blessed beyond measure

Squeezing the life out of summer, we are. Thank the Lord for my phone, helping me to document how we have spent our time. And thanks also for limited storage space on said phone, for at this moment it has yet again locked me out of taking any more photos. Ugh. Which brings me here, sharing with you our adventures in sweat, goofiness, and togetherness-joy. So I can clean off my phone. And remember forever this crazy summer. Aden's baseball team Well, it's actually wiffle ball. With a tee. But around Aden, you'd better call it baseball . As there was only one preschool team in the league, the coaches decided the kids should play against their moms. Who had to bat opposite-handed, one-handed. Yeah, we girls lost bad . Had fun though, especially toward the end of the game when the kiddos started talking trash. Hilarious. Science day Giga hosted a science experiment day with Trey, to his great delight. Penny cleaning and carnation coloring and egg shell disso...

And...repeat. Trey also requested a family party at home and so it was more of the same, wonderful togetherness same. He is a creature of habit after all. So good to celebrate our Trey. Who needed more than a few tries to blow out all eight candles. Also good to celebrate Nana, whose birthday falls very close to Trey's. Trey's gift opening was a bit slower-paced than Aden's, mostly because after unwrapping each present, he (unprompted) automatically posed for the camera. Of everything he got, the electrical circuit builder takes the cake. Kid works on that thing for hours a day, every day. He's a scientist. And a pretty decent shot with a water gun. Endless, though a bit repetitive, celebratory summer fun. A very happy birthday to our Trey!

He's eight. It was eight years ago today when the timeline of my life was severed and I took my first breath as a mother. His mother. My Trey is so handsome. So tall and grown up. That mother-breath catches in my throat every so often as I look at him and realize that he's a big kid now. Really, truly big. And while his bones stretch Heavenward, those huge hazel eyes and long, thick eyelashes have gone nowhere. Chicken legs, boat feet, ample belly, beautiful smile with aaaalmost two new adult teeth up front. He considers himself an adult and many times jumps to the conclusion that he can and should be allowed to make life decisions for himself. Like what to eat, when. Or how much sleep he really needs. Or in attempting to parent his brother. That's been fun. Just the beginning, I know. He is curious to a fault, wanting to be in on every conversation and completely take over any decision-making processes. The questions. Oh, the questions! He just must ta...