Summer Days

This summer has been our busiest ever. I’m used to more lazy days of summer but I suppose as these girls get bigger the basic days of blocks and books and friends coming and going, still leaves a desire to be do more.

So for the first summer there have been camps! And they REALLY, actually want to go. It’s all been impromptu because I don’t like to plan. Going by the minute of knowing what everyones needs seems to be my follow-my-gut parenting style.

When I dropped of the two bigs, the little was SO sad that she wasn’t going to camp that I drove down the street where her friend was going to bible camp, where I knew the director (love a small town!) and dropped her off with a small snack bag. She was happy as could be. It was a total third kid moment – because who would do that with a first kid? No one! And she’s been going back three days a week ever since. Camp braids included! Because they are the  best. 

Aside from going to camps with friends we have been drawn to the water. I love being around water. My girls are true water babies (even all born in bathtubs) and my youngest is swimming like a fish this year – keeping up with her older sisters just fine.

We bought an underwater camera to keep up with the action and I put a waterproof case on my iPhone -partly in preparation for our beach trip that begins soon. So yeah, it’s the summer of water. With two SUPs and two kid kayaks in tow.

If you look closely you can see the little one catching a ride with my husband. She flip flops between that and swimming next to us, or behind and “pushing” the boards.And when the girls took over my board, I took a float on the kid kayak, with a nice view. 

The girls wanted to try thier new snorkel gear, and the camera. I love these silly girls!!!

I’m also loving our garden. Here’s one of our three potato harvests. And the prep work for dinner – potatoes, beets and carrots from our garden. In the crock pot is  black beans. It’s my only crockpot success as a vegetarian. I quick boil beans for 10 minutes, with added salt. Then put them in the crockpot on medium for 4-6 hours. It’s the best taco night secret ever!  Oh and…lastly I got a new car! Normally that would not make a blog and I’ll spare you the photos. However I will say that I never liked my old minivan for one single day of the five years I drove it. It was a 2009 Honda Odyssey – AKA Betty the Bus. And after a long saga with stupid run flat tires I went shopping to never drive a minivan again. And guess what? I got a new Honda Odyssey. Everything I hated about the last one, that I wished I could have designed differently to make it truly a perfect family car – they did for me in the 2014 models.  And now, I can officially say I am part of the I love my minivan club.

I’m have always put carseat safety top and the new one has FIVE latch systems so I can latch in all our booster seats, plus extras for friends. And all three kids (with a carseat and two boosters) can sit three across in the middle row! And it has a built in cooler for road trip snacks. And it has a built in trash can! And a built in vacuum cleaner, for pete’s sake. AND NO RUN FLAT TIRES. Road trips here we come. Because these water girls like to travel. And now this mom loves her minivan.