Those Lazy Hazy Crazy Days of Summer

For some of our "older" followers, yes, the title of this blog posting is a Nat King Cole reference. For the younger followers, type his name into google and I am pretty sure you can read all about him on Wikipedia. Isn't Wikipedia awesome?!?! Whelp, it has been a while and I have much to catch you up on...

Easter Egg Exploration
Autumns first Easter egg hunt while being mobile was a big hit. When we first arrived outside, Autumn paid very little attention to the very conspicuously placed, atypical looking eggs. Instead, she determined that being pushed around on a big wheel took precedence over retrieving the eggs. I seized this opportunity and used it as a teaching tool to educate Autumn to one of life's greatest lessons; It is what is on the inside that counts. She was soon discarding the shiny, superfluous facades of the eggs at a rapid pace in favor of the internally gratifying substance contained inside (m&ms). She was very thorough in her education, insisting that I refill and rehide the eggs a second and a third time. I really think she learned a valuable life's lesson...

Summer Slump
Have you ever seen somebody try to start running really fast only to peel out, turf it, and eat dirt? That was kind of a common theme early on this summer for our family. Nothing worked out nearly as well as we had meticulously planned. Our lofty ambitions included weekly camping trips and daily trips to the pool (with the exception of when I was working to bring home the bread on the weekends). The first few weeks of summer the weather was far too cold and wet for either swimming or camping. Soon after summer really began we found out that Autumn did not do water under room temperature, effectively limiting pool time activities. Our first and only camping trip to date this summer ended abruptly and prematurely. About the time I had finished setting up camp and sat down to rest, Autumn began to vomit. Long story short, Autumn had another bout of Strep Throat, our three day camping trip over. The biggest blow of the summer came shortly after I got out of school. My work hours were cut to about a third of what I was working before. Lack of hours invariable leads to a decrease in monetary income which directly influences the quantity and quality of our summer activities. However, it is not all doom and gloom. Although work still remains scant, we have still found ways to turn things around and salvage the remnants of our summer.

Idaho
Our highly anticipated vacation has come and past. To our delight, the trip lived up to our lofty expectation. Overall, Autumn handled the flights, change of scenery, and unfamiliar faces remarkably well. The first leg of our trip took us to Rexburg, Idaho; the city Becky and I met and attended school. We visited the new sights and old friends (usually at the same time). I would say the highlight of the trip was hitting the new water park with our close friends Sarah and Darren. The company was great and the water was warm, even Autumn couldn't resist.

Washington
The next leg of the trip found us in Washington, visiting my family. We spent the bulk of our time at my father's house. My sisters and their families made it over when they could, but mostly it was just us and my Poppers (and chewy, my dog that lives at my father's house). Although we did not do much, it was comfortable and relaxing . Becky was very adept at extracting stories about who I was and where I come from from my father. I had to throw up a picture of my father's Kawasaki KLR650 Duel-Sport Motorcycle. My father and I had a breakthrough in our relationship and he allowed me to take it for a spin! Becky, in a momentary lapse of judgement, agreed to go with me on one of my forays. It is safe to say that I enjoyed it much more than she did. However, I was impressed with her bravery... The highlight of our Washington trip came in the form of a family barbecue accompanied with several competitive games of croquet. At the end of the day, Team James and Becky emerged victorious by conquering all challengers.


Conclusion
Although we did have a rough start to the summer, it has really turned out to be a good rest bit from school. I was so burnt out that I just kinda crashed as soon as school got over. As school is starting to draw near again I am starting to regain some momentum and motivation. Autumn continues to be the light of our lives. She is so beautiful both inside and out. I am glad that some of the most important people in my life got to be around her and enjoy her with us. There are some potentially really big events on the horizon for our family that could drastically change our lives, but I will save that for another post ;o) (And no, we are not expecting) Until next time!