SUMMER!

Summer has finally found Rock Springs, and with the warm weather comes shirtless Ratchford boys.

The kids are all out of school and while there have been some very sweet moments like this one,

and this one,

and this one,

there has also been a lot of fighting (which for some crazy reason I don't feel as compelled to document) and boredom. I anticipated this, and eager not to have a repeat of last summer (which was the worst summer ever), I sat down with the kids the day after school let out and had them set some summer goals for themselves. I may have gently suggested Sam and Grace's "be kinder to each other" goals, but the rest they came up with all on their own.

We have a lot of fun things planned for the summer, but we will also spend a great deal of time working. And this summer marks a very special one for Garreth and I: kids old enough to mow the lawn and weed whack. We've been waiting years for this.

Our daily chore chart. Very high-tech.

The very first day of summer, I had a page-long list of jobs to do with the promise of a trip to That Yogurt Place when we finished. It's amazing what I can get them to do for a cup of self-serve, pay-by-the-ounce yogurt and toppings.

Sam has been sporting the cutest six-year-old smile ever.

We had a big yard sale a few weeks ago and Grace and her sweet friends set up a booth selling cookies, lemonade, and popsicles. They donated all the money they made to a Save the Sea Turtle foundation that they researched on the internet. Grace's huge heart is one of my favorite things about that girl.

The weekend of the yard sale was also the weekend of the ward Father/Son campout. Although they got lost and never actually found the ward's campsite, they found one of their own on the Green River and had a great time together, as evidenced by the phone pics they sent me:

Our read-aloud book the last few weeks was one of my childhood favorites:

And of course we had to go see the movie when we finished it.

(It was very cute, but nothing like the book.)

We got to celebrate our very favorite guy with a skydiving coupon and a huge Fathers Day curry and chips.

We have been staying busy with swimming. Grace and Liam swim with the Swim Club two hours every morning, and Sam and Declan each have lessons daily as well.

Our banister pretty much always looks like this these days.

Rock Springs may not have too many things going for it, but one thing that they excel at is youth programs. I have never lived in a place with so many opportunities for kids that are so cheap! The kids have many fun camps and programs this summer to look forward to. We have already done so many things, and school has only been out for three weeks! It's been good to stay busy, and I think I hit the balance just right for having some downtime, too. I am a firm believer in letting kids be bored out of their minds sometimes!

Liam had basketball camp with the high school team.

Sam had "Seuss on the Loose" camp, where they read a different Dr. Seuss book each day and did activities with each.

Liam just finished "The Amazing Race" camp, where they did challenges and learned all about different countries. He had fun, but was a little disappointed that they never actually left the classroom. When I signed him up, he was pretty sure that we were going to have to send him with his passport every day.