Here's what I loved about July 2-8:
1. Made some zucchini bread. That is a great way to use up a lot of zucchini (especially if you're gifting friends with the loaves.) Does anyone have a healthy zucchini bread/muffin recipe that you'd be willing to share. The recipe I have is delicious, but it calls for a CUP of oil. I subbed a cup of unsweetened applesauce this time, but I wasn't super pleased with the results.
2. 4th of July. I have always held this date dear to my heart because it was always a big day for my family when I was growing up. This year was especially poignant as it was the day we were due with our baby that we lost in November. I hadn't given it a ton of thought during the day, and didn't say anything to anyone about it, but my sweet, loving daddy gave me a big hug at the end of the day and said that he'd been thinking about me all day. It meant the world to me and still brings tears to my eyes that he remembered. Although my arms are empty and my heart breaks, I am trying let my heart rest in God's plan for my life. I heard this song this week and it took on a new meaning for me.
3. Independence Day Celebrations. There are lots of traditions surrounding the 4th of July in my family. Painting patriotic finger/toenails, parades, ice cream cones, cookouts, fireworks... And this 4th of July was no different. We had a wonderful day! I got to see all 3 of my best friends (although I didn't get a picture with Jolene), we spent time with my family and some more great friends, we played games, we shot firecrackers and lit dozens of smoke bombs, ate lots of ice cream cones, got candy at a parade, seriously, I couldn't have asked for a better day. We had oh so much fun!
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| Ira doing a little dancing before the parade started. |
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| Me and best friend from college, Brianna |
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| Me and my best friend from high school, Laura |
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| Ice cream face |
4. Watched (finally) Toy Story 3 with Ira. Ira absolutely loves the first 2 Toy Stories, but when Andy and I "pre-viewed" the 3rd one, we were worried that it might be a little too dramatic for him (when he got it a year or so ago.) We finally decided to watch it with him one day while Ruby was taking her nap. Wow. He loved it, and it was so surreal to watch it with him. I won't ruin any of the movie for those who still haven't seen it, but it's about the main character, Andy, growing up and going off to college. I was literally bawling at the end (just like I did the first time we watched it, but probably even more so because I was watching it with my little boy.)
5. Chronicles of Narnia. I decided to start reading these aloud to Ira. We started with "The Magician's Nephew" and I can't decide who is more into them, Ira, or me. We've been reading a chapter or two a day and are on the 10th chapter right now. It's been about 4 years since I read these, so I'm looking forward to reading them all again and sharing them with Ira in the process.
6. Charlie. We finally (after about 8 months) brought our Charlie Brown (our chocolate lab) home. 8 months ago, he was digging/jumping out of his cage all. the. time. One of our kind neighbors (the one who died of a heart attack last December) brought him home more times than I know and I bailed him out of the pound once. Not knowing what exactly to do, we took him to Andy's parent's house (the farm) until we could figure out a way to secure his kennel. Andy had been saving leftover rebar from his jobsites and cutting them into 16-18" pieces to hammer in around the cage so that even if Charlie dug, he couldn't get out. But we were still concerned about him staying in his small (10x10ft) kennel. We priced fencing our yard with chain link, but it was ri.diculous. Finally, Andy's parent's had the idea to buy more panels for his kennel. It's more than double it's original size now and we are thrilled to have him back home. Andy's parents nearly cried when we brought him home because he is such a good dog. Ira and Charlie have become very good friends and play together every morning now after we feed him and fill up his water bowl and swimming pool (he's so spoiled.)
Well, I think that about sums it up! Have a great rest of the week!
