Weekend With Maddy

While Andy and I (and Rosemary) went to the homeschool conference in Richmond, our very sweet friend, Maddy, stayed with the big kids. She is such a blessing. She loves our kids so much and does such an amazing job with them. They adore her. She packed the weekend with fun activities - farmers market, splash park, bike riding, playground, tea party, you name it, they probably did it. She even took Samuel to his first awards ceremony for gymnastics where he got a trophy.

 

While they were home having a blast we were hanging out with 14,000 of our closest friends having our own kind of fun - filling our brains full of homeschooling information. We heard from so many speakers and browsed so much material my brain is still trying to process it all.

In most circles, I feel like the odd ball out, but I feel right at home among these families. Remarkably, it is the only place I've ever been where I use the words "only 4 children" as I'm describing our family. Homeschoolers sure do know how to raise large families. And most of them do it so beautifully.

It was such an encouraging weekend. It is sure to get us through another year until we go back for more!

Sassy Susie

We've been trying for months to get Annabelle to wear a ponytail in her hair and she just doesn't like the way it feels. I finally got one on her. Here she is modeling her new chevron dress from Gigi. I cannot get over how big she looks with her hair pulled back.

Joe's Trophy

Joseph received his first trophy in gymnastics. He is one happy boy.

Blueberries and Swimming

After a full morning of blueberry picking, we went to the Dumaresq's home for some swimming and a picnic. The pool was only halfway filled up, so it was perfect for the kids.

You can really tell how much Annabelle has grown. This bathing suit was hers from last year. All her ones this year were dirty.

Claytor Lake Cousin Camping Trip

We went on our 3rd annual camping trip with our cousins. We went to the same place we did the past 2 years. It's not that close, but it's so nice we keep going back year after year.

Miss Annabelle waking up with a huge smile on her face the first morning in the tent.

Rosemary decided that she was going to try some food. I was sitting down eating a banana with her in my lap and the next thing I know, she grabbed the banana and started stuffing it in her mouth like a ravenous beast. It was hilarious! Never had one of our children shown such an interest in food this early on.

What will now be a camping staple - hot dogs wrapped in dough and cooked over the fire. Delicious!

 

The thunder kept us from taking a gorgeous hike up to some waterfalls, but we ended up finding some fun elsewhere. Here the 3 boys are all in the same enormous tree.

 

Annabelle and Daddy stayed on the ground.

The girls hanging out.

All the kiddos.

Moments after we started to head home.