July has come and almost gone...

We have been to so many BBQs, the mighty cheese burger is starting to become taken for granted, and I wonder if that 3 Grain Salad I make when invited anywhere...you know the one, will ever taste new and exciting again. (Don't stop inviting us to your BBQs...this is not a complaint, but a very normal feeling for me nearing August. I need to overdose now in order for the good summer vibes to carry me all the way through the rainy months ahead.)
The weekdays have settled into a nice predictable rhythm, feedings, naps, and upsets all happen like clockwork. Mostly the days are a treat, but it's always a relief when Kent comes home and I can go brush my teeth.
Greta is growing up faster in July...why is that? All this sun and fresh air is probably to blame. I can't believe she is preparing for preschool in only a few months, and how grown her little mannerisms are becoming.
And Oliver smiles on. That's what he does mostly...and eats a lot.
Which is how, although I don't usually have time to brush my teeth, I have motored through something like 7 books in a matter of weeks. The trick is to hold book open with right hand, flip pages with right thumb, and feed Oliver with the left.
Not blogging much lately, and so briefly, I'm afraid I'm not painting a very clear picture of these special moments and changing times, things I'll want to remember years from now.
But the cost of sitting down to collect my thoughts (which takes a while) and write a blog is very high right now. It means shutting myself in a room by myself, at the end of the day, when our time is not divided among the kids, (and amounts to something like a very precious hour).
It's saying no to something like a game of cards, or a fun conversation with Kent, or luxury of all luxuries watching something on hulu together while eating something...I don't care what. I just like to eat foods late.
I'm paying the price now because I'll want to remember feeling this way (I guess?) and for heaven's sake it's been a long time, and I couldn't keep these adorable pictures to myself any longer.

Ernest is turning 113 on Saturday!

So goodies are in order!

Summer Doings.

It's really and truly Summer now. In our neck of the woods Summer doesn't start until the day after the 4th of July. This year it was a little early in that it came on the 4th! Since then we have had sun, heat, and all the goings on that comes with it.
Last Summer we were finishing up the remodel of the upstairs bathroom, the last of the household projects. This Summer is the beginning of the Taking the Yard Back initiative.
We are finally moving our efforts outside to claim the yard as our own and find its potential among its usual tangle of weeds.
So far the biggest improvement has been the addition of Greta's Playhouse. Grandpa went all out and assembled the most darling little playhouse/jungle gym out there and Greta has been spending the majority of her days outside. She hasn't been clean since.
But perhaps the most exciting thing has been the start of our deck. The cement is being poured today and construction should begin this weekend!
What bliss! To have a deck to sit outside on during our few and precious Summer days. Eating, playing, and entertaining...just what Summers are for.
More to come!