As crazy as it is, this summer has come & gone! But what’s even more sad is that at some point, I stopped documenting our family’s adventures on this blog. It’s been a YEAR! I love to write and I love to keep record of what our fam is up to so here I am again to try and revive this old dusty thing! So here I am with a snapshot of our crazy busy summer!
We kicked off summer immediately with some of our best friend families on a road trip to Branson, Missouri! What could be more fun than 10 adults and 15 kids all in one house?! We played in the pools, putt-putted, boated & tubed like crazy, & even checked out some Branson shopping. It was SO MUCH FUN!
Next up was surgery. PARTY! The day after we got home, I had my gallbladder removed. So that obviously halted summer a bit. But thankfully I have an incredible support system that stepped in and took care of me and my family when I could not.
VBS TIME!!! Nothing like helping lead the charge on a huge event right after having surgery. I don’t always make the best life choices but I can honestly say that I sat WAY more for this VBS than even when I was pregnant with Luke. So I listen to doctor’s orders. Kind of. It was an absolutely MONUMENTAL week!!! (I had to throw that pun in for the last time.)
Caleb (and Coach Nick!) ended their baseball season! It was such a great time with fun friends and a really great team. I think the coaches had just as much fun as the boys.
Our favorite guy headed off to Poland to care for our favorite Polish friends!!! We were sad to not go with him, but we are holding hope for next time. He really enjoyed his time being able to reconnect with so many of his friends that he hasn’t had the opportunity to see in years because of the pandemic.
While he was away, my girls totally showed up and surprised me with a birthday party in my own backyard!!! Talk about the cream of the crop. These girls have my heart.
Aunt Katie came to visit too!!! We went to a fun ice cream shop, a concert in the park, putt-putted, and then…
We did the FRIENDS experience and took pictures with alllll the things!
Our best guy got home just in time for my birthday dinner at Chuy’s! Best birthday gift ever!
Our festive 4th of July weekend began with Red, White, & You with the whole town of Littleton!
We snuck in a night under the stars and twinkly lights on a dance floor with a bonus of fireworks that almost took out two of our hubby’s (including my own!).
A spontaneous visit from Aunt JJ was super fun and exciting!!
We ended the 4th with a BANG! celebrating with friends & fireworks at our house. Our culdesac on the 4th will always give me Sandlot vibes and I love it.
We had some lake days thrown in there throughout the summer!
And some pool days too! This is what summer is all about, right?! Especially when Colorado got all confused and it became a million degrees outside.
Nick and I had to reschedule our anniversary trip to July because of my surgery. But that meant we got to enjoy the rooftop pool! We stayed in downtown Denver at a hotel that overlooked Coors Field and it was all decked out in baseball decor. We joked that the baseball was for him & the pool was for me. And if anyone came to our wedding, it kind of accidentally/on purpose was baseball themed so it was perfect!
Next up was our small group camping trip to Glendo, Wyoming! It’s been a joke ever since we joined this group that I find a way out of the annual camping trip. Well this year I did it! A testament of how much I love these people.
Next up is where it’s about to get crazy! My dad flew up to help drive myself and the boys down to Texas for our 19 day adventure. Yup, you read that right. So I’ll try to break this trip down in sections…
The first part of the trip was at the cousins’ house where all the crazies could be reunited! It’s a shame they don’t enjoy being together.
Aunt Kaylyn took them to see Shrek Jr which was so cute! Luke was a bit terrified at one point because he thought Pinnochio’s nose was going to grow all the way to poke him but we worked through it. By me holding him the rest of the time.
One of my best friend’s family’s made the trek over to see us and it’s always so much fun to see how all the kids have grown when they are together again! That big teenage boy on the left was our ring bearer and now he’s deciding to show up all grown up with a girlfriend in tow.
We visited with our Aunt Janie who is my Grandad’s sister! It’s always so precious to be able to see her and have the boys get to know her.
Matching shirts are always a must.
Next part of the trip was time at Mimi & G-Daddy’s house! The boys and I got to eat LOTS of yummy seafood, take walks by the boats & water, play in the pool, and spent a night at the boardwalk which made up so many of my childhood memories.
We had to throw in a day at the beach since the cousins were there and the boys have never actually played in the ocean that I grew up right by!
The next couple days, the boys got to play with grandparents while I got some girl time with two of my besties at the beach! Way overdue and so, so great!
DUDE PERFECT TIME!!! Say what?! We surprised the kids with a 24 hour trip back up to Dallas to see DP. And even more fun was that Aunt JJ met us there too since she works with the twins’ dad and all. This whole show was SO MUCH FUN. Caleb’s hype level was absolutely beyond.
This is the part of the trip where it got kinda cray! We ended up driving to Houston, picking up Nick (YAY!!!), driving back to Dallas because plans got thwarted, and spending the week back up there. But the Nanan showed up a couple days in and all was well!
The trip ended with a youth group reunion where we got to see people that I probably haven’t seen in over a decade! It was so great to be able to reminisce and really celebrate all that God has done through that group.
We have taken a picture in front of the Sam Houston statue ever I started visiting when Caleb and Maddie were only 1 on our drives from Houston to Dallas. The tradition lives on!
We spent a lot of life with my sister’s family during those 19 days! A good bit in the car driving between Houston and Dallas, a night with all 8 of us in one hotel room, a ton of time in their pool, and some helping put their kitchen back together. (Because we totally showed up at the tail end of their home renovation just like all good guests do! Ha!)
We ended the summer with a pool day with JoJo!!
Whew! This was QUITE the summer where we really packed it in. It was definitely full of memories and fun! We are sad to see it go, but know that routine & structure & school are calling.
Farewell Summer 2022, you were one for the books!
Trying to Keep Up With My Jones' 