Lauren's Priorities

Recently I ran across Lauren's "loves" in her notebook. 

We are so proud that Jesus tops her list.  

Weekend Update

We have had cabin fever and a little bit of stir craziness due to last week's hurricane weather. Well, except for me... we had a week off from activities, and I rather enjoyed being cooped up with the trio.  But by Saturday, even I was ready for an outing, and George had another birthday party for one of his friends from school. The party was at (drumroll) Chuck E. Cheese's, which was somehow the trio's first experience with this venue. I guess it isn't as big of a draw for the girls and their friends.

So George and most of his kindergarten class got to run around, play games and collect tickets to their heart's content. David, the birthday boy, was euphoric, and I told his mom she had successfully nabbed "mom of the year".  George and the girls had so much fun, and Lauren was the lucky winner when she hit the jackpot on some type of Paris game.

After church Sunday, we had lunch and then began preparing for two more birthday parties, but the schedule was simplified by both parties being held back-to-back at the same venue. We packed up a pool bag, water, snacks and gifts and celebrated the birthday of our neighbor from a street over who had turned nine.

Right after that party we celebrated our adorable next door neighbor who turned five.

Basically, this was a birthday party kind of weekend, and the trio LOVED celebrating with their friends.  

As Skip asked last night, "Whose party is next?"

We are clear for the next few days, but George will proudly tell you will are a mere four days away from his birthday month! He is ready to start celebrating!

Enumerated Update

Happy Friday!

Can you believe that June is almost over? We are in totally shock that one month of summer break has come and gone. The trio have been kind of on the move since school ended so they opted to forego basketball camp this week and have a week at home. They have worked on their summer skills notebook and have gotten a late start on the summer reading program. (We just picked up our library bags this week. Oops.) But better late than never, and they elected to go to the bookstore and use a much appreciated gift card to purchase a couple of favorite books. George has been reading his way through a book about spiders, and let me tell you... it has made me think I judged all those princess books the girls read too harshly. We have been running a LOT of errands and getting settled in to a relaxing summer schedule, which is much easier to do when they do not have to be somewhere at 9am.

Any rate, other than the above, here's what we have going on:

1) House of Cards: We watched season five this week. Do you watch this one? Have you seen this season? The arc is kind of circling around back to the first season which was interesting to watch some of the chickens come home to roost, and although it is getting somewhat predictable (we totally saw two of the major developments coming; others were not as obvious, to us, anyway), it's still delicious to watch.

2) iPhone: The iPhone turns 10 this year, and there's a book coming out soon to tell us the story of its birth.

Fun fact: I still have the original iPhone from 2007... it still works!

3) Speaking of: Recently, California issued guidelines regarding proper cellphone usage. Although we have been hearing about the dangers of cell phone radiation since the early 1990's, I think most of us look the other way for the sake of convenience. With improved speakerphone and bluetooth technology, I rarely hold the phone while using it, although I am guilty of sleeping with my device since I usually go to sleep listening to a podcast.

4) Downsizing: My mom always jokingly instructs us to contact certain estate salespeople in the event of her passing (many, many, MANY years in the future). Therefore, this article (while sad) struck me as somewhat comical, based on the conversations we have had regarding our "prized" possessions and how no one will probably want them.

For example, are the trio going to be interested in boxes of our outdated Apple products? Probably not.

"But this is a first generation iPhone and iPad! Think of the cultural significance!"  

We tend to be traditional in our aesthetic (e.g., we still have a dining room) and we greatly value items we have inherited. With that said, I think there's just an abundance of stuff in our homes and lurking in our basements. We, as a society, just have too much of everything.

5) Candles: While enduring the rains from Tropical Storm Cindy, we have been enjoying our cozy home... i.e., lit candles, books, movies, games, etc. Speaking of, this is why I purchase inexpensive candles. Also, it cuts into my handbag budget.

We are bracing for a second set of hurricane-related storms. Then, we will wring ourselves out and have a great weekend.

What do you have planned?

A Rainy Celebration

One of William George's friends (and table-mates from kindergarten) had his sixth birthday party last night at a local pool. We are currently in the throes of a LOT of rain from a tropical storm, but we did not let a little rain deter us from celebrating a sweet friend.

Lauren's Vacation Report: Amelia Island

As with past trips, Lauren wrote a report about our experience on Amelia Island. 

Hey guys! I am writing another report on a vacation to... Amelia Island, Florida! I bet it'll be  awesome.

On Monday, my family and I drove to our destination. While we were on the way we watched some new movies my mom bought. My favorite movie was about two girls liked the lifeguard on the local beach, but then there was this big storm that destroyed a lot of things, so in the morning one of the girls fell in the pool and saw something so you'll have to find out. Oh, and BTW the movie is Aqua Marine I think I'm not sure. Anyway we had McDonalds for lunch and drove to Amelia Island, Florida. When we arrived, we went for a swim at the hotel pool. After our swim, we showered and then had dinner at Panera Bread. I had a turkey and cheddar cheese sandwich with strawberry yogurt on the side. After we had dinner, we went to bed.

On Tuesday we got up and guess what... this hotel has free breakfast!! My siblings my Daddy, and I all went down and ate there. After breakfast, we all got ready to go to American Beach. The beach was so much fun! After the beach, we went to Chick-fil-a! Yea!! I had a milkshake at the end!! After lunch we went to the pool for a quick swim. When it was time to go inside we got out of the pool and went inside and took showers. After everyone was all showered we went to Publix to get some food and drinks. When we finished shopping, we headed back to the hotel and ate a home-cooked meal for dinner and watched some Full House and went to bed.

On Wednesday, Grace,  George and Daddy went to breakfast. My momma and I did not. After they got back from breakfast we all got ready to go to the pool. We headed to the pool, put on sunscreen and jumped in the pool. We swum till lunchtime and had some pizza for lunch. After lunchtime it started to rain. We had planned to go to the beach that afternoon but to bad we could not because it started to storm. We chilled out the rest of the afternoon. Then after the storm was over, we went out to eat at this place called Tasty's. Their burgers were so good!!!! After dinner we headed home and went to bed.

On Thursday, my siblings, my dad and I went to breakfast. After that we all got ready to go to Fernandina Beach. I liked this beach better than American Beach. After that we went to this restaurant called Sliders. It was quite good but let me give you some advice (Tasty's is better) Okay after that we went back to the hotel for quick swim, but then it started to thunder so we went inside, had dinner and went to bed.

On Friday, we went shopping and guess what I got... a beanie boo and a necklace!!! After that we went to lunch at this place called Pepper's. It was really good!!!!! After that we went for a night swim and had some hamburgers and oh I forgot to mention we had doughnuts this morning!! Whoo-hoo!!

On Saturday, It was time to leave! This was a really good trip and I am willing to come again some time. Well see you guys next trip!!

Thanks to Family, friends, and God

Swim Camp 2017

Day 1

Last week the trio returned to swim camp at a local YMCA. This marks the girls' fourth year to attend camp and George's second. The camp is physically demanding... the campers usually run a couple of laps in the morning, do some planks and other exercises, and then swim for a couple of hours (including swim lessons). They take a lunch break, learn some things and then return to the pool for a couple of hours for free swim.

George is pretty muscular (i.e., a little dense), and swimming has not come naturally for him as a result. He has had to work harder to be able to stay on top of the water, much like Lauren had to do. (Both George and Lauren are all muscle.) Gracie has a slightly more natural ability to float, and that - coupled with her long arms and legs - has given her a little bit of an advantage.  Grace and Lauren are both very strong swimmers, but they spent this week working on the backstroke and diving.

Day 2

George is doing well, too... just working on his strength and stamina. A group environment with peers is motivational for him, and he is really doing better. Like Lauren when she was learning, he is determined to nail it, and they will have another camp session next week to continue the work. Beyond that we may coordinate some ongoing sessions for George since he is so, sooo close.  

Day 3

The campers also get to take a field trip, and last week's trip was to Golden Flake. The trio wore hair nets, toured the plant and got a few samples. They loved it!

Speaking of food, they have been ravenous each evening from all of that swimming.

Day 5

George did so well Friday that his counselor set a note home stating:

George had an amazing swim lesson today! He wanted to do everything by himself. He went under water, jumped in and even swam to the flags by himself. Major improvement!

These swimmers had a fantastic week.  

Weekend Update

Last week the trio went to swim camp (more soon), and we picked them up at the end of their last day (of week one) Friday afternoon. They were exhausted but were in the middle of a popsicle party so they were managing to hang on by a thread. 

After getting home, showering and having some dinner, they were ready to relax and watch a little baseball before bed. Lauren was exhausted, but her way of relaxing does not include baseball so she opted for a few minutes in her "classroom" in the basement. It was just what she needed.  

Lauren "What's Next?" Lindsey had already pitched her next idea Friday afternoon on the drive home. She wanted to know if we could return to Build-a-Bear, a phenomenon that has had a comeback in our house. Since these are some of the last vestiges of childhood (pre-middle school) and since they are using their own money, we agreed that we could have a return date for lunch/dinner/BABW if/when we had completed a number of items on our to-do lists.  

So naturally they were motivated to get everything done quickly, and Skip scheduled a family date for Saturday night.  Skip and I had a salad at CFA, and they chose Subway again. The carousel was a must, and afterward we made our way to BABW.  Skip briefly went inside for all of the decisioning (read: drama) involved in selecting outfits for bears. Finally, he couldn't take any more and went to sit outside the store, where he told passersby, "I'm not one of the bears."  

He got a few laughs.   

Choices were made, money was exchanged and smiles were formed. Bears were changed into pajamas and other clothes.  

We did have some excitement... someone tapped our car while we were stopped at a traffic light. Then when we were leaving the mall a shoplifter was tackled to the ground by security. Suddenly and unexpectedly, we had several conversations about legal matters and the consequences of bad choices.  

Sunday was Father's Day so we celebrated all things Skip. At breakfast, the trio shared their handmade cards, and their lists of the favorite things they love about Skip*. 

The duo served as acolytes, which always makes for a special day.  

Serving as Acolytes 06-18-17 from Cathi Lindsey on Vimeo.

After church we had lunch with Poppa and Gran to continue celebrating the fathers in our family.  

So thankful for this father, father-in-law and Poppa.

  

And Gran (+ Grammie) is pretty cool, too.  

We had a great weekend and especially loved celebrating Skip.  

***

George: I love that you play football with me. 

George: I love that you play with us outside. 

George: I love that you play with me in the mornings. [Often pre-sunrise.]

The whole family in an RV, headed to the beach. :)

Riding bikes in the cul-de-sac.

The four things Skip instructs every morning: 1) Listen. 2) Follow directions. 3) Have a great attitude. 4) Be a Lindsey leader for Jesus. 

Father's Day

There is a lot of chaos, drama, and arguing that organically occurs in a party-of-five, busy household, and through it all, Skip is the voice of calm. He always makes sure that everyone is heard, and he takes the time to understand everyone's "side" of any issue. We thank you for everything you do, but we especially thank you for loving and hearing all of us.

Happy Father's Day, Skip! You are the best, and we love you!

Father's Day

When I loaded this image onto the page, the trio were in the room, and they all said, "That's PawPaw!!!!!" We all miss him terribly but remain grateful for our time together.  

Happy Father's Day, Dad.  

Enumerated Update

Amelia Island 

Happy Friday, friends! How is your summer so far?

I am a self-professed winter person, but I have to admit that we are really enjoying summer this year. I may finally see the allure. Bright colors? Yes, bring them on! Relaxed schedule? Uhm, yes, please! Summer activities? Check, check and check!

I attribute my sunny disposition to the week we spent on Amelia Island. Our visit to that quaint island really set the tone for our break... or perhaps it was the daily champagne hour... I don't know. Either way, we have had a great couple of weeks.

Other than enjoying these lazy days, here's what we're thinking about:

1) The language rules we know... but don't know we know.

2) Counterpoint: What if we could watch Seinfeld episodes from the point of view of the girlfriends? 

3) When summer is a strain: Every year there are articles outlining the struggles many families have over summer break, but despite the attention to the challenge of finding childcare, there still aren't many good options. Our local YMCA's have income-based scholarships available to campers seeking stimulating summer experiences, but the supply/demand of these opportunities is still disparate.

4) Listmaking: I tend to be a pen-and-paper kind of girl, but this to-do list app is a game changer.

5) Facebook: Turns out, it isn't all that great for you. I'm more of an Instagram person, and I say take everything with a grain of salt.

Be sure to carve out some relaxing fun this weekend.

Steve Madden Slinky

The Slinky is back!

I mentioned the reboot of the above Steve Madden Slinky back in April. The shoe was available for pre-order at that time, and mine were delivered this week. (Happy dance!)

Y'all, this shoe was a wardrobe stable for me in the 90's.  I had the requisite black pair, as well as a leopard print and metallic grey, although it is possible the latter pairs were knock-offs. I had similarly styled shoes in leather, and those bad boys hugged the foot, making it possible to walk miles and miles. (I once did that in Vegas with the leather pair, and my only twinge of discomfort was a blister where the label rubbed a blister on the bottom of my foot. Otherwise, I could have walked all day in the desert.)

Needless to say, I'm pretty happy to be reunited with this shoe. If you need me, I'll be here, wearing the shoes, listening to No Doubt and watching Friends.