1st day of school

Hailey is in fourth this year and Missy is in 1st, so they take 2 different buses. The girls were excited about school this year, but they were both very nervous. Missy had a few of the same

kids from kindergarten in her class. Hailey only had 1 from her class. everything went well for both of them, but Missy was very upset that they don't have a snack in 1st grade. She said "what we only get breakfast and lunch? Im going to starve" She is such a silly kid.

State Fair

Matt took a week off from work before the snow starts to fall, so he went to the State Fair with us this year. He hadn't been in years, I was able to get Lacey and Destiny to go the same day also. We decided to go on Thursday the 1st. A boy band that the girls like was playing a free concert. We did all the free stuff, the displays, and we walked through the train again. Destiny loved it she couldn't believe that people used to ride in them and not cars. While we were there we watched a man climb up a tall ladder, and jump off to dive in a pool below.On his way down he did 5 or 6 flips before hitting the water. After that the girls wanted to see the smallest horse in the world. Destiny was so excited, she thought it was going to fit in her hand. The picture of the girls sitting on the hay was taken right after seeing the horse. My to girls had seen it the year before so they knew what to expect. This was the first time Destiny had ever seen it and to say she was mad is an understatement. After walking around for several hours we got a bit to eat and went to where the band was playing. It was arm to arm moms and dads. After standing there for an hour the band started and we had to put the girls on our shoulder to even be able to see. They had a blast, we stood there for 5 or 6 songs then walked over to one of the screens so the kids could see. they danced for 3 more songs then it was over. The girls were so happy they got to go to the concert. They where even convinced that 1 of the guys waved right at them!

Redwood Field Days

The field days were the last weekend of August. We take the girls to the kiddie parade every year. This year Matt made Missy's costume all by himself. He cut the fabric, measured, and even used my sewing machine! Missy went as Jake the dog and Hailey went as Finn the human. They are characters from a show Matt and the girls watch.
After the Parade the girls got the wrist bands and rode rides for 4 hours. They had a blast, and the weather was perfect for it.

A family boat trip

After taking the boat out all day Friday and Saturday, and spending 5 hours working on the motor. Matt decided that we were ready to take the girls out. They were psyched to be able to finally go out. Matt took us up the Indian River and into Red Lake.
It was a nice ride, the weather was overcast but the girls still wanted to go swimming. Matt's brother Mark went with us so he jumped in followed by both girls. We drove around for almost 3 hours then it started to sprinkle on and off so we decided not to push our luck and we headed back. Matt backed the trailer up as the girls were dancing around, happy that we didn't get rained on. After we were hooked up and heading home the sky let loose and hasn't stopped since!

The maiden voyage

On Saturday Matt said that the boat was all done and he wanted to take it for a test drive. Matt's mother took Missy for the day and we headed down the road to Payne lake. We put the boat in and headed out into the lake. about half way out it was acting up and Matt had to pull the motor into the boat to make a minor repair, and we were off again. The weather was perfect. Sunny with a little breeze. Matt sat out there and fished and I laid across one of the seats and read. It was very peaceful.

Flood aftermath

By 8am the day after all that rain the towns were out repairing the roads, and cleaning up the mess. My road was one of the first ones to be taken care of. I heard the town out there at 7:30am. There were several sections that had to have fill added to it.

Matt was also busy at work repairing roads. He sent this picture to me that morning. He said that there were some holes big enough to put your foot in and as deep as your ankle.

Flooded

Last week I went to dinner with a friend to celebrate taking my NCLEX test. It had been raining steadily all day, but nothing to big. When I was on my way home I received a picture message from Matthew telling me to be careful coming home that the road was flooded. I was almost to my house when the road in front of my neighbors house was flooded. I had to call home and Matt sent his brother to come make sure it was fine to drive across. When I got home I couldn't believe the amount of water in my front lawn, and over the road.
In the top 2 pictures Matt is standing in my front lawn with the road directly behind him. The water out front was waist deep. Trucks could go through it, but most cars did not. The picture on the bottom is the water rushing over top of the road. We got over 6 inches of rain that day.

Canning from the garden

This year I grew 3 rows of cucumbers and dill so I could make homemade pickles. My cucumber plants were attacked by Japanese beetles in early July. I had to go out early in the mornings and pick the eggs and beetles off by hand. When they were all gone I sprayed the plants with

sevendust. I have been able to make 1 batch so far, and will be getting ready to make another soon. Just up the road from our house we have a huge black berry patch. When they are ripe the girls and Matt go up with me and pick bowls full. Today I cleaned our berries and made some homemade jelly. I will hand theses jars out to family and friends and then we will go pick more so I can make more. I asked Matt to build me a pantry in the basement this summer so I can put canning in it. I am going to can stewed tomatoes, tomatoe sauce, and I have a new recipe for salsa I want to try.

Matt's new boat

When we were at Dad's camp he gave Matthew an old boat motor that he had for years. Matt was so excited he started looking at boats and decided we would buy one next spring. Matt was talking to his father, Mark(who works at a marina) about his plan. Matt's dad said there was a boat that had been sitting at work for over a year. Mark gave them an offer and they took it. So Matthew was officially a boat owner, the only problem now was we didn't have a trailer to hall the boat on. So after talking with my Dad, he gave Matt his old boat trailer. Thanks to our awesome Dads we are ready to go out in our new boat.

A night at Papa's camp

Lacey had to work on a Saturday night and didn't have anyone to take Destiny for the night so
Aunt Dede and Uncle Matt took her. We made plans to go to Papa's camp for the night. We picked Destiny up first thing in the morning, then headed to the beach. The first thing Destiny asked me when we pulled in was "can we go swimming now?" We had to empty out the car and then the girls and I headed down to the beach. The girls played in the sand and the water for 3 hours. A short distance out is a raft that the girls wanted to jump off, so Aunt Dede had to swim with them all the way out there so they could do it. After swimming the girls and I went to change and headed to play on the playground, About an hour later we headed back to pap's camp and started dinner. After dinner Matt took Destiny on her very first boat ride. Destiny was a little hesitant at first but after she saw that Missy wasn't scared she was fine. Matt took us out to a spot that you can tie off at and get out and swim. The water is deep there so you can't touch. I got in first, I didn't think Destiny would get in. All she asked me was " will I sink?" I told her no her life jacket would keep her up, and 2 seconds later she jumped right in. When we were done for the night I started a movie in the girls room and they were out after 30minutes. First thing the next morning Destiny asked to go swimming again. We took her 1 last time and then headed to meet her Dad.

Wedding

On July 16th my sister-in-law got married. It was an outside wedding at the park, followed by an outside reception on the farm. The weather was beautiful. Sunny with a light breeze. We woke up in the morning and headed to Grandma & Grandpa's house to get hair, makeup, and dresses on. It took around 2or more hours to do the bride's hair. It was beautiful! After hair

was done the bridal party headed to Betsy for their makeup to be done. When everyone's makeup was done the girls got dressed and we were off!
The wedding was nice and small, good friends and family. After the wedding Matt and I headed home to get the reception set up. We decorated the tables, got the grills ready and started on the food. With coolers stocked with soda the guests started arriving. We ate dinner and cut the cake. After dinner the band; that Mark hired set up and started to play. They sounded awesome! They were playing right in my back lawn in the garage. How cool! The band played for a few hours and the bride and groom headed out for the night. The band even played Matt and my song and we even got to danced to it. Around 2:30am everyone was gone so we headed in for the night. It was a beautiful night.

Graduation Party

Matt and Lacey decided to throw me a graduation party on Saturday. We had a good time, my family was there along with all of Matts . It was great we had a bunch of food, and Matt did the cooking; so I didn't have to worry about that part. Matthew redid the bathroom this week, for the forth time since we have lived here. Matt built me an awesome palm tree that we lit up at night and a picnic table near the fire place so we have some place to put our smore supplies. The graduation party was a good time. My sister-in-law is getting married this Saturday, so we are having another family get together.

July 4th

Hailey was gone all weekend at her dads so around 6:30pm we headed to the Bay to pick her up. We parked almost out of town and walked down behind the hospital to find a spot to sit for the fire works. I figured it would be busy down there, but I was wrong! We were way to early. we sat on our little blanket for about an hour and then the girls started getting restless, had to use the bathroom. We walked down to the beach and they played down there for a bit. I wanted to feel the water but they had it roped off. The girls and I hung out for a bit and then went and sat back down to wait for the fire works. It was a good show! But not worth waiting almost 3 hrs; next year I won't go as early!

A day at camp

Every other weekend Dad goes down to his camp, usually all by himself. Not today! Matt, Missy, and I went down and spent the day with him. We went down to the beach and swam; Missy and I. While we were swimming Dad was at camp making dinner. He made salt potatoes, hotdogs, hamburgs, ribs, and chicken all on the camp fire. It was really good. The men did a little fishing but it was slightly windy today so not many bites. Dad is going to come over next Friday for his birthday and do some fishing with Matt. We cleaned up after dinner and then went down by the lake to my Aunt Pat's camp. It was nice to see her and my Uncle Dan. Matt started a fire so Missy could make a smore and then we went home. We had a nice day!

Bathroom Makeover

Matt has been a busy, busy man this month! He has built a back porch that is just about done. And yesterday he decided the bathroom needed to be remodeled. I did agree with him, it was pretty rough looking. He pulled up the old flooring, along with the bathtub and surrounding. After that Matt put new flooring down. He also built and stained a new surrounding for the tub. Later this week I am going to repaint that room and Matt will stain some molding to match the tub surrounding and put that up.

Summer Vacation

It is summer vacation and my girls are up at the crack of dawn. At 8:00 they were up asking if they could get in the pool, my eyes weren't even open yet. Hailey made scrambled eggs for herself and Missy. After breakfast I sent the girls outside to play for a bit. They helped me clean up the front porch, weed a little bit of the garden (and I mean LITTLE bit). It was so humid today I think we were in the pool 5 times. Matt made a little rock fire pit in the side lawn, just off the new porch for us to cook in so the girls and I went to gather wood. I drove my 4 wheeler up to Nana's house and we visited for a few minutes. On the way down I let Hailey drive the 4 wheeler with the trailer down to the house as Missy and I threw wood in the back. Hailey did an awesome job! There are some really tricky spots when going down. We unloaded the wood we collected and jumped back in the pool. I started a fire and then we made some smores. After that then I made dinner. A little backwards but that's fine! we ate dinner and got back in the pool. After drying off it was straight to bed. Only to do it all over again tomorrow.

Saturday

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Went to Mom and Dads yesterday and had a nice visit. The girls wanted to go swimming and it was a little chilly out so I told them we could go for just a little bit. Since no one else will ever get in the pool with the 3 girls, I usually have to. Hailey and Missy can swim very well. Destiny is just starting to. She has to have her water wings and a tube on before she will even climb the

ladder. After we were done in the pool the big kids all played ladder ball with dad. Right before dinner Hailey decided she was going to climb the huge tree in the back of my parents lawn. After she got up there Matt went up. Of course then Missy had to go up there, but she was scared to death. Destiny even went up there with uncle Matt.

My graduating girls

I went to Missy and Hailey's school today for their moving up day. Both the girls did very well they got several awards. Hailey will be starting 4th grade in September and Missy will be in 1st grade. Hailey got an award for being in the safety patrol, along with perfect attendance. Missy had to get up in front of the school and welcome everyone for coming and introduce the board president. She was very nervous, but she did well.

Hailey's Birthday

I can not believe it, Hailey turned 9 on Saturday! This was her weekend to go to her Daddy's house and it was also fathers day. I got her on Sunday so we had her birthday then. We got her a fishing pole and a snorkel set for the pool. Matt, Missy, and Hailey all went fishing last night for a bit. They had to come back because the bugs were so bad! When they got back they jumped in the pool and went snorkeling. Matt's mom and Dad came down for a BBQ, and ice cream cake.

This is a picture of me and my Uncle Mike, my sister and I found this today while were were at my mom's.

BUGS!

The girls had a play tonight. They have been practicing in school for the past few months. It was so cute, Missy was a fly and Hailey was a termite. The students made all the costumes for it. Even Hailey's teacher was in it. Missy was a little nervous today when she got home from school. She told me her foot hurt and she had a real bad headache so she thought she should stay home! When I asked her if she was nervous she was hesitant, but said yes. There are just way to many people all looking at her she told me.

Missy's 6th birthday

Missy had her 6th birthday last week, I cant believe it. All she wanted for her birthday was this zooble tree house. She wore her pretty little dress to school, along with her birthday girl pin I bought her. My girls are growing up so fast!