Oh, What a Summer!

This Summer has been one for the books! It's one that I want to remember forever. Although we did A LOT of fun stuff, it was the first Summer since the boys were little that they got along more like friends than brothers. Did they have their moments? Of course. But, 95% of the time they got along and it was absolutely GLORIOUS! 

The icing on the cake was all of the things we did. We started the Summer by fishing the MS River and taking my brother in law's new-to-him boat out to go tubing. The week that followed was busy because we cheered on our school's baseball team when they made school history by advancing to the state championship series. P and I left the game to drive to Alabama to meet up with one of my closest college friends and her sweet parents for dinner. Then Rob and I escaped for a few days to the beach, just the two of us, before the boys joined us. The following weekend was bittersweet because it was Keigan's funeral and then a fishing tournament that we put together to help Keigan's and Lou's families with medical expenses incurred from their ATV accident. Father's Day weekend was the only weekend we really laid low and that's because it stormed all weekend. Rob worked crazy long hours, but we did get to celebrate him on Father's Day. One of my favorite things of the Summer was the following weekend when we went to Uncle Fred's farm. I have grown to enjoy fishing, but it's not my most favorite thing in the world to do. However, that weekend was, hands down, the most fun I've ever had fishing. E, Rob and I got up early to go out on the lake. And, boy, was it worth it! Every time E or I casted our lines we were catching bass. We were laughing so hard because I refuse to touch the fish, but he was struggling to deal with all the fish he and I were bringing in. Within a couple hours, we had caught about 40 bass! Needless to say, we had a fish fry while we were at the farm. A few days after getting back from the farm, the boys and I made a day trip to Denham. We spent time with friends that we hadn't seen in almost a year and P got to go to Youth Group, which he loved. The last weekend of the month was spent celebrating P's bday with a "surprise" trip to watch the Atlanta Braves play. I had tried so hard to keep it a secret but the boys looked through my phone the day before the game and saw the tickets. Despite it not being much of a surprise, we still had a lot of fun watching Warren Zeiders before the game and then watching the Braves dominate the game with several home runs. 

July was pretty much spent in Cali, visiting family and friends. We did spend the first Saturday of the month tubing, grilling on the boat and watching fireworks. We also celebrated P's birthday by fishing and going to his favorite restaurant for dinner. After that we flew to Cali, where we fished some more (Are you seeing a theme for this Summer?). We also got to spend time with my brother and his family at Great Wolf Lodge. And I LOVED spending a day at my favorite place....the mountains! But, hands down, my favorite part of our time there was surprising my parents with a belated 50th anniversary dinner with family and a few close friends. Last Fall I had planned on surprising my parents by flying to SD to help them celebrate their special anniversary. But, due to unforeseen circumstance, they had to cancel their trip as did we. So, my brother, SIL and I planned an intimate dinner at my parents' favorite restaurant. It was so much fun to, not only see them surprised, but see people lovingly celebrate them.

We got back home a few days ago and now reality is setting in. I am fast and furiously trying to finish up some big house projects that have taken longer than anticipated. Have you ever peeled wallpaper? Oh the joys! (It makes me rethink the newest fad of adding wallpaper to rooms to add flair.) I have also been working in my classroom, getting ready for the new school year, while trying to catch up on things at the house and squeeze in a last few fun times with the boys. I can't remember the last time a Summer flew by as fast as this one did! I am looking forward to the slower pace that Fall can bring, but I'm not quite ready to end this awesome Summer. Like I said, it was one of the best!