July's Memories

 Hello all :)

The summer is just flying by, way too fast!!  Even with both our young men gone this month, it was a month of activity.  It was some more beautiful memory-making times!  

Here is July's Memories Lane...

...my morning quiet devotion time pals...

...a cat, a rooster, and a sweet little gal :D...

... this cutie cactus...

...turned into this beauty...

...Kirk has painted a few trivets to match towels...

...Janessa's riding lessons...

...Kirk's first oil painting he did in just over an hour...I think its pretty amazing for his first oil painting...

...another big whopping batch of granola...

...these chickens are such fun...

...they love treats...

...hot summer fun...

...love these two...

...out biking...

...spoiled...lol, this hound is such a hoot sometimes, but we do love him and he has fit right in...the girls love it that he loves to play fetch too...

...spending some time reading to his littlest sister--love this!...

...hugging brother goodbye, as he heads to Quest for a month...

...loading up...

...they got to briefly see Jadon as Kirk was dropped off for the month...

...waiting for the van to come to pick him up to take him back to his part of the campus...

...a medical training for the day...

...part of the nutrition/fitness class on proper lifting techniques...

...campfire cooking for some of Jadon's group he helped lead...

...a pic Jadon snapped of an early morning pic of devotions out camping...

...Jadon's leadership team...

...Jadon's group of leaders he worked with all month...

...Quest completion dinner...

...reuniting with brothers...

...Kirk's QuestX team...

...all of Quest and QuestX 2023...

...a hat that a fellow teammate made for all the guys on the team...

...Kirk received a 'Quest Excellence' award...which was a hoodie...

...the blessing and fun of friends...

...celebrating a sweet lady's birthday!!...

...love these ladies...

...giving the doggies some loving...

...we had so much fun with the family that visited!!!  This fur ball came to Texas, to stay, with them...

...meet Mango...the sweet, laid-back, energetic, playful orange ball of fun...

...his favorite sleeping spot...

...he has taken over Jadon's room while Jadon is gone and he is getting settled...

...this ball is his favorite toy ever!...

...waiting for some delicious Artisan Bakery items...

...late evening walk...

...bedtime reading...

...this sweet boy giving the goats a treat...

...this hammock makes an awesome swing..

...trampoline and sprinkler fun...

...searching for scorpions...didn't find any, but did find a few toads...

...Fossil Rim Wildlife Center...

...this guy just stuck his head into the sunroof window and grabbed the bag of food with his LONG tongue!!...

...the blessing of a friend's pool...

...ice cream treats at Over The Rainbow...

...Intermission Bookshop stop...

...getting Rella Rosie out...

...lake fun...all day long fun...

...pj's, treats, swimsuits, helping chore...what could be a better combo ;)...

...waiting to head to church...we had such a wonderful time and miss this family crew...

...splash pad fun...

...snuggles with Buddy...notice the furball on the piano has to keep an eye on the hound, lol!!...

...some more swimming fun in this heat...

...early morning snuggles, smiles, and giggles...

...this gal was SO excited to receive some pen-pal mail from Taiwan...

...she was thrilled to get a postcard from a friend that was on vacation in Maine...one of her favorite states right now :)...

...the extra barnyard roosters are ready for winter soups...YUM!!!...

...this sweet Daddy is a great one!  Heading over to check on and feed the cows across the road and taking his daughters along with him and their imaginary play...love this guy!...

Mommy/daughter date...ready to watch the Aristocats play at the Lyric...a very cute play!...

...waiting to board an airplane...

...a short, fast weekend to Albuquerque with Daddy...

...waiting for the rental car...and waiting, and waiting...finally we got it :D...

...a chilly evening swim...

...the sunset view out of the hotel room window...

...and yes, we packed a few books for quiet time :)...

...a delicious chocolate and coffee shop...

...the coffee in this city is amazing!!!  Almost every coffee shop we stopped at, does its own fresh roasting and the coffee was tops!!...

...the children's science center...

...look closely at this one's face...this was about her entire thought of this trip...she was a very grouchy and out-of-sorts little girl and was more than ready to get back home...

...a warmer afternoon swim...

...a Turkish cafe that was the best...

...some of the best baklava...

...the duck pond area at the University of New Mexico...

...made a quick stop at the zoo...

...the art on these walls was mosaic...super cool!...

...love this hibiscus flower...

...a golden barrel cactus...I wish I could have packed it home ;)...

...heading to go eat supper...

...this lady has had some memorization goals this summer...she gets to choose a sweet treat prize for each accomplishment...Psalm 23 is memorized...she also has memorized the Ten Commandments and almost has the state capitols and states done...

...a 'pullet' duck egg...

...the best healthy fats cold foam topping for coffee...delicious!!...

...just picking the sun out of the sunset OR hanging it in the sunset :)...

(a pic by Kirk)

Hoping this finds everyone enjoying the last blessings and moments of summer!  I am not sure I am ready to dig back into school, but it's coming whether I want it to or not...my prayer for this coming school year is that I can be intentional in purpose, but also show my kids love and make sure our schedule has enough space to enjoy relationships with one another and to be fully present for my family crew.

"Purpose is a life-long quest." ~anonymous