We've had such a busy summer! I can hardly believe that it's almost the middle of July. It's been a (long) while since I've blogged, so I'm just going to pick up here!
Sunday, we celebrated the Fourth of July with a community gathering at the Caney Bottom Lodge. This was our third year going, and it was just as fun as the previous years. Maybe even more so since Zoey is a little older and actually played the entire time! They had a big waterslide for the older kids and a slip and slide for the younger kids. Zeke spent the entire time on the big waterslide while Zoey played with her "ballpark friend" on the slip and slide for over two hours! (Her ballpark friend is the little sister of one Zeke's teammates this year for baseball - they wound up playing together at almost every game!) We enjoyed good food and an excellent fireworks show!
We've continued with our Wednesday night children and youth programs at church through the summer. Attendance for the children has been really low, as in just Zeke and Zoey most weeks. But our youth group has had around 10 or more each Wednesday!
Speaking of updates, this is probably the biggest one: My husband is now the full-time pastor at our home church, Hill Baptist Church! He quit pipelining in October and started preaching as a fill-in pastor while we were looking for a pastor. In January, they asked him to be full-time, and he accepted. We moved into the parsonage in April, and it has been such a big blessing for us to be right next door to the church.
Thursday, I had to take Zeke to the dentist in the "big city" - about an hour and a half drive from our home. He had to have a molar extracted. He did so well! Afterwards he got an Oreo Blizzard from Dairy Queen and picked out a Lego set from Walmart as his prize.
Still numb but trying to smile!
Friday, Eli and Gendeling came in from Ruston, where Eli is still in college and is working. It's about a two-hour drive, and they come home at least every other weekend. I say "home, but they are renting a home in Ruston. But this is always "home." He works at a golf course and he loves it. He graduates in February! For those who remember, his wife is from Nicaragua, and she finally got to America in January of this year. They're expecting a baby girl in mid-November, which makes our third grandchild! We played some cards and watched some movies.
Mikaela (our oldest) graduated from nursing school in May and is now traveling with her pipeliner husband and their two children, Daniel and Kenna. She is going to homeschool Daniel this year! I miss seeing them since I babysat them for her several times a week for a few years while she was in school! We FaceTime quite a bit and I am planning to meet her halfway to get them for a week or so before we start school back!
Zeke and Zoey went to my mothers-in-law's house this afternoon for a few hours and enjoyed time in their little pool!
I've been getting all of our homeschool curriculum ready to go this month! I'll make a separate post with what we will be using for Zeke and Zoey. I've printed hundreds of pages, used almost that many sheet protectors, and been putting everything in binders!
I created this for Zeke!
We've also joined a homeschool co-op in a town about a forty-minute drive from our house. I'll be teaching two classes - Little Problem Solvers Math and Little Problem Solvers Science. Zeke will be taking four classes! I'm excited about this opportunity. It's on Thursdays for ten weeks in the fall/winter and ten weeks in the spring/summer. I've also spent a lot of time working on that!
Titus broke his arm at rodeo camp a few weeks ago.... yes, my boys are still riding bulls, and this is our first broken bone (and hopefully the last) ever!
Silas riding a bull!
Mercie graduated in May!
Rod and I worked the gate at the Rodeo!
Mercie was the 2026 Rodeo Queen!
