Patrick is 15!

 

And when you have certain loves, you are old enough to plan and decide how you want to spend your day.  Shorter Christian Prayer book from his Godfather, and the t-shirt as a reminder for him as well. 

 

Classic Rock, good friends, food, and video games.

 

Best birthday for him in a long time!  Happy birthday to my Assumption Blessing, smart, sweet, and wealth of knowledge about Led Zeppelin. We hope this Sophomore year is the best ever.   

We love these boys!  It is a blessing to know them all.

Happy 10th William!

 

We had to say goodbye to our cousins visiting, and we braved the super hot day for a zoo visit!

 

 

The day included a picnic lunch, a visit to the Zoo and the Kimono dragon (most important visit for the birthday boy).  The evening had an Eagle scout ceremony for some amazing young men in the Troop, and an errand with Mommy when she locked her keys in the car and we had an adventure as we waited.  It was deemed "the best birthday ever" and he was so happy!  We love you, sweet William!

 

(It's Still) Summer Recap

Yes.  Technically it is still summer.  I think I need to add some odds and ends about the summer, and will just have to do a birthday post for the boys and first day of school posts.  I must, of course.  :)

• First and foremost, Tommy, Paul and my in-laws all made it home safely, just before the 4th of July.  The trip was almost 2 weeks, and  they enjoyed the great western states so much.  Yellowstone keeps calling Tommy's name, and he would love to get back there soon!  Mom Reynolds had a great recovery and we are so glad everyone is home.  That trip was once in a lifetime!  I just have a few highlights.  And only 1 blown tire.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

#PrayForJoe

• While Tommy was away, William and I had a visit to the White House with the Webelo scouts.  William had never experienced the amount of security involved in going to the President's house and wasn't sure we would ever make it inside.  We even met a Secret Service Agent who was an Eagle Scout, and very encouraging to the boys to keep going.  I loved spending the day with my boy.  I bummed a ride from some really amazing friends who took such great care of us, since I am not a fan of driving to DC. 
  
   
  
   
  
• My oldest both had some service weeks this summer, and both came home joyful and happy to do it again!  Patrick attended the Parish Work Camp in Richmond for a week, and the photos and videos I received were such gems.  I love technology for the instant check in on the kids.  Emma worked in the music room at the Vacation Bible School at our parish for her Confirmation hours, as well as Middle School Mission: local service jobs with kids of her own age.  There is nothing more joyful than helping others and giving.  I need to find those kinds of things all year to keep up that feeling.
• The biggest event of the summer was the 10 day visit from my brother and his family of 6 girls!  We were able to enjoy 2 of the girls full time in our home and it was wonderful. Celebrating our summer birthdays, including my brother Joe.  We were missing about 9 from the big family photo.  Not bad though.  Even with some yellow jacket stings, we still had smiles.  The visit was filled with love and much giggles, and it was a blessing to be together as my Sister-in-Law, Melanie, was having surgery. It went well, thanks be to God. 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
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  My in-laws celebrated  their 49th wedding anniversary!  It was lovely to be with family, even some from out of town arrived to be with them.  We heard some fun stories from my Mother-in-law's 2 brothers who came.  Family is such a blessing!  (Side Note: I realized at this event that my camera is a bit older than I would like, and I found that the iPhone X was taking better pictures than me.  The shutterbug in me is so frustrated with this piece of information, and didn't take as many pictures as I would have liked.  But I do love taking pictures, and having the memories.  Though I need to get better about albums so the kids can sit and look at them.)
  
  
  
   
• We celebrated 2 birthdays, dubbed "The best birthday ever!" More to come on those.  Apparently when Mommy doesn't plan, they go better.  

James is 7!

And this boy could not have been any more excited to have a birthday, even during school!  They had a "reading celebration" on the same day, and the parents were invited to listen to the children read, instead of the opposite. 

 

Happy birthday to the boy who hugs with all his might, loves with all his heart, and thinks of others first.  Pokémon, Super Smash Bros Brawl, scooters, reading, and love of Jesus.  And whatever the big brother is doing makes you happy.  We love our sweet James!!!

Last Days of School

To refresh your memory, or make you feel old, this is the First Day(s) of School.

 

 

First one to finish!  Off to 8th grade after an AMAZING year first year at a new school.  She received an award in almost every single subject.  Which means that she had grades 95 or higher. Go Emma!  So proud.  She even entered an essay contest and came in the top 3 of the Junior High. 

 

Second finisher is the new 10th grader.  First honors, and a year full of first honors, and growth even noticed by his teachers.  I am so proud of his journey as a young man.  He has been attending a weekly prayer group, youth ministry, and even decided to go to Work Camp.

 

Award for the longest year ever, goes to these boys who finished 2 weeks after the big kids.  William is going to be in 5th grade next year. Finished the year with a very tough teacher with 2nd honors.  When asked what he liked the most, he said "sparkle was my favorite."  Why?  Because he knew the teacher's pattern for calling on the students.  And he used to position himself in a certain place so he could "always come in 2nd."  What an amazing kid. 

 

This boy!!  What a year!  2nd grade will be so great for him. He loved all the reading, and how much his teacher challenged him, and with each note she sent home thanking me for the work I do as his mom and "first reader" brought me to tears. He sprouted and grew this year in height as well! 

May. Again.

So, when I said May was a bit crazy, I wasn't kidding. 

My in-laws have a big RV, and decided to make a trip around the US to visit some of the amazing sights and all of their kids and grandkids.  On the stop with Mary and Ryan in Oregon, the week of Mother's Day, my MIL fell and broke her hip and femur.  Surgery, rehab, and a much longer stay in Oregon, and lots of uncertainty made for a very long month.  But Mary is a nurse, and the fact that they were near her and able to be with my in-laws during all this made all of us this far away much happier. 

Exactly one month later, on June 18, she was given the A-OK from her surgeon to return home in the RV.  Their trip home also includes 2 extra passengers: Tommy and Paul. 

 

These amazing men hopped on a plane to help drive the RV and help with the long trip back.

 

It might have looked a little like this:

 

 

 

Of course they will make the best out of this trip, as my sweet husband always does. He will get to go through some states he has never seen, and even some Wal-Marts in some never before traveled states. Even a tough situation. We aren't sure how long this trip will last, and we are praying they make it home safely! 

 

I have such a bad memory some days, that I am so grateful for the iPhone and it's camera  I can look back on my photos and remember that "oh yes, we had xyz on that day" and I wasn't as boring a mom as I make myself out to be.

We have entered the busy month of May (why is it always that way?  Some day, we will figure this out) and I have my running shoes on.  In addition to the last weeks of school for my older kids, we have First Holy Communions, confirmation, graduation, warmer weather which means dirtier clothes, and just more things on the calendar.

One of the events which came at a very special time this year is the annual pilgrimage that Seton makes to the Shrine/Basilica of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton. 

We are blessed that it is so close, and it was a tradition for our family to go every year, for many years.  We used to tease the sisters that gave the tours that we could fill in for them, while they took a break.  This year our family decided at the last minute to attend, with my sister Jenn and her family.

 

One of the main reasons for our family to go on the pilgrimage was to visit the Grotto of our Lady of Lourdes that they have in the mountain nearby.  It just so happened to be the same time that my brother Joe and Melanie were IN Lourdes.  Despite the rain, and cold weather, it was a beautiful visit.  But I will say my heart wasn't there.  It was far across the ocean with him, praying and uniting our visit with his.

 

As I said, it was cold and rainy, and *some* of us brought appropriate jackets for the rain (I did think we had some Scouts in our family) so when it was time for the rosary outside, the kids scrounged in the car for whatever they could find jacket-wise. Some were more waterproof than others.