Wildflowers and a Red Witch

Buckle up, folks . . .

. . . because Joy is learning to drive.

Riding shotgun while my rookie teenager drives my van

is a little unnerving,

but I'll take this parenting task over potty training any day.

Joy and I drove to the Concord Cheese Shop this afternoon

to see what unique cheeses they currently have in stock.

I was charmed by the idea of eating Swiss cheese 

"from cows grazing on summer's wildflowers."

We also bought some of this paprika-rubbed cheese called Red Witch,

because how can you pass up a cheese with a name that fun?

Dodongo Dislikes Smoke

I wasn't feeling very well for much of last week,

so I went to our local library . . .

. . . and checked out a Nintendo Classic Edition console

so I could kill time playing Legend of Zelda.

I actually remembered most of the levels and secrets

from when I played it as a kid,

but I had to consult the internet for the last couple dungeons.

Side note: These two chairs I saw at the doctor office

seem like some sort of visual metaphor for life.

That different generations struggle to see eye to eye?

That we view the world differently as we age?

That youth looks more fun, but maturity gets more done?

Volunteer Berries

Remember the zucchini and tomato plants I planted last month?

I'm happy to report that they are flourishing,

but like many a gardener before me . . .

. . . I'm not sure how I'm going to use up all of this zucchini.

Did you know that August 8 is National Sneak Some Zucchini onto Your Neighbor's Porch Day?

If a baseball-bat-sized zuke shows up on your porch in a few weeks,

it just might be one of mine.

In other news, the rabbits don't seem to have devoured my rose,

but some little bugs are apparently nibbling away at it.

Rosie is soldiering on and putting out new growth,

and I'm looking into companion plants that might attract

pest-eating beneficial insects.

Out back, where our yard meets the woods,

I've noticed that we have a bunch of berry vines springing up.

I think some might be blackberries, and others are black raspberries

(yes, those really are a thing).

Berries are some of my favorite things to eat,

 and I think it's delightful that we have volunteer berry brambles out by our shed.

Hero Camp 2024

In addition to painting their shirts at Hero Camp yesterday . . .

. . . Todd and the other kids in our ward

got a visit from Samuel the Lamanite . . .

. . . learned sign language for a Primary song . . .

. . . and made their own version of the gold plates.

I'm not sure why Todd has his shoes off and his arms pulled into his shirt.

Maybe his arms were cold but his feet weren't.

Whirlwind Shirts

Hero Camp week is upon us, and I volunteered to prepare camp shirts 

for the kids to decorate on the first day.

I was determined NOT to leave this project until the last minute . . .

. . . so I created the design template last week,

and got a friend to cut it out on her Cricut.

So far so good, but somehow after everything was purchased

I still ended up staying up really ridiculously late last night 

spraying fabric paint on dozens of shirts in our garage . . .

. . . which I draped all over Daddy's car to dry.

I then took a 3-hour nap . . .

. . . and as soon as my family woke up, I recruited them 

to frantically cut out the Jesus templates I still needed to iron on.

It was a whirlwind morning, and I'm super tired . . .

. . . but the kids had a great time painting their shirts,

so I'd say it was worth it.

Jesus is good news!

I'm so grateful for His incredible sacrifice

to give us the hope of eternal life and endless joy!

I'm also grateful that Hero Camp only happens once a year.

It's kind of like the summer version of Christmas--

uplifting and fun, but I'm relieved when it's over!

Cordless Belt Improvement

Before church this morning . . .

. . . Daddy showed Todd how to tie his handsewn necktie.

I guess Todd has just had Velcro ties up to this point.

Nice work, Todd!

A few minutes later, Joy brought a drill inside

because her belt was too loose and she needed to drill

an additional hole.

That's better.

I don't have anything particularly cool to wear,

but at least my new haircut looks nice.

Todd Ties

It is such a blessing to have friends with skills I don't possess

who are happy to share their talents.

Todd's church activity group sewed ties for Father's Day earlier this month.

The bad news is that I have neither a sewing machine, nor anything beyond basic sewing skills.

The good news is that our friend Laura Thomas has both . . .

. . . and kindly showed Todd how to sew a tie for himself and his dad.

She even invited us over to her house to finish them today, 

since we didn't have quite enough time to complete them at the activity.

Thank you, Laura!