My three big kids spent the night at their grandparents’ house last Friday. This was a near-first for all of us: other than the one night Luke and I spent in the hospital when Nico was born, this was the first time I’ve been apart from all three of the older kids overnight. It was new and different, but still somewhat familiar: they often spend Saturday afternoons with their grandparents, so having them gone for one night felt like a natural next step.
Our month actually had a number of these moments that were technically new but still familiar-feeling, and our entire fall will be filled with new rhythms and routines that are one step away from what we’ve done before. Change is challenging for me, so easing into new things is totally my speed. One thing that is exactly as it has always been is this monthly recap. Here’s a look back at June!
|| READING LATELY ||
My fiction reading this month was all about buzzy new releases, including a literary novel with an incredible premise (which I sadly didn’t love—though I seem to be the only one!), a suspenseful woodsy tale, an adorable wedding story, a historical novel that EVERYONE seems to be reading (that I disliked immensely), and a quirky (5-star) feel-good novel with one of the best animal protagonists I’ve ever had the pleasure of “meeting.” In nonfiction I read about some amazing individuals as well as some pretty terrible ones ( in this book and this one). There were also two books about educating kids—one specific to homeschooling and one about the importance of reading with your kids (I can’t say enough good things about this!). And speaking of kids, with my own I read this childhood favorite and this new-to-me story that was totally perfect. I will be reviewing each of these books in a Quick Lit post next week.
|| LISTENING LATELY ||
I listened to SO MANY insightful, entertaining, and thought-provoking podcasts this month. Here is a sampling.
FAITH
Focus on the Family with Jim Daly—Make Fun a Priority Now—Here’s Why!
The Natasha Crain Podcast—54. Why Secular Therapy is Problematic for Christians
PARENTING
Mama Bear Apologetics—Episode 129. How Dads Can Disciple Their Kids with Shane Winnings
POLITICS & CULTURE
The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast— 562. The Feminism Debate: Can Women Have it All? | Megyn Kelly
The Sage Steele Show—Kirk Cameron (Kendra Note: I LOVE how both Sage and Kirk lead with their faith in this interview.)
The Daily‘s ‘The Interview’—Andrew Schulz, ‘Podcast Bro,’ Might Be America’s Foremost Political Journalist [Kendra Note: I found this interaction totally fascinating and a great meta-look at the changing nature of journalism. More thoughts from me on this to come!]
SOMETHING DIFFERENT
Pioneering Today—Lard for Sunburn & SPF? What They Don’t Tell You About Skin Care
|| MONTHLY KID-ISMS ||
CHARLIE-ISMS:
+ After learning the meaning behind the expression kids are sponges: “I want to be a sponge for all the good stuff and a rock for the bad stuff.”
+ About a book he was reading: “It’s like the author was so excited to tell the story he forgot to explain what was happening.”
+ “I think I remember our old house. Because you know how, in early childhood, you may have occurrences of small memories.”
+ “If everyone in the world time traveled back 500 years, we would all realize how spoiled we are.”
SULLY-ISMS:
+ Commenting during Charleston’s Trail Life awards ceremony: “So you want to get the gold medal or the silver medal, but not the bronze medal, right?”
+ During Charleston’s Trail Life awards ceremony, in which the parent leaders on stage shook hands with each of the troop members: “Charlie is shaking Daddy’s hand? That must be embarrassing!”
+ “I don’t really care for olives. But I do like them.”
+ “I’m really full, but I am still hungry.”
+ After he came across the word five when reading. Me: “Five! YOU are five!” Sully: “No, I’m five-and-a-HALF!”
+ While driving, I overheard Kali in the back seat asking: “Is inflation real?” Sully: “yes, it’s when the government steals your money.”
+ Kali: “The car wash is Nico’s most special thing.” Sully: “That’s not his most special thing. The most special thing is his family.”
+ After sitting quietly with me for a while as I got ready one morning, he finally spoke what was on his mind: “Mom, is it really hard to take care of all four of us?”
KALI-ISMS:
+ Kali & Sully: “Mom, come look at our conventions!” (a malapropism for Tinkertoy inventions)
+ “If it’s really dark but it says on your app that there’s no storm, does that mean someone broke God’s good design?”
+ “I don’t want Nico to choke and die because I will be sad because then he can’t play with me.”
+ “Sometimes my mind says things to me. Instead of me saying things when I’m talking. And today it said that I really like that backpack.”
+ “It’s Daddy who keeps us safe, and your job is to take care of us and help us feel better, right Mama?
+ When Charleston did something unkind to Sully, Kali responded to Charleston: “You ruined my love! He’s my best friend and my true love and you ruined him.”
+ Reading the word win: “W-I-N. Like win are we going to leave?”
|| HAPPENINGS & HIGHLIGHTS ||
We attended Charleston’s Court of Honor (awards ceremony) to celebrate another great year of Trail Life. Charleston earned a few badges, including the faith-based Walking Worthy award. But beyond all the awards, he gained friendships, life skills, time with his Dad and other godly men, and spiritual wisdom this year. We are thankful for this program, and excited that Sully will be joining them in the fall!
We are taking advantage of more free time this summer to do plenty of fun things around town. We’ve been to library activities and storytimes, checked out new parks, attended a few group playdates, and went to ride on the newly-updated train at a local park. We also went bowling with friends—it was the twins’ first time! Sully caught on right away and figured out that a running start was the best way to get that ball down the lane; soon Kali had adopted his unique strategy, and they both were hilarious to watch. Charleston has a little more bowling experience and actually did really well, breaking 100 while hardly hitting the bumpers. They all were absolutely adorable and I loved seeing the kids cheer each other on. We can’t wait to go back!
We’ve finally gotten some use out of our community pool this summer. Nico had his first pool experience and is a true water baby; he didn’t even mind the cold water! He has always loved bath time, so I had suspected the pool would be a hit with him, and I was right. His new pool floaty made it nice and easy to have him in the water with us while also managing the other three kids.
It’s always a little sad that I don’t get to spend Mother’s Day or Father’s Day with my own mom and dad, but I was glad we could celebrate both Luke and my father-in-law, who are two of the greatest dads out there. We spent the morning at church followed by a movie of Luke’s choice (Davey Crocket), presents, and an afternoon barbecue at my sister-in-laws’ house.
Every summer Charleston looks forward to Camp HCF, an all-day VBS hosted by my in-laws’ church about thirty miles away, and this year he was joined by my nephew Collin. The boys had an amazing time playing games and learning about God through the life of Moses. I enjoyed seeing Charleston’s take on the various theme days (a custom hat for Aloha Day, pirate cap for Hat Day, spikes for Wacky Hair Day, and a cowboy hat for Western Day—the costumes were limited to of headwear since he still had to wear his camp shirt). The littles and I clocked more than 600 miles chauffeuring the boys over the week and they were great sports; I know Kali and Sully are super excited to join in the fun next year!
Last week we attended Best Week Ever, which is our church’s VBS-style camps held in yards across our city and hosted by teens from our youth group. We had a great time worshipping God, learning verses, studying some Bible heroes (they even had flannel graphs!), and playing lots of games. I enjoyed getting to know some of the parents and other leaders and Nico was a great little audience member. A wonderful time was had by all.
Signing up for a membership at the local rec center’s gym was one of the first things we did after moving to Texas. The rec center was a huge part of our lives for the last nine years, even after we moved to a different town. It’s where I worked out almost daily, and we made great friends with all of the childcare workers as well as a few other members and their kids. But due to a variety of factors, we decided that when our membership was up this month we would make the move to the local YMCA. I’m really excited about this new season, but also sad about the end of an era—especially time with our friend/babysitter Betsy, as well as treadmill walks with Nico (probably not allowed at the Y). I had the twins capture a picture of Nico and me on our last day, those walks are a memory I will treasure forever.
|| ICYMI: JUNE ON THE BLOG ||
LIFE & FAITH
Mom Math (and an invitation to something more) “Yes, there’s some value in knowing whether or not my kids are developing appropriately, but there’s a vast difference between noting their development and obsessing over it. The former is important information for catching any significant problems; the later simply makes me miserable. And it’s a symptom of some glaring spiritual issues.“
Father Knows Best “God’s wisdom is more like a compass than a GPS. He won’t give us straightforward instructions, but He will set us in a direction that will lead to holiness, truth, and flourishing.“
Nickelson Ryan || Ten Months Old
BOOK CORNER
Featured Book Review: Shepherding a Child’s Heart
Bookish Considerations: A few thoughts on Goodreads.
JUST FOR FUN
28 Recent Discoveries and Delights
We have one more month of summer before launching into another school year, and we plan to make the most of these freer summer days. How about you: how was your June? What are you looking forward to in July?