A glimpse into what it is like to be in this family just this moment.
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| photo from B |
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| photo from Miss Emma |
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| 30th trip vs. 40th trip |
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| photo cred: Kate |
Intentional Outdoor Hours: 373+ hours (of 1000)
So many lightening bugs! The kids are obsessed with trying to catch them - most of all Red! It really is magical at night to look out across the yard and see all the twinkles. I personally snagged some beautiful hours on the beach, under an umbrella reading uninterrupted -or- floating and relaxing in the waves of the Atlantic. Glorious for my soul.
Reading and finishing The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer. I didn't love it but it was fine. At the beach, I started and finished Remarkably Bright Creates by Shelby Van Pelt. I really really enjoyed it and kept bringing up octopi in random conversations (thankfully Kate&Karp understand how bizarre I can be and love me for it). I love so much on our girls' trip that so many times I took a tiny breath from reading only to look to both sides of my beach chair and see Kate and Karp both deeply immersed in their books. We did mini check-ins with each other to hear about each others' books - Not sorry that being a book nerd on vacation is my love language. Now I'm reading Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah (a borrow from Karpy since she finished it on our trip!)
Packing up cousin camp...in the rain! It was such a great weekend and to see the kids all make memories together brings my heart so much joy. It is a bummer to clean up in the drizzling rain though because it meant we also needed to come home and set everything out in the garage to dry before we can actually clean it up. Honestly though, it wouldn't even really be cousin camp without a storm or two! hah! It was a mad dash to get everything unpacked and Gemma's hair untangled (?!) when we got home before Kate was here to pick me up for our birthday girls trip!
40th birthday girls trip with my two best friends. Katie and Karpy (my college roommates) and I spent 3 days in Vero, FL at the Kimpton hotel laughing hysterically, reading to our hearts' content, swimming and floating in the ocean, telling stories, secrets, and memories and filling our souls up to the brim with all the goodness that comes with being exactly your own truest self with your very closest friends. We ate really yummy food, lounged all the time (with no one needing us for anything!), and I breathed in all that wonderful salty ocean air. I got up early to watch the sunrise on our last day and we got in a long walk down to the pier (it looked picturesque in the morning sun, but alas none of us had brought our phones - mental photo for eternity!) We went to Nashville for our 30th birthdays and now Vero for our 40th (Katie & my birthdays are in August and Karpy's birthday is in April). We were laughing about how we need to make our birthday trips more frequent - maybe every 5 years; because every decade isn't going to get us very many more trips at this point (haha, #darkcomedy) It was wonderful and exactly what my soul needed. love you to the ends of the Earth, Kate & Karp.
Grateful for the people who swooped in to support my family while I was resting and laughing on the beach! Obviously, B - give that man a damn trophy for real. But also - Abba & Chum, Pappy & Gigi, Miss Emma, Miss Hannah, the Valentine family, the Conn family, and the Garrettson family. Everyone pinched in, read over my detailed listed (because I am a crazy person), and made adjustments when games got rescheduled, or appointments were changed. Thank you all for having it all together so that I was able to just relax. xxox
New modem at the house. Our internet has been so spotty and super frustrating - especially since we don't have cable services (just streaming). So after a call to our internet provider (actually three calls) they sent someone out to update our modem because it was ancient apparently - and Voila! Fixed!
Feeling the teacher support! I posted my teacher wishlist on Amazon Prime days last week and I had so many thoughtful and sweet surprises arrive this week. I was honestly gasping and smiling through grateful tears. From the bottom of my heart, thank you: Genny, Jamie, Maddie/Ana, Megan, and Abby... THANK YOU, truly - I am appreciative of your generosity!!
Basketball hoop project - stones have arrived! So now we have two mountains in the backyard - a giant pile of dirt and a giant pile of stones. Hah! Osa likes to sit at the top of the stone pile like some kind of queen.
40th miles in this week - Mile 12 with Karpy and Mile 13 with Katie....both on the beach!
Satisfying Summer Friday when I packed up all the kids to drop off several donation bags at Goodwill, then we had lunch with Mimi who we have been missing. We visited Gigi and Pappy and then stopped at a playground, even Grey had fun being a big kid at the playground. It was good to just get out in the world with all my babies after being away for a few days.
Thankful for my bestie who offered up to take five of our kids for the day so that I didn't have to drag them to Hoopsfest. I texted her, "I hope that wasn't an empty offer because I'm taking you up on it!" She's the best ever, so she delivered and my Saturday was a million times better because of her (thank you!) The five had the best day ever swimming, snacking, and laughing with Kate's kids at their house/pool. They honestly swam like 6 hours straight and were so punch-drunk happy when I picked him up after the tournament and let the bball boys take a dip. Kate, you are my person - I love you.
Hoopsfest on Saturday just me and the team, hah! Bless their 13year old boys' hearts for being such troopers lugging all our supplies (canopy, chairs, cooler, and their bball bags) three blocks to the event first thing in the morning so we could get registered and set up. Then they got four games of regular play in throughout the day and made it to the first round of the playoffs. I was so proud of their sportsmanship and how well they worked together throughout the day. They had no coach, it was the first time playing together in a 3v3 tournament but they were able to hang with some of these teams that had 2 coaches and legit jerseys. They were funny and kind and I was really proud to be there with them and so grateful that I could do it solo - truly only because they were such great kids. (well done to all their parents!!) Hoopsfest is such an awesome event and my nerd-planning mind is always so impressed with how well they pull it off. Bravo to them, for real.
Family Reunion for our Plunkett family (my dad's mom's side). It was serendipitous that Hoospfest and the reunion were in the same town - so we spent the evening at the Lion's Club trekking through the creek, catching up with family, and playing Gaga ball. I am always so grateful that our extended family continues family reunions and our kids get to see all their cousins and know they are part of a strong and deep family tree.
Sporting with a basketball game for Gemma and two baseball games for Grey, and for his very last game we were in full on panic mode when he couldn't find his cleats (he left them in Brandon's truck) but thankfully we had the Sports Fairy Godmomma Jenn V come to our rescue when she dug out some cleats of her sons' that we were able to swing by and grab (THANK YOU!) Thank goodness too, because he ended up pitching five innings (hah!) Grey also had two football conditionings and 3 weightlifting early mornings, plus Hoopsfest (above). B had a football conditioning and two football 7v7 events (one in Claysburg and one in Richland) plus he and the other coaches did a golf outing together on Friday.
Making chicken tacos and having fridge cleanout/leftover night. While I was away, I had planned for the crew - bbq chicken sandwiches and frozen pizzas and they also had ravioli. I made banana bread for breakfast when I returned and noticed some brown bananas that needed used up. I made crockpot meatball sammies and cowboy cookies for the family reunion.
Whole30 even on vacation! I stuck with the plan even at the beach and my two besties were so supportive and I am the luckiest. I was going to order one drink for a toast, but when it came time to do it, I chickened out - it just felt like too much pressure and I was having so much fun without it that it kind of felt like what was the point to break the streak for one drink. Yay for me. I am still snacking on plantain chips because I need at least that, okay!? sue me, whole30 police. At Vero I ate some delicious food like crab & asparagus salad and steamed Old Bay shrimp. The airport was tricky, but I figured it out and Larabars are always perfect in a pinch (I always have one in my purse). At home, I enjoy roasted potato bowls (yummm) and salads with balsamic vinegar and oil for dressing. Still enjoying the feeling of Whole30 and I've made it through the miserable stages - hah.
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