Summer is officially here. School is out at LNC. Avian and I will be spending our summer at the school working with the tech team to get everything ready for next year.
Nick started June off with getting 100% on his air conditioning test at school. He is really working hard to learn everything he can while at school.
June 2nd I went to the dentist in the morning and then took Tabitha Tufts to lunch since she is moving to Idaho in a couple of weeks. I am going to miss her. It was fun to sit and catch up on everything that has been going on in her world. With five little girls there is never a dull moment.
We also found out that our VSP vision insurance did not get renewed. That part of the paperwork got forgotten so I had to reschedule my eye doctor appointment for later in July. I got us all signed up for VSP and we are insured again to go to the eye doctor.
That night I got to have dinner with Sandra. She had fixed a lasagna and needed some help eating it. I always love catching up with her. She is doing so much with her life and there is always something going on.
June 3rd Avian and I got to work together getting the tech ready for next school year. It was fun to with her.
Nick has started his tool collection. He and the other techs had been sharing tools with the head tech and the head tech got a promotion which meant no more tools. That is okay! Nick was thrilled to get to go shopping for tools!! It is getting real and he is loving it. He gets to take them to work everyday and use them which makes it even more fun.
June 5th was the day of parties. We started off at Elan Booker's graduation party. I remember when Elan was born and here she is already graduating heading off to college in the fall. That was fast! Next we headed to a farewell party for three families in our congregation that were moving - the Tufts, Schmidts and Smiths. It was a great turnout and we are really going to miss these guys.
June 7th Avian got their second shot and went to their first volleyball workout of the summer. It was good for them to keep moving their arm although it didn't help with feeling absolutely exhausted and cruddy the next day. On a happier note, Steve worked a full day really getting into the data and learning the new data system and he was not exhausted and frustrated and ready to quit at the end of the day. He was energized and excited because this new company is so amazing and his co-workers are encouraging and collaborative. It is a whole new work environment and he LOVES it.
June 10th I learned how to rewire rooms at school for data and phone. It was fun getting into the ceiling and finding where the wires came from and then getting them to where they needed to be. I am learning a ton this summer.
June 11th we spent the day helping the Tufts get everything cleaned out of their house. Steve and Phil took one last run to the dump. So sad that this is the end of the Steve and Phil era. That night we had them over for a final, truly Southern dinner. They had to have chicken and waffles before they moved back out West.
June 13th I got to drive the Tufts to the airport. They are officially no longer North Carolina residents anymore. I hurried back to church in time to hear Steve speak in sacrament meeting. He did a really amazing job. The extra special thing was that all three kids were there to hear their dad. After sacrament meeting I went to RS and taught the lesson. I love that the sisters are so willing to contribute to the lesson. It makes teaching fun.
June 14th I worked in the morning and then helped a friend, Daquetta, pack for her move from an apartment to a house. Avian had volleyball workouts. They are getting ready for try-outs the first week of August.
June 17th I spent the day weeding, moving rocks, and mowing the lawn. The back yard is going to be an oasis when I finally get it all done. I took a break to help Jeremy get his application done for college. After some lunch I went back outside and finished the retaining wall Nick and I had started a couple of weeks before, picked Avian up from work and then went to the pool for a bit. I was exhausted by the end of the day, but it is good to be exhausted.
June 18th we went to support Devan French at a performance of her new band Tiny Tricycle Poets. They were really good and we enjoyed having a family night. Afterwards we went to dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings. Family nights are the best.
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| Devan and her band. They were really good. |
Steve has been working on his wood creations any chance he gets. This is a platter made with spalted maple. It is gorgeous.
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| Work in progress |
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| Finished product |
June 19th was another work in the yard day. I was out there all day long (7am to 5pm). I got the rock garden done for the iris, cleared out Nick's exercise area and got it mulched, and built a new ring around the tree closest to the fire pit. Steve and I also made two trips to Christy's Nursery for dirt and to pick out plants that will attract bees, butterflies and hummingbirds. Lisa was so helpful and we can away with some really gorgeous plants. Our yard is going coming along quite nicely.
I think I worked Steve too hard because he jumped at the chance to take a break and go to an Elder's Quorum party.
I was just finishing putting the tools away when the sky opened and poured rain. The new plants were happy!
June 20th Nick told me he got another Student of Course pin for Climate Control. This is his third one. I love that he is having a good time and getting recognized for his hard work.
The kids and I fixed a dinner fit for a king for Steve for Father's Day. We had damnburgers, onion rings, dump salad and stuffed mushrooms. We were all full by the end of this meal.
That night Steve and I went to the airport to pick up Karina (a new sister in our ward visiting the US from Mexico. She is here for a year as an au pair). I am so glad that Steve came with me because the airport was insane and I had only talked to Karina once at church and wasn't sure I would be able to find her. The flow of traffic was moving so slowly that I was able to jump out of the truck, walk down the row of people, find Karina and get us to the truck about the same time Steve was pulling up. It made things so much easier.
June 21st I started off my morning going for a walk with Sandra. She walks really fast and it is a phenomenal workout. Back at home I spent a little time in the yard doing messy stuff since I was already sweaty. After cleaning up, Avian and I drove with Jeremy to UNC Charlotte to drop off his transcripts to the Admissions Office.
June 25th Avian and I drove to Lynchburg to meet up with some friends they met on a Minecraft server. I was a little nervous about the whole thing so we arranged to meet them at a public park. Turns out they are very nice girls and the three of them were like best buddies in about 5 minutes. Alena's mom needed to get home and Alena, Chloe and Avian wanted to keep hanging out so I offered to chaperone. They ended up talking at the park until it closed and then they all wanted Boba Tea. I ended up taking them home at 10 p.m. after we had a good chance to plan what they wanted to do the following day. Avian and I had come up with a list of things to do since the two girls told us that Lynchburg should have been named Lynchboring. We took it as a challenge. They were excited about the proposed agenda for the following day.
Avian, Alena and Chloe - they are three peas in a pod.
June 26th Avian and I were at Alena's house to pick up Alena and Chloe at 9 am. We drove to Hollins Mill Park where we rented canoes. Alena and Chloe where a little nervous about canoeing so we split them up. Avian and Alena were in one canoe and Chloe and I were in the other. Avian and I took the back position since that is the one that steers the canoe. We had a ton of fun and they really liked it.
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| Chloe, Avian and Alena taking a break to chat in their canoes. |
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| Trying to hold toes?????? |
After our two hours of canoeing were up (went waaaay too fast!), we decided to go on a little hike in the park. There was a tunnel you could walk through and that sounded like a blast.
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| Alena, Chloe and Avian wanted their picture taken with his really cool tree. One of the many gorgeous sites while on the hike. |
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| The path was paved but it was very wooded and felt secluded. I love these kinds of hikes. |
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| Heading into the cave. |
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| After the hike we cooled our feet in the river below the waterfall. |
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| Can you tell these skates are used to going counter clockwise?!? |
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| Taking a slushy break. |
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| Avian took this one and it was one of their favorites from the whole trip. |
After several hours of roller skating and laser tag the girls wanted to go to the mall and walk around. It was entertaining to follow them and just watch. We ended up in Belk at one point and the girls each picked out an outfit for each other. The results were pretty hilarious. I didn't get to see them firsthand because I was distracting the sales lady, but I heard about them afterwards. They had a lot of fun.
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| This cut out of Dwight Schrute scared the girls when we walked into FYE. It was very realistic. |
After the mall they were finally showing signs of getting tired. We decided to get a couple of pizzas and head back to the hotel to eat and just let them talk for a bit before taking them back home. They talked for a couple of hours before deciding they all wanted another Boba tea. They wanted to end their day sipping Boba and talking on the tailgate of the truck in the parking lot.
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| Perfect way to end a perfect day! |
June 27th Avian and I checked out of the hotel and went in search of some nutritious breakfast food. We were tired of fast food. We ended up at a grocery store getting yogurt parfaits and fruit. Once we were fed we stopped by Alena's house to say goodbye. While we were there Alena's dad took us out to the dog kennels and let us see the two litters of puppies they had. It was a fun way to end out adventure in Lynchburg.
One the road home we took back roads to avoid the insane traffic on parts of the freeway. Also, Avian wanted to drive through the mountains which meant going through Fancy Gap, Virginia. It is a beautiful little town in the foothills of the mountains! We also had to drive through a rest stop because Avian said it was not a road trip until you visited a rest stop.
Back at home Steve had fixed some dinner for us and we got to Zoom with my family and then his family. These Sunday Zoom calls are one of my favorite things that came out of the quarantine.
While Avian and I were gone Steve did a lot of woodworking and Nick went to a single's ward pool party in between working and doing homework.
June 29th I went on another walk with Sandra since she was leaving to go back to Florida. With all the walking I have been doing I can finally keep up with her! Back at home I finally finished up (for now) the projects I had started in the back yard. The iris are all in their new homes and the butterfly bush seems happy in its corner. Everything is mulched as well and it looks really good. I have posted pictures below.
That night was a RS activity. It was centered around shoes. Each sister brought a pair of shoes to donate to a local home for battered women and also brought a pair of shoes that had a story attached to it. I learned a lot about the women that night.
Steve also purchased his ticket to his 30th high school reunion. He is excited to go and see everyone. They have been bugging him to come to one for years. The last one we went to was when I was pregnant with Naomi.
And now the pictures of the back yard project.
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| BEFORE There used to be a tree in this corner, but it died so we decided to turn it into a workout corner for Nick. Steve and Nick had put the bar up earlier, but it was time to finish the corner. |
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| AFTER Much better!! |
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| BEFORE These poor iris had not been separated for years and had stopped blooming. The bulbs were packed in so tight they had no more room to grow. |
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| AFTER Now the iris are in the sun and have room to grow. The retaining wall just gives it a more finished look. |
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| BEFORE The circle around the tree looked huge when the tree was little, but not so much now. Also, under the tree had turned into a dumping ground for limbs and sticks. |
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| AFTER Now the tree had enough room to grow and the retaining wall made it so we could fill it up with dirt to cover the exposed roots. I also moved the sticks and branches to their new homes. |
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| BEFORE Not bad but... |
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| AFTER ...much better now. |
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| BEFORE The gardens vegetable gardens were not happy in this location so we moved them (see previous posts for that story and pictures) |
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| AFTER Now the iris have more room to grow in a sunny location |
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| AFTER There is a path for enjoying the new plants. |
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| AFTER The butterfly bush will eventually fill up the corner and attract bees, hummingbirds and butterflies! |
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| AFTER The path leads out to the lawn. |
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| AFTER Our view from the patio |
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| AFTER Another view from the patio |
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| AFTER One last view from the patio. |
I think you can tell I like it and will be spending more time in the yard now!!! It feels bigger and cleaner and more functional. Just the way I like it.
UPDATE: The bees, hummingbirds and butterflies are LOVING the new plants.
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