The Summer Holiday - A Sold Out Performance

The first (and only) sold out performance of The Summer Holiday was a raging success. The kids were awesome. They wrote the play, designed the scenery and costumes and performed their roles with courage and humor. Harper danced and sang and flitted about. Windham played Boomer, "a shy man," who mimed his part.

New (Imaginary) Pets

 

For a multitude of reasons I will not bore you with, there is a 2nd rule* in our house: No more living things. We had fish for awhile and even that was too much.

But it sure is fun to name pets. So while serving the kids breakfast in bed last Saturday morning, we decided on an imaginary dog and cat.

We now have a standard poodle named Chester Copperpot and a kitty named Ms. Aruba-Tate.

The kids are pretend responsible for feeding them and taking them on walks. It is a fun game with no mess or nagging to actually be responsible. I love it.

*Rule #1: Light a match

What Harper WILL NOT eat.

Every meal time, Harper has been informing me of new things she won't eat. So I asked her to write down a list for me and I would keep it in mind when making dinner.

In case you can't decipher 6 year old writing, here is the list:
Zucchini
Fish
Mushroom
Potatoes
Pumpkin Pie
Corn, 'cause it tastes like styrofoam
Kale
Poop
Farts

I told her kale was a non-negotiable. And for the record, I have never served poop or farts for dinner.

Brown Squirrel, the heavy metal version

This is what you get from a 6 year old after 9.5 hours in a car.

Our First Backpacking Trip

We ran into some friends right after school started and Jennifer kept saying, "...when we go backpacking this summer." I kept wondering what she meant as it was early September. She finally explained that they had planned to take their boys on a backpacking trip and if she just kept talking about as a future summer event, it might actually happen. Always wanting to get out more, I was game. So we put it on the calendar and made it happen.

We chose a campground that was a mere 1.5 miles from the parking lot. We prayed the weather would hold.

The camping gods smiled upon us and the hike turned out to be only .5 miles and the weather was gorgeous. The kids carried varying amounts of gear and spent every ounce of energy they had in getting dirty, wet and muddy. They loved it. And we adults had a chance to sit around and talk by the campfire.

Our 28 hour backpacking was a huge success. All four kids asked to go again. I think we have real hikers (not whiner pigs!).

World Premier Video: The Grand Band

Ladies and gentlemen, I present the world premier video from the first ever performance of The Grand Band.

Our Neighborhood

We live a stone's throw from Oaks Bottom. What a beautiful day for a stroll and some exploring.