I just saw that my previous post hasn't been posted yet so I'm sorry these will be happening back to back but I did get them done on time! Since I only did 2 weeks last time we are doing 4 this week. It has been a fantastic few weeks, we have been busy getting a lot of food put up but have had some fantastic time together as a family which has been a gift to all of us. Possibly our best few weeks of the summer!
Week 1: July 15th - 21st
Monday was grocery shopping and planning what was to come next, there were a ton of things that needed to get done, but we made it through! I got 26 quarts of green beans canned, which was helpful and got to prepare for Tuesday. We both worked and Jonathan's parents came to visit while I was at work to celebrate his birthday
On Wednesday I had a doctor's appointment and Jonathan had a school visit. We had a family visit in the afternoon at my mom's since my cousin was in town, which was a lot of fun for the kids and I. Kyle was in town, so we went over to hang out with him for the evening while he was here. It was a very social, full, enjoyable day. We enjoyed every minute of it and spent Thursday catching up! Sausage sandwiches for supper, I made casserole for us to have for breakfast over the weekend, Amelia and I painted our nails, we gardened and did a lot of green beans!
It was my weekend to work, so work I did and Jonathan worked on Friday too. His birthday was Saturday, which was sad since I had to work, but we spent some time outside together as a family once I got home. We picked green beans, had leftovers and then did some relaxing. While I was at work they went to the hardware store and to the library, so that was a treat for everyone and we desperately needed new books to read! Sunday we changed it up a little bit! They went and did some shopping after church, Jonathan mowed in the afternoon and we got pizza for supper! A bit of a change-up from our usual take out, I was a bit concerned Amelia would be upset but she handled it really well!
Last green bean day this week! Thank goodness to be done with those. I love having green beans here and we work hard to get that done but it is a lot of work and I did more than enough to have us stocked up for the rest of the year! We are so thankful to be able to do that for our family. Had to do some shopping at Yoder's, I went to the eye doctor, we had cold cuts for supper and Jonathan was on a work site last minute, but we had a fantastic day! Lots of time together as a family, got a lot of things done and I got to do pickles with my little family at the bar. It was cute to have the kids join in on the whole process!
I had a very long day at work on Tuesday, we got some stuff out of the freezer and got laundry prepped when I got home. The kids had a good day with Nana and Jonathan was still in his crunch time for work, so he worked diligently all day then we all got to be together again on Wednesday. Jonathan worked and we hung out with friends! I worked on pickles and banana peppers and we had steaks, hot dogs and foil potatoes for supper. It was a great day and we had family time in the evening. This whole week was just a gift in general. We were thrilled to get to spend time together this week after having so much stress and work. The summer has been so full and we both agreed the week of being home, getting things caught up and doing all of it together was exactly what our little family needed to thrive!
Thursday we had treatment and then we checked out The Clever Cookie, which was delicious! Gardening, of course, fajitas and a quick shopping run, it was a lovely day for our family. We also found a new friend in our back yard, Harry the heron, we had no idea what he was at first but had a blast having him in the yard! What a funny little story from the summer. I worked a short day on Friday, then we had leftovers and BLTs for supper. It was the opening ceremony for the Olympics, so we watched that and let the kids stay up to enjoy a little bit of it, so that was special.
The weekend was pretty relaxing. We had waffles for breakfast and cajun pork chops and fiesta chicken for supper, I went to get blueberries in the morning and Jonathan worked in the afternoon then we celebrated the day with a trip to the dairy bar! It was delicious and beautiful and we enjoyed spending some time together. Sunday was church, then JL had to mow. We had lunch with Mom and Dad, which was great since we haven't been able to catch up with them much lately. It was such a good weekend, very restorative and what we needed for the next week.
Week 3: July 29th - August 4th
Double 13 week. Very long days for sure! The kids hung out with Pam while Jonathan worked, then Mom and Dad took them to the fair in the evening while Jonathan worked and spent some time outside. The kids were really tired on Tuesday, so poor Jonathan had a tough evening with them.
Wednesday was corn day! Corn corn corn for the winter. Mom had brought me a bucket, so I put that up and did the peaches I got while I got blueberries. We had burgers for supper. Burgers with fresh tomato, corn on the cob and smoothies - it was a summer meal to remember. So delicious for everyone, the kids did great with the corn on the cob!
Thursday we went up to the farm with Mom to pick more corn, the kids hung out with Grandpa while we did and then I put some up when we got home. In the afternoon I ran to the jewelry store and to DDM to get a few things, then came home to eat quick. Mom and I took the kids to the bubble show in town, which was super cute, then we went to the library! It was a great time, we had a fantastic day. Jonathan had band in the evening, so we were glad to have something to do in the evening.
On Friday I did some corn again, worked in the garden a little bit and we got groceries in the evening as a family then went to Grinder's. It was so delicious and productive - doesn't get any better than that! We took a trip to Beechcreek in the morning, which was so much fun, but we got stuck in the caterpillar and butterfly houses because of the rain, so we got a little damp, but it was a little adventure! I napped in the evening and finished up the corn! Jonathan worked on cleaning the kitchen and worked on his desk, then we had hot ham sandwiches for supper!
On Sunday, Amelia and I had a shower for Jordan, so Amelia got to live in some of her flower girl glory and it was darling. Such a beautiful day and quality time together and with Mom! A girls day just the three of us. Jonathan, Dad and William had church, then Jonathan mowed and we got some chicken for supper! It was delicious and easy and allowed us to watch some of the games with the kids.
Week 4: August 5th -11th
Last week was full and crazy and super fantastic. We had supper together on Monday, everyone else worked on tomato juice while I made taco meat for Friedenswald. I tended the garden, made crescents for lunch, fixed up some granola, put pickles and peaches up and we enjoyed our time together working as a family to get all the work completed!
Jonathan was in Ravenna on Tuesday and I was at work, I actually got to work with our new pharmacist, which was fantastic. I had a doctor's appointment on Wednesday, got laundry done, gardened, prepped onions for the weekend, canned peaches and harvested the garden, it was another day full of tasks and preparing for the weekend trip.
Since I needed the weekend off I ended up working Thursday as a trade. It was a long day and had extra help again but still ended up behind. Friday was a super long day, we packed, cleaned and prepped watermelon and cucumbers for the weekend then our trip to Michigan started up! Our trip did not go as well as we had hoped, but we made it to camp and enjoyed every minute of it! The kids slept really well Friday night, so we were very proud of them.
On Saturday, we went down to the lake early before everyone else, then we went on a canoe ride as a family and it was so much fun. The kids loved it, Amelia was VERY thrilled to see and touch lily pads in person, which cracked me up. For some reason lily pads are a common plant in books and I think that may have motivated her interest. After some beach time Jonathan went to play basketball. I stayed at the beach and then we went up to help with lunch, the kids were so cold so they needed to warm up a bit, then three of us took naps while Jonathan played football! William was a bit clingy, but he was okay with Aunt Charlotte getting him up from nap since I was with Amelia and Jonathan wasn't around yet. We were up late in the evening, Amelia and Jonathan went to the campfire and I hung out with some of the women at the common room. Amelia was living her best life. She is the youngest girl there, so she is a bit of a superstar considering all the other little girls up there. They just loved having her around and she ate up every minute with them.
She was so sad to leave on Sunday, but we had to cut it an hour or two short because Little Man was not okay. He was sick, threw up and needed to get going. We gave him some pain medicine, he took a two hour nap and then was so much better. When we got home we gardened, cleaned up, put stuff away and had a visit from Nana and Papa to top off the weekend. Everyone went to bed pretty easily I think, we were all exhausted!
I hope everyone else has been enjoying the final weeks of summer. It is starting to be a little less extreme here, which is fantastic. I am ready for fall, but am loving the tomato harvest right now. BLTs are our go to, plus everything else that we can put tomatoes on! Enjoy the sunshine!
Love,
Jonathan, Allison, Amelia and William
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