That's a Wrap

With the dawn of my first full week back at work looming in less than 10 hours and the kids' return to school just days away, I give you the summer recap.

She looks innocent, but she may very well be the most annoying dog ever!!! Summer held just a handful of days when I could actually sleep as long as my body said to. She yelped every single morning at 6:00 a.m. until I drug myself out of bed and walked down a flight of stairs to let her out of her crate.  I let her outside, and she yelped to come back in.  By the time we finished the process, there was no way I was going to get back to sleep.  She woke me every morning I could sleep late.  On the only morning I could attend an inservice, she did not make a peep, and I awoke 30 minutes prior to the start of the in service.  

On a day that we were trying to enjoy an amusement park, we faced storms.  We ditched the park and visited a nearby mall where Wyatt and Julia enjoyed this really cool two story carousal courtesy of Zach.

Julia filled my phone with selfies.

I mean she really filled my phone.

We spent precious few days with friends.

Andy and I celebrated 20 years in NYC.

We prepared for senior year.

We met a new family member.

Shiloh added her own brand of being ornery to the mix, so much so that many discussions have revolved around whether we can continue to keep her. We are working on her and seeing some positive changes. We have returned to what worked before and are getting a kick out of her love for her new toys.  She's like a kid with a security blanket carrying her latest stuffed toy everywhere.

Wyatt found something he could enjoy at an amusement park and insisted on numerous pictures of himself with the dinosaurs.

We enjoyed precious few days on thrill rides and in a water park.

Dad celebrated 70 years.

We enjoyed a great swim season with champion swimmers.

Work travel made fun days with Andy very precious and few.  He visited Texas, Seattle, and Buffalo in our few weeks of summer in addition to family trips.

We loved a new beach.

Our teens were challenged and had a blast at Bible and Beach.

We caught up with old friends and friends from far away.

We said goodbye to good friends as miles part us.

We faced our last summer of high school football practices.  We know the season will fly, and we will really, really miss this team.

This summer was our busiest ever.  We traveled more and spent less time with friends.  I am not sure the entire family was ever home for a full week at a time.  In many ways it was one of our best summers ever.  We celebrated marriage and connected with great friends who live away from us.  However, it was not the best for everyone.  I hardly managed to get Savannah together with her friends at all, and she really helped us through the travel.  She is training well to be a great mom and homemaker.  Zach worked so much that he rarely gathered with friends himself.  While Wyatt and Julia enjoyed more social experiences, our busy schedule even limited them.  It was definitely our fastest summer ever.

As usual, the summer projects did not happen.  Wyatt's room still needs to be painted.  Our living room still needs new flooring, and all our our indoor trim needs a fresh coat of paint.  Our basement and garage need lots of purging and organizing.  The Vacation Station workbooks went unfinished, and just two days before school starts, Zach has barely touched the summer assignments.  None of this is going away, so I guess we have some fall projects to tackle.

Please summer, don't go.