Summer Time Check In

I'm in love. With Summer. I don't know how I ever managed to not get swept away before, but now...I have a whole new appreciation for it and have fallen head over heels in love with good old hometown Illinois summer.

Everything is going splendidly. Spending time with the family, running around to baseball and softball games, shooting and lifting, staying in shape and out of trouble, working basketball lessons like crazy, and then changing into my painting clothes to beautify a shed. Laughing, joking, playing, acting like my laid back midwestern me and having the time of my life. Golfing, swimming, fishing, traveling, driving, eating, campfires, starry nights, sunrises, sunsets, lightning bugs.

I Love Summer.

The basketball lessons are going really well. I have about 27 girls, some taking individual lessons and some in groups of four. We have an excellent time, but work really hard. I had one little ball of steel go 52 minutes on wall sits on testing day. HOLY. SMOKES. I tried to gain some dignity back...and went for 6 minutes and 20 seconds. Wall sits are where you sit against the wall, legs at a 90 degree angle to the floor, nothing around to support you. And you just sit. Can you imagine doing that for almost an hour????

For the 4th we swung up to Minnesota to hang out with the Rutzen fam. I think this may be the first time in YEARS that I have missed Raritan fireworks. When I received a text from a friend saying it took them 30 minutes to move 50 feet, I didn't feel quite so sad. Tomorrow Mom, Dad, Grandma, and I are headed up to lovely, gorgeous, amazing Northern Minnesota for some tubing, fishing, boating, relaxing, and fireworks. Today was a riot with some shop til you drop time at the Mall of America, followed by four-person team badmitton and one-bounce 4-person team volleyball. We had a lovely time and finished the night off with some fireworks.

I can't believe I leave for Grenada in SIX days!! AHH!!! It will be one crazy experience, of that I am sure. I will post an update upon our return, and then it will be four weeks of basketball lessons...and of course, some more fun summer time joys.

Have a wonderful stupendous fantastic 4th of July!!

Best wishes to all!!

O&O,

M

P.S. I will post before and after pictures of the shed sometime in the near future. Never thought painting would be so fun :).