The End (of Summer) is HERE!

The first day of school is TOMORROW! I am really looking forward to getting back into our regular routine. Summer has been great, but I am a creature of habit, and I just never felt like I was on top of our makeshift summer routine.

This morning I asked Lana is she was excited for school to start. She kind of gave me a mumbled, "I guess?" but didn't really elaborate. Oh no! What had I missed? What was she dreading? Why wasn't she looking forward to school?

A quick conversation cleared it all up. Lana didn't dislike school, she was just going to miss all the fun things she did over the summer. When I thought about it from her perspective, of course she might be a bit sad. Her summer was pretty epic.

Let's recap:

*Overnight camp with a dozen other girls and two fabulous counselors *Ziplining at a friend's 4th of July party *Park time with cousins *Big BBQ with fire trucks *Bowling with Cody *Picking flowers with Grams

*A day at Silverwood *Gymnastics Camp *Cougar Kids Camp *Lots of summertime treats!

Not to mention two different VBSs, hours of uninterrupted outdoor play, adventures with Mom for GoIdaho.com articles, pool time, and getting spoiled and loved on by extended family. Yeah, I get it. I might not be all that excited to return to school and "regular" life either.

I shifted the conversation by asking about Lana's favorite school subjects like Art, Science, and Music. She perked up pretty quickly talking about those things. Maybe not with as much gusto as talking about camp, but I'll take it.

Nope, the school year isn't the same as summer, and contrary to what the seven-year old thinks, that's actually a good thing.

I'm still here, I promise!

No, really, I am.

While I've been less-than-faithful about keeping this blog updated, I've actually been writing more than I have in years. I am regularly contributing to two different websites. Both sites are very professionally done and have a growing readership and I'm still so excited I get to be a part of them.

I've been writing for the Moms Code Blog for about 6 months. I love the funny and relatable content. Here's my latest post:
Back-to-School

More recently, I've been writing for an online magazine, Go Idaho!
They don't seem to mind that I don't actually live in Idaho, as long as I keep writing about the cool people and places in the state. New issues come out every Friday. I often have the girls with me when I visit a new place, so you might just see a picture or two of your favorite 7 and 2-year old.
Here are a few articles:
UI Arboretum (You can see the girls hunt for fairies.)
Q'emiln Park (Lana's pink hair makes a cameo.)

And if you really want to know what we've been up to, I guess I can tell you.
It's summer. For Lana that means camps, VBSs, working on her summer reading list, and generally having a grand time as all 7-year olds should. Nora's schedule has fewer camps, but no less fun. Dan and I still go to work everyday, make dinner every night, and definitely get the short end of the summer vacation stick. Sigh, thus is adulthood.

Here are some pictures of summer so far.

Lana soaring high!

Nora swinging (not too) high!

Nora poked her head out of the window and said, "I want coffee please!" Perhaps she's seen Mommy order a coffee or two. Perhaps.

Lana loved dancing with sparklers on the 4th of July.

Cougar Kids Camp is AWESOME!

Both girls got to take a lovely painting class.