Happy 40th John

We went back to Norfolk for John Lund's 40th birthday party—just a quick trip for the evening. While we were at the party, Abby and Emmy watched Megan's kids at Lutz's house. It was fun catching up with John and some people we knew from high school. We left the boys home alone, telling them we'd be back late but that no friends were allowed over. We got multiple calls asking for clarification on what "no friends" meant, since it was a bit vague. When we pulled in at 1 a.m., we found Brody backing out of the driveway. It was our first "big kid" issue, which led to a big kid consequence. Fortunately, they're good kids, and we don’t have to worry about the really serious stuff, but it was definitely something that needed to be addressed.

 

Horse Riding Lessons

This summer, Emmy has been taking riding lessons with Molly, a former co-worker of mine. Molly has 7 horses and lives about 20 minutes away. She also has two little girls and is honestly one of the sweetest people ever. This all started when I missed the deadline to sign Emmy up for horse camp, and by the time I went to register her, it was full. Molly had posted about offering lessons, so it worked out perfectly. Overall, I think Emmy has gotten a lot more riding time and has already learned so much. She gets an hour of one-on-one time each week. She’s ridden Gunner and Nash, the older horses, who Molly started her on because they’re experienced and tend to follow Molly’s instructions. Recently, though, Emmy has had the chance to ride Walter, the young and spunky pony. Walter requires a bit more effort from her, but Emmy loves riding him. Every time we pull up and he’s in the barn, she gets so excited to ride the pony!

Molly has taught her about grooming, how to put on and take off the saddle and she also talks to her about general horse care. Emmy looks forward to her Thursday lesson every week. She also looks adorable in her jeans and cowboy boots.

 

Freezing Corn

The kids are always commenting on how good the corn is that Grandma Jody and Grammy serve. Fresh sweet corn that’s frozen and served year-round is so much better than the store-bought frozen corn or canned corn. It’s really not even comparable. Robb and I put up corn years ago when we were first married, and my mom has given us some here and there, but it’s been years since we’ve put up corn ourselves. Then Grammy Hansen called to let us know that Randy and Kylie had some corn we could have. This is usually obstacle number one for us—finding corn that doesn’t cost $6-8 a dozen. The other issue is timing. When the corn is ready to pick in Tekamah, we’re usually on our Yankton vacation. This year, when Grammy called, Robb went down that very night to pick up the corn for us. Caleb spent the night shucking half of it while watching a movie in the basement. When I suggested he do it outside, he promised to keep it contained to a towel, insisting it was so hot outside he’d "die" if he had to do it out there. Bryce, of course, managed to avoid the whole thing because he was at work at all the right times.

The next morning, the girls and I got started bright and early. Emmy washed the corn and removed all the silk, while Abby handled the blanching and took it out to cool. I used an electric knife to cut the kernels off the cob, and Emmy packed it into bags. We had a good system going, and no one was complaining. About four hours in, we finished all the corn Caleb had shucked, so I had the girls take a break while I finished the rest. After about eight hours, we were done. It was a long, hot, and sticky day, but we froze 64 bags of corn, each with 3 cups. Do the math—that’s a lot of corn! I had promised the girls we could go see the Barbie movie if we finished, so we all showered off the sticky mess and got ready to head to the theater.

 

Barbie Movie

The girls and I spent the entire day freezing corn, and as a bribe for completing it, I promised we could go see the Barbie movie. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it was amazing! It was quirky, uplifting, nostalgic, and downright hilarious. There were so many '90s references that the girls didn’t catch, which made it even funnier for me. The movie brought back classic characters like Growing Up Barbie, Pregnant Midge, and Alan. They also introduced Weird Barbie—the one that’s been played with too much, with cut hair, marker on her face, and mismatched clothes. We all loved the movie for different reasons, but we can all agree it deserves 5 stars!

 

Yankton Vacation- The Best Week of the Summer

We had another successful Yankton trip! This was the first year with the new boat so that was exciting! All the kids were able to come, and Bree was able to join us for a couple days. Which is really surreal considering, I used to be the girlfriend that came on this trip. 

AJ and Brook were able to come down in the evening on the weekdays and then got to stay for the weekend! I love the relationship that these kids have! Age doesn't seem to matter much they just get along great and really care about each other.

It is also a joy to see our "big" kids get along with our god children so well. Even Caleb, who says he has no patience for kids, really enjoys spending time with the Hopkin kids.

Bob and Susie rented a jet ski and a pontoon boat. The kids all had a great time on the jet ski. I don't love to drive them, so I put my life in Caleb's hands which was scary at best. I didn't die but I might have screamed a lot. Poor Susie was on Robb's boat and was coming over to the pontoon boat. She tossed her phone into the pontoon, and it hit the side and fell in the water. Abby jumped in right after it to try to save it and Robb helped but the phone was a loss. I'm not sure it was very fun explaining to the bank that you lost your work phone, and the information was very secure because it was at the very bottom of the lake. That wasn't our only phone casualty of the weekend. AJ also jumped in with his phone in his pocket which got him a new phone for his birthday.

Is it even really a Yankton vacation if you don't fall asleep on the boat?

We had a cloudy day and then we had a couple brutally hot and humid days. Caleb was totally cool rehydrating with all the Gatorade he could get his hands on. The boys love the endless snacks and drinks that come with this trip!

Bryce found out that he really enjoys knee boarding and did that a few times. Abby also tried this and liked it.

The lilypad mat was huge to have on the boat so it became a hangout spot for the littles as we drove.

Bryce and AJ in all their glory!

The new boat. It is a very pretty boat. Green isn't typically our color but with a green boat and green golf cart, I guess we are embracing our love of green.

Dairy Dock is a favorite place for all the kids. John sized cones are their own thing. He always gets a large which is too much ice cream for anyone to consume but it is still always something to strive for. The kids would go multiple times a day. Caleb even purchased ice cream in pints to have in the cabin.

The boys all went golfing and AJ joined them for moral support. Robb said he had 2 statements that he would say with every shot. It was either 1. Great shot or 2. That was unlucky.

Abby and Emmy had appointed themselves the special drink and activities coordinators this year. They were so sad that Pat decided not to come so they did their best to fill her awesome shoes.

Scout and Lucy always have the time of their lives finding ground squirrels and digging util they get them. Lucy has always been good at this, almost too good. Bob had to buy 2 bags of potting soil at Walmart so we could fill her holes that she had dug all over the place. Scout is always interested but she has never got one. This year she got one all by herself. She dug for it and everything. I feel like that is quite an accomplishment for a 3-legged doggie.

We had fun at the beach with the lily pad. A lot of days the pool was crazy busy so the beach was a better option.

Bob and Susie brought "MJ" known as MJ because it is Mule Jr, I guess. The girls have named it. This turned out to be really fun to take down to the marina and the beach. 

We had some friendly games of cross net volleyball.

Harper and Cooper were so much more adventurous in the water this year, which was fun! Zander kept us all entertained by "SMASHING" people like he was the Hulk and throwing webs at people like he was Spiderman.

Zander crashed after a long morning on the boat.

Abby, Harper and Emmy tubing.

Caleb can now get up easily on the wakeboard and is working on jumping and going wake to wake. He is Robb's boating buddy and has learned to drive the boat this year so him and Robb can go out together.

It was fun to have Bree be able to come with us! She fits in great with the family and we just add her into the craziness like another one of our kids. The girls love having her around and of course Bryce does too.

This year Yankton was about as fun as it gets. Everyone is old enough now that it isn't just being in a place where it is harder to watch the kids. They all can go cabin to cabin and within reason do their own things. They get to stay up late, hangout with cousins, go to Dairy Dock, drive "MJ" around and just have a good time. I got time to walk the dogs, get a tan, read my book and spend time with the kids. Robb, John and Andy get to boat as much as they want and stay up late talking by the fire.

 

Jenny and Chris's Wedding

a

Jenny Jochen's and I have been friends since preschool when my mom babysat her and we would hang out in the morning before school. We have always been friends even though we haven't always had the same friend group but we have always been friends. We both lived in Lincoln and we were able to help each other with the kids. Now that the kids are getting older we don't get to see each other nearly as much but we can just pick up where we left off when we see each other. She met Chris and has been so happy ever since. Today her and Chris got married and I couldn't be happier for her. Robb and I were in Yankton for vacation but I couldn't miss out on Jenny's wedding! We drove back for the the evening. While I had warned the boys to be careful of driving in Norfolk during the firework stand, I should have taken my own advice. I had told them that they couldn't run yellow lights and that they couldn't speed because it was patrolled heavier than Lincoln. I was driving through Norfolk and Bree was with us. I followed a semi trailer through a "pink" light and got pulled over. Of course it was my sister that got to run my plate for the officer that called it in. I guess my charm just got me a verbal warning or Steph may of had some pull too. Needless to say I had to tell the boys I didn't take my own advice. 

We had a lovely night seeing Jenny and Chris get married and we spent a lot of the evening talking to Jenny "Jessen" and her new husband. 

 

First Drink for Caleb

Robb had a project in Wisconsin that took him there several times over the summer. On one of those trips, Caleb happened to be free, so he decided to tag along. While they were there, they visited a local golf course. One evening, as they were dining out, Robb was reading the informational card on the table and discovered something surprising: in Wisconsin, minors can be served alcohol if they're accompanied by their parents. Robb thought it was pretty wild and showed Caleb the card. After sending me a quick text to double-check he wouldn't get in trouble, Robb let Caleb ordered his first beer at a restaurant. He wasn't so sure about the taste. That is probably lucky for us. Not sure it was our finest parenting moment, but it definitely became a memorable experience for Caleb.

 

Fireworks Camp

This is the part of the year that we fondly refer to as "Fireworks Camp". It is possibly the best deal on camp that you will ever get! The kids go to Bob and Susie's for 2 weeks. They receive room and board and all snacks for free. They get to hang out with their cousins and do fun stuff in the evenings and the best part about all of this is they get paid. The kids have come to look forward to this each year! If you actually kept track of hours and money made per hour it probably wouldn't seem worth it, but when you add in the bonus of hanging out with your cousins and having delicious meals and snacks delivered by grandma, it all becomes a lot more appealing.

The kids are each holding their favorite firework of the year.

The tent is set up, stocked and they are ready to sell.

Bryce did downward dog in his down time. 

Abby, Andie and Emmy had fun together. They rode the mule around the yard so much that they created a path of killed grass. They could typically be found cruising the yard in the mule, drinking lemonades and blaring music.

Bree came down a couple days to keep Bryce company. She was a good sport and was willing to hang out in the hot and sweaty tent just to see him.

It wouldn't be fireworks camp without at least one big storm. They all moved fireworks off the floor and closed the tent up just in time for crazy wind and rain. They rode the storm out in the camper that is parked by the tent. 

I have such great memories of hanging out with my cousins in the summer. I think firework camp will be one of those memories for my kids!