We waited and waited for the big cantaloupe to be ready and FINALLY it was ready to pick. Megan is so proud of it!

If missing, Megan can be found in any comfy spot, usually with a Junie B. Jones book. So far, she's read 8 Junie B's, 3 Ivy and Bean's, 17 of her 19 required reading books for school, and anything else she can get her hands on these days - including one of my parenting books. She likes to read our Runner's World magazine, cereal boxes, and text messages (so if you don't want her to read it out loud to whomever is in the room, don't send it via text message).





"Mom! You tak-a my picher too? I say cheese!"

Megan got her own section of the flowerbed and of the garden this year. She chose to plant cantaloupe in the garden. She picked the seeds, picked her section, sorta tilled it, and planted the seeds. All of them. In one little section, with 4 rows. What first looked like it might be a controlled cantaloupe area has turned into mass hysteria of cantaloupe. At last count, she has at least 35 cantaloupes out there, some are smaller than others, but they range in size from the size of her fist to the size of her head. She picked her first one the other day. It was bigger than a softball, but not by much. She was so proud! And she said it tastes delicious. She's since picked a few more and given them away to "special people". I think we'll have cantaloupe taking over the house over the next week.



(Thanks to my friend Rosemary for editing my picture to make it viewable.)

Had this random conversation with Connor one morning right after he woke up.

Connor: I'na go outside to do sumpthin.

Me: Do what?

Connor: Help. Help outside. I need my rainboots.

Me: Is it raining?

Connor: No, to keep da spiders off'a my toes.

Out he went. I peeked outside to find him with the garden tools, digging in the flowerbed.

Connor: Hey, mom. Just pullin' da weeds for you. I helpin'.

We had a whirlwind of a 4th of July weekend. We went to Uncle Doug and Aunt Debbie's house for 4th of July night. They live next to a really cool lake, so it was perfect for lots of fun.

Connor got out of the car, hit the backyard, and said, "I gunna catch me sum ga-tuhs." Um, apparently our family watches a little too much Swamp People? Anyway, when ga-tuh hunting was not an option, he got focused on fishing. He walked around begging anyone to go down to the edge of the water to fish with him.



Baiting the hook


The moving frog bait freaked him out a little bit.


At last...fishing!


Uncle Kyle had quite the fishing crowd.


Megan decided to stamp her face with a marker about 3 minutes after we arrived. It was very festive. But she loved it. She and Mandy fished, too.


Uncle Kyle wasn't the only one with a following of kids...Gran had one, too.


Dinner. YUM!


Then, there were the fireworks.


It became a quest to find things to blow up...






We couldn't wait until dark. The firework team.




I enjoyed playing with my camera settings for fireworks/night.

You know you're welcome anytime for a visit when the phone conversation with your Grandpa goes like this:

Me: Hey, what are you doing next week?

Grandpa: Come on down!

Therefore, we packed up the Tahoe (and yes, I mean crammed the Tahoe full of kid paraphernalia) and headed straight to Brownsville, TX. Not your typical vacation destination, but when the best 2 great-grandparents are residents of Brownsville, you go there with a smile on your face. We spent a week down there and had a blast.

We did the normal exciting things such as riding around the park in the golf cart, feeding the fish/ducks, games at Mr. Gatti's Pizza, and staying up late watching "not-normally-allowed" TV shows. We also did some other cool things.

Grandpa rode with us to Brownsville. The kids kept him entertained - and busy - in the backseat. He was SUCH a BIG help. (I missed him on the ride home!) If you were wondering about the humidity there, here's a glimpse. I took my camera outside and couldn't get it to clear up. So I just took a hazy shot of the crew sitting on the bench, enjoying "Grandpa time".



Liesl, the wiener dog, tolerates the kids very well. Even when they invade her space.



This is my favorite thing to do at Granna's house. She gets every woman's magazine known to man. So while I'm at her house, she lets me go through them for recipes, articles, suggestions, coupons, etc. I bet I looked at 50 magazines over the week.



Connor learning how to do lacing cards with Granna.



We went swimming at least once every day. When we first got there, Connor was still clinging to my neck. Megan was timid, yet would venture out in the water with her arm/body floaty thing. By the time we left - the first day - both kids were on their own in the pool. Shocked me.



Connor "whimmin'"



All I saw of Megan most of the swimming time



We escaped the heat and humidity one afternoon. Brownsville has a great children's museum. My kids had a blast there! For hours. The three adults got a workout chasing them from station to station.

"I watchin' Nemo!" He sat under the "pier", in the treasure box, several times.



Can you tell by the contents of his basket what he asks for at least 20 times a day?



He wanted to go "tipping tractors" like Mater and McQueen.



You might notice that I don't have as many pictures of Megan as I do of Connor. There's a reason for that. Megan was a blur, racing around between exhibits. Once she found out she had the freedom to roam the whole building, she did just that. And she just wasn't too interested in being around adults. Until she and Double G built a tent.







Connor practicing brushing teeth.



We packed up and got ready to leave on Sunday. But I got as far as the gas station down the road, called Double G, and turned around. Just one more day.

So, to make a long story short: I quit my full-time job. I have a few things lined up, but until any one of them becomes finalized, I am staying at home and working from home. It has it's ups and downs, but it was the right thing to do - at the right time. For now, the kids and I are enjoying the summer together.

My decision came with mixed emotions. While I like working, and need to work (mentally), I'm not a corporate, 2 weeks of vacation a year kind of gal. It works for others, and I'm not passing judgment on those who choose to do it by choosing not to do it, it just wasn't for me. Nor do I really know what I want to do. After hours upon hours of thinking about it, I decided that I belong in education, some way, somehow. What does that mean? I don't know, and if you haven't noticed by the 10,000 news stories about the education funding crisis, this isn't the most opportune time to return to education. But I've always liked a challenge and am confident something will become available at the right time. Until then, I have some consulting jobs lined up and always enjoy the extra time with the kids.

So, I traded a desk, a title, an office, lunches, and the outside world to play this...



and to enjoy these two...



(On a side note...Megan's dollhouse has a "yoga" space for the mom, just like her mom's.) :)