Aside from the recital, meeting up with former neighbors, and Father's Day, here are a few more notable events for our family in June:
Liesel and her friends made some chalk art on the driveway for Pride Month. Then it promptly rained and washed most of it away.
We took every opportunity to go to The Freeze resulting in some brain freeze.
Trader Joe's flowers were poppin'!
Some of the best food I've ever eaten is from asking someone who works there to just make me their favorite dish the way they like to eat it. I'm not picky and they usually get really excited. One day I happened to be in the mood for a gyro so this is what the guy at Falafill made and it was so good!!!
This is the only year the girls were at Girl's Camp all together. Liesel actually had to leave early so I'm glad I was able to snap this photo!
Colonoscopies are never a trip to the spa but I have difficult veins. Throw on being dehydrated from cleaning out your system and that makes for a really bad IV experience. When they gave me the propofol, it badly burned and apparently they replaced my IV once I was under. I woke up bruised and sobbing. Glad I did it and glad it's over.
Learned a thing or two going to the No Kings protest in Chicago:
1. Wear heavy duty shoes
2. Have a handkerchief tied around your neck
3. Any sign should have a front and a back and can be used to cover your face
4. Protests are not just to make a statement but are places where people go to socialize and connect
I thought it would be fun to get a puzzle and slowly work on it with the girls. Somehow that devolved into just Gita and I working on it and screaming at each other stuff like, "Oh yeah! Well you're the worst puzzler that ever puzzled!" I can't explain it. But it was fun.
Ireland gets an ample supply of contacts but she hadn't had new glasses in years and it was high time for her to get a pair. This is what she settled on- doesn't she look smart and sophisticated?
Brigitta got her aerial!
Liesel landed a job at Wendy's and I'm so incredibly proud of her for officially entering the workforce. When she groaned about not wanting to go into work it pricked my heart a bit. "Sweetie! You're adulting!!!" I told her. She earned some coin and now has some experience to put on a resume.
This came across my feed and I love it so much!
Annual trip for Ireland to see her pulmonary specialist. She really wanted to take this picture but she was also dreading it because of her knee pain. She thugged it out for the photo!
We went to lunch at our favorite spot in Iowa City- the St. Burch Tavern where they have amazing lobster mac n cheese. Digging around in my wallet to I came across a long-lost CTR ring!
We made sure to leave time to stop by Stringtown Grocer for some yummy Amish goods. We snagged the last two jars of Traffic Jam and some saltwater taffy- a must for summer!
For Theater Camp, Sydney was cast as the cow in Jack and the Beanstalk. She was fantastic and really enjoyed her time on stage. She worked so hard to memorize her lines!
Liesel lopped off her hair in favor of a pixie cut.
I'm not gonna lie- I shed some tears over that one. There are women who pay thousands of dollars for the blonde hair she has and cutting it all off at once was like losing a limb. She looks so very different without it!
We had a massive storm that blew some major branches off our trees. Because they were leaning on the house, we had to call in a professional to take them down. Even the professionals were having a hard time because they were HUGE! Luckily no damage to the house.
Another one blew into the yard and Brent said he would cut that up himself. When Reagan and Doug visited, Doug jumped in and helped which we are so very grateful for!
These trees are old! Even though this looks like it was struck by lightning, the black is just from years and years of aging. It was kind of splitting before the storm but the high winds accelerated the process.
Liesel was invited by her choir teacher Ms Scherrer to join a summer program. She had to leave Girls' Camp early to begin going through the music. There were music tracks to listen to and practice- it was intense! But Liesel was honored to have been invited and she worked really hard.
The performance was in a really beautiful church on a Sunday so it was the perfect setting. My personal favorites are 4 what is mine and All of Me.
Let me tell you about Brent as a father. He does a lot. More than most fathers. He stays on top of the Girl Scout meetings, he's been a cookie dad, he gets the girls to dance, he performs in the Dad's Dance, he cooks dinner, he takes them to dental appointments, he ensures they get volunteer hours... he does A LOT!
Brent is a wonderful father to all girls. He's not the kind of guy who needs to have a son to feel like a man. He values women in general and while he loves a good football game, he also loves a great musical performance. Brent brings masculinity to our home but he also is a soft place to land for all the feminine energy.
Last year I took photos of them all on the trampoline and they insisted we do it again.
I think no matter how much you date a person before marriage, there is always a leap of faith that must be made regarding the relationship. There's simply no way to know the kinds of trials you will face individually as well as a couple. You have no idea how those experiences will shape you. Man am I glad I wake up next to this guy because let me tell you- I had no idea.
I had no idea how much my wounded heart would need him to kiss away my tears and hold me when life got tough- even when life was tough for him. I still love this man but the love is much deeper and stronger than anything I felt when we were young and innocent and just newly in love.
Are you ready for it? OK, let's do this. As always, the grainy, crappy photos were taken by me, the amazing photos were taken by our good bishop.
LIESEL
Pointe
Maybe it's just because I'm her mother, but Liesel really shines on stage. She's paler than the average girl so she automatically stands out but she's also so beautifully statuesque- I love watching her dance! My mind still cannot comprehend dancing en pointe- it seems so intrinsically painful!
Ballet
Again, it seems like Liesel just glows from within.
BRIGITTA
Ballet
Tap
Gita is probably my only child who really and truly loves tap. Everyone else either didn't really take much or didn't enjoy it as much. Something about tap really fits her personality.
Lyrical
By far my favorite dance style and Gita has a way of throwing herself into the movements that I just love. I know I took a lot of photos of this one but you can tell by the swish of her hair and costume how much she put her heart and soul into this number!
Hip Hop
When Gita needs to get down and dirty, she has no problem pulling a stank face and some sassy moves. Maybe it's all the fighting she does with her siblings? Somehow hip hop is a great outlet and it gives her a space to really pull out her moves.
SYDNEY
Jazz
These two are besties and it's fun when they get to dance together.
Tap
For someone with little to no bootie, Sydney really managed to shake hers in this number!
Lyrical
Hip Hop
BRIGITTA & SYDNEY
Tumbling
I really loved this year's tumbling number! People's eyes were starting to glaze over as the dances kinda started to blend and infused the whole place with so much fun and energy. It's practically impossible to get good photos because the girls are either running or doing tricks so these will have to do. The costumes were super cute and they clearly enjoyed being a part of it. I wish I hadn't been quite so close up because watching the video back I can see how they did really fun formations and tricks that went all the way to the back of the stage.
BRENT
Dad's Dance
As always, this brought down the house- especially the part with the legs. Brent and the girls always keep this number a closely guarded secret so I can enjoy the surprise and man did I ever! I love how Brent isn't afraid to put himself out there and get involved. He's made a lot of friends with the other dance dads.
I'm so proud of my girls! Of course that includes Ireland who bravely soldiered on as long as she could until having to give her knee a rest.
Recital time is always full of mayhem but it's always so worth it!
