Adventures in La La Land

1. We had a low-key father's day: our traditional cinnamon rolls, a Carhartt sweatshirt I bought a month ago on clearance, and a sweet homemade gift from Lena: She came up with the idea, found the pictures, and assembled it all herself! After church, we went to my parents' for lunch and cards and celebrating my dad. Here's just one reason he's such a great dad/grandpa: Playing Toy Story Memory with Nash, Nova, and Levi.  In a world where involved fathers are becoming a rare breed, I'm so thankful for the dads in my life and my kids' lives. 💓 2. On Thursday, we had Cousins Day at Millennium Park. It was a perfect hot, sunny day for it. We got there right when it opened, so we got a good spot on the beach and had a blast bopping back and forth between the beach and the splash pad. We had the beach almost to ourselves for the first hour, but after a while, it was packed. Which makes keeping track of our 8 kids a little more nerve-wracking. It's a constant coun...

1. Last week, one of our fun summer activities was supposed to be a program at the library called "Ruff Readers" where kids can read to/with a service dog. Levi was so  excited when I told him about it and literally counted down the hours all day. We finally got to the library, Levi ran in the door and shouted, "Where are the dogs?" To which the librarian sadly replied, "Oh, honey. I'm so sorry. The handler just called and cancelled." 😥 Levi got over it quickly and the librarian explained that the same program would be held at another branch this week. So on Monday, we drove down to a different branch for take two. We got there ten minutes early and when I went to the front desk to ask about it, the librarian told me all the slots were already signed up for. 🤦 You had to sign up in person, and apparently it's just a one hour program, with 4 measly slots. She suggested we stay the whole hour and the handler might stay a couple minutes late at the ...

1. First week of summer break!  Marshmallows by the pool. Does it get any better than that?? We had a great first week doing lots of swimming, playing outside with all the neighborhood kids, and reading a lot. Of course, it wouldn't be summer break without my obsessive attempts at creating a schedule and enforcing routine! I know myself, and if I don't have a plan I will literally let my kids watch TV all day. I'll share my plan and you'll think to yourself, "Wow - this is them not  doing screen time all day?" 🤷 The girls sleep in so late sometimes they don't even get morning screen time. (Don't ask me what time Levi wakes up.) And Lucy handles her own shower schedule. She doesn't need to be reminded like the other two! This changes weekly and is meant to prevent the constant questions of "What are we going to do today?" or "What's for dinner?" Plus, I try to schedule some crafts or activities to keep myself accountable. I...