Road trip with M

 M and I did her highway driving road trip.  She chose Chicago and we didn't know until 1 day before we left if she would have her permit back and could go at all.  She had forgotten her wallet on the bus home from FSY and it took a while to get it back.  She drove up to Indianapolis where we car camped outside the city at a hipcamp location.  

We visitited a sculpture garden in Indianapolis and went to walmart to stock up on food before going into Chicago.  M drove us to south Chicago and I switched drivers at the most sketchy gas station I've ever visited.  We went to the zoo and walked out to enjoy the waterfront.  We drove to our city camp location then rode the train back into the city to enjoy the evening. We saw the bean and other city sights along with lots of other tourists.

Tuesday we rode the train and bus down to the University of Chicago and M signed up to do a campus tour.  We were trying to visit a free art space and got onto a train based on Google Map instructions.  It turns out the train wasn't part of our $5 all day pass.  Live and learn.  The train was just $3.50 and took us all the way up to the Millenial Park area.  We got back on the CTA and took a bus to the art place.  After the art place (with very cool fabric arts) we planned to ride a bus to campus for the tour.  The buses for that area were not running because of a nascar race the previous weekend so we had to walk a few miles.  We did get back in time for the tour but it was a haul.

We left Chicago as it was lightly raining.  As we navigated to our hipcamp for the night it was almost like we were driving through a hurricane.  In fact it was Tropical Storm Beryl.  The gps took us on small roads with construction so we didn't arrive until almost midnight.  The camp gps pin is off so it took us to the neighbors driveway.  Unable to find the camp, and so late at night, I decided to go and park at a repair shop I'd seen on the way in.  As we leaned our chairs back, ready for a long night, a car pulled up.  The camp host had been prompted to go see if his cab windows were open and he'd seen us in the neighbors driveway and come to bring us in.  He literally took pity on us and let us use the cabin lodging for no extra fee.  It was raining torrentially at this point.  The cabin was so nice and had a bathroom inside.  So nice.

We went to DC through more Tropical Storm weather and arrived at 9:30.  Cousin B was there and we all went to bed.  Thursday morning Cousin B went to her program and M and I went to visit my dad.  He offered to drive us in to DC and pick us up to save us time and money.  We got to see museums and monuments for 8 hours!  You can see a lot when it's just 2 adultish people able to walk a lot.

Friday we went thrift storing and had lunch at the Green Olive with my dad and his wife Janette.  Afterward we played Scrabble.  M wanted to go to the botanical garden so we headed to at 4 hoping to get a street parking spot.  Our plan worked!  The botanical garden was awesome.  Like a zoo but plants.  We went to pick up cousin B and then went back to the thrift store and shopping for milk.

Saturday we went to the zoo and then started our trip home with cousin B. 

Last kickball game

 Last night we were at a ward party and after enjoying a hike and dinner I joined the kickball game.  15 boys with a median age of 16 against 7 girls with a median age of 12.  When the boys were up they all got to kick and I called switch when it came around to the first boy again.  The girls were up and got 3 outs in 3 kickers.  I told the missionaries to pick teams.  I'm not anybody's favorite adult.  Yay.  G and I caught a lot of fly balls, and I twisted my knee kicking the ball.  

July 4th

 We joined some other families for a ton of fun today.  Swimming at one families house.  Dinner and games at another.  Fireworks at the third.  At the house with fireworks there was another 3-4 families and tons of fireworks.  My kids have never had a box of pop-its and only 1 or 2 sparklers.  They were amazed to have access to a table full of these small fireworks.  

We have had a lot of varied and awesome 4th of July activities.  P has played in the community band and we watched fireworks at the park.  We have gone to DC to watch a parade, visit museums and watch fireworks at the national mall.  We have stood on the lions bridge and watched the fireworks launched in the intercoastal waterway.  We have had a BBQ and swimming at a friends house and walked over to see the fireworks.  We have driven up I-15 and seen firework shows going off left and right up the valley.

I'm grateful for my family and the blessing it is to share these times together.  

Imperfection

 I've tried watching videos of a speaker/author but I didn't like her mannerisms so I dismissed her message.  I recently got a book by them and it is so nice.  I'm not distracted by her accent or hand movements.

We started doing Sign Language Book or Mormon today.  I love helping the kids build fluency.  

We also talked about taking responsibility for our emotions and using "When you ______ I feel ______." statements.  lP has a friend who was harassed for a year about something by a boy who liked her.  lP teases this friend about the same thing but they take that interaction as a sign of friendship.   So we went around the room getting hypothetical peanut butter sandwiches thrown at us and describing our feelings.

Swimming Hole

 We had a nice adventure on Saturday swimming in a local creek.  I love learning of new adventures right here in this town.

As Bread is Broken

 Our family sang one of the new hymns in church today as a special musical number.  "As Bread is Broken" is a new sacrament hymn.  It has grown on me and I really love it.  

M and lP went to FSY in Kentucky this past week.  I love that the church has made that available to everyone.  I'm grateful for programs that help children and youth feel loved and feel the spirit regardless of income.  

I went to a painting meet up yesterday with sister from the ward.  It was so lovely.  We followed a youtube tutorial with palettes prepared by the host.  There was a lot of self deprication but I really appreciated the chance to paint in a social situation. I haven't painted in a long time and don't usually finish something.  This guided painting was very nice.  I'd like to do this with the children.

Girls camp

  This year I was serving as a YCL specialist.  I met with 15 girls (never all at once) to plan Wednesday of girls camp.  This stake is serious about youth leadership.  They had 3 meetings with everyone who could come and encouraged us to have 2 meetings with just our day group.  The girls decided what, when, how long, and who of their day.  

Wednesday did 4 short lessons in rotation so 8 girls were involved in that planning and teaching.  Later in the day they did 3 activities in rotation, another 6 girls, with some overlap.  They planned and administered a Q&A session with 4 YCLs and 1 adult.  They had a songfest, faith walk, and testimony meeting.  All of this was planned and carried out by the girls.  They asked adults they wanted to be involved.  They decided what songs to sing.  A young woman started and ended testimony meeting.  The adults did get the blindfolds and set up the tree for testimony meeting.  But there was incredibly minimal adults talking, all day, all camp.  I'm so grateful I got to support them and that my girls got to be a part of it.