Pondering

Pondering God's wonderfully magnificent creation...

Marveling at His majestic creativity... how everything has an intricate design... how He weaves a beautiful tapestry of nature... just because He can.

Thanking Him for choosing to display His glory, His splendor in such a way that I can enjoy it... enjoy Him.

Reveling in the fact that He has chosen to reveal Himself to me... to make His glory known to me... to bathe me in His mercy and grace.

May you delight yourself in His glory and goodness this day. 

Holidays Are For Families

We drove home to Alabama to visit with our families for the holiday weekend. I've mentioned before that both my family and dh's family live in the same town, so that means we have to share our time between them. And that means that we don't get to spend much time with either family. Sometimes I wish our families lived in different towns so we could go visit one family for one holiday and then visit the other family for the next holiday, and so on...

My Thoughts Exactly

Sometimes I have a hard time formulating my thoughts and reasoning into words that explain what I'm actually thinking. Here's a post by a bloggy friend that speaks volumes and describes my and my husband's thoughts and feelings about the adoption we are pursuing. Visit here.

Just For Fun

I thought I'd share with you who (more like what) we brought home this week...

Is she not the cutest little thing? She is a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel/Miniature Long-Haired Dachshund mix, aka a Dashalier (pronounced "Dox-uh-leer"). Our daughter has been asking for a house dog for quite some time now, and when a friend from church advertised that she had a litter for sale, dd (unbeknownst to me at the time) questioned our friend about the price of the pups. This is what our friend said, "$300, but to someone I know and like (meaning you), free." (Thank you Donna!)

   

You can imagine how thrilled dd was with this news! So Daddy gave his consent, and here she is. Our first house dog. Along with all the training and house-breaking, yikes! 

This is one of my favorite photos of her. She likes to wedge herself between the cushions on the couch and go to sleep there. That's what she did for a good portion of the day today. She's only 8 weeks old so she sleeps alot (kind of like a baby).

We have chosen the name Lizzy for her. Some names that were tossed around and considered were Molly, Zoe, Roxy, Dixie, Lady, Annie, and Bailey. Oldest son even sent in his suggestions via text message!

 

She is so stinkin' cute!

Adoption Update (Pt. 3)

We have finished our 20-hour IMPACT classes. However, we're still working on all that paperwork. Did I mention there is tons of paperwork to fill out? Physical examinations, psychological evaluations, questionnaires, and essays. No kidding.

But I'm excited because our first home evaluation is coming up on Tuesday! The RD will come out and... well obviously, evaluate our home. She will tell us what, if any, changes need to be made so that our home will be approved. I'm so excited!

My youngest son keeps asking me, "Mom, do you think my new brother will be close to my age, or maybe a little younger?" He obviously thinks the Lord is going to give us a son! And I wouldn't be surprised, because although all of us have been praying about this for a long time now, he has been my little prayer warrior, consistently praying every night that "God will help us adopt a child, a little brother.) Children amaze me with their faith!

I've had some irl friends ask me about our adoption process, but haven't had an opportunity to go into great detail. So for those who don't know the whole story, you can read about it here.

We are faithfully following where He continues to lead and we are giving Him the glory.

Celebrating Life

The calendar says I'm another year older. I, with all my physical aches and pains, can laughingly concur. These days, I would just as soon not recognize these yearly reminders of time passing by, but my children find delight in celebrating birthdays. No matter whose. No matter how many candles. Just simple joy in celebrating life.

And that's as it should be. Not celebrating me, specifically, but life in general. My heavenly Father has seen fit to bless me with 41 years in this realm of life. It hasn't always been an easy life; there have been many bumps along the way. But those have been the times when He has taught me much, when He has drawn me closer to Him.

He has blessed me so much in my 41 years, saving me from my wretched sin and granting me the opportunity to tell of His wonderful grace! He has given me the desires of my heart. As a little girl, I would dream of some day being a wife and mommy, and a teacher. I now hold all three of those titles close to my heart. I don't teach in the school system and I don't get paid (in money, that is), but my job (and the pay) is far better, imo!

If He chooses to give me another 41 years here, it won't be long enough to tell of His marvelous grace, His wonderful mercies, His enduring faithfulness to me. If I have one year left or 41 years, I want to spend it singing His praises, blessing His holy name. I don't want to get caught up in the negativism that I see all around me, the gloom and doom of the current economic situation, the ungodliness that has found its way from the large cities to the small towns, the less-than-perfect church with its less-than-perfect leaders. Life is too short to live that way.

If there's one thing (well, two things) that I want my children to say about me one day when I've gone on to be with Jesus, it's that momma loved Jesus, and she celebrated life. Because God values all life, and I think He wants us to celebrate it.

Our Wild Weekend

We traveled to north Georgia Friday night for our school's football game (our daughter is a cheerleader). We were told to pack an overnight bag, that we might have to spend the night because there was a big possibility that the game would have to be stopped due to thunderstorms. We had dd pack a bag, but I didn't pack anything for the rest of the family. Our plans were to return home the same night due to the fact that we had our second IMPACT class coming up the following day.

Dragonflies & Butterflies

This morning we incorporated another of Miss Mason's techniques into our school day. Not exactly a nature walk, but time spent outdoors, nonetheless.

We watched the birds flying in and out of our backyard... got out the binoculars to see them close-up in the trees. We especially like watching the hummingbirds come to our feeder!

This was an earlier shot (and not very clear).

First Week of School

I spent a great deal of time expounding on Kate's first week of school in my last post (and we are definitely seeing improvement btw). Now it's time to consider Will's first week. Of course, he's still at home with me. I mentioned in a previous post that we are using Heart of Dakota curriculum this year. When browsing through the well laid out lesson plans, my first thought was, "Geez, what alot to cover! We'll still be doing school when Kate gets home!" Plus I have some other books and materials that I want to incorporate into our day!

However, I  have been pleasantly surprised at how quickly we finish each day. HOD incorporates Charlotte Mason's methods of educating, so we cover lots of subjects but we don't spend lots of time on any one subject. This keeps the day flowing smoothly and it helps us tremendously as my Will has a short attention span. In the past he has been frustrated to tears because I have forced him to stay focused on one thing in particular for long periods of time. This year -- major improvement!

Another new approach for us this year is in the area of math. We are using Teaching Textbooks and so far, so good. Will seems to be doing well with it. He pops the cd-rom into the computer, clicks on the day's lesson and the lecture begins. He solves a few practice problems covering the new concept, then moves onto the problem set which covers the newly learned concept, as well as previously learned concepts.  The first few lessons were basically review, and most of it is mental math. He enjoys doing math on the computer, but I'm not sure how it works when he moves beyond the mental math and actually needs to work out a problem on paper. I suppose we'll see when we get there.

  

I am a little sad that I have only one child in our homeschool now. To me, it is such a joy to teach (and learn along with) my children. I count it a privilege that God has called me to homeschool them, and I am so grateful that He has allowed me to homeschool each of them. Am I a perfect teacher? No! I make mistakes, just like anybody else. But... God gave my children to me. I know them better than anyone else. God has given me the insight to know what motivates them to learn, how to encourage them, how to help them reach their full potential. Is this path easy? Of course not! Anything worth doing is not easy. But is it worth it? Oh yes! I wouldn't trade these years that He has allowed me to be at home, investing in their lives for all the "stuff" that we could have provided them had we been a two-income family.

Thank you Jesus for the privilege of being a wife and mommy, a stay-at-home mom, a home-schooling mom.

Just Another Typical Week... Not!

Okay, so I knew things would be a little different, but I really didn't expect it to be THIS dramatic. We started school last week, on August 9th. Dd was excited about "going" to school this year. It was fun shopping for school clothes (as they have a dress code at school). It was exciting buying and gathering all those school supplies (albeit somewhat draining on the pocketbook). But... as Monday morning rolled around, she suddenly didn't seem so excited, or sure about this "going" to school business.

Dh and I tried to encourage her, spoke kind words of affirmation to her, assured her that these jittery feelings are a normal response when encountering something new, different. Still, she didn't seem convinced, but she wanted to try.

She did okay until mid-morning when, in her geography class, the teacher called on her to read aloud. She told me that it all went downhill from there. She tried to describe to me what she felt... "My voice was trembling, I could barely speak above a whisper, my heart was pounding and I couldn't hear anything except a loud roaring sound in my ears. I thought I was about to faint."

I've been there and done that! I have a real fear of speaking and/or reading aloud in front of others. In the days preceeding the start of school, I tried to discuss some of the things that she could expect that would be different from what she is used to, having been home-schooled.

She told me that in her Algebra class, the teacher covered the material so quickly she couldn't keep up. In the rest of her classes, she was so afraid that she would be called on to read aloud again. Needless to say, she spent much time in the bathroom, she couldn't eat her lunch and her stomach was upset and in pain all day. All in all, a miserable first day of school for my dd.

Now, for most people, I am sure this is just a normal part of life; but for dd, this is not good. She is the nervous, worrying sort (in a serious way)... so much so that it has caused a great deal of irritation in her stomach lining, which causes much pain for her. She has been on medication for this for about a year now, but after this day we felt that another visit to the doctor was in order.

He changed some of her medicines, suggested that we try altering (again) her diet, and try eliminating some of the sources of stress so that her stomach can heal itself. Dh made a trip to the school to speak to the teachers, and all are more than happy to help in whatever way they can (specifically not having her read aloud or speak in front of the class, for now). The algebra teacher already stays after school to help students, so dd makes a quick stop by her class if she had trouble with the lesson that day.

We are doing what we can to help her, most importantly we are lifting her up in prayer to our heavenly Father, and pointing her to Him in her time of need. I don't really understand why a child so young can spend so much time worrying about all the what-ifs in life, and stressing over even the smallest of concerns. She has been this way as long as I can remember. Yes, she knows what God says in His Word about worrying. We have talked to her about it; she has read it for herself. Applying what she knows... that's a different story.

We let her know that the door will always be open to come back to home-schooling. She has chosen to stay and finish the first semester, and then we will re-evaluate and decide what is best. She said that each day of last week seemed a little better than the first. She did comment that it doesn't take all day to finish the school work and the school day doesn't really need to be that long (lol). And that if she didn't love to participate in sports so much, coming back home would be a no-brainer!

She is enjoying cheerleading tremendously, and I think that is helping alot. On Friday, we went to the school to watch the pep rally. She seemed a little nervous to me, but she did great! And I think that being on the cheer squad and being in front of the crowd will help her to overcome her shyness and hopefully the nervousness. I have a feeling that when this semester comes to an end, she is going to be well-adjusted to life at school.

Adoption Update (Pt. 2)

Today was the first of the three Saturday classes to complete our 20-hour IMPACT training. We began promptly at 9:30 am and finished up just before 4:00 pm with a 30-minute lunch break and two 5-minute breaks. Wow! That makes for a long day indeed!

There are nine couples (including us) and three singles going through this class together. There was ALOT of information to cover... so much to learn. We did some role-playing activities and had some question and answer sessions amidst the power point lectures.

We received more paperwork to fill out (I can't believe how much paperwork is involved), a checklist of documents we must provide, questionnaires to be completed by dh and me, as well as by our three children. We (the adults in our home) must be fingerprinted, have a criminal background check (we actually have already had the background check; that was a requirement to participate in this class), and undergo drug testing. All five of us must undergo medical evaluations and make sure all immunizations are current.

We have scheduled the first home visit and evaluation (to take place upon completion of this class).  We are well underway!

The Last Days of Summer

Although it is still HOT down here in south Georgia, our summer break has officially come to an end. I thought I'd share what we've been up to these last couple of weeks of our summer...

My dh's sister and her two daughters came to visit and stayed with us for a few days the last week in July. We absolutely LOVE them and we had so much fun!

Here they are with 2 of my kiddos in the pool

Kate & Will, with their Aunt Debbie

on our evening walk down our dirt road... the doggies

always join us!

We made one last day trip to the islands off the coast of Georgia. I say "last" but I really hope we can make a trip back in the fall, when the weather cools off... maybe to bike ride around the island. I have some friends who spent a few days there recently and they really enjoyed biking there.

on the beach at St. Simons Island

supper at Spanky's Seafood Restaurant after a day of touring the islands

I feel like the older I get, the faster these seasons of life seem to whirl by. It seems as if we hardly had a summer break at all :) But we made lots of memories, and that's so important. Especially now that we are going in different directions this fall (one off to college, one off to school, and one still at home with me).

...Thanking God for these days with my family.

Legacy: A Multi-Generational Promise

A friend shared this video with me and I thought it too good not to share. I was tremendously blessed while watching it. It is a little long, but so worth the time it takes to watch it.

New Beginnings

We attended our daughter's high school orientation last night. She is no longer my little home-schooled girl. She's entering 9th grade at Appling Christian Academy. It is a very small Christian school...she has about 15 kids in her grade. She is on the cheer squad this fall. School starts Monday, August 9th.

This is her schedule:

1st period - PE
2nd period - Bible
3rd period - English
4th period - Biology
5th period - Algebra 1
6th period - Geography (first semester)
                   Speech (second semester)
7th period - Fine Arts/Study Hall/Sports Practice
Chapel is weekly on Friday mornings

She is excited, and nervous. Me? Well...my oldest son has moved about a 1 1/2 hour drive away, my daughter is starting 9th grade (at school, not at home)... I'm a basket case. Just kidding! Seriously... I'm full of different emotions right now. Of course I'm saddened at the change, but at the same time I'm excited for them.

My son feels like he is "really at college" now that he's at a big university. Whatever that means, lol. I'm just grateful that God gave us a year at a smaller college close to home to prepare us for this.

This is his schedule for Fall Semester:

Elementary German I
US History II
Intro to Information Technology
American Government I
Creative Writing III

He'll have 15 credit hours, and Lord willing, a job to round out his days.

My daughter is nervous about starting school. That sounds funny, doesn't it? Like we've never "started school." She met all her teachers last night and had lots of questions about how they "do" school -- at school. This will be a transition for her.

But on the other hand, she is excited. As I've mentioned before, God has given her a love for all things athletic, and He has gifted her in that area as well. She is quite a talented athlete. As we have no avenue for her to continue in sports if we continue to homeschool, this transition will open new doors for her. She loves all the sports and she will participate in all of them, cheerleading in the fall, basketball in the winter, and softball in the spring. She really loves basketball and softball and her dream is to play one of those sports at the college level one day!

And my youngest... this will definitely be a change for us! Only the two of us home all day. I am excited! I have more plans than I can ever complete with him, but I am looking forward to it. We'll be using Heart of Dakota for our main curriculum (lots of reading). I will mostly just use their history outline - we'll be taking a chronological journey from the 1500s to the 1970s through American history. We'll use their Bible study program and we'll learn the stories behind some of the greatest hymns using Hymns For a Kid's Heart - Vol. 1. We'll also continue in the Awana program (which focuses on scripture memorization) at church. 

For the language arts we'll use Learning Language Arts Through Literature, Spelling Power and Handwriting Without Tears. For math we'll use Teaching Textbooks 6. For science we'll use Apologia's Exploring Creation with Zoology 3: Land Animals of the Sixth Day. I love how they present science from a creationist viewpoint. I love how they focus on learning through an immersion approach. I can't tell you how impressed I was when my (then) 3rd grader could tell people much more than they wanted to know about birds when we finished Zoology 1, and about marine life when we finished Zoology 2. I can't believe how much my children have learned (and retained) using this method! I'm very excited that Jeannie Fulbright has written journals that we can use with this book! (Ok, that's my plug for Apologia Science!)

Well, I sure do get excited when talking about what we'll be doing for school. I'm pumped and ready for Monday!

But, in the meantime... I've got to get off this computer and start going through what's left in my son's room, sorting, cleaning out, getting ready to paint. My husband is ready to convert it to his work-out/exercise room. I would like to leave it as it is for a little longer, I guess for sentimental momma feelings lol. But dh likes to get on with things. And he keeps reminding me that God gives them to us for a season, and now it's time to let go. And he's right. And I know that my heart will catch on and believe that soon :)

Moving Day...Again

Our internet has been down for a few days (and I didn't have a meltdown!), and now that it's up and running again, I come back to my blog to find... well, I don't know exactly what happened to it. My background is just gone. I guess I'll have to tinker with it after while :)

I guess the main thing that's going on in my life right now is that I've had to go through that whole "son moving out experience" all over again. We've been moving bits and pieces of furniture into his apartment for a few days now. But today was THE day. He's all moved in and settled now. I took him grocery shopping today and showed him how to compare prices, helped him plan his meals. I walked him through the steps of "how to's", how to do laundry, how to wash dishes. These are all common household chores that I have taught each of my children through the years. He just hasn't had to do them over the last few years (since he graduated to the more manly outside chores), so he wasn't sure if he would remember.

So now I'm back at home, and he's at his new home. That just doesn't sound right. I've only cried a little. So far. I get sad and a bit teary-eyed when I walk past his bedroom.  I just don't like this part of child-rearing. Yes, I know that we raise them to leave, but still... I don't like it.

Summer Is Slipping Away

As I was updating my books list on the sidebar of my blog ('cause we've finished some of them, but not all), I realized how far short I have fallen AGAIN this summer. I had every intention of reading more as a family THIS summer! But alas... the summer is quickly slipping away. We have been so busy heading in different directions it seems, and I just have not made the time. One more regret to tuck away in my mind... sigh.

It's not that we haven't been together as a family or not that we haven't done things together. We have swam in our pool, played horseshoes in the backyard, played frisbee in the backyard, gone on several outings together. We've just been plum busy! It's been fun, but busy.

I'm almost ready for school to start back so we can settle into a routine again. I said ALMOST. I'm not quite ready to give up my summer. And I know my kids are not! My dd has been at cheerleading camp from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm everyday this week... one more day to go. She's not quite ready for school to start either, but she is excited. She's entering 9th grade this year and she is going to attend the local Christian academy. That means I will only have one at home this year :( and I KNOW he is not ready to start back!

My oldest will be moving out AGAIN the first week of August. Now I have to go through that again... all those emotions. But I think it will be easier this time (I think). He is transferring from the small Christian college he attended last year to a larger university. He will have the same roommate, his best friend from high school. They have found an apartment off campus to live in. Of course he is excited! He says he feels like this is "for real this time." Really moving out. Not just into a college dorm. Taking all his bedroom furniture kind of moving out. His dad making his bedroom a work-out/exercise room kind of moving out. No more coming home every weekend. He'll have a job that will keep him there. Rooming with his brother when he does come home for visits.  At least he's not moving across the state... only a little over an hour and a half drive away. We'll see how it goes in about a week, won't we?

I don't know if I'll get to do any reading with everyone, but I might go ahead and start with my youngest. That will probably help ease him into the back to school transition. He is the one that struggles the most with the whole going back to school mindset. That's probably my fault. I probably give my kids too much freedom from routines during the summer. But my other children don't seem to have any trouble "switching gears." Thank goodness I DO get excited about the new school year... poring over the books I've chosen for the year. I guess that does help to keep him from "dragging his feet" too much when the time to start back rolls around.

Trying to enjoy these last couple of weeks...

My Struggle

Well, one of my struggles. The one I am dealing with right now.

Ok, I am going to be brutally honest here.

I have been struggling with some feelings of discontentment lately. I have been looking at other people's (some friends, some acquaintances, and some people I don't even know) "stuff" or "things" or whatever you want to call it, and that monster called envy has reared its ugly head in my life. Again.

Geesh, I really thought I was past this. So obviously I'm so disappointed. In myself. With these bad habits.

Incline my heart to Your testimonies, and not to covetousness.    Psalm119:36

I have even started complaining to my dear hubby. Yes I'm ashamed.

He works hard to provide for our family. And he is very supportive of me being a stay at home, home schooling mom. And I have actually had the nerve to complain about not having certain things. Yes... I am ashamed.

I am amazed at how fickle is this heart of mine. Just a few months ago I felt convicted to simplify. I've been cleaning out closets, going through cabinets, and clearing out toys and clothes and extra dishes, etc and taking them to the mission store. We have far too much stuff in our house. I know that.

And yet out of my mouth comes the words I didn't expect to hear. "We need a bigger house!"

What? I've gone from realizing that we have TOO MUCH, to thinking I need more space to put all this STUFF!

I guess I have not been guarding my heart as zealously as I should. Somehow, the worldliness has crept in...

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.    1 John 2:15

I know these thoughts are wrong, that they are lies from Satan. I try to combat them with the living, powerful Word of God.

Let your conduct be without covetousness, and be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, I will never leave you nor forsake you.    Hebrews 13:5

Yes, I am really surprised that I am struggling with this. I really thought I had grown more in my relationship with the Lord...that I had come to realize that things are just that...things...possessions...straw...wood.

He who loves silver will not be satisfied with silver; nor he who loves abundance, with increase. This also is vanity. When goods increase, they increase who eat them; so what profit have the owners except to see them with their eyes?   Ecclesiastes 5:10

And He said to them, Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.    Luke 12:15

I thought God had inclined my heart to heavenly treasures, but somehow, somewhere along the way, I have allowed it to be turned back to worldly things. Things that will burn someday.

Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.    Matthew 6:19-21

So you see, I know that having a bigger house or more possessions or more money will not lead to contentment, but in fact will breed even more discontentment. I know this. I just don't understand why I'm struggling with it...

But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth.   James 3:14

So there. I've admitted the ugly truth. There is bitter envy in my heart. Ugly, unwanted envy. My prayer is that my loving heavenly Father will pull these bitter weeds of envy out of my heart, and that He will plant in their place the seeds of contentment.

Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content.  Phillipians 4:11

But godliness with contentment is great gain.  1 Timothy 6:6

Adoption Update

The adoption counselor called today! She said it is time for us to start our IMPACT classes...Yay! We elected to attend the Saturday classes. For three Saturdays in a row (August 14th, 21st, and 28th) we will attend this class from 9:00am until 4:00pm! Yes, that makes for a long day, but the alternative is attending a 3 hour class one night a week for 7 weeks in a town that is about an hour's drive away from us.

We are all very excited! My husband is not really looking forward to giving up 3 of his Saturdays, but he did say he prefers this option. And the way I look at it, we'll be four weeks closer to having a new little guy or gal in our family. No, we still don't know who we are going to adopt. We are leaving it up totally to the Lord. He has lead us thus far in this venture, and we know that He knows who He is bringing us together with. We are trusting in Him.

I don't mean to insinuate that we are going to get to adopt any time soon. It sure does seem that the adoption process is a long, drawn-out ordeal. This is just the beginning of the process. I know that there is alot of training and alot of inspections that have to be passed. It does seem overwhelming to me, but we are confident that this is where the Lord is leading us. So again, we are trusting in Him.

What We've Been Up To...

I am fairly certain that there is no time that is not too busy in our family. I really thought that after all-star softball season was over, there'd be a leisurely summer ahead. But who am I kidding? Things have been crazy around my house! Let's see... softball, vacation bible school, visiting family, the steady stream of kids' friends and spend-the-night-company, basketball camp, cheerleading practice, upcoming cheer camp... well, you get the picture.

However, there HAVE been a few lazy days tucked in here and there. Days where we don't have to go anywhere, lazy afternoons spent playing in the pool, evenings spent outside playing horseshoes with the kids. These are the days that I enjoy the most. And they are the ones that are most fleeting. Only three and a half weeks left for us until the new school year starts. See what I mean about fleeting?

But I am determined to make the most of the time that's left. I keep saying I'm going to put up a hammock in my backyard and spend some lazy summer afternoons out there with a good book... but, it's just too hot for that in south Georgia!  I hope your summer is turning out to be all that you hoped it would!

Here are some pictures depicting our summer thus far...

VBS 2010 ~ Saddle Ridge Ranch

fun games at VBS

As you can see, the youth helpers had as much fun as the kids.

Basketball Camp ~ Kate #11

point guard

foul shots

Kid's Club Summer Bowling

Yes! A strike!

We have a new rabbit! He is a Lion Head Rabbit, so called because the hair all around his face resembles a lion's mane.

The kids decided to call him Mo because he looks like he has a mohawk!

Marshmallow looks like a giant compared to Mo and Thumper, the flop-earred rabbit.

Our two youngest children spent a week in Alabama with their Aunt Debbie (my husband's sister) and their Granddaddy (who lives with Debbie).

at the water park, one of the many fun things she did with them

July 4th ~ waiting for the fireworks show to begin

We were not disappointed.

our annual church family picnic at Lake Mayer

Mike and Kate on the jet ski

Will, obviously not happy with Mom for taking this photo

not sure if it's safe for this many teens to be in one boat...

Enjoy the rest of your summer. I intend to!