Summer, So Far

Summer is long past half over, and we have been busy!  Simply trying to soak up as much time together as we can, while at the same time avoiding too much together time so as mother doesn't start mumbling quietly to herself and chewing on her hair. 

So far, so good!

Here's a bit of a picture recap of all that we've been up to.

The weekend after school got out, Brad was off to Minnesota with the youth on a week-long mission trip, so I did what any in-control and totally capable mom would do - I called in reinforcements.  Grammy and Papa were here for five days, keeping the boys occupied and happy and working on a couple household projects. We had a great week together!

We signed up right away for the summer reading program at the library.

The theme is "Dig In" so the boys signed their names to the worm wall.

We have successfully completed the program, collected all of our prizes, and have now extended our reading challenege for the remainder of summer.  My favorite?  Drew reading to me.  I hope it never gets old.

Fun at the Children's Garden in Dow Gardens.

 

Backyard Water Fun

 

A Sunday afternoon with friends at Sanford Beach.

Having some really great moments playing well together.

 

More backyard water silliness.

 

A new box of sidewalk chalk.

Trust me, an incredibly thrilling moment worthy of it's own glory.

It's like opening a new box of crayons...it gives a strange kind of joy. :)

Reading outside.

 

Reading inside.

Exploring local parks.

Frog hunting and exploring the trails at Chippewa Nature Center.

Saturday morning bike ride and park fun.

This past weekend, we enjoyed time together with Brad's family, and as Brad and I returned home, the boys took off for some time at their grandparents' homes.  When they return next week, we have just a few short weeks before school starts....and we have a lot to do before then!  Our August will be full of local events, a mini-vacation, back-to-school shopping, and a whole lot more of what we have been doing since June!

A Love Affair

I think I've made it pretty clear that we're pretty big fans of Culver's.

"Big" might not be a sufficient adjective.  Let's try... ginormous.  Humongous.  XXL.

You get the picture.  We enjoy it.  A lot.

We love the atmosphere.  Family friendly and comfortable.
We love the service and quality.  Better-than-fast-food served just as quickly.
We love the food.  Butterburgers, tenderloins, salads, cheese sandwiches, fries, chicken tenders.  And the custard....  ooooooooo the custard!

Pretty sure that face says it all.

We've eaten at Culver's on numerous occasions.  Typically, we go to celebrate a birthday.

Drew's 3rd birthday.

My 31st.

 Brad's 35th.

Reed's 3rd.

We've gone to Culver's to celebrate the first day of school...

 {first day of preschool, 2011}

...and the last day of school.

I've taken Drew to Culver's as a special "Just Mom & Me" treat.

{November 2011}

And we've used Culver's as a "you-did-great-get-well-soon" post-surgery treat.

{Having to have tubes put in your ears and your adenoids removed definitely deserves double the reward!  November 2010}

And then sometimes we eat at Culver's...

...on vacation

{Escanaba, MI, June 2012}

...as a pit stop on a very long drive

{somewhere in Indiana, or Illinois, on our way to Grandma's house for Christmas, December 2012} 

 ...in the fall, because the Pumpkin Spice Shakes are soooooooo good

 ...because the coupons expire today

{December 2011}

 ...when we're hungry.

{February 2011}

And let's not forget that time when we ate at the World's Largest Culver's, which, of course, will become a regular rest stop on our frequent trips back to Minnesota.  How convenient!

{December 2012}

 It's so exciting you'll either sit on the table or faint in your seat.

The only time Culver's has ever disappointed me is when Brad is in the vicinity of one, without me, chooses to eat there...

...and has the nerve to text me a picture.
Punk.

You can imagine our dismay, then, when we first came to Midland to discover that there isn't a Culver's here in town.  Such a disappointment.  There is one 25 minutes south in Saginaw, and there's one 35 minutes west in Mt. Pleasant.  But with all the things Midland has to offer, Culver's isn't one of them.  So, needless to say, our frequent meals there haven't been quite as frequent during the past year.  Of course, when the need has arisen for us to have to go to Saginaw, you can bet a quick stop at Culver's is always scheduled.  And we may have made a special trip or two just to go to Culver's (hey, it's my birthday, I can do what I want!).  But without one in town, our overall dining experiences haven't been the same.

Until last November.  You can just picture our excitement and joy when we read in the local news that Culver's was coming to Midland!

Oh.my.delcious.goodness!!!

Construction began in April and this past Monday was their Grand Opening.

Umm.  Yeah.  We were there.  Duh.

Some of our friends here in town have enjoyed the dining pleasure that Culvers offers, but many have not.  Therefore, we feel it our obligation, and gift to them really, to introduce them.  

 {The two ladies on the right are from Wisconsin and are quite familiar with Culver's.  The other two friends, not so much.  Lunch on Monday was awesome!}

Yesterday was the ribbon cutting ceremony.  CEO Craig Culver himself was in town.  We did not go.  Yes, we love Culver's.  No, we are not crazy.

Yes.  Yes.  Yes.

Welcome to Midland, Culver's!

We are happy you're here!

May & Early June

I am in the beginning stages of second trimester energy and productivity, which for me, means a list of endless projects.  I would say that, as of now, there are at least 10 different projects in the works, and when I'm not activity engaged in one of those, I'm thinking of about 100 others to add to the list.  I am a busy body; I like to be active and productive and feel as though I've accomplished something at the end of the day.  Around here, that is translating into organizing, unpacking boxes (still!  aaarrghhh!), endless scrapbooking pages, diy projects around the house (lately, sewing pillow covers and curtains) and the list just goes on and on.  Perhaps if I spent as much energy thinking about what we're going to have for supper as I do everything else, we'd actually eat meals at the end of the day!  Ha!

So on that list of "to dos" is catching up on my photos and on Project Life.  And on this ol' blog.  I haven't spent a whole lot of time on here this year, for a number of reasons.  It's been a bit of a relief, to be completely honest, and I've come to really value time away from the computer (in all facets) but I'm also quite ready to get back on this "life matters and I want to remember it" bandwagon.  So after about six weeks of pregnancy-induced fatigue, and then just pure laziness that ensued the few weeks after, I was quite behind in the documentation of our daily life that I love so much.  April and May are finally in the books (quite literally) and I just need to now edit the pictures I've chosen for June so they can be printed and inserted into the album.  But as I was catching up, I was reminded about just how much has happened that I haven't mentioned here.  And for the sake of our blog books (which I publish yearly for our own keepsakes), I want to be sure some of these photos and events make their appearance.

So here's what happened...one and two months ago. :)

 Froggy boots are good in any kind of weather, in any kind of activity.

 Drew's school carnival.

 This was one of those moments when I would have rather said no.  But their joy was greater than my preference.

 Mother's Day!

 Waiting-for-school-to be-out selfies.

 My joy.

Me, according to Reed.

Midland Memorial Day Parade.

Brad's birthday!

 Our first visit to Big Boy.

 Great Lakes Loons game...

 ...complete with mascot autographs and running the bases!

And soccer.  Lots and lots of soccer... post coming soon!