Hi... Hi... HIYA!!

{One thousand bonus points to you if you can name the obscure reference to a '90's movie in that post subject.}

Long time no chat, blog friends!  How has your summer been going?  Ours has been wonderful, full, relaxed and busy all at the same time.  With M off from work for the summer of course we think "Whew, now we can FINALLY get ALL the things done."  And then we drive ourselves crazy trying to accomplish the world, when really the day-to-day of running a house and raising four children is more than enough for two people.  But I'm sure you've read this blog long enough to know how we are about trying to get more done than is humanly possible.  So, I say all that to say... I'm trying to be a little intentional about taking time to NOT do things.  I mean, DO things, but relaxing things... like book reading... museum visiting... writing blog posts...

One thing that is keeping me VERY busy is this little gal:

She is the sweetest and the wonderfulest.  And boy is she active.  Her little legs and her little brain just never stop moving and exploring and thinking and learning.  She has a bit of a rascal-y streak too-- hmmmm, I shouldn't say it that way... I don't think she really intends to be rascal-y, but she is one of those kids who comes up with ideas that less "active" children would never think to do.  Ideas like... "What would happen if I shoved my sister's toothbrush down the drain?" or "Can I make a really loud sound if I dump ALL the water from my bucket onto the kitchen floor?"  So yeah.  Just try turning your back for a second.

Combine all that with the fact that, having three doting big sisters, she has grown accustomed to having a playmate 100% of the time.  That means she complains pretty heartily about being alone.  Sooooo... it can be pretty difficult to get anything done when she's awake.

As a result of all this, I think she has gotten the most screen time out of any of our young kiddos... because sometimes, you just need five minutes.  I have experienced a good amount of mommy guilt about that, so I'm trying to cut back on the screens lately.  For three days now she has had zero screen time, and I'm not gonna lie, there have been tons more messes to clean up as a result-- for example, yesterday morning a cereal box was left on the table and as I was taking some dishes to the sink she grabbed it and dumped THE ENTIRE THING on the dining room floor.  We're talking the family size Kix, people.

But... she is also adjusting quickly to the change and finding ways to entertain herself, even without any other friends around.  This morning I put a little water in a pot for her out on the porch where spills are okay, and gave her our little set of animals that we use as math manipulatives for homeschool.  She spent about 30 minutes playing out there by herself, and then another 20 or so with a sister.  Unheard of!!!

Here they are playing toss/drop the animal into the water.

Drawing and coloring have become highly enjoyable for her lately too, and if I can put her in a place where she's away from any surface that I care about her coloring on, that can really be great entertainment too.

And we made some fresh play-doh today too, after months of not having any because I just didn't have the time to make it.  Go me!  Always useful when you need a TV alternative!

Sorry if it sounds like I'm complaining-- J's active mind and witty spirit make for plenty of funny moments too.  She is always singing, dancing, and/or smiling.  She has so many words and phrases and it's always amazing to hear what she thinks about and remembers!  So it's a crazy, messy, joyful life with her around!

Despite being very busy with these dear children of ours, M and I have managed to find some time to do a few things around the house while he has been home for the summer.

M spent 2-3 days clearing 5+ years of brush overgrowth from our stone wall in the backyard.

(Before)

(After)

I have been working on moving some plants and bushes around to better suit their growth and sun needs, and weeding and mulching beds after getting the plants moved.

(A freshly weeded bed, pre-mulch, where my hydrangea that I planted last summer is really thriving!  Yay I didn't kill it!)

I also dug up most of our side yard to plant a vegetable garden there.

 If you remember, our house came with a pre-fenced garden plot which I used the second summer we lived here with mixed results.  The location of that plot was pretty shady and extremely far from the house so I had to screw three lengths of hose together to get it watered.

The side of the house has been working much better so far... it's full sun most of the day, and we've had such a good amount of rain that I haven't even had to worry about watering (but if I did, the hose is right next to my plants).  So despite the fact that I didn't plant until mid-June (a pretty late start), we are well on our way to some bush beans

cucumbers

and zucchini (not pictured).

The cherry tomatoes and butternut squash are looking pretty healthy too, although we may need to wait a little longer for fruit on those.

I'm hoping for lots of cucumbers (at least) for making pickles, plus I tried Brittany's cucumber greek salad for lunch today and it was delish.

(Her picture is much better than mine!)

So... looking forward to lots more of that.

I have also been ramping up my running in preparation for the 1/2 marathon I signed up for in October (gulp).  It has been great to be running outside again after a winter of 100% treadmill running.  The hills kick my butt, but it is just amazing to be in the fresh air and quiet.  It's so great for my mental health and it makes me want to keep signing up for races so my motivation will stay constant.  Running outside I have found it really difficult to get below a 11:00/mile pace-- maybe it's just that I'm a bit out of shape after the winter (I know I'm carting around a few extra pounds) or maybe it's the heat and humidity or just getting old.  We will see how things go as my training continues, but as far as goals for this race I'm not going to expect to beat any times, even my very first 1/2 marathon time.  If I can just complete the distance again, I'll be happy.  I want to enjoy this one because the race course is sure to be beautiful!

Well, I have probably chatted long enough and we have an orthodontist appointment to get to, so signing off for now!  I have a fun trip and the 4th to blog about so stay tuned :)