what's up June.

Man, I am having a hard time getting back into the swing of blogging.  I had kind of mentally given up over that few-month stretch without photos, and now I'm out of the habit and it slips my mind.  This week has been full of driving Atticus around to about one million mowing jobs, which has been great for him but challenging for me.  (He's currently studying to take the test for his license next week - I am really hoping he passes so he can start driving himself to all of his jobs.)  Last week I had ordered all of our homeschool stuff, so this week I'm reaping the harvest of daily book deliveries, which I'm loving.  And we went to a friend's house yesterday morning for a water balloon fight.  The babies weighed in at 15.5 and 16.5 pounds, respectively, so they're still just tiny guys.  And now, let's jump back to cover June!

I spent most of the month doing a round of Whole 30, in an effort to feel a little better, physically and mentally, than I had for a while.  It literally did nothing - I just spent the month even more annoyed than usual because I was now annoyed and on stupid Whole 30.  I got through it, but it was a major mental fight this time, and I saw very little payoff.

In better news, the big kids got photos with all the books they each read over the course of the year, and it was pretty impressive to see!

We celebrated half-birthdays for our December babies

I experienced, yet again, the joy of having many males in our house.  Todd replaced the kitchen faucet for me, for which I am eternally grateful.  The handle on the old one had lost a screw, so it was always falling off, and the seal around the stem of the faucet broke so the whole thing was loose in the hole and would just clunk back and forth when I would use it, and water would get under the sink through the unsealed hole and pour everywhere, and the sprayer nozzle wouldn't shut off when it was supposed to, so sometimes when I'd turn on the sink, the sprayer hose would shoot water right at my shirt.  I was thrilled when Todd decided to replace it for me, even though installing it took way longer than it should have.  (Why are house projects always like that?!)  Who knew how happy a working faucet could make a person?  I don't know if Todd feels like it was a net gain, but I (not having been the one who had to put any sweat equity into it) feel like it definitely has been.

That same Saturday, Finneas powerwashed the patio while Rocco practiced project supervision...

...and Atticus scaled a ladder to kill a wasp.  See?  Having men around really makes my life so much better.

This summer, the kids have been working their way through the New Testament.  So they listen on Hoopla and eat goldfish crackers together.  It's a sweet time.  

Our biggest celebration of the month was Callista's birthday!

Rocco found a little doll at the Dollar Tree who is wearing Callista's exact same (favorite) outfit - her red tshirt and overall shorts.  She loved it!

She saw this wooden horse barn at Goodwill a few months back, and so I went back later and bought it, and had been hiding it for her birthday.  It was so fun to give it to her.

Here she is in her favorite outfit - she bought these shorts with her own money because she desperately wanted a pair of "trousers" (bib overalls), and she wears them all the time.  She is so spunky and fashionable and girly.  I just love her so much.

The weekend of Callista's birthday, we went up to Iowa for a memorial gathering for my grandpa, who passed away a few months back.  We got to see family we hadn't seen in years, and it was a really wonderful weekend getting to catch up with them and remember Grandpa.  I wish I had gotten photos on the camera.  

And lastly, this happened?  I still don't know what exactly was happening here.

Happy June from this crew of weirdos.