Camping in the backyard

 Ashley had been begging to spend the night in the tent in the back yard for a long time.  It was supposed to be cool at night last weekend so we did it!

 She and Greg pitched the tent

 We took pillows, stuffed animals, books, sleeping bags, a lantern, and a cereal bar for in the morning snack.  I joined her outside about 8:30 and it was about 10 when she went to sleep.

It took me longer to go to sleep because our yard backs up to a road with lots of traffic noise-that I don't notice in our house but noticed trying to sleep in the yard.

I finally did drift off and then Ashley woke me at 4:30 because there was a noise-at first I thought it was just wind but then realized that it was water hitting our tent.  God didn't make it rain on us that night but we forgot to make sure the sprinkler wasn't going to run.

Thankfully we did go back to sleep after that until it started getting really light outside!  We snuggled and talked some more, read, worked on a puzzle book together, and played some Uno.  Then we came inside at 8, got breakfast for Max, and took him on a walk because it was so wonderfully cool outside that morning.

The below pictures are all from Saturday morning!

 She had such a good time that she asked if we could do it again and I said yes that we would camp in the fall when it is cool again!

Some Summer Silliness

 On the last day of school, most years, my mom would take me out to lunch after school-half days.  Often my friend Stan would go with us and she would let us choose where to go-I remember Pizza Hut being a very popular choice!  I took the kids to a cupcake place on their last day of school-it is named Gigi's Cupcakes and they called my mom GG for Grandmommy Gayle.  They have amazing cupcakes!  It was fun

 We have been doing several routes for Loaves and Fishes picking up food and delivering it to soup kitchens or other places who can get the food to people who need it.  We all laughed at this sign at a church where we were taking food-I told the kids I didn't think that was a spot for Michelle Obama.

 At the library summer reading kick-off this year there was an amazing kazoo concert and at the end the guy gave all the kids a free kazoo.  Then he said to the parents "I bet you wonder how I afford to give away all these free kazoos????  Well, that's easy, I charge $50 each to take them back!"  The guy was hilarious, the kids all loved it and they are made right here in South Carolina-in Beaufort, near Charleston and they even have a factory tour.
http://www.thekazoofactory.com/

 Above is the poor dog, forced to wear Ashley's purple sparkly sunglasses that Ryan got her for her birthday!  We were surprised he didn't eat them!




Below, the weekend the boys went camping there was a special Saturday program at Roper Mtn. Science Center about butterflies.  It was HOT and we waited a long time but we had fun seeing and holding the butterflies and doing it with a sweet friend from school Claire.  The sticks with nectar like stuff to attract the butterflies had Gatorade on them!

 Sweet snuggles with Max!  Ashley talked about him at school so much that he became the unofficial mascot of her class and Claire is convinced Max is going to grow as large as Clifford the big red dog!

 Enjoying her new kindle!

 Ryan's breakfast smile-all that was missing in his opinion were the biscuits-whackers as we call them at our house-because you peel the paper wrapper and then whack them on the counter to make the can pop open!

 2 kindle readers!

 Scott showing off his dragon city/ship thing made of legos for his birthday when they were all put together!

 Another tuba has come to live at our house this summer and he has been named King Kong.  The other 2 are at school now-Gigantor stays at school for the summer and Godzilla is going in for some repairs.  King Kong is a slightly different 4 valve tuba (apparently the other 2 had 3 valves each) that Scott's band teacher wanted him to practice with this summer.

 and yes, Ashley really can fit inside a tuba case!

 We said now there was a six-ba of tubas Scott has played and he told us that it was only a four-ba that one time we had 2 tubas at home at once so this is not a six-ba really!

 Ashley and Ryan were playing with bubbles outside and Max was afraid at first and then started snapping and chomping at them!

 Here is Ashley one morning, assigning her dollies their homeschool work for the day!  They each have a pencil and their own pair of scissors!

 Here are her plans and the days' math facts to be covered!  I LOVE IT!

Boys Camping

Scott was trying to finish up some requirements for Boy Scouts and their May camping trip got cancelled due to bad weather.  So he, Greg, and Ryan went to a campground in NC 2 weekends ago.

 The boys pitched tents and

 hung a tarp.

 Scott had some requirements about lashings-making stuff with ropes.

 impressive that it was tied tightly enough to hold up his weight

 and several feet off the ground

 it was also a lantern hook and trash bag holder

Then there were some requirements about bandaging and first aid

 Greg and Ryan provided fake injuries

 Greg said they were sad to discover they didn't have any ketchup to use as fake blood for these photos!

 Think the injury below, if real, would have been beyond the scope of Scott's current First Aid knowledge!

 There was a great stream for splashing in and rock skipping nearby

 If it had just been a little cooler I would have been happy to go and sit and read a book by the stream all weekend long!

 There were also cooking requirements.  Scott had to plan a healthy menu, make a grocery list, and go with me to buy all the food they needed.  That was a funny experience in itself.  Then he had to prepare all the food.  Saturday's dinner that you see below is shrimp jambalaya and dirty rice-cooked on the propane stove.

 the dutch oven with chocolate turtle cake inside-what Scott says is always the best food of the campout!

 enjoying jambalaya and peas

 the finished cake

 doing dishes after dinner

 enjoying the fire for a while!

 This light green box covered in stickers was an amazing gift from Grandaddy and Granny Joan Cook-their camping food box-it has stickers all over from places they camped and traveled and dividers and compartments to store all your traveling kitchen needs.  Grandaddy was and is still involved with the scout troop Greg was part of in Atlanta.  Also my dad was a cub scout when he was little and Gran was the den leader.  We have some of Daddy's cub scout books and I remember a rubber Indian head mold that Gran would let me mix up ceramic stuff pour it in the mold and paint the Indian with his feather headdress when it dried-she told me that she made those with the cub scouts when Daddy was little.  Fun that the boys have a heritage of scouts on both sides of the family!

 Washing dishes is not fun

 French toast casserole and go-gurt for Sunday breakfast

 with sausage patties

God's beautiful creation to enjoy!