Picture of the Week - 8/25/2022

 Happy Thursday!

We are charging through August!  I've never loved this month.  I kinda want to get this one in the rearview mirror, if I'm being honest.

All the boys are well.  Spencer is now back at The Citadel for the semester.  Here's a picture of him with his friend Jackson (aka Bradford).  I don't have any new pictures of Quinn from this week, but I've talked to him almost every day.  He's really loving college life!  Zane and Beck are doing the school then practice, rinse & repeat routine.  And the doggos are just fun and happy :)

Have a great last week of August everyone!  We are very much looking forward to a nice 3-day weekend right around the corner.

Picture of the Week - 3/31/0222

 Wow - last weekend was so cool.  It's hard to really explain.  I'm going to try anyway...  cause that's what you all pay for.  (LOL - there's no one paying anything...)

We went down to Charleston not really knowing what to expect from Recognition weekend.  We also went not really knowing where Spencer's head was.  He has had some rough re-entries from break back to school and this post-spring break return was no different.  He left on Sunday and the next few days we received a series of texts and messages from him that left me pretty worried about him.  He didn't seem happy and I, honestly, was a little unsure about our future at The Citadel.  

So we get to campus and show Zane and Beckett around.  If you've never been to The Citadel campus, you should try to drive through sometime.  It's really not a big place, but it's pretty unique.  It's steeped in history and tradition and just really unlike any other campus I've been on.  So they were all excited and we visited the bookstore and bought new hoodies (always a favorite) and were waiting for the gauntlet to start.

Side note - I'd heard about the gauntlet and there was much discussion about it on Facebook.  The guidance we were given is that if your child asks you not to attend, to honor their wishes and stay away.  I knew it was a series of physical tests - think obstacle course, kinda - and I knew it was designed to be difficult to complete.  There were a series of 10 stations that each company rotated through over the course of 2 hours.  The stations were things like Buddy carries, medicine ball tosses, army crawls, etc.  All of this would be followed by a 1.5 mile victory run around campus.  And then some stuff - including many pushups - behind the walls of their barracks.  I wasn't, honestly, worried about the physicality of the gauntlet.  I figured that Spencer is physically fit to begin with - and was just coming out of wrestling season.  Wrestling workouts are no joke...  so I figured he would be better prepared than the vast majority of cadets.

At some point I got a text from Spencer asking me to bring him food.  I practically ran to the market to buy him snacks and then met him and his friend Bradford (the one looking at the camera in the picture of the 4 dudes) in the athletic building where the wrestling room is - aka his home away from home.  I could not have been more pleased with Spencer's attitude and demeanor.  It was like he was a different person than the texts and messages from the last week.  He was happy, slightly apprehensive about what was going to happen, but ready to tackle it.  Seeing him smile made my day!

Then the gauntlet started.  And it was intense.  It was way more intense than I expected.  Watching the kids struggle through the stations was hard.  Watching them helping each other get through it was AMAZING.  It makes me a little emotional just thinking about it.  This comradery they have built is NOT something that happens at normal college in a normal dorm.  It's awesome to see.  

I was wrong about the gauntlet being easy for Spence.  It was not.  He got pulled out of the group on his third station by a couple of upper-class wrestlers and they FRIED him.  They worked him until he was toast...  and the rest of the stations were a struggle.  I mean, if it's any indication, he was doing push-ups with his butt in the air like an 8 year old - and he could regularly drop and do like 100 without even breaking a sweat.  I spent the time alternating between trying to find him in the mass - and not wanting to watch.  

But they all made it through!  By the time they returned to the parade field after the run they whole group was spent...  and also ecstatic.  

Spencer told us this week that he had underestimated how big the shift from knob to "normal" cadet would be.  I think they all had learned to live with the stress of being a knob for so long that with all the additional restrictions and requirements lifted, it's been a way different experience.  He has talked to me/called me more this week than he has since last summer.  He sounds happy and settled - and is busy making plans for the future...  at the Citadel.  

It makes me so happy, so proud to see him thriving there.  My mama heart knew that this school was a good fit for him.  I knew he could manage the road less traveled.  I knew he had the grit and determination he needed to handle the Citadel.  Now he knows it too.  And there's just no better feeling than watching your son figure that out.

The rest of the weekend was a lot of pomp and circumstance - and it's all cool!  But that Friday when the class of 2025 cadets were recognized will be a day I will remember for a long, long time.  I can't even begin to imagine how meaningful it is to the young men and women who lived it all.  

Here are my favorite 2 pictures from the weekend.  One is the family - minus Quinn.  I love this picture because of how happy Spencer was in it.  And I also love that Beckett is obviously enamored with everything his biggest brother does.  He was SO proud of Spencer.  And also the bulldog mascot - he was very proud of the dog too.  The second picture is Spencer's best buddies.  He spends a LOT of time with that group right there.  They are all wrestlers.  They are all freshmen.  They all went through all the knob stuff, the wrestling stuff, all the stuff together.  Those dudes very likely know my son better than he knows himself.  I'm so very thankful for them!!!  Also, that's just a really cool picture!  It's going in a frame on his wall...  

Things for me now shift to Quinn-focus.  I leave with Q and 3 of his friends and their moms on a Spring Break trip to Sandestin on Saturday.  I'm looking forward to chilling with him and his friends for a few days at the beach.  These are the guys he's going to room with at Georgia Southern next year.  Good group of guys!  

Picture of the Week 11/11/2021

 Wrestling wrestling wrestling - It's taken over my life.  And I love it all!  It's my favorite time of year!

I love this season and this sport.  (Although I do kinda hate that it overlaps all the holidays...  Someday I will relish the idea of an elaborate and calorie-rich cookie tray again...)

So many wrestling things going on...

First - Spencer had his first official collegiate match last weekend.  I am just so proud of him.  My parents and I went down to watch him and despite a 0-2 record for the tournament, I can't help but be in awe of how well he's doing.  He's just so settled.  He's figured out the college life and has his priorities right where they need to be.  He's doing well in his classes, competitive in the wrestling room, and working on finding a summer internship and nailing down his summer plans.  He's thriving in Charleston and it makes my mama-heart so full!

Second - Quinn has won his wrestle off to earn a spot at 138lbs on our varsity team this year.  (The team is SO big, nearly 70 strong, that he will likely get pushed to fight for this spot all year.)  I'm so thrilled for him to be in the Varsity A line-up (yes, we also have a Varsity B team...) this year.  He's worked hard to earn his spot!  And yet, when the team goes to their first competition this weekend, he will not be there.  Why?  Because he's taking a trip with his church Small Group to Chattanooga for the weekend.  His faith is so much stronger than mine was at his age and I love love love that he leans into it.  He's just an all-round cool dude.  

Third - Zane also won a wrestle-off this week to earn a spot at 125 lbs on the middle school duals team.  This is a pretty big feat for a 6th grader!  Our youth program this year has blossomed to over 50 kids.  Zane is a leader in that room and he transitioned from football to wrestling without missing a beat.  I really can't wait to watch him wrestle this year!  He's on the top end of the 12U age group and has a few years of experience under his belt now.  His club team coach asked him to travel with them to a duals tournament in Virginia Beach in December after watching his FIRST PRACTICE after football season.  Zane weighs the same as he did last year, but has grown 2-3 inches.  Should be a pretty fun season for him.

Fourth - Beckett is last, but certainly not least.  He's wrestling too and while he's not old enough for middle school duals just yet, he's got some individual tournaments coming up that should be pretty fun.  Beckett is pretty laid back about things in general, but he does have an aggressive side that tends to come out on the football field and the wrestling mat - when he wants to, he will.  

And last - there's the parental-involvement...  Bob and I are having a really great time volunteering our time and talents to this sport and these teams.  It's fun.  I really enjoy helping new folks learn the ins and outs of wrestling.  And this week, I'm really really glad that all the high school team uniforms are finally distributed to the wrestlers.  They had transformed my dining room into a bit of a messy-storage room look.  Better Homes and Gardens is never gonna come knocking on my door!  (And that's A-OK with me!)

Here's a picture of me and Spencer at last weekend's Citadel Open and a couple of pictures of our vast organizational challenge - aka wrestling uniform distribution...

Picture of the Week 11/4/2021

 As football winds down, wrestling takes off

Last weekend was Beckett's last game as they lost their playoff game.  So he's moved onto wrestling practice 3x week (for now).  Zane, however, won his playoff game so he's still doing the juggling thing with 3 football practices and 2 wrestling practices this week.  He's busy!  Quinn and Spencer are both doing wrestling practice every day.  

Here are a couple of pictures from Zane's game last Saturday.  I have really enjoyed watching him play this year.  He's having a blast and you can tell by his performance every week.  He's a beast on the line.  Some of his football play reminds me SO much of Spencer.  He has a ridiculously fast first step off the line and really excellent form in his stance.  It's textbook form - low butt, flat back, face up.  He's different than Spence was though because he knows the game so much better at 12 years old than Spencer did at this age.  I credit hours and hours of Madden.   It's also that he seems to just enjoy the whole thing more.  He has FUN first - and knows when to switch into "job mode".  Spencer was always so serious that I'm not sure he liked it as much as Zane does.  Win or lose this weekend, I'm so grateful that he had this team this year to prep him for middle school football tryouts in the spring.  It's weird to think that Saturday may be his last ever Midway football game.  Oy - that just made my eyes water!  7 seasons in the blink of an eye.  Couple of picture of Zane - one of him snatching up a fumble and one of him fighting through a double-team, which he did through that entire game without getting frustrated or backing down.  I love his attitude!

Yesterday Quinn won his wrestle-off to earn a spot on the Varsity A team.  Pretty excited about that!  Last year he got bumped to JV, so I'm really proud of him for working to get back into a starter role this year.  The high school team, which had about 30 total kids (maybe) when Spencer started 5 years ago is up to almost 70.  It's crazy how fast that program has grown.  Success makes everyone take notice and want to participate!  I have a dining room full of team gear to prove it!

Tomorrow I'm grabbing Berber and Pappy and we are heading to Charleston to see Spencer.  The Citadel is hosting an Open tournament which means all the wrestlers will get to wrestle - even the non-starters.  I'm pretty excited that we will get to watch him in his first collegiate matches.  Here's a picture of Spencer and the rest of the wrestling team in the wrestling room in their winter uniforms - they call them Salt and Peppers - after an inspection.  He's the second from the right.

Have a great week everyone!  

Picture of the Week - 10/14/2021

 In a perfect world, I would have Beckett's 10 year birthday collage ready to share with you all today.  And I would be able to gush about how much I love him and how much he's changed and share all the crazy fun things about him in preparation for his birthday on Tuesday.  Alas, it's not done and I'm not ready and well...  it's a work in progress.  (I was 80% there when I accidentally deleted the file and I can't deal with that right now...  I have 8 minutes before a Citadel Wrestling Parent's zoom call that will hopefully help answer the MANY questions we have about the season!)

Speaking of Spencer...  I will take this diversion of my plans as an opportunity to share his yearbook picture.  So handsome!

Check in next week for all things Beckett!  

Picture of the Week - 10/7/2021

 Happy Thursday!

Just me or has this week flown by?  Like lightening speed...

We have been plugging along this week - in the rain all week - after our whirlwind of a September.  Trying to get caught up on mundane things like laundry and meal prep - and work...  and already looking forward to our next mini-adventure.

Bob and I had such a good time in Charleston for Parent's weekend.  It was as much a really cool visit with Spencer as it was a couple's getaway.  Honestly, I didn't really expect the second part, so it was a really nice surprise.  We ended up with a LOT of time waiting for Spencer in one area or another and had a great time just being together.  Huge shout out to QUINN and my parents for helping with Zane, Beck and the dogs while we were gone.  They covered football practices and games and church and generally just handled stuff so we could escape.  It was lovely!

I think the next few weeks will be pretty standard fair (which is a bit of a relief and also a little boring after back to back to back weekends of fun stuff - and a lot of miles on the cars!)  We have work and school and football.  Quinn is gearing up for homecoming and wrestling season launches on October 25th.  I'm heading back to Charleston (with whichever boys aren't playing football/busy and taking my parents this time!) the first weekend of November to watch the Citadel Open wrestling tournament - which will be the first college tourney for Spencer.  Pretty excited!  Coach has said that everyone on the roster will get to wrestle since it's an open at home.  woot!

Hard to believe we are already talking about events in November!

Have a great week - and here's hoping we see the SUN sometime soon here in Georgia!

Picture of the Week - 10/1/2021

 Happy Happy October!

We have had SO MANY happy things going on 'round here!

We just finished a fun Fall break trip, got to see Quinn's amazing senior pictures (more on that later), and celebrated Spencer and Zane's birthdays.  

Now we are in Charleston about to head to the Citadel campus for day 1 of Parent's weekend festivities.  Our first Parent's weekend - and the first time I get to see Spencer since he started!  So excited about that!!

There's a lot...  and I've done a poor job of saving time to write about it all because I'm too busy enjoying each thing.  Hope you all have a great first week of October!  I'll share more about our Charleston trip on the flip side!!

Picture of the Week - 9/16/2021

 There are so many fun and cool and awesome things happening right now!  Life is good, y'all!

Let's see...  where to start...

Beck and Zane are both doing great!  They are really enjoying school (as much as tweener boys enjoy school) and football.  Zane has settled right into middle school and has found a whole new group of friends.  We are in a weird feeder pattern here where only about 40 kids go from our elementary to our middle.  Thank goodness for sports because there are some friendly football/wrestling faces in the 6th grade hall!  Both of these boys are also growth spurting something crazy.  I'm including a picture of Zane, who is about to pass me in height.  He's pretty pumped about it...

Quinn is living his best life!  He has started his college application process, knocked out another round of SAT testing, and hits the weight room regularly getting ready for wrestling season.  We also got his senior yearbook picture proofs back and he has a college visit scheduled for Monday for his first choice school.

Bob and Quinn are heading to Charleston on Saturday with a bag of goodies for Spencer and a couple of tickets to the Citadel football game.  They will get to spend Sunday with Spencer and then will head over to Statesboro on Monday morning to visit Georgia Southern.  I wish I could go, alas I'm on Zane football duty - and of course work...

Bob doesn't have to worry about work next week because tomorrow is his last day at ADP.  He's been there for 21.5 years, so this is not a small change for us!  He will likely end up doing a very similar job, but maybe on the client-side instead of the vendor side.  We shall see.  The change is long overdue and I'm excited for him!

The boys are on fall break next week, which means that next Wednesday we all get to escape for a quick trip up to Ohio.  I am so grateful that Bob's sister has agreed to take Quinn's "real" senior pictures for us!  And we got tickets to an OSU game, which will be the first game we've seen in person since I graduated.  Crazy!

Good stuff all around!  Oh yeah, and the Citadel wrestling roster is updated on the website and includes a picture of Spencer.  That makes the whole thing even more real!  He's the first D1 wrestler West Forsyth high school has ever produced.  Pretty proud about all he's accomplishing and how he's handling the whole situation.  2021-22 Wrestling Roster - The Citadel Athletics

2021-22 Wrestling Roster - The Citadel Athletics The official 2021-22 Wrestling Roster for the The Citadel Bulldogs

Now if we can just get these tropical storms to take a breath and stop sending rivers of atmospheric moisture through Georgia...  

Have a great week!!

Picture of the Week - 8/26/2021

 What a great week!  

We have had so much good and wholesome and heart-filling this week!!  Yay fam!!

First, we finally heard from Spencer.  He's doing fine.  When people ask about him, they always first ask "is he having fun?" which I find kinda funny because this is not a fun-first kinda experience...  LOL  BUT he is good!  He has a good roommate with similar interests (Mechanical Eng major and doing Air Force ROTC) and has settled into life in the barracks.  Since he got his phone back we've talked nearly every day for a few minutes.  It's just enough to give me huge peace of mind that Spencer is still Spencer and is adjusting to life at a military college every bit as well as I had hoped he would.  We are really proud of him!  

This isn't to say there aren't challenges...  there are.  He's shared some of them and I'm sure there are others that he's keeping to himself.  I don't need to (or probably want to) know all the details.  What I do know is that he's got a really firm foundation and a really great support system (already) and is maneuvering around the hurdles in a very healthy way.  

PS - He's also started working out with the wrestling team and having a lot of fun with that.  Pretty special...

Second, football.  We are a couple of weeks into the season now and I think this year is going to be VERY fun!  The Bob/Beckett team has lots of friends on it we have made over the last 5 years.  It's really just so cool to watch these dudes grow up.  Zane is new to the coaching staff on his team, BUT he's played with many of the guys before and about a 3rd of them go to his middle school.  He is having an absolute blast.  He's playing on the line, which he has done for the last 7 years...  and it shows.  He is confident and competent - and occasionally pretty dominating.  His coaches tease him regularly about having "sexy tackles" and he is eating up the whole experience.  He also just got his first phone and went to his first middle school football game without parents in attendance.  Safe to say he's living his best 6th grade life!

And finally, sweet Quinn.  I am really enjoying senior year with Quinn so far!  I like his schedule and love the fact that he's having fun - while also focusing on SAT, school, and prep for wrestling season.  It's going to be a whirlwind of a year and I am ready for all of it!  (Except maybe the yearbook Senior Ad...  need to get on that...)  This year Quinn decided he was going to volunteer with me at church in Waumba Land (our baby-preschool rooms).  We are assigned to a group of 3 year olds and I LOVE everything about my Sunday mornings!!!  It is pretty fun to get to know a group of 3 year olds and help them have some fun while their parents are at service.  It's also amazing to watch Quinn with them.  I wish I could find the words to explain what watching him with those little bitties does to my heart.  Quinn has always been a care-taker, but seeing with my own eyes how he ENJOYS it and how they LOVE him just...  well I don't have words.  It's a gift and it's amazing and I can't wait to see what he does with it.  

This week...  Zane is off to 6th grade camp this weekend with his small group.  I am also off this weekend for a retreat with my small group.  I expect my version will involve less mud.  Bob/Beck have a game Saturday against a team coached by the dad of a kid Spencer played with in 6th grade.  It is weird because there are VERY few people we know from parent groups of BOTH our big boys and our younger set.  Should be fun to reconnect and I'm more than a little sad I will miss it.  

Here are a couple of pictures from the week.  The one of Spencer is a screen-grab from a Snapchat he sent me from when he was hanging out in one of his classrooms one day.  Classrooms are off-limits for the 4th class system, so he likes to find a quiet spot to hang out.  The boy is not dumb...  Zane picture with my parents is from his last game, where he earned Defensive player of the game after 3 sacks and a number of tackles-for-loss.  He was a beast in that game!  And the picture of Quinn and me is from last Sunday after our service.  I am so grateful that we get to spend that time together this year!  (ignore the fact that his poor face looked like he was in a fight...  it was from a wrestling practice.)

Have a great last week of August/start of September!

Picture of the Week - 8/19/2021

 I think we are finally settling into a little bit of routine around here.  There are still some rough spots in our weekly "stuff" that need a little smoothing out, but I don't think we have any "big" events happening now until Fall break.  Then our late Sept through Oct is a little cray-cray, but we will deal with that when it comes.

Beckett and Zane seem to be doing well with school so far and since we are hearing no complaints from kids or teachers, I'm going with a "no news is good news" philosophy!  They both launch their football seasons with scrimmages last Saturday and get their first real games in this weekend.  Bob is coaching Beck again, so I obviously love his team and coaches.  :)  And I am so so so happy Zane got onto the team he's on this year.  The kids are all meshing well, the coaches are awesome and I think it's going to be a really great year!

Quinn is also doing well - although he came down with a sinus infection earlier this week which had us all just waiting to see if this was a "get a covid test" kind of sickness or if it was the normal kind we have dealt with forever.  I think there's a lot of "normal sick" that causes far more stress than it really should because of the cloud of "covid concern" right now.  I'm pleased to report that after a few doses of mucinex and some ibuprophen, coupled with a day off school, he's back to healthy.  No doctor visit or covid test required...  just plain old Mom judgement and some TLC.  

Spencer - well we really don't know how he's doing.  We are a little more than halfway through Challenge week and will get to talk to him on Sunday evening.  In the meantime, I scour all the pictures people are posting to the various Facebook pages every morning like my life depends on it.  LOL  I'm not alone, there are entire groups of knob-moms out there supporting each other through this.  It's actually amazing!  It's comforting to know that there are others going through the exact same thing (or nearly) as we are - and that we will know these people for a really long time.  One of the more uplifting things that has been shared is from alumni and/or people with older kids who have graduated from The Citadel.  They have all said that there is something incredibly bonding about what these kids are going through.  It's not the normal "off to college" experience and results in lifelong bonds between classmates.  I LOVE that!  

We did get a little glimpse of him through a pretty round-about way yesterday.  All the knob (freshmen) athletes got to have lunch with their coaches yesterday.  This had to have been a pretty big deal because (for one thing) it was a break from the oversight of the cadre (the guys responsible for the training...  and discipline).  One of the coaches is friends with Charlie Morris, the guy who runs the wrestling training center our boys have gone to for years.  He sent a message (with the attached picture) to Charlie to let him know that Spencer is doing well.  Charlie, of course, because he's awesome, shared the picture with Bob.  The fact that he is smiling, coupled with the kind words about how Spence is starting to fit in with the team, meant the world to me!  And the guy doesn't even know I saw any of it...  LOL  

If I haven't said it recently, I will reiterate here that Spencer is in exactly the place he was meant to be and I think he's going to love every minute (well maybe not the running parts) of his time at The Citadel.

I thought I'd also share the family pictures we had taken just before Spencer left.  I haven't shared them yet because it took us a while to decide which ones to get printed and gift to others.  I didn't want to ruin any surprises.  I love them...  

Have a great week everyone! 

Picture of the Week - 8/12/2021

 Quick email as Spencer is waiting on me to get packed up and head out.  Oy...

We are leaving (as soon as I'm done here) to head down to Charleston.  We have a wrestling meeting tomorrow and then will get to have a nice dinner on Friday before tackling matriculation EARLY on Saturday.  It's here...  he's ready!

I never shared Zane's big adventure last week because back to school overshadowed everything last week.  As part of his Christmas present last year, he got an "experience gift" to go to the Sloth Experience up at the North Georgia Zoo.  We finally got that scheduled and he had a blast.  He got to feed and pet the sloths there - and also go to hang out with the rest of the animals including some brand new baby pigs.  I love that he enjoys stuff like that!!  

Quinn, Zane and Beck all seem to be settling into the new school year pretty well.  The schedules are still kind of all over the place and don't feel "normal" yet, but we are getting there!  The first day of school it took Zane 2 full hours on the bus to get home.  Yesterday it only took him about 75 minutes.  Still crazy, but we are dealing with a bus driver shortage and they really are doing the best they can.

The football season starts in earnest this weekend for ZnB too!  They have the annual jamboree happening - basically referee training scrimmages - and then the following weekend we start real games.  Both boys are really enjoying their teams this year and I think it's going to be a great season!

More next week - and I'll share if we get any pictures of drop off this weekend.  I've heard it's much faster and more formal than the drop off we had back in June, so I will be sure to get my goodbyes taken care of before we get in the car to head to campus Saturday morning.  I can't believe the time is here...

Picture of the Week - 7/15/2021

 Man vacation week goes so fast!  Too fast!

We had a great week at the beach.  We had a different location on the island this year, which honestly we didn't love...  but it was a great week to relax and reconnect and get away from reality for a while.  I think it was especially timely after our crazy June!

We did, of course, miss Spencer a ton.  It was weird not having him there.  I definitely had this "why take pictures without everyone" mindset - so I took hardly any pictures the whole week.  It may have also been an intentional effort to get off my phone more.  I did get this awesome shot of Zane and Beck in the "big waves" from Tropical Storm Elsa - which really didn't impact our weather much at all, but made for a few days of angry ocean!

This week the boys did a wrestling camp at the high school - which was fun for them and easy for us!  Quinn has been so busy this week between volunteering at the camp, working and tackling some SAT tutoring - oh plus socializing!  I haven't hardly seen him since we got home - exactly the way a 17 year old summer should be!

Spencer has had a big week too.  He transitioned from the 10-person ExCEL portion of his summer to the 220ish-person Citadel Success Institute portion.  For the ExCEL kids, it's not been a huge change...  they moved to a new barracks and have a LOT more meetings and things they need to do.  I think they are getting  a lot less sleep too, but they aren't going through the shock that the other CSI kids are dealing with.  I think around half dozen kids quit the program within the first 2 days.  There's a reason they call The Citadel the "road less traveled".  It's not an easy path.

This weekend - we are back to tackling the bedroom move project - I'm pretty sure we can get Quinn moved this weekend assuming our new rug from Wayfair gets delivered on time.  I'm determined to get as much as we can done this weekend because football starts in like 10 days - and there goes our evenings and weekends again.  LOL  It's our crazy life and I love it.  

Have a great week!  We only have 2 more full weeks left before school starts - where does the time go???

Picture of the Week - 7/1/2021

 Poof - just like that June is gone!  I'm not sure how your June went, but our FLEW by and felt like it lasted about 5 minutes.

July seems like it's going to have a bit more of a relaxed schedule.  Still fun summer things planned, but not as many camps and not nearly as many trips.  One fun summer trip, however, launches this weekend!  We are off for our annual beach trip on Saturday.  It will be super weird that Spencer won't be with us.  I'm trying not to think about that too much.  

And before you get TOO upset about Spencer not getting to go with us next week, he has some pretty awesome plans for the weekend!  Along with his ExCEL classmates, he will get to do a tour of Fort Sumter, a bridge run over the Cooper River bridge, and a July 4th celebration at Patriot's Point.  I'm fairly confident he will be JUST fine!

In fact, if his remaining summer weeks in Charleston go like the first week, he may never want to come home.  All is well at The Citadel.  He's doing great!  (I still don't have an address for him.  He will get one on Aug 12th at the latest.  Thanks to those of you who have asked.  I'm sure he'll love mail, but for now there's no way to easily get it to him.)

The other boys have all had great weeks too!  Quinn had a great time with his Wrestling family in Orlando last week at Disney Duals.  He bounced between a couple of hotel rooms and I think probably didn't exactly hate not having parents around.  I'm not taking offense...  I know how this gradual separation thing works...  he's just prepping for his own turn to leave the nest next summer.  (gut punch)

Zane is at Woodlands this week and Beck is at Wet & Wild camp.  If you are paying attention (and not sure why you would pay THIS close attention) this is the same combo of camps we did a few weeks ago - but the kids are reversed.  LOL  I'm sure Zane is having fun - Woodlands has always been a highlight for all the boys.  It's funny really because I just registered Zane up for 6th grade retreat with his Transit church team and the leader spent a long time prepping parents who might be sending their kids away for the first overnight experience like that.  I'm glad our boys have had an opportunity to grow up with Woodlands.  In addition to a wholesome, summer week at camp - it's also given them great exposure and experience for a bunch of other stuff along the way.  I love that camp!

Here are some fun pictures of Q, Z, and B.  (Yes, that's Quinn pinning a kid!)  I don't have any pictures of Spencer.  Hoping maybe I can talk him into sharing some soon...  

Have a super happy (and safe) long holiday weekend!  Happy 4th of July - and God bless America!  (there may or may not be a POTW next week...  don't worry if you don't see one - just means I'm having too much fun to pull out a laptop!)

Picture of the Week - 6/24/2021

 So this was the week.  We dropped Spencer off at The Citadel in Charleston on Tuesday and drove home.  

How's he doing?  Honestly, I'm not really sure.  He is not the best communicator and I don't want to press too much for information.  I think he's good.  I hope he's good.  He's supposed to call tonight - fingers crossed!

It was so weird.  We aren't allowed in the barracks - so I don't know what his room looks like.  I didn't get to help him make his bed or organize his unpacking.  He's on his own... 

How am I doing?  Well, I'm good, if I'm being honest.  I had moments of being sad and melancholy before I left him, but so far, I just feel like "WE DID IT"!  I'm sure I will miss him and there will be times when his absence is huge here, but right now my whole house feels a little weird, so it's not hit me yet.

Right now Quinn is in Orlando getting ready to wrestle in the Disney Duals.  This is the first tournament in a LONG time that either Bob or I haven't gone, but we just couldn't make this one work.  He's in good hands - and we will get to watch the matches online.  

Zane and Beck have a week off camps and are getting to spend some time with Berber and Pappy today at Camp Berber.  They are excited for an endless stream of donuts and Sunny-D and will be spoiled rotten when we get them back tomorrow.

Zane leaves for sleepaway at Woodlands on Monday and Beckett is doing the Wet & Wild camp next week as we lead up to vacation week!  I can't wait!  Not having Spencer there will be hard...  not looking forward to that part!

Here are a couple of pictures of Spencer with his brothers from this week.  Enjoy!

Picture of the Week - 6/17/2021

 This was a heavy camp-kinda week!  

Beckett is away at Woodlands (sleep away church camp) until tomorrow morning.  Zane did a "wet and wild" day camp through parks & rec all week.  Quinn has been away at the Jeff Jordon wrestling camp all week with his team.  They are driving home from Ohio right now!  

Spencer, thank goodness, has been home this week - although since it's his last week before heading to Charleston to start his Citadel journey, he's been out socializing most of the week.  We leave on Sunday and he starts his class/program on Tuesday.  He's participating in the Excellence in Civil Engineering program (ExCEL program) for 3 weeks with 9 other students.  This is part of a scholarship he was awarded and I'm so excited about this program!  He will take most of his freshman year classes with this group of 10 and will have access to extra support (tutoring/mentoring/etc) through both the Civil Engineering faculty and also the upper-class members of this program.  For the firs 3 weeks they will dive into Calculus and a series of Engineering seminars to help them learn about the different sub-disciplines available and a bunch of other cool topics.  I think this is a pretty awesome program and can't wait to hear all about it!  If you want to read more - Engineering ExCEL-lence at The Citadel | The Citadel Today

The following 3 weeks, he will participate with a much bigger group of kids in the Citadel Success Institute, which is an intensive orientation to the school.  It also includes coursework and special events.  More on this program when it starts mid-July!

I can't wait to get everyone back into this house tomorrow - even if it's short-lived, I'm going to enjoy the heck out of my the next couple of days before we shake things up again next week.

Here are a couple of pictures of my campers this week.  :)