Before Fall Hits...

Let's continue covering our Summer happs before the leaves start changing.  Because when THAT happens, I go into Autumn mania mode and these pictures will be a thing of the past.  This first video is a fantastic little summary of our swim team season.  It depicts just how much our focus was on trying hard and finishing races.  Not so much the winning.  Or placing.

 Summer = Dude gets to choose a design for our barber,  Brandon, to carve into his head.  This year's choice?  A groundhog's footprint of course.  Why wouldn't it be?

We do a whole lotta life this these little people, our across the street neighbors.  This particular day was one for the books.  Colorado heaven.

And these people...if I could wrap them up and put them in my pocket I would.  I simply can not get enough of every single one of them.  They hold my heart for sure.

News flash - did you know the library (at least ours) rents out fabulous things like Dash and Dot the robots that cost way too much money to spend on something that will gain their interest for 3 weeks?  After 3 weeks we bring them back.  Done.  Free.  What would I do without the library?  It is certainly one of my happy places.  For so many reasons.  Mainly the books. 

Playdates were commonplace this summer.  We're blessed with a community filled to the brim with cute little people we call friends.  Energy balls were of of Dude's highlights - he's my little chef.

Following his ART SHOW (see that link for the full post on that major event), the local paper did an awesome write up.  It was big news round here.

Five weeks ago, THIS started.  We've been praying and contemplating about this since we moved in.  We do NOT need extra space for ourselves in this house of ours, but we really feel called to provide space for people who need a place to rest their heads.  Whoever God leads to us.  Mr. Dale and Marcus have been here working diligently every single day and we're nearing the end.  They've created an apartment, a new bathroom, and a giant living room.  And naturally, the week we started this we got an email asking if we could host a Guatemalan foreign exchange student, starting a couple weeks after completion date.  That God.  He's crafty.  Dude will be getting the "orphan brother" he's been begging for - even just for 3 months.  I will admit that it feels gross spending so much money on this project and managing the process has been extremely time consuming, but we do trust that it will not be in vain.  And it sure does look purty, says the designer in me.  

A Little Bit of Nana and Papa by Our Side

They came, they played, they spoiled, they wrestled, they crafted, they hiked, they spoiled some more, they paraded, they swam, they hot tubbed.....Nana and Papa are the bestest.  

 

Papa and Dude have a special somethin.  It's one of my favorite relationships to witness.  Nana helped my insistent son sew a "stuffie" from a book he's been hounding me about.  Given the fact that I don't thread needles, much less sew an entire "stuffie," Nana was his best shot.  

Rockies game with Papa was a highlight.  It was Squirt's first baseball game and since it was spent in Tim's company box with ALL the food and soda, I doubt we'll ever get her to go to a seat with the commoners.  Who am I kidding.  I only do sporting events in boxes.  

Dude and I hosted his Strokes of Genius Art Show (post coming soon) on Friday evening, which was so so so wonderful, and Saturday morning he headed west to a 35 acre retreat center where we didn't see humans, vehicles, concrete, or retail for 3 days.  After a day of detoxing from technology, our kids played and read and hiked and took naps like people do without a screen to occupy their brain power.  And we did much of the same.  This place has become one of my favorite places to go. 

 Perhaps a new hammock is in order.

 This labyrinth was the favorite for our kiddos.  They walked it forward and backward and insisted we adults do the same.  

 Our little home away from home was the right side of the big red barn.  

 Squirt decided to show her brother how to be brave by going headfirst down a hill 3x more steep than this one on her BIKE.  It didn't end well.  At all.

We got her back on the bike the next day and emotionally, she recovered quickly.  Her baby doll seen mounted on her back here was part of the crash, so Squirt kept her nice and close the next day.  Another highlight was the 6th launch of Flash the Rocket.  That sucker took wind and traveled a distance we weren't prepared for.  After a rescue mission covering 1000 feet into the forest, Tim spotted the red spec in a tree.  30 minutes later, the rocket was in hand.  See the video for the seamless rescue.

 Don't be fooled.  She had nothing to do with the rescue.  

 It's not quite "I love you," but I think that's what she was going for.