post full of videos and photos. It's been going on for weeks! If you see me in person, ask and I can show you a ton of footage on my phone!

Trail Day (Summer)

Shane and I got Bodo's after church (Thanks, soccer peeps!). The line was super-long, but it moved fast enough and helped kill some time.

John, Dylan, Eli, and Ava met us for a trail walk. John brought Kyrie along for some leash training.

The three boys took off running.

Kyrie tried to choke herself to join them (she's new to the leash). Ava hung with us at first. 

But she was quickly distracted by all of the other animals on the trail. The first of which was a black snake.

Followed by every single dog that walked by!

 The boys kept moving until they hit the rope swing.

Shane wanted to swing on it. I said I wouldn't stop him. If he got wet, he'd have to deal with it. 

Shane opted not to swing after all. I think it would've been fine on the way back, but even smarter to do it with a swimsuit and towel! It'll probably happen someday.

Turtles on the river were the other big attraction at the stop.

We let the kids play and Kyrie worked to tie her leash in a knot.

With all the pulling, John was glad he didn't let a kid try to walk her! Kyrie was friendly with every dog she saw. They were all friendly in return (it helps that she's still a puppy).

The next stop involved hunting for crawfish and throwing rocks in the river.

Shane made a catch!

All the kids hopped on rocks to the center of the river. The water isn't even waist high and they could all swim, so the only dangers were wet shoes and skinned knees.

Thankfully, we managed to avoid all of those! Eli thought he was stuck for a little bit, but he worked it out on his own.

John wasn't worried and too busy trying to think of a way for Kyrie to drink. It was a hot day! He used a tarp and some tree roots to make an improvised bowl.

On our third pit stop, Ava spotted a couple with a dog by the river. They were throwing a stick for the dog to jump in and fetch. "Can I throw once?" she asked. They agreed and then ALL the kids wanted a turn!

We turned around and got back to the cars just as it was starting to rain (you can see it on the asphalt). It was perfect timing!

For us, it was a fun social outing. For John's crew, it was an electronics break without moaning and fighting! I can't remember if we went straight home or on errands afterward. The 2 hours plus on the trail were the highlight of the day!

Riding and Patrick (Summer)

"Shane! What are you doing? We're here for your riding lesson!"

"That's better!"

Nothing wrong with loving on doggos as long as you're ready for whatever is coming up!

I left Shane on his own and drove home for his lesson (childcare is great for healthy marriages). PG and Shane were walking back to the riding arena when I returned. I heard the lesson went well!

Shane and I left from the lesson to go deep into the mountains of Virginia.

We were hunting for wild Patricks in their new habitat! Shane had already been there before, so he ditched me in the car and ran to the door.

Patrick and Shelby closed on their house early November last year. I was supposed to help them move at the end of February, but they all got sick. They spent the months in between unpacking, painting, and making the house their own.

This was my first chance to see it. Nana and Pop were the first on our side of the family, but I got to claim 2nd place!

Patrick nearly fell down the stairs coming to great us (In his defense, those stairs were surprisingly steep! People in mountain towns don't worry about that, I guess!).

Nathan is a happy, social, little guy. He was a bundle of energy running around!

We talked for a little bit and I got to look around the house some before we went out for food. Shane wanted to ride in their car! I rode alone while he hopped in the car with a bunch of other people (What a raging extrovert...).

Afterwards, we went out for ice cream (I love DQ Blizzards!).

Patrick spent the whole time running in circles after Nathan!

We drove back to their house, and, yes, Shane wanted to ride with them again! 

When we got back, Shane hid in the ottoman for a little while to amuse himself and Nathan. Patrick took me up to show off his new man cave and Shane came running up after (wherever the  most people are, Shane will be). Patrick's GMing two D&D campaigns and tinkering with making a Plex server to keep himself busy in between books.

Shane wrestled a bit more before we called it a day. Hopefully, we left Nathan nice and tired for Patrick and Shelby! 

I was annoyed when I realized I was 4 miles too late for an epic picture!

It was our first Saturday without soccer, so visiting family was a great way to spend it. Congrats to Patrick, Shelby, and Nathan for making the house more their own and moving to a new town!