morning activities

since we have been home from vacation part of our morning routine is to tackle some school work.  i can't say the kids are excited about this time, but we have to keep fresh and hopefully minimize the summer slump.  

suntop

jarad planned a surprise family outting and told us to be ready by 10am and he would pack a picnic lunch.  i finished up making breakfast, worked out and got ready for a long drive.  we drove towards mt. rainier and up a long and big dirt mountain road to get to "suntop." an active fire look out tower, where we got to meet the two park rangers on their shift.  there were incredible views and we had a beautiful picnic lunch.  then we headed back down the gravel road to a trail by the river where we had a GREAT family hike (no tears, whining or complaining).  the kids enjoyed "parkour-ing" it through the trail, on the logs and bouncing off of rocks.  it was good for the soul to enjoy this time outside together and also not have to plan it.  excited for the next adventure he has planned.

new hobby

i follow lots of art accounts on instagram and a few of my favorites are water color painters.  i decided that after watching them for months, i would like to take up water color painting as a new hobby when the kids go back to school.  but i am having a lot of creative energy and wanted to get into it sooner.  so i got all the supplies and i have been having some fun.  

blues

the blueberries are always better when picked at the farm.  this is at least our 4th year in a row at our favorite canterberry farms!  met friends for picking and a picnic lunch in the gardens and brought home 4 pounds of delicious blues. 

after dinner stroll

beautiful night for a walk at the lake after dinner.  and i found this awesome piece of art hidden in the trees.  and the hydrangeas at the arboretum are a stunner!

water play

another fun morning at the park with friends for water play. 

swim

the kids start two weeks at a new swim class and i couldn't be happier.  after years at the same place with little progress and new policies that make it impossible to get in, i was scrambling to find lessons.  a girlfriend sent me a recommendation and it is a little farther away than i wanted, but the quality of lessons is so much better than before.  i feel like i found a hidden gem.

baby's first haircut

banjo has been bringing in a lot of moss and dirt on his fur and i am tired of the mess.  so i broke down and had jarad give him a haircut, and not only does he look adorable, feel incredibly soft, but he seems to love it!  

summer signs

since moving and being closer to nature, i have become more in tune with the slightest changes in seasons.  middle of summer means cherries are at their peak and this is our favorite!  since coming home from vacation a week and a half ago, we have bought 8 bags of the dark sweet red cherries (each bag is over 2 pounds) and they are perfection!  this year i also invested in a cherry pitter.  you have to take advantage of this short cherry season, because they will soon disappear off the shelves until this time next year.  

we have also had a lot of deer at the house lately, including a mom and two does.  these does were bedded down on the other side of the fence in the back yard.  they were so cute and watching us play in the back yard.

BUT...the sign that is so bittersweet to me is when the baby acorns start to fall from the oak tree in the backyard.  it happens overnight, and then we start to hear the ping sound of them falling constantly on the deck.  today was the first day that i heard this sound and have a mess of tiny acorns on the deck, and i know that is the beginning of the end of summer.  it's a good reminder that we still have a solid 4 + weeks and we need to soak it all in!  we still have a lot of adventuring to do in august!

lilly pad

lake days on the lilly pad, love our neighbor crew

summer concert

met friends at the CCP for one of their summer concerts, our first time at this location instead of our normal lake wilderness.  we all agreed this was the best band of all the summer concerts we have seen!  

camp art

kids brought home some fun "ice cream" art from camp this week.  i love the melted ice cream one with their hand print as the ice cream.

bowie's art

ryder's art

tie dye in the park

we met our friend at the park for a free tie dying event before camp.  we had fun making t-shirts and i love that i didn't have to clean up the mess.  

bowie tooth #8

another one bites the dust. her tooth was wiggly, but biting into a granola bar today really loosened it up. within a few hours she pulled it out on her own!

ice cream camp

kids having a blast at ice cream camp with ms. jessica, love this play dough ice cream, looks good enough to eat!

arboretum

took a family walk after camp this afternoon and the arboretum was showing off, they always have the most beautiful hydrangeas!

lake days

lake days (and nights) are the best!