Eventful times

Does anyone else find that mid-May into June passes in a blur? Our school district gets out on the later end of the school year and the girls last day was June 14th. Therefore Summer has just begun but I feel like we're behind somehow.  Maybe because the schedule is still full?

It has been so dry that the jack rabbits have very little cover to hide behind.  They're fun to watch jumping around on the hills.  So far - they are not a garden nemesis.  The moles?  We're still at war.  Exterminator didn't help and so I'm putting sulphur gas 'bombs' in the tunnels at odd intervals to see if that stops them.  The garden center said I may want to try Wrigley's spearmint gum in the tunnels - apparently the moles don't like minty fresh breath.  The deer also came one night an had a smorgasbord consisting of Daylily buds, geranium blossoms and roses.  I actually don't mind that so much as the moles.....

Here's Eiger with his Moose antler treat.  It's only about 4 inches long now.  Time for a new one I think.

Memorial Day weekend was spent up at the family cabin for a work weekend.  We had a great time - the 20+ of us: deep cleaning the indoors, washing windows, cutting up some felled trees, chopping wood, raking brush/debris and keeping the burn pile going for two days straight.  It was a lot of work but a great time with everyone.  Looked really good when we left and can't wait to go back just to have fun.

Kendra and I took a walk to the swimming pond that the cabin has access to.  It wasn't cleaned up for the swim season yet and they've been "cleaning" things up there to.  We (I) was a bit disappointed that they cleaned up so much of the reeds that used to border that left side along the embankment.  There are always a ton of frogs/tadpoles to watch but we didn't hear one.  :(  Did see some small fish so at least not everything has been driven out.

The big and not so big cousins (Rachel & Kendra's) had a great time building a fort and lining it with ferns and moss.  Needless to say, there were a lot of moss stained clothes that came home to be washed.  Fortunately - no tic's came home with them!

Swim Meets started up as well before school dismissed.  Practices were every night (not compulsory) from 5:45 - 7:30 up until school ended.  Swim meets require our presence from 7am - 1/1:30pm on Saturdays and 3:30 - 9pm on Wednesday nights.  This has been quite an adjustment for the family who up until this point has not had kid activities which ruled the "free time" schedule.  But it's great exercise for them and while Rachel is not as "in love" with it, Kendra definitely enjoys it quite a bit so I have a feeling there will be a repeat season......... :)

We were also finishing up puppy school.  Whew!  I'm tired just revisiting all this - haha.

Eiger finished Puppy II training and did so well I feel I should take Puppy III in the Fall and perhaps the Good Citizenship Canine certification.  We'll see how motivated I am come Fall and the girls new schedule.  The picture is from a game of musical chairs with the dogs - we walk around the border with dogs in a heel and when the music stops, put them in a sit or down stay outside of the line and then we take a chair.  If the dog breaks the stay, you leave your chair to get them into command again and another person can steal your chair.  You can only sit if the dog is in their stay position.  I'm pleased to say that in two rounds, Eiger was one of the last two dogs - we got beat by a Pug named Rocky the first time as Rocky's dad stole my chair and the second was a draw with an Aussie sheperd.  Am I a crazy dog mom?  :)

This young lady is on her way to High School!  We had a hot, HOT, evening out on the sunny school fields for 8th grade celebration - 211 kids.  All I could think was "what am I going to do when she has High School graduation out on the football field for 600+/- graduates."  I actually think her Freshman class is supposed to be 700-ish students if I remember right from the orientation night.  I digress.....

We celebrated afterward with California Pizza Kitchen - her choice - and again when Bart got home later in the week with presents and an ice cream cake from Baskins Robbins.  I forgot how good an ice cream cake can be - delightful!  Once that was all over we shipped her off to High School church camp where they rock climbed, went river rafting, canyoning, etc... and slept under the stars - sleeping bags on a tarp under the open sky with mosquitoes and pincher bugs/earwigs for company.  I'm just thankful the rattle snakes didn't find themselves looking for a warm body to curl up next to.  She LOVED it.  We're so glad.  I have such good memories of summer camp and thankful she has the opportunity to try it before she gets "too old."  A pretty flower in my garden:

Last weekend was also Father's day and as it was too hot to sit outside, we broke in our new dining room table with my Dad and his siblings (we were just missing 1 of the 6).  I realized I miscounted people and we should have put in the last table leaf but it all worked out.  Dad and Bart held court as the "Fathers" at each head of the table.  Had a really nice time and I'm very thankful for my Dad.

Love You Dad!