Our summer is a lot like a winter in the places that have a real winter, like Siberia.  If we don’t have bathing suits and a whole can of sunscreen sprayed on us, we spend our days inside.  It’s just safer this way.  I’ve been spending my days making vats and vats of lemonade and iced  tea, spraying kids with sunscreen, and washing bathing suits.  That’s pretty much it.  So, what do you do with kids that can’t play outside?

Photobooth.

It all started when this little cutie, who happens to be my niece, wanted to look at pictures of her favorite baby cousin.  It was fun until the billionth time.  Then, Aunt Kristy needed to change things up for the sake of her sanity.  So I appealed to her vanity and pulled up Photobooth.

 It worked.  When all else fails, appeal to their little sin natures.;)  Isn’t she the cutest thing ever?

Then the big girls wanted in on the fun!

And, then they took over.  They look like cousins, don’t they?! haha.

What kind of fun things do you do on summer days?

When we got to the cabin, we saw a teeny, tiny nest resting on the dinner bell that hangs from the porch.  I mean, tiny!  It was about 1 1/2 inches across, at the most.  We were wondering what could live in a nest that small.  Then a hummingbird flew through the trees nearby and seemed to be checking us out.  We got very excited.  I had never seen a hummingbird sitting still.  It seemed momentous.

At first, she didn’t want to get close to the humans.  Can you blame her?  We also had our 70 pound black lab running around.  It was all very intimidating, I’m sure.  I warned the kids that she might stay away since we had invaded her space, but they were not deterred.  They were on hummingbird alert.

Then, this happened:

And she didn’t leave.  For days.  Well, it seemed that way.  She would fly away to get small things, every once and a while.  Jon and the kids took a peek in her nest and found 2 pink jellybean sized eggs inside.  So exciting!  I tried to sneak a peek and almost got divebombed.  She came out of nowhere.  She did NOT want me anywhere near her nest, so I backed away with my hands up.  Isn’t that the universal I’m safe sign?  Or is it, I don’t have any weapons?  Again, we are cityfolk.

It might not have been a once in a lifetime event, but we were so glad to have witnessed it.  We went up to the cabin for few days of rest and refreshment, and there was something so lovely about looking up and seeing a hummingbird sitting in a nest.  They are the ones that never stop and always have somewhere to be, but this particular hummingbird’s job was to sit still.  I took my cues from her.

Well, guess what?  I do have to sleep and eat.  I know, that was a surprise to me too. For the last couple weeks, Jon and I have been working on a VBS program for the kids at an amazing church here in the valley.  We had so much fun, but every night and every morning, I had aches and pains in places I didn’t realize existed.  That never happened when I was a kiddo in my twenties!  My body is getting older. You should have seen the amount of vitamins I started taking every night.  I’ve turned into my father!  For the record, they totally worked.  If your body is changing on you, I recommend hitting the vitamin aisle.

Our kids were troopers, but we wore them out too.  Here’s a pic of my 5yr. old after a day of VBS:

Poor, overstimulated, balloon wearing, drive thru fed children.  My daughter ate 4 donuts on Saturday.  My son ate 4 sno cones.  It will take us weeks to detox from this.;)  We are “trying” to take it easy this week.  I’m not quite sure we’re succeeding, but I’ve slept in ’til 7:00 for three days in a row.  I’ll celebrate the small successes.

It’s also time to rearrange the schedule.  Is summer a busy time for you as well?  I always think ahead to summer as lazy days of sunshine and lemonade goodness, but whenever I get here I find lots of busyness.  So, in order to enjoy, and do well with all of my summertime commitments, I will be moving to a summer schedule for blogging.  I will only be here about three times a week, but if your summers are like my summers, you will be here less too.  So, it should all work out.;)

But, I want to leave you with a little more goodness from last summer.  This is a little video of the zipline the grown people made for the little people up at the family place in the woods.  Notice who is riding it towards the end.;)

This is what the kids did last summer, when we were up in the woods.

If his sister wasn’t on there, Roc would have been swinging up above the roof.  That’s how he rolls.

This is how a mother’s heart grows strong.

Sometimes unwillingly.

And, because it takes pushes from Dad to get that high, this is also how a wife’s trust in her husband grows strong.

Also, sometimes unwillingly.

Cheers to summer!  Cheers to pushing the limitations on fun!

Hope you all are swinging into summer beautifully!

]]> http://whateverislovelyblog.com/2011/06/06/swinging-into-summer/feed/ 0 K swing cute swing far swing close http://whateverislovelyblog.com/2011/05/27/the-things-no-one-else-will-tell-you-about-having-little-people-in-your-life/ http://whateverislovelyblog.com/2011/05/27/the-things-no-one-else-will-tell-you-about-having-little-people-in-your-life/#comments Fri, 27 May 2011 18:15:12 +0000 Kristy http://whateverislovelyblog.com/?p=1031 Continue reading →]]>

my littlest person, back when she was little

One day, you will take off your shoes and put them exactly where they live in your closet. Then later that day you will look there and the left one will be missing. You will search the entire house for it, only to find it under a dresser in the bedroom down the hall. Do not feel like you are going crazy. You DID put it away. You DID NOT put it under the dresser in the other bedroom.

One day, you will be going through a security check point and you will not have kids with you. The security guard will pull: a pair of underwear, a yo-yo, and a half eaten lollipop, out of your purse, for a whole line of people to see. Do not explain. Just smile.

One day, you will be cleaning out the backseat of your vehicle only to find an entire uneaten bag of french fries under the seat. Do not ask yourself how long it has been there. Do not lecture/question your kids about it. It will happen again. It is completely out of everyone’s control.

One day, your littlest person will walk down the hall to you in your very expensive, most favorite pair of high heel boots, wrecking the heels and making them wobbly for all time, and you will only laugh and take pictures.

One day, you will find a little girl in your bathroom smearing designer make up all over her knees and elbows. Do not yell. It is a rite of passage. It’s supposed to be expensive.

One day, you will make every bed in the house, turn around and find every bed in the house unmade. You are not going crazy. Do not remake them. Make the little people do it. Do NOT remake them. It is okay to have sheets on top of the blankets, for one day.

One day, you will be at your lowest low, and out of the blue, two little arms will hug your neck and tears will pour down your cheeks and a very little person will tell you, “Don’t cry. It will be alright.” Do NOT disregard their advice, because they are little. Do not tell them they don’t understand. They understand better than you do in that moment.

One day, you will find a stick of butter in a closet. It’s best to just pretend this never happened.

One day, a little person you are responsible for, will lift up her skirt while on a stage, say a cuss word to one of your pastors, or tell people you really love alcohol. Do not let this define you.

One day, you will sit and write about all the ways that your little people drive you crazy, and mess up your stuff, and you will realize what they have taught you: People matter most.  Deadlines, stuff, looking like a good person are all irrelevant. Live well with your people. Give them all the love you have in you.

It’s hard to be creative when you are smack dab in the center of a whirlwind, so I’m just going to share a dreamy picture with you.  Let’s take a little visual break and breath in the scent of this gorgeous wisteria!

Source: stumbleupon.com via Kristy on Pinterest.

This sort of commitment is becoming more and more ambiguous these days.  In movies, and in conversation, we talk about life long commitment the same way we talk about oil changes.  In about 500 more miles, I will need to go to Jiffy Lube.  We talk about it more as maintenance and routine. Yesterday, I read an article about “maintaining a good marriage relationship”  and she spoke about allotting more time in your schedule so that you can be with your spouse. It all sounds so clinical and mathematical, and the author had only been married for a year, eek!

But, this is what has struck me lately.  Life is not guaranteed to us.  Not only can I not guarantee I will be around tomorrow, but I cannot guarantee that Jon will be around tomorrow.  When I think of this, my mind goes back to our college dating days, when we weren’t guaranteed to see each other.  It was so exciting to accidentally run into each other on campus, or get a phone call out of the blue.  These days, when I “accidentally” run into my husband, I say things like, “Did you remember to get the crescent rolls?”  I used to hang on his every word, listen to his ramblings and laugh at his cheesy jokes.  (Which must have been annoying to watch, I apologize to all our college friends.  How did you put up with us?)

I agree with the author of yesterday’s article:  there are times when we need to look at things practically and schedule times to be together.  But, I think more than anything it is a heart matter.  There was a reason I wanted to spend all of my college free time with Jon.  I cherished him.  Yes, there was crazy infatuation and we liked to make out (Sorry, Mom), but I recognized something about him that I tend to forget these days.  He is the only one on the planet like him.  He will have a way of looking at things that is different from everyone else.  He will love a bunch of random things and pull them all together in a way that only he can.  And, I happen to love the way he does all that.  And, just like everyone else in my life, I don’t know how long we have each other, so every day is to be treasured.  Every lingering hug in the kitchen enjoyed.  The car, we can take for granted and maintain regularly.  The marriage, we need to fully enjoy and celebrate constantly!

“God by definition is thinking of you.”

–Brennan Manning in Ruthless Trust: The Ragamuffin’s Path to God

Happy Monday!  If you are looking for a book that really gets to the heart of the matter, I suggest Ruthless Trust.  On the cover, Dallas Willard says, “Brennan Manning throws firebrands into your soul.”  It’s true.  I started reading a friend’s copy and cannot stop thinking about it.  I will have to order it today, so that I can finish it.

Wear comfy layers.  It will be hot, cold, and windy all in the same day.

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Pack a lunch and snacks.  It gets hungry out there, and you won’t want to leave once you’re settled. This is the perfect time to use disposables. That way you can throw everything away while you’re still there.

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Expect to get gross.  It’s just more fun that way.  You wouldn’t worry about getting muddy while you were splashing through puddles, why would you worry about little sand and saltwater?

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Put your two year old daughter in a two piece bathing suit, regardless of what your husband says about modesty.  On the 5th trip to the porta-potty, he will thank you for it.

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Always look for shells!  And, don’t forget to look for sea glass, driftwood, and really cool rocks while you’re at it.  Do NOT bring home seaweed!  It will only smell worse.  It will not “air out.”

Or, just ignore everything I just said and do it your way.:)  Like, you needed my help!  What’s your favorite way to enjoy the beach?