Sophie and Truman both had swim lessons everyday the first two weeks of July.  That meant that we were at the pool everyday starting at 10:30am.  And of course once we’re at the pool it’s hard to pack up and leave.  We would stay and enjoy the water for a few hours, eat lunch at the pool, and then head home for Archer’s nap and a relaxing afternoon at home.

We all loved it the first few days. But by the end of the first week, we were welcoming the weekend for a break.

The weekend rejuvenated us enough that we were able to enjoy our second week of lessons at the pool.  But when we finally reached our first full week of summer and our first day without a single thing scheduled it was fun to plan a little outing with the kids.

I had a coupon for the LDS bookstore that is located near the Temple, so we planned a trip to visit the Temple grounds and Visitor’s Center before heading to the bookstore.

Since the Temple is closed on Monday (which is the day we were there), it was especially peaceful without many cars or people around.

It was another hot day, so we didn’t spend too much time walking around outside.  It was nice to enjoy the cool AC of the Visitor’s Center, plus the kids loved the special attention they got from the sister missionaries.

We enjoyed the service exhibit and video they showed us, looking at the interactive map of Jerusalem and Christ’s last days, and the kids got little “junior missionary” stickers too.

Before heading to the bookstore we found a shady spot and had a little picnic.

Archer didn’t each much, but he did have fun crawling around and playing peek-a-boo around the tree.

The bookstore visit proved to be a bit more challenging since it was small and did not offer shopping carts, nor would my stroller have fit in the isles.  So mostly I had to wrestle with Archie as he tried to grab everything within reach.  He managed to knock down only one display, but it didn’t cause any major damage. We left fairly quickly, with a beginning piano songbook for Sophie, Temple postcards and suckers for the kids.

Truman has really gotten into decorating lately. In fact, he even did a little remodel job on our curtains.

What do you think?

Thanks to a tip from my sister we ended up with a completely free meal from Chick-fil-A!

(which just so happens to be my very favorite fast food place)

There was just one catch…

You had to dress as a cow.

Totally worth it!

This time of year always brings thoughts of my dad.

Not only is father’s day and his birthday in June, but traditionally we would spend the 4th of July weekend with him at the lake house.

This July marks three years since his passing.

If I had the chance to spend one more day with him, I would simply choose to hang out at the dining room table until the wee hours of night playing cards, laughing, and talking together.

Love and miss you, Dad!

My day started early with a 5k race in Reston.

Once I was home, showered, and Archie was up from his nap we headed into Vienna for some festival fun.

The kids loved all the inflatables.

Archer found several ways to keep himself entertained.

Finally we were hot and needed a nice ice cream treat to cool us down.

A short break to watch a children’s magician, a walk past the antique cars, a final stop at the inflatables, and we were ready to head home.

At home we cooled off in the AC, took a little rest, and cleaned up the house before our guests came for dinner.

When dark started to approach a few of us headed up the street to see the fireworks (Justin stayed home so Archer could sleep). We found a perfect grassy spot to set up camp.

And we waited…and waited…and waited.  We saw from a distance a fireworks show go off to the right of us, then another show go off to the left of us, but no show in FRONT of us.  We were starting to think we (and the other hundreds of people sitting in the lawn) were at the wrong location!  Finally 45 minutes after the show was supposed to start…

With it being such a busy day and the fireworks not starting until 10pm, I actually fell asleep during the show. Luckily I woke up for the grand finale and was able to enjoy sitting next to Truman and all his enthusiasm for the colorful explosions in the sky.

Looking forward to another great 4th next year! Happy Birthday America!