Pinewood Bowl Play

A Night at the Pinewood Bowl

One of our favorite summer traditions over the past few years has been attending a play at the Pinewood Bowl. This year’s production was Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat—a musical we didn’t know much about going in. Emmy was the only one up for joining me this time, so it turned into a little mother-daughter evening.

We headed over around 5:30 when the gates opened to lay out our blanket and claim a good spot. It was still way too hot to sit out for long, so after securing our place, we went back home for supper and packed up some drinks and snacks for later.

We returned when things reopened at 8:00, just in time for the show to start. As always, the cast didn’t disappoint. The Pinewood Bowl consistently puts on impressive performances with a super talented group of actors, and this year was no exception.

Thankfully, the temperature dropped enough by showtime that it wasn’t too uncomfortable to sit outside. The atmosphere was great, the music was fun, and Emmy and I had a really enjoyable night together. It's always a treat to soak in a bit of live theater under the stars.

 

Home Haircut

DIY Dog Grooming Adventures

Scout usually goes to the groomer twice a year to tame her shaggy coat. But recently, I bought a vacuum brush off Facebook Marketplace, and while Abby and I were messing around with it, we discovered it had a clipper feature.

So of course, we had to try it.

The girls held Scout while I gave her a full-on home haircut. She didn’t love it, but she didn’t totally hate it either—and honestly, I think we did a pretty decent job!

Looks like we might be skipping the groomer from now on. Especially since Scout loves to jump straight into the pond the second we get home anyway.

 

Orchid Club

Accidental Orchid Enthusiast

A couple of months ago, I was chatting with a patient about flowers. He started telling me about his greenhouse and all the orchids he grows—turns out, he has a ton of them. It sounded like a pretty impressive setup.

I told him I didn’t have any orchids and that they kind of intimidated me. He assured me that if I could keep tropical plants alive, I’d do just fine with orchids. Before he left, he handed me a business card and invited me to Orchid Club.

Who knew that Orchid Club was even a thing?

The next week, he dropped off a full info packet about the club at work. At that point, I felt too guilty not to go—so I went to a local plant shop, bought my first orchid, and told Robb, “Well… I guess I’m in the club now.”

On the night Orchid Club was meeting, of course we had to stay late at work. Johnny and Tobin were working with me, and I mentioned I was missing Orchid Club. They humored me (and probably made fun of me later), but they told me to go and have fun.

Orchid Club turned out to be basically Show and Tell for grown-ups and their plants. And honestly? It was pretty interesting. Some people brought really unique plants. The average age was about 70, but I like older people—and I had a great time.

So now, I am officially a member of the Lincoln Orchid Club.
I even have a nametag and everything.

 

Redneck Slide

Redneck Slide

Robb and I were kind of hoping we could skip putting up the pool this year. But then Emmy made it very clear that not putting up the pool was absolutely unacceptable. And let’s be honest—everyone knows Emmy runs the show. So… up the pool went.

Then Robb came to me with a new idea: “What if we added a slide?”
I didn’t want to crush his hopes and dreams, so I said, “Sure, go for it.”

The result? A full-on Redneck Pool Slide. It looked more painful than fun—but to be fair, it was actually pretty fun… in a chaotic, slightly dangerous sort of way.

In the end, though, the pool was kind of a flop. The water wouldn’t stay clean, and the filter just couldn’t keep up. If we want to try again next year, we’ll definitely need a new filter and a pool vacuum—minimum.

Or maybe… we just don’t put up the pool next year.
(That’s definitely the way the parent vote is leaning.)

 

Tear Down

Tear Down: Long, Hot, and a Little Too Eventful

Tear down is always long and hot. It’s kind of a family affair—everyone chips in to help wrap things up for the year. This year we had two tents to tear down, so it was double the work and double the sweat.

We started with the El Mezcal tent and got all the fireworks packed up and loaded back into the trailer. After that, we took a break to cool off and grab some food at Culver’s. Then it was on to the KFC tent.

We hadn’t been working there long when things took a turn. A girl—someone who worked for Sara, but I didn’t really know her—accidentally cut her forearm with a box cutter. It was a deep one, definitely needed stitches, and she didn’t have a parent there.

Somehow, I got nominated as the “most responsible,” so I ended up taking her to Urgent Care. She was only 17 and completely freaked out. She nearly passed out in the car and again when we walked into the clinic. She’d called her mom, but her parents were at the lake, so between me and her “situationship” guy, we had to get her through the whole thing.

She ended up doing okay—still pale and shaken, but stitched up and stable.

The only silver lining? By the time we got back, the tents were mostly down. Robb and I packed up what was left and finally headed home. We were more than ready to be back. Trying to parent from a distance while the kids stayed with the grandparents was not easy, and the constant bickering didn’t help.

The kids stayed behind to go to Big Bang Boom. They felt like they didn’t get enough “fun days” in Norfolk—which I understand… but honestly, we were just ready to be home.

 

Firework Camp

Two Tents, One Big Effort

This marked the fifth year the kids teamed up with Ginger and their cousins to run the fireworks tent—but this year came with some big changes. For the first time, they operated not just one tent, but two! In the past, everything was based at the El Mezcal location, but this year they expanded to include a second tent at KFC.

With two tents and limited staff, everyone had to step up in a big way—and they did. Caleb took the lead at El Mezcal, while Bryce ran things at KFC. Abby worked alongside Caleb, and AJ joined Bryce’s team. Brook, Emmy, and Carly floated between the two locations depending on where help was needed, and when Bree arrived, she jumped in at the KFC tent.

The boys were proud to each have their own tent, and of course that sparked some “friendly” sibling competition to see who could rack up the most sales. But running two full-time tents was no small feat. Unlike previous years when shifts were more relaxed and kids could come home for meals or breaks, this time the workload was intense. Caleb and Bryce were basically stationed at their tents full-time. Caleb rarely left—he’d come home late at night to shower, then head back to sleep in the camper at El Mezcal. Bryce, Brook, and Aaron rotated staying overnight at the KFC tent.

To make things even more challenging, illness hit midweek. Bryce came down with strep throat and still tried to power through, but eventually needed a trip to urgent care for antibiotics. Around the same time, AJ developed hand, foot, and mouth virus and also ended up at urgent care. It was tough watching them try to manage responsibilities while not feeling 100%, but they did their best—and thankfully started to feel better before the week was over.

Of course, in any family venture—especially one involving siblings, high temperatures, and long hours—tensions can run high. Caleb and Bryce were the official tent supervisors, and that naturally created some hierarchy. Caleb, while extremely hard-working, can be intense and not always the most diplomatic when asking others to pitch in. Abby adjusted well and worked alongside him with minimal drama. Emmy, however, had a harder time. We received a few complaints that she wasn’t following directions or being helpful. Robb shadowed her a few times and found she was mostly doing what she was asked—but, in classic Emmy fashion, the attitude often came along for the ride.

It was a tricky dynamic to navigate as parents, but Ginger stepped in and helped balance things out by splitting Emmy’s time between both tents. That seemed to help spread the sass more evenly and reduce some of the friction.

Despite the long days, the heat, and the challenges—including illness and sibling spats—we were incredibly proud of how hard the kids worked. For 12 days, they showed up, took ownership, and kept the operation running. The experience gave them more than just a paycheck (which was definitely a nice reward)—it taught them responsibility, teamwork, and a little bit of grit. We couldn’t be more impressed with what they accomplished.

Team El Mezcal

Team KFC

AJ

Bryce at the KFC tent

Bree and Emmy

Caleb closing the tent up for the night

Emmy breaking down boxes

Team El Mezcal

Grandma and Grandpa picking out fireworks for the show

Brook and Lane

 

Kids Firework Show

Fireworks and Family Traditions

After long days of selling fireworks, the kids were more than ready to blow some stuff up.  They’d worked hard and were just as excited to light them off as they had been to sell them. As always, Grandpa and the boys teamed up to plan and put on an impressive fireworks show for everyone to enjoy.

This year, however, things were a little different. With the Lutz’s house recently annexed into city limits, we ran into a bit of a snag. Typically, the only night fireworks can legally go past 10:00 p.m. is July 4th. Knowing that both the 3rd and 4th would be busy, the kids decided to hold their show on July 2nd instead.

We may have gone a little past the 10 p.m. curfew—but not by much. No one lost any limbs, the fireworks were beautiful so we called it a success! 

The boys walking out of the smoke after lighting all the fireworks.