Art!

We've found fun ways to make art lately! 

The library had a paint pouring bookmark event. It was cool to see the colors mix. We made a TON of bookmarks, then enjoyed writing Bible verses and book quotes on the backs of them. :)

The Created to Create group at church did a rock painting event that Willow, Gramma, and I attended. We enjoyed placing the rocks in random places. Willow and I set one in the parking lot of Walmart, then it was gone when we came out! Hopefully it brings someone joy!

Owen updated the picture for his YouTube channel:

His character drawing for a project in English class!

This was a fun Wine and Painting event at the memory care facility where Gramps lives. 

I love following tutorial videos on Instagram! It makes me feel like I can do so much more than I could come up with on my own!

Gramma got blankets for the Operation Christmas Child boxes and asked Willow and I to "customize" them with puff paint. 

One of my favorite songs lately:

Morgan got me a cool sunflower water color set with tutorial for my birthday! It came with 4 pieces of cardstock so I had Willow join me. :)

Art Fun!

I have a few accounts on Instagram and lead you step-by-step in making watercolor pictures. Willow will usually join me if I ask her! Owen doesn't prefer watercolors, but remains quite an artist himself!

Our church has a "Crafty Ladies" group that we enjoy going to. This time we made pressed flower vases!

Whiskers is excited about having us home for the summer too!

Sometimes the directions say to paint with a stick...so I do!

Happy 12th birthday, Owen!

When I asked Owen what he wanted for his cake, he drew me a picture! ;) He really is optimistic about what I'm capable of doing! Willow was happy to help and we hope it was just like he imagined?!?

Owen picked the trampoline park for his party. Unfortunately due to baseball, camping, sick grandparents, and wrong phone numbers, none of his friends were able to attend. But...we can always count on our family! What a blessing! He had a great time and we hope he felt loved and celebrated!

 Owen's 20 Questions:

What is your favorite color? green

What is your favorite activity? video games

What is your favorite fruit? apple

What is your favorite TV show? Flash

What is your favorite thing to eat a lunch? grilled cheese

What is your favorite type of clothes to wear? shorts

What is your favorite game to play? Minecraft Dungeons

What is your favorite snack? chips

What is your favorite animal? cat

What is your favorite song? Cold as Ice

What is your favorite book? Keeper of the Lost Cities

Who is your best friend? Cole

What is your favorite cereal? Cinnamon Toast Crunch

What is your favorite thing to do outside? play with sticks

What is your favorite drink? apple juice

What is your favorite holiday? Christmas

What do you take to bed at night? Buddy Buddy

What is your favorite thing to eat at breakfast? cereal

What did you have for dinner on your birthday? Hardees

What job do you want to have when you're older? YouTuber

July well-visit stats:

Weight: 122 (89%ile)

Height: 5' 4.25" (94%ile)

BMI: 20 (82%ile)

We can't even believe that Owen is 12!! He's done a great job adjusting to middle school this year! He's made some new friends in class and has really enjoyed band. The band director lets them eat lunch in the band room and it's his favorite thing (because the cafeteria is so loud!). If he has a bad day, it's usually because they had to eat in the cafeteria. He's doing great academically, earning straight As all year! He is definitely the most extroverted in our family and is practicing to become the best comedian of the family. He loves all things on a screen...video games, movies, TV shows, etc. He would love if I allowed us to watch TV every night during dinner. His favorite games right now are Rounds and Minecraft Dungeons. When he choses a show for weekend lunches, it's often Lego Ninjago, Last Kids on Earth, Avatar: The Last Air Bender. He continues to read a book at breakfast, during some of his downtime, when he first wakes up in the morning, on car rides, or when we got to a restaurant. He's always woken up early but there have been more school days where Chris has to wake him up at 7:00 to get ready. He actually prefers to have a little downtime in the morning to ease into his day, so he asked Chris to wake him up at 6:30 if he's not up already. He's started to ask US if we want to play a game (vs a groan during Forced Family Fun time). He typically loves a game so much that it's all he plays, then gets tired of it after a while and won't play it for a long time. He's slowed down on his interest in Pokemon cards and Legos. He doesn't go outside to play on his own as much. If he does, he finds a stick and I have to remind him not to aim and "shoot" at neighbors driving by. He loves the idea of nerf battles but often gets frustrated or hides. He has quite a collection of nerf guns, though. He's really gotten into music this year. He has a few playlists on Amazon Music and is constantly adding songs. He'll hear a song in a video or at a basketball game, then want to add it to his playlist. He listens to his playlist while he takes a shower every night, then I'll find random videos like this on my phone! He's growing like a weed, about the same height as Gramma, and creeping up on me! It's so different to hug him now! He played rec basketball this year then started karate in January. He's continued to do his ninja class as well. He goes to karate 3 times a week so that's interfered with us volunteering at the SPCA as regularly as we had been. When we go, he definitely prefers the non-jumpy dogs. There have been just a handful that he's adored and told them that he loves them within the first seconds of meeting them. It's super sweet! Owen is an incredible artist. He has amazing fine motor control and continues to have great handwriting. He loves making cards for different characters, filled with details about their abilities. He does a great job drawing off a picture when making birthday cards for family members. We love our buddy!

Here's some examples of cards that Owen makes:

Here's a school project Owen did about what he liked about 6th grade:

First Day of School!

The kids enjoyed a trip with Nana and Grandpa to Massanutten and PA to see the Sight and Sound production of Moses during teacher work week. They always have a great time!!

 The day before school started we did some artwork together to ease some nerves and mixed emotions!

It's a big year with both kids starting at new schools! They both came home smiling off the bus, so we'll call that a win! 

Gramps and Gramma joined us for a "sometimes" tradition of getting giant pizza downtown on the first day of school. 

Camp Read-a-Lot is back up and ready for a new group of students! A few things were added thanks to VBS being camping themed (they let me grab whatever I wanted off the walls at the end of the week!!) and the sweet new Assistant Principal who gave me a sleeping bag!

It's too bad it doesn't just take 30 seconds to put up the tent ;)  And I can't thank Karen enough for walking in at just the right time!

And I have to say that I have the most supportive supervisor in the world! I was super stressed out at the beginning of the year with a meeting conflicting with Owen's middle school orientation, being told that I would be the testing coordinator, AND missing a 2-day training due to a wedding we were attending. I couldn't thank Joe enough for being so supportive!