Another Week Gone...

I've been ignoring my digital life lately. Well, not really ignoring it. I respond to e-mail, comment on Facebook posts, and generally keep in touch with anyone willing to send out an electronic shout. When it comes to ME sending out the electronic love... I've just not been into it. On the upside, my house is getting organized (not CLEAN really, but organized) which is always a good thing.

Robert and I recently started attending a Bible Study group once a week, and we're loving it. I also volunteer one night a week with a community organization, which has helped me stay in touch with the non-mom side of me. I'm loving where we're headed as a family right now, and feel like I'm finally able to do some of the things I dreamt about when I imagined being a SAHM. Of course, I'm also doing things I never would have imagined - but I'm enjoying those things too.

Here is one of those things. Grace loves helping me wash dishes. I swear I only left the room for a minute to check on Mark... and this is what I came back to:

She had been fully clothed moments before.
(The "Good & Clean" washtub keeps it G rated.)

I finally waded through our camping pictures. We had so much fun! We arrived at camp just a few minutes after my sister's family. We set up the tent and camper, and then... it rained. And rained. And rained! The first afternoon was spent in close quarters, but the next day was beautiful, and we really enjoyed ourselves. Here are the highlights:

Step One: Corral the infant. Yes, that's dead brown grass
in the background. California is a desert you know...

Step Two: Allow the younger children to get out their
energy after a long trip by, uh, playing with a fly swatter?

Step Three: Get Dirty. My kids are experts at this part.

Step Four: Find a comfy place to sit and share a snack.

 All of the above pictures were from day one. Even though it rained, we still had plenty of fun.

There was a ton of wildlife - that wasn't so wild - that would wander into camp. We saw lots of deer, quail, rabbits and other fun animals. The kids loved it.

"Look Gracie! A deer!"
The kids were always thrilled when deer wandered into camp.

Grace was determined to pet a deer, and she came very
close to them a number of times!

 The highlight of the trip was the lake. It ended up being a beautiful overcast day, making for pleasant weather and great water temps. We swam, played, and had a nice picnic lunch together.

We're at the lake, so naturally...
my kids play in the dirt.

"What? You thought we'd get in the water??"

Grace did, in fact, get in the water. Even when her lips
began to turn blue, she insisted she didn't want to get out!

Mark doing his best Humphrey Bogart at lunch.

My precious tired boy in Papa's lap. So sweet!

 After the lake, we headed back to camp and made FIRE. (I'm convinced this is the sole reason my husband loves camping - because he can "make fire".) We roasted hot dogs for dinner and enjoyed a classic:

S'more's!!

 We had a wonderful time with family and can't wait to do it all again next year - even if there's rain in the forecast!

"The Girls"
Gracie loves her cousins!

After all this, we also got together with family on the 4th of July, and stayed up late (very late) to watch the fireworks. I thought they might get scared, but Grace and Mark both loved it. Our city puts on a pretty good fireworks show, so this may become a family tradition.

"Look Grace! Pretend the fireworks have started so
mommy can take a picture!"
"Dad? I don't get it."

This week we finally got back into the routine of things, for which I am grateful. When the kids get thrown off schedule, chaos ensues. Of course, the kids are learning and doing new things all the time. Grace's newest thing is saying "What?" in order to get a repeat response from her listener. She thinks it's great fun. I can't wait until she learns... "Why?"

Mark is doing something new too - watching t.v.!!! He's not as mesmerized as Grace was when she first was introduced, but he will now sit for quite some time and watch alongside his sister. I try to limit the television time in the house, but I must confess I'm a bit excited at having a tool to keep both kids occupied (and not fighting) for a short time.

While there are always new things to share, some things never change:

We played in the backyard, and the kids ended up
making mud pies. Again.

"Is there a prize for the dirtiest kid?"

"Yeah! The top two get their very own
bath! Let's try to win!"

Whew! You're all up to date with the Sunshine family. There's a lot of fun going on around here. I hope you're having lots of fun this summer, spending time with family and finding time to do something that is uniquely for you. Until next week...

Yay! You made it to the end!!!