Her 1st Bee Sting....

Last Friday evening we went over to our little neighborhood park to play. Emily LOVES to play on the slide and was happy to play with the other children there too. Steve sat on the bench next to the play structure and was swarmed by bees/wasps. So he moved from there. Emily however headed right for the bench after coming down the slide and was stung almost instantly.

I had some first aid wipes in the car for stings and quickly applied that to her sting. She seemed to get over it pretty quickly. It has been a few days since then and Emily will still hold up her arm to show you her "Bee".

This is Emily....

This is Emily after the kids leave for school.....

This is Emily when the kids get home from school.....

Emily will look for or call for the kids during the day while they are at school. The first day of school we dropped the kids off at the bus, two separate times. After the second group had left for school Emily came in and started calling for everyone. She is just delighted to see everyone when the get home.

Back to School....

On August 17th, with tissue boxes in hand and backpacks packed full, the kids boarded their buses headed back to school. This is our last year for grade school (for a couple of years anyway), our last year before I have a high schooler, the last year of split bus schedules, our last year of senior primary (until Emily gets up there). It is Emily's first year in nusery at church. It is the first year that Emily waves and says goodbye as the kids get on the bus. The first year for Kristina in Middle School. The first year that Katie and Carson are not in the same class. The first year that Jonny liked the first week of school. The first year that we don't go to the fair!

We have been to two class presentations since school has started. Carson gave his "I am an Influencial American" presentation during the first week of school and Katie gave hers at the beginning of this second week of school.

Goofy kids....

Oh, baloney...

I said to Emily yesterday, "You are stinky" to which she replied, "Oh, baloney"...

2nd visit to Quick Care...

Carson LOVES dogs. He was loving his favorite dog and fell onto the dog. The dog didn't like that much and responded so...

No stitches for this kiddo, just some steri-strips and some bruising. I think they need to go to school now....

School hardware...is it on your supplies list?

We are slowly getting ourselves ready to go back to school. I am NOT ready to be getting up early again and the homework everyday. After two visits in the last week to the Quick Care clinic I am ready to have them in a classroom all day.

In preparation for backpacks being put back into action, I was going through them and cleaning out what was left and checking to be sure they are ready for another year of wear and tear. I was surprised at the supplies Carson was keeping in his backpack.

Just for the record....I didn't order the rain....

Just for the record, I did not invite the rain!

The break from the heat has been nice. I have enjoyed having my bedroom window open and breathing in that fresh rain smell. Ah the memories of growing up and walking home from school in the rain. Although I do enjoy a thunder and lightning storm from time to time, I am greatful I don't live under the grey, cloudy skies of Western Washington. I love the bright, cheery sunshine we enjoy here in Idaho so much!

Sisters that care are sisters that share....?

It is common practice at our house when pants get holes in the knees that I turn those pants into shorts.

So, Katie brings me a pair of pants and asks that I turn them into shorts since both knees had holes in them. I told Katie to put them by the sewing machine and I do it.

The next day Kristina walks by my pile at my sewing machine and sees these very same pants and asks why they were in my mending pile?

It turns out that Katie was asking me to turn her Kristina's pants into shorts!!!!! She didn't have enough of her own! Little did Kristina know that her sister was sharing for her!

Bribery is great....

It's amazing what you can get done when a child wants something from you.....

Nice job Katie and Emily! The floor looks great!

Oh, Logan!

We make one trek to Roaring Springs each Summer. The kids participate in the reading program to earn a free pass to Roaring Springs. If the child doesn't read, they don't go. Pretty simple...

The reading for the passes is in addition to what their teacher requires. Last year Logan did all of his reading for the free pass but did NOT complete the class room required reading. So last year Logan did NOT get to go. It was a bummer for him, but it was a natural consequence.

This year Logan did get all reading done for both his teacher and the free pass. However, he forgot to put on sunblock!!!! We stayed at the park the entire day, opening to closing! As you can see from the photo, he got severely burned. He could not wear a shirt for a week. He was miserable. He had one huge blister, the one you see in the photo, and some smaller ones too. That big one got bigger than what you see too.

I think this summer will stick in his memory for quite a while. I wonder if he will read for a pass next year?

What is on your head?

Jonny had to be at the church at 6am last Saturday. Steve set his alarm for the wrong time and we got up late. Steve ran downstairs to see if we could still get Jonny over to the church. We did not find Jonny but we found this note on my computer. I later told Jonny that was the best note I could ever receive and I LOVED it! I was proud of him getting himself up and off to an early morning activity!

When Jonny showed up I expected him to be really crabby from getting up so early and hiking in the heat. He came bounding through the front door with a diaper on his head! It was a little confusing at first. He and his buddy had found them in the back of the leader's car he rode home in. Why they put them on their heads is beyond me....teenage boys!!!

Techno-Gadget Baby...

Emily LOVES my iPOD Touch. She knows how to make a real mess very quickly. She gets the whole touch interface and scrolls the pages, deletes icons.....And now she can reach the counter tops too....nothing is safe.

Blondes have more fun???

This has NOT been Kristina's week. First, 6 stiches in the thumb after opening cans of soup. Second, a bee/wasp sting to the eye area after just walking out into the backyard.