Summer 2017 & Back to School

This summer consisted of 2 road trips (Michigan and Maine - to be featured in a future post), 1 trip to the beach, 1 mom camp week, 3 weeks of day camp for the boys, 1 long weekend in NY and 3ish weeks free when we just did day trips, pool, or hung out with friends.

I learned (and will hopefully remember for the future) Amelia needs 1 or 2 days after arriving in a new place to adjust and become her normal self, planning vacation for the end of summer (this year we went away the last two weeks before school) is the BEST idea as summer fatigue sets in around then, I need to re-learn how to pack light, I should always travel with my bike, AND...I only seem to accomplish about half my summer goals so need to plan accordingly.

Milestones for the summer included Amelia potty training herself at 2.5 yrs old, Owen losing his first tooth (he didn't write to the tooth fairy), Jacob doing a front flip off the diving board, Anne competing in a step challenge with some extremely competitive friends and walked over 150k steps in a week, and Owen diving off the diving board.

As always there were days and weeks and months ;) that went by so slowly but now here we are the second day of school already and it feels like a blur. With that, here are some favorite moments and pics from the past couple months.

Rainy barbecue with old friends and all our kids - the Levners, Schwartzes, Foleys, and the Spaeders - age range 2.5 - 13 years old.

Millie and Clyde became real buds.

LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!!

Random Friday at 11:50pm-ish during my first (and hopefully last) step challenge.

YAY OWEN!!!


Then it was the 6th Annual Mom Camp week. This year we went back to our favorite spots over the years (things are a'changin' as our children have started voicing their opinions). Cunningham Falls, Butler's Orchard, Climbzone, Scotts Run Hike and a pool day.

At Climbzone Amelia loved being almost weightless, Jacob climbed higher than ever before and Owen was able to run up the warped wall. Success all around!

 Jean is getting married and we all traveled to Charlotte to begin the celebration!

Then a long weekend in NY where we got to spend fun times with the Sherman & Wulfow crews

 Look at all these cousins!

Before and after!

I can't watch, I just tell them to yell once they're at the top. 

Fun with the Schwartzes 

My friend Jen, who has been my stalwart "mom friend" (turned friend friend, whom I met a few weeks after I stopped working at C-SPAN) moved to Ohio this summer. Sigh.
She is simply a one-of-a-kind, can do, always optimistic, always up for adventure, super-hero/human mom and friend. I'm going with the denial route at the moment but her daily presence will be greatly missed. On the bright side, it looks like we've already got one road trip planned for next summer.

Then the kids and I got the fun privilege of welcoming Sam back from a study abroad trip to China. So happy he got that opportunity and we loved getting to hear all his thoughts on the drive home.   

Finally, we spent the last two weeks of summer in Bar Harbor, Maine and Bethany Beach, DE which will be heavily detailed in a future post.

Then suddenly, we're BACK TO SCHOOL! Jacob 4th grade with Ms. Hicks, Owen 2nd Grade with Ms. Caropreso and a very confused Millie (because she did not go to school that day like the boys), who will start next week in her 2s class two days a week. Tada!