Trials

Although summer was fun - it was probably our most trying time in ages.

Our 'trials' started the end of April, when our dishwasher broke and had to be replaced.
Unbeknownst to us, the new one had a faulty valve.
So for the next month, it slowly leaked - thereby ruining our kitchen floor, which then had to be replaced.



The new floor extended into the bathroom, so I ended up re-doing that as well.


We returned home from vacation in July to find that our air conditioner was no longer working.
It couldn't be repaired, so we ended up with a whole new system.
The following day - the refrigerator quit.
Leila and I went and bought a new one - only to find when we got it home, that it was damaged.

David had a little mishap while on a motorcycle trip back in May.
After making the necessary repairs on his bike, his thumb was still hurting.
Turns out - he had torn some tendons and had to have surgery to repair them.

He didn't even have the pin out or the bandage off, before he ended up in the hospital with an abscess in his stomach.

Darrell's car was in the shop a few times this summer.
My car was in the shop enough that we finally broke down and bought me a new one.
We were able to use Austin's discount, and I got a cute little blue RAV4.


Leila got her bottom braces.
She was very excited about that.

David's step-father passed away after a lengthy battle with cancer.
However, we got to see some family that we haven't seen in a long time.


On the plus side - we have lots of new things.
On the negative side - we have lots of new bills.
I know they say that God doesn't give you any more than you can handle.
I'm thinking that maybe he's had a little too much confidence in us lately.

Summer 2018

We had a very busy (and trying) summer.

Austin and Casey sold their little house and moved.

They bought a new house.
Granted they're only about a mile down the road now, but they're no longer 'just next door'.
Their new house is nice, and I'm happy for them.
(I really am.)
But I so miss them being right there.


Darrell and Haley got a dog.
Millie is a very sweet, well-behaved 6 year old German Shepherd / Lab.
She loves coming here to play in the yard and with Charlie.


We went on our 'family trip' in July.
We really wanted EVERYONE to be able to go, but that didn't work out.
Austin and Casey didn't get to go with us this time.
We flew to Puerto Rico and took a 7 day / 5 port cruise to the South Caribbean.

Our first stop after leaving Puerto Rico, was in St. Thomas.

We went on an excursion called the BOSS (breathing observation submersible scooter).
It was one of the neatest things I've ever done.


The next island was Barbados.

In Barbados, we went out on a catamaran and went snorkeling with turtles.


Our third stop was in St. Lucia.
St. Lucia was my favorite.
The water, the beaches, the island, the people - it's all beautiful.
Our excursion here was a Segway Tour and then beach time.



St. Kitts was next.
In St. Kitts, we toured the island in a 4x4 jeep, before stopping for some more, much enjoyed beach time.



There's a point on St. Kitts called Sir Timothy's Hill where you can see both the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea.
Breathtaking!

St. Kitts is also home to lots of monkeys.


Our last island was St. Maarten.
St. Maarten still had a lot of devastation left from last year's hurricane, but this was probably our least favorite stop.
Our little group went on 2 separate tours here.
Darrell and Haley chose to go horseback riding on the beach.


The rest of us went on an island tour.

We saw sights such as the Dutch / French Border.
(St. Maarten is actually split in half.)

We visited the famous Maho at Sunset Beach where planes fly right over your head as they come in to land.


Once we returned to San Juan, we spent an extra night there before flying home.



This is a much abridged version of the things we saw and the fun we had.

But - as we know, all good things must come to an end.

Girls Trip 2018

We made our 8th annual Girls Trip in June.
We try to go somewhere new and different every year.
This time, we went to Hilton Head.
We loved it there - enough that we may consider going back again.
We also made a few day trips to sightsee in Savannah.



It doesn't matter where we go or what we do - we have fun.

I am so very blessed to have this group to travel and explore and have fun with.
I'm thankful Leila has these times and opportunities to experience these multi-generational trips with her family.
I know she looks forward to it every year, but I hope someday she realizes how cherished these memories are.

Mother and Father's Day

We are blessed to have had all our kids with us for Mother's and Father's Day this year.



I am grateful they take time out of their lives for us.

Myrtle Beach

We traveled to Myrtle Beach the end of April with Leila's cheer team.
While we were there, we had an exciting event take place.
Darrell proposed to Haley on the beach!






They told Leila the news right before she was to take the mat for competition.
Needless to say, she was excited.




Both Leila's team and the adult team, that Darrell and Haley were on - did great.


The weather was perfect.
All in all, it was a wonderful weekend.