The kids awoke to find it was the last day of our official school year! Though summer school will ensue once a week, this is a May milestone, that we can't pass by too quickly. I'm actually not sure what all I will assign them this summer, because they finished almost all of their subjects (yet always, math remains :) For now, we are enjoying the more open schedule and filling our days with summery things.
Of course the last day of school means, ice cream celebration! Well, first Buck and I went to the hospital for his MRI--the results came back quickly (the next day) and we're off to the neurosurgeon the day after his neck surgery to find out what's next for his protruding lumbar/nerve compression diagnosis. I wish the appointments didn't have to be so far apart! It just extends the pain and the waiting . . . are doctors' offices really that busy? Anyway, for now, back to the ice cream :)
Later that day, we all trooped to the youth event that I've already shared (borrowed) pictures of. Then I discovered I also took pictures that I haven't shared. Bonfire (with Buck in charge), musician with guitar, tiki torches, and a whole bunch of kids getting bug bites and learning about Jesus :)
On Thursday, Buck got his delayed birthday wish of seeing Avengers in the theater. The nice thing about waiting an extra month--$4.50 tickets :) I didn't know it would be so sad. I also didn't know we'd be at the theater for three hours! Whoa! We decided to skip lunch (which had passed while we were watching the movie) and headed home to hang out with the kids. Later that evening, we again hopped in the car and attended the youth leaders' planning meeting for the little church. I guess we're getting pretty official around there. Oh, and the kids started a band with Gabby's birthday drum--just arrived in the mail.
Friday . . . Gabby had her first official follow-up appointment at the orthodontist. She swapped her bands out for patriotic colors--red, pearl, and blue (well, as close as she could :) She had a broken bracket on her bottom tooth, which they fixed. And they started the process of closing up her "granny gap" which she was kind of hesitant to give up in the first place.
We spent the day working on projects around the house--the kids have maybe let some of their chores slide in the past couple of weeks, so bedroom sprucing was a must-do. They decided to have some fun with the process and spent the next two hours competing against each other--boys vs. girls--to see who could get their room the cleanest. Thankfully, Buck arrived home in time to help me with the judging. He did a "white glove" test and found dust in two (fairly unreachable) places, so that was a tie. But it was hard to decide, we had to be very picky! Their rooms look huge without all the clutter, and pretty sparkling amazing. So . . . we decided everyone gets to choose a pack of gum as a reward the next time we go to the store, and maybe the boys won by a smidge (because the girls gave the extra stuff from their room to their brothers, and then the boys had to figure out what to do with these additions to their collection :)
Next, we scooted to JCP to take care of Gabby's birthday gift card from Grandma J. We printed off a $10 off $25 purchase coupon, and set out to find some summer things (specifically athletic-type shorts, which they didn't own, for wearing outside this summer). Mission accomplished! And just in time, because we were due at the street hockey all-star game, because our neighbor was selected to play. Whew, busy day, right?
On Saturday, we headed outside early to beat the heat--we let the chickens out, I weeded the garden, Gabby weeded the flower beds around the house, and the boys mowed the whole lawn by themselves! Buck arrived home to a very welcome surprise :)
I also worked on organizing the stacks of pictures that have rolled in since I last organized photos. The reason these haven't been organized before is because I am chronologically-minded. The pics are from Buck's baby and boyhood, my own elementary and high school years, and some that are black and whites from before either of us was born. Not to mention stacks of photo Christmas cards that I haven't wanted to part with--last year's needed to be collaged into my annual Christmas window display (if you sent one, you're peering through the French door in our kitchen :)
The boys worked on catching up their Jr. Ranger binders, which led us to remember the NPS map the ranger lady gave us at the Indiana Dunes. Graysen and Brennen flipped through their ranger book collection and put stars on the map for every park service place we've visited--that was super fun! I know we're hoping to add more park stars this summer.
Later that evening, we were invited over to enjoy a fire pit and smores with a family from baseball. We started getting to know each other a couple of years ago when the boys were on the same team. They also used to take karate classes with us--our kids have sparred the big guy in the U.S.A. shirt :) This year, we are also on the same baseball team, so the relationships continue. Another cool thing--it was the grandma of the little kiddos in this picture who started my investigation of the little church. She still goes there and was recently baptized (I think I shared those pictures on the blog). Her daughter and family aren't churchgoers, but we are hoping they'll feel welcome and interested in checking out the little church too. But in the meantime, we had a nice time visiting, seeing all the projects they've got going (including a somewhat epic club house under construction), and of course--smores at 99 degrees. The chocolate melted BEFORE it came into contact with the hot marshmallow, just from the air around it.
While we were visiting, Buck starts getting texts from our neighbor . . . two baby raccoons showed up between our yards and didn't seem to have a mama. They are small, and he was worried about them. Our neighbor got a cup of dog food and we found him up by our swing set at 9 p.m. protecting the little twins from the dogs and other creatures of the night that roam our 'hood. We made the decision to kennel the raccoons for the night, but leave them on the hill to see if their mom would show up (she didn't :/ ).
Buck put on a pair of thick leather gloves, our neighbor distracted the babies with a flashlight (because at first they were following Buck, who was originally wearing the light as a headlamp, so he couldn't sneak up behind them). With the kennel tipped sky-ward, a soft blanket inside to break their landing, and a kid at the gate to secure them inside . . . Buck scooped up the hissing, chirping twins in one double-handed ninja move and the little ones were safe. We have a lot of coyote, fox, and big owls out-and-about in our neighborhood at night.
We decided to decide in the morning . . . I mean, it's a holiday weekend and all, so it's not like we can take them anywhere. Our neighbor works with the local ARL and is in contact with a raccoon rehabber. Buck's step brother who is a vet said they will protect each other and can/should be set free. We think they're awfully cute, and when we cleaned their cage (before talking to our vet relative) we put in a litter box. I kid you not--instantly potty trained!! They figured it out almost immediately. Today, they took apple slices from our hands (through the cage). I fully believe we should NOT keep these little guys or guy and girl as forever pets--that's not fair to them, since they're wild. But they are still pretty small, so we're deciding what the next step will be--rehabber or release.
So Sunday, we went to early service at the little church, so we could meet our neighbors at the big church for a food truck party. We thought there would be more than the two food trucks mentioned in the big church email (we're still on the list), but nope, just the two :) But they also served watermelon, cookies, and lemonade, and the big church was half way to our afternoon destination . . . the M Pond!
It was the first time driving out there that we didn't get lost (those road signs are straight up tricky!) We followed our neighbors the whole way, and the kids enjoyed swimming in the cold pond water, rowing in the boat, and later seeing a rookery of blue heron nests from the dusty roadway through binoculars. Buck enjoyed catching some fish--I think he used a magnetic hook, because he had six, one after the other, then moved down the shore and caught a little bass. That's fun fishing :)
Today, we woke up to our neighbors getting ready to put up a shed in their yard next to our house. The boys now faced a very tough decision--go with their dad and sister to do *building check* or help with a construction project. With tool belts and drills in hand, they joined the throng next door as Buck and Gabby headed west. I decided I should probably get to work on my project list, so I gathered my paint can and accessories, applied the first of four layers of sunblock and headed into the blazing outdoor world.
Our two-year-old neighbor, who named the raccoons Smokey and Bandit, was out checking on them and watching her dad and his helpers build the new shed. She quickly attached herself to Caelan, and keeping an eye on her basically became Caelan's all-day assignment. It's cool though. It earned her, along with the boys who helped all day and Buck who helped build when he returned a couple of hours later, actually the whole family, ice cream from the local shop, as a big thank you for a day full of hard work--and man was it hot!
I'll put the sad announcement in here, so that I don't end with news. We lost two of our hens :( I opened the door to let them free range, checked their water, refilled the exterior coop dish with cool water, and even put a frozen fruit/water block out for them to peck at . . . but I didn't count beaks. Two birds, one of the red and one of the yellow, were in the nesting box laying eggs. It was so hot in there, they got lethargic and didn't make it back out. Graysen went up to put the birds away and came in looking horrified--he said we only have five chickens now. Poor little dude! Buck was in the shower, so I filled a watering can with cold water--just in case there was a chance to revive them--and headed up the hill. The red chicken (either Uganda Chicken or Josie, I'm not sure which) was long gone. The golden chicken, Zaxby a.k.a. Princess Fluffybuns actually died in the nest with six eggs (which we decided we had better not eat). I pulled both chickens from the coop and waited for Buck to decide what to do. We ended up double bagging them (instead of burying), since tomorrow is trash day. So sad :( Our feathered-friends just couldn't handle the intense heat. We'll have to really keep a close eye on the others until this heat wave breaks. These temps are not typical in May--I hope it's not a trend of what's to come this summer.
So, back to the building. The boys really worked hard--all the way to lunch (four hours). As soon as we'd eaten, they headed right back out and helped finish the project (only the shingles remain) and that took another four hours. The *funny* part was when the grown builders nailed on a crossbar to hold the shed door in place, so they could affix the hinges to the outside. But when they went to look for the instructions on which screws to use, etc. they realized they'd nailed the rather important document INSIDE the building :) Still, it was a good day's work and we got to spend a lot of time visiting with our neighbors. Quite the little neighborhood event--like a barn raising of old :)
I completed my painting projects which included--the conglomeration muck boot, chicken bucket, gardening gloves, gardening tool, planter box holding furniture piece for the deck; a low bench for font yard sitting (I still need to buy fabric to make a cushion); the deck railings touch-up and the floor where Buck sanded the peeling parts for me, he painted the stairs; and I even painted the weather-worn wooden weight on our wind chime. I scrubbed a rust stain out of one of my patio cushions, squashed a wasp nest, and moved three more hefty bags of winter gear to our shed (with some help from my crew). Buck had borrowed our neighbor's power washer the day before and cleaned up our siding and soffits, looking sparkly! I cleaned the overspray from the back windows, and we called it a day.
Oh, but I want to mention my very special planter. When we were on our trip to Michigan, I saw a neat idea on facebook to carve out a log for use as a box to grow flowers. Well, I'd already been thinking I'd put garden herbs in a planter just outside the door on top of my all-purpose rack. I mentioned this to Buck, and he decided we'd chose a piece of driftwood from the beach by the lake house. He hollowed it out for me, Caelan filled it with dirt and seeds, and we've already got little baby food growing in it. We may even have Brennen take his wood burning kit from Christmas to the back of it, adding the date and location of this special item's origin. It's so cute!
One more surprise, a wee little bird's nest in the lilac tree by our deck. I'm hoping we didn't scare the mama away with all our busyness in her neck of the deck. My quick google search indicated Black Capped Chickadee eggs, which would be so amazing, because these are my favorite song birds! They remind me of growing up in the woods, and I think they're just so cheerful-sounding. "Yoo-hooo! Yoo-hooo! You-you-you-you-you-you."
