A permanent film of summer dirt

Sometimes when kids are playing in the dirt or getting sticky with their food I hear parents say, "Well, I guess it's a bath night." Then I always wonder if there are really any justifiably "non-bath nights" judging by the dirtiness criterion because kids get filthy every day, and especially in the summer, when, in addition to the dirt of everyday playing they are regularly smeared in sunscreen and/or bug spray. This dirtiness is paradoxically both a disgusting and delightful sensation, and thankfully, one that my family has enjoyed almost daily during the past week and a half.

Camping was at the top of our list for the Fourth of July weekend. We recently graduated from our four-man tent and purchased a multi-room one. The entire top is mesh and so you are truly sleeping under the stars, plus the lovely trees! When we woke up in the morning Michael said, "I know that it's morning because the trees are green again. At night they are black."

Every time we camp we have tin foil dinners for dinner; pancakes, eggs, and bacon for breakfast; hot dogs for lunch; and s'mores at every meal. Since I forgot the propane tank for the camp stove, we cooked everything over the fire this time, which made it even tastier.

Yes

 and yes!

If I could get them to eat this much at home, they wouldn't all be hanging out at the bottom of their respective growth charts. Look at those happy campers!

 

They all remained happy throughout the day, especially since our tent could accommodate the nappers:

A silly story: Later we enjoyed a visit from a friendly butterfly that took a liking to Michael and stayed on his index finger for about ten minutes.

 

Zachary, determined to have a similar experience, smeared a roasted marshmallow all over his hands so that a butterfly would stick to him. He soon found a butterfly and it did stick to his marshmallow hands. I did not take a picture because I was busy trying to save the poor insect from becoming a flightless cripple. After rolling off most of the marshmallow, the little butterfly was able to fly away. Phew. Where does he come up with this stuff? 

That afternoon we swam at a nearby state park, and then it was time to go. 

But we felt disappointed to be leaving so soon, and since Eric didn't have to be at the hospital until Tuesday afternoon, we booked another campsite for the following Monday! So after a nice day at church,

we hit the road again, this time for Devil's Lake. I left most of the supplies from Friday's trip in the van so that we wouldn't forget anything. We ended up forgetting plenty of things, including Adam's shoes! He didn't really complain:

Like all of the boys, he was excited to row around in our inflatable boat and do some fishing.

We ate our favorite camp menu again and slept under the stars again, and except for the viciously snorting raccoon that spooked us in the middle of the night, it was practically perfect.

Yesterday we swam at Stewart Lake (our friends call it "mud lake"), where we swam through and around mounds of brilliant green algae. The kids found a cool water spring and built all sorts of dams and waterfalls around it. We picked wild berries and watched some teenagers cannonball off the limb of a pine tree (Adam pointed and said, "Guys! Tree!"). That evening the kids went over to a favorite friends' house to play, and so Eric and I went to a lake again, date-style! We took the smaller boat out on Lake Mendota and ate sandwiches on board while we talked and watched the sailboats.

Summer dirt, I adore you. I'd like more of you, please, and soon!

P.S. My sister Michelle currently does not want anything to do with summer dirt and so did not accompany us on any of these outings. Maybe next time.

Sister support!

My sister Michelle is going off to college this fall--can you believe it? 

Before she goes, though, she agreed to come out to Wisconsin for eight weeks to 1) help me out as a part-time summer job and 2) have the experience of living away from home, but not as far away or detached as Idaho, which is where she's going in the fall. My mom drove out with her and then stayed for a couple days, when we picked strawberries, visited a farmer's market, and enjoyed some baseball. Yes, I had my mom and sister here at the same time! Can you spell a-h y-e-a-h? 

 

(Aside: darling boys picking strawberries. Go, boys, go!)

(Also: Jacob, I am so glad that it is summer vacation so that I can benefit from your sunniness all day. You are such a delight.)

But back to Michelle. Michelle is awesome! She helps me every morning from breakfast until lunch. Here's what's changed:
1. I can exercise every single day! Pre-baby size, I am coming!
2. My house has not been a complete disaster for even one day since she's been here! I once heard housecleaning described as a cycle of cleanliness and chaos; the homemaker's goal is to keep the home situation at the cleanliness portion of the cycle for the greater portion of the time, even though it inevitably must cycle through chaos occasionally. I have gone through DAYS (weeks) in the rut of chaos before returning to cleanliness. But Michelle has helped me keep up with the maintenance, plus she's given me flexibility to do big-scale organizing projects.
3. Summer Camp Brinton is shaping up! Our morning routine is this: exercise, eat, and dress; conduct devotional, scripture reading, and flag raising; complete chores, music time, and reading time. During the week before Michelle came, it took us until noon to finish our morning routine. With her help we're done an hour earlier, and each child has had more attention during it.
4. Field trips are safer and less stressful! Last week I convinced Michelle to come to a waterpark with us, and it was much more manageable with another adult nearby.

That way the big kids could do slides

 and the little 'uns still had someone to chase them around.

Here are Zachary and Jacob with a couple friends that we met there. So fun.

I've realized that my ability to reach my goals as a homemaker and mom are possible at c-1, where c=the number of children that I currently have. Is it always that way? I don't know. But for now Michelle makes up for my inadequacy, and I'm looking forward to the rest of her visit here.

Little League Champs!

Jacob was drafted into an incredible baseball team this season. Not only do these boys look cool, but they can really play ball!

(Also, speaking of looking cool, check out Eric's baseball pants! They were a buck at the little league store--what a steal.)

But back to the important news: tonight the boys finished a perfect season, 20-0, and claimed the Rookie League Little League Champ title!

The boys gave their head coach a good post-game tackle:

We're so grateful for the devoted coaches and players who have really made this season dynamite for Jacob. Jacob's work with the Rays--and countless hours of work on his own--have added up to substantial progress on the field

and at the plate.

We are so proud of you, Jake! And congrats Rays!

Speedy Utah trip

Eric's brother is going on a mission! To Russia! We went to Utah to see him off:

Yes, that's a wheelchair. The poor guy broke his leg just days before his departure date. But he gets around okay, always with a smile: 

Yes, we're all wearing coordinating clothes. Because what's a family reunion without a family picture?  

Over the weekend we were able to visit the temple, hear Sam talk in church, meet with relatives, and relax. (Eric's Father's Day request was that he would get to sleep in guilt-free! Even a plate of crispy bacon did little to arouse him.)

 

The kids, on the other hand, barely slept for the excitement of being with their cousins. They swam, played Wii, crafted, and played. One day they discovered a treasure trove of a dress-up box in the grandparents' basement:

Michael ("Mikhail") and Zachary ("Pasha") even learned some Russian phrases to go with their Russian-esque outfits: 

We ended our trip with a picturesque day at Wheeler Farm with my grandmother, aunt and cousin, and brother and sister. We didn't wear matching clothes for our picture, although Eric did purchase a pink John Deere hat for baby Max. So I guess that he and I matched somewhat.

You should never visit a place you love on a weekend with gorgeous weather! What a day for some picnicking,

calf-watching,

and grassy wrestling!

Oh Utah, I adore you. Your mountains, your sunshine, your Cafe Rios! You're just the place. I met my dear one in Utah almost ten years ago. And isn't it magical to be in the place where you fell in love?

P.S. Eric and I had different flights home, with connections in different cities. Eric took our nearly-two-year-old, and I took the other four kids. Who do you think got the better end of the deal? Honestly, I think it's a toss-up. Jerry Seinfeld: "A two-year-old is kind of like having a blender, but you don't have a top for it." Yes.

On whether or not I'm the dirtiest person in our family

Undisclosed Son #1: "MOM! Adam is trying to put on dirty clothes!"
Me: "It's okay. It's just my skirt, and I'm not that dirty. I never wet my pants and I always take showers."
US #1: "Yes you are! You are the dirtiest one because you are much, much bigger than us!"
Undisclosed Son #2: "Yeah. And you do MUCH more work than us. That makes you dirty."
US #1: "And you are older!"
US #2: "Yeah. Think of Max. He's only been here a short time and he doesn't ever even touch the floor."
US #1: "You touch the floor every MINUTE!"
Me: "Oh. Huh. Adam honey, let's put the skirt back in the hamper."

A post written in 10 minutes with two babies on my lap

I love walking into a grocery store and seeing the marshmallows, graham crackers, and chocolate bars lined up like this:

The display says to me, "swimming!

early-morning runs!

fairs!

more swimming!

splash pads!

Scout advancement!

hikes!

weenie roasts!

parks!

swimming, swimming, swimming!

end-of-year plays!

and, yes, s'mores!"

Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! The anticipatory excitement of SUMMER! Eric constructed a raised garden bed and a sandbox for our backyard (here are the boys playing in three TONS of sand on our driveway, before we filled the box!):

I will post pictures of the garden when things are growing more. We also installed a flag pole for the front:

And of course we're spending a lot of time at the little league ballpark! These little guys want to be just like their baseball champ brother:

I love these little babies on my lap. This one, especially, has been tugging at my heart so much lately that I'm almost always behind on my laundry:

Who wouldn't want to spend the day cooing at that adorable little face? Hooray for babies, and hooray for summertime!