September 11th - 20 Years Later

On September 11th we headed to see the Flags of Valor.  I'm going to be completely honest here.  It was a horrible drive down.  The kids woudln't stop fighting.  We met Nonna at a parkign lot and she was late, the traffic was awful, Jack didn't want to get out of the car - you get the idea.  We arrived and my nerves were very frayed and my patience was nonexisent.  

Then we walked up to the flags.  There were over 7,000 to represent each person that died on September 11th as well as the service members that have died since.  Each flag had a picture and a dog tag.  

As the wind blew the flags would wave and the dog tags would tap the poles.  It was the most beautiful and heartbreaking sound I have ever heard.  Each of those flags represent a person.  A son, daughter, mother, father, friend.  I was completely overwhelmed with emotion.  

Seeing the flags and hearing that sound brought me to tears.  I'm so grateful for their sacrifices and we will never forget.

 

Happy Birthday Nonna!

We threw together an impromptu dinner for Nonna's 67th birthday.  Brian was all excited to use his smoker to make a brisket and burnt ends.  It was a fabulous, relaxing dinner and I wish we could do it every day.

 

First Days

August 24, 2021 - First Day of 8th Grade

First Day of 3rd Grade

August 30, 2021 - First Day of 5th Grade

Time just keeps flying by no matter how much I wish I could slow it down.
 

Ending Summer with a Bang!

Between my sprianed ankle, William's broken wrists, Covid, and Nonna's back surgery we didn't get out as much as usual this summer.  I was determined to end summer break on a high note and I think we did a pretty great job.

We met up with Nonna for a visit to Grant's Farm.  I swear no matter how old the boys get they still enjoy feeding the goats.  I will say that they were the oldest ones in the goat pen - just another reminder that time goes so quickly.

After the farm we headed over to Aunt Carm and Uncle Mike's house to visit with G and have lunch.  Aunt Carm made the best butter garlic pasta ever - Max still tells me I need to figure out how to make it.  

 What better way to end this fabulous day than with a scoop of delicious ice cream?

Peach Picking

I missed peach picking in 2020!  It was so good to get back to the orchard - and it was even better because we had some pretty great company.

It doesn't get much better - unless maybe it's the peach cobbler we made for dessert that night. 

William the Daredevil

 

William spent a weekend at the lake with a family from school.  When I picked him up they said he had a slight incident on an ATV.  Apparently he was driving, got dust in his eyes, and hit a tree.  This momma does not approve.  

He was complaining that his wrists hurt so I took him to the doctor on Monday.  Sure enough this crazy guy had not one, but two broken wrists.  His left one was actually pretty bad - he broke both the radius and the ulna.  William just doesn't do anything halfway.  Poor William spent two weeks with a full cast on that left wrist and a short cast on the right.  He thought it was pretty funny until he realized he couldn't even play video games.  It was honestly pretty rough on all of us.  

Things started to look up a bit for the next three weeks when he was able to get two new casts that were both below the elbow.

Two more weeks in removable braces and one final week of limited activity and William is finally all healed.  No more ATV's - EVER!!!

California - Muir Woods

Bad mom moment here - I didn't pack well for the weather.  We visited Muir Woods on our last day before heading to the airport.  To keep the kids from complaining we bought everyone hoodies in the gift shop.  It was $150 well spent. 

The majesty of these trees cannot possibly be conveyed in pictures.  They are truly magical.

It was such a great way to end an amazing trip.  I'm sure we will be back!

California - Seacliff State Beach

 

I was so excited to see the ocean again!  The boys were pretty excited too.

William and Jack were so excited to try out boogie boarding - Brian had been telling them all about the huge waves he rode when he was a boy.

They were both pummeled into the sand several times before deciding that enjoying the water without the boogie board was more for them.

Our beach day just happened to fall on our 18th wedding anniversary.  It was a pretty great way to celebrate the life that we have build together.

California - Family Time

 

The kids were so excited to see their California cousins.  We enjoyed relaxing at their house in between our fun outings.  Jack could have lived in their pool for the rest of his life and be completely content.

With the help of Aunt Carrie these two cuties made red, white, and blue cupcakes to celebrate the 4th of July.  We even went to watch fireworks - unfortunately there was a bit too much fire and the the show had to stop a couple times.

We could not have asked for more gracious hosts.  Relaxing with family was exactly what we needed.