It's Official. . .


Summer is over, but here is just a glimpse of all the fun we had!

We have made many trips this summer to visit with Granny.  She had 2 additional strokes in early May.  She is now under Hospice care.  It has been so difficult to watch her decline day after day, but we all cherish our time with her.


  Our annual trip to a nearby beach affords us such wonderful memories year after year.  This year we quickly learned there was something new. . .an ice cream truck.  No doubt it was a hit with the kids.



Lilly and Ellie love ballet.  They took 4 classes during the month of June and enjoyed every minute!





Horses are still a tremendous part of Shelby and Katie's lives.  They enjoyed riding and practicing their jumping together throughout the summer months.  The girls also took their horses to horse camp for a week with their trainer.  I wasn't sure if they were coming back home after that.  They are counting down until next year's camp.  In this photo Fulton was being a most helpful little brother by setting the jumps back up after the horses knocked them down.



Summer at our house always involves countless hours spent outside - early morning and late afternoon only due to extreme temperatures.  The younger children have such fun using their imaginations, climbing trees, building forts, etc.



Katie has come to love the stage.  She has been in 3 plays so far.  This summer she had a blast playing Esmerelda in our local theater's production of Snow White.  As her parents, David and I were so very proud.  She did a fabulous job and even sang a solo!



Yes, we actually humbled ourselves, dressed up like cows, went out in public, and endured the stares, smiles, and laughter of many.  But it was worth it since we all enjoyed free meals at Chick-fil-a - not once but twice in the same day!



No summer is complete without a few trips to a nearby pool to cool off from the sometimes unbearable heat!  Shelby and Katie also enjoyed having their best friend, Emily, who lives several hours away from us, down for a few days.  Here Shelby, Emily, and Katie relax in the shallow end.  Shelby enjoyed a visit to Emily's house as well this summer, but Katie was busy with rehearsal for Snow White so she missed out on that trip.  On another note, little Ellie learned to swim this summer.  She has a ways to go before I would trust her swimming, but she swam quite a few lengths between David and me.  She was so proud of herself.

What a blur!  Where did summer go? 

Homeschool has already begun for Shelby and Fulton.  Ethan and Lilly start next week at their Chinese immersion school, and Katie begins after Labor Day at a new Christian school.