Rewind...Part 1

So I decided that I would share some of our favorite Summer memories. We had a lot of fun the last few months and even though I've had this blog for over a year...I never did anything with it until recently. And I thought it'd be fun to rewind and remember some of our Summer fun.

Let me just say that I adore my parents. They are the best. My entire life has been shaped in so many ways by these two people. They were my biggest fans growing up and were never too busy to listen and help. But they were also strict disciplinarians and had high expectations for not only me but also my two brothers and sister. We are a very close and tight knit family. We still go home (about an hour and a half drive) once a month and spend the night with my parents and my siblings come over and we have family night. I just LOVE my parents.

My mom is a fantastic grandmother. Jason's mom is too. They each have special things that they do with our girls. It's such a blessing. Each Summer when Jase and I are on a mission trip or at youth camp with our students, my mom has "Honey Camp" for the week.  That's what our girls call her, Honey. My dad is Pops. Yes I know...sounds like some kind of cereal! But that's who they are. And mom began Honey Camp when Kennedy was only a toddler.  My girls would rather go to Honey Camp than just about anywhere! Well, there and the park that my father-in-law takes them to. Simply stated, they have wonderful grandparents.

Honey Camp consists of 5-7 days in the Summer and mom has something fun for them everyday. They make crafts and play on the water slide in the front yard. They eat vast amounts of watermelon and blackberries. They look for muskedines in the woods. Everyday is something new. And sometimes they just stay in their pj's all day and watch movies. This year...mom went above and beyond. Jase was in the Dominican Republic on a mission trip. We had ample chaperones and since we were just beginning the adoption process and needed to watch our pennies, I stayed behind and crashed Honey Camp! Here is how Honey Camp went down this year...

Day 1- Made their own stuffed bunnies. Mom bought little kits for making a stuffed bunny. The girls just loved them and it gave them something new to sleep with while they were there. They also made plates of their very own. Kennedy and Syd each had special markers that they used so the pictures would be permanent. It was big fun for them to have their own dinner plate.

The crafts at Honey Camp

Day 2- The Slide...this joker is huge! Kennedy and Syd love it! So much fun on a hot day! They must have gone up and down this slide in my parents' front yard eight thousand times! Mom and I just sat in the rockers on the front porch and let them have at it! Love these pics...

The slide at Honey Camp

Day 4- Six Flags. OMG! This was a fun day. It was SO HOT! But we had a ball. We acutally got Syd on the big Scream Machine. A real roller coaster. She's only five, but she was tall enough and really wanted to ride. These are some pics in order...Syd in line, Syd and mom just getting on the coaster...Syd going up the first hill - totally unaware of the sequence of events though we warned her amply...and Syd at the top of the hill realizing what the heck was about to happen! It was hilarious! I wish I could somehow manage to convey the sound she made going down that first hill...I'll never forget it! My mom's sister and her granddaughter also went with us. They rode the log flume a second time without mom and me and we got these great pics of them coming down! It was a fantastic day!

Day 5- Christmas at Honey Camp. I can't make this stuff up! My mom is FANATICAL about Christmas! It is, of course, the most wonderful time of the year! She decorates her house in October with lighted garland on anything that will hold it as well as having 5 fully decorated trees. One is 15 feet tall and has over 600 Hallmark ornaments on it. She LOVES Christmas! So in  true Honey form, she turned the air down to 60...yes, 60 degrees! She had cinnamon candles burning and Christmas music (thank you Harry Connick, Jr.) blaring! It was hysterical. The girls enjoyed making new ornaments for our tree as well as sugar cookies with icing and red/green sprinkles. It was so fun. Syd had flour in every crevice of her body! It was a blast!

Christmas at Honey Camp

Thanks, mom! You're just the best!