16 years

Matt and I celebrated our 16th Anniversary this year.  Hard to believe we've been married that long and together for over 20!  We went to see Wonder Woman in Mishawaka with the lounge seating and went to dinner at Bar Louie.  It was a nice night out together.  We need to make time to do it more often.  It's so important for a marriage, especially one with young kids!  Love you, babe!

4th of July Fun!

The Sunday before July 4th (which was a Tuesday this year), we went up to ride in the boat on Lake Michigan with Papa H. and Gma.  It was a gorgeous day, for the most part.  We enjoyed riding around in the boat, swimming in the ice cold water, playing in the sand, and fishing a little.

This girl is a water bug and LOVES her goggles!🏊

It got really cloudy and rained during supper, but was still a fun day!

On July 4th, we went to Lake Wahbememe in Michigan with the Clarks and Bergers.  It is a beautiful, private lake with just a few houses on it and no wake.  We rode around on the pontoon, swam, rode paddleboards, and had fun spending time in the sun.

Steven taught the kids how to paddleboard.

Landon got frustrated when he couldn't get the paddleboard to do what he wanted.

He had much more fun fishing! 🎣

Since we were about an hour from home, we decided to come home and do our own fireworks instead of waiting around.  The kids weren't too interested in the sparklers (Landon wouldn't touch them and Emmy had fun until a spark landed on her hand).

We had a nice little display to celebrate America!

Potawatomi Zoo and picking blueberries

We've been having lots of fun this summer and going to the zoo is always a highlight.  Kristina, Caleb, Brooklyn, mom, Emmy and I headed over to Potawatomi Zoo in South Bend.  Matt and Landon decided they wanted to go fishing.

Caleb loved all of the animals, but especially the tigers!

We took a little train ride around the zoo and ate lunch in the park.  It was a gorgeous day and wasn't very busy.  The kids did well and Caleb fell asleep on the way home!🐒🐪🐯🐢🐆

pretty baby girl!

The next day, we all packed up and headed to Beech Road to pick blueberries.  Last year, just Emmy and I picked from our family and we ate all of them.  This year, we brought along the boys and picked about 20 lbs worth.  Plenty to eat and freeze for later!

This boy picked a few berries, but mostly ate and played in the dirt! 😁

Bible School and Baseball

The kids absolutely LOVE Bible School at our church every year.   They ask about it every year as soon as school is out.  This year the theme was Maker Fun Factory, God made you for a purpose.  There were robots, Legos, 3D printers, and all sorts of fun building activities.  They like to see their friends every night and learn about God.

Each child, and adult, put their hand print on a Buddy Bench for Camp Mack.  If kids feel lonely or left out, they sit on the bench and other kids can see and invite them to play.

Landon played baseball in the Wakarusa Baseball League this year.  Last year, the Nappanee League had kids his age play with a pitching machine and he had a hard time hitting the ball.  We didn't want him to struggle again this year so we went to Waky where the coaches pitch.  He had a great year and LOVED baseball again.  Another bonus is that the league is free!⚾

He was on the Henschen Oil team.  His team did great!  They made it to the end of the tournament where they were defeated by the winning team in the game before the championship.

Matt helped coach.

Late Father's Day and Fun in Ft. Wayne

Matt was in Boundary Waters on his yearly trip over Father's Day again.  He had a nice group of kids and good fishing, but it was really cool and rainy.  We were so happy to have him home again.  The kids made some gifts for him.

Emmy painted a box for Matt to use in the barn for his tools.  Landon made a card and put some money in it.

A few days later, we decided to go to Ft. Wayne to spend the day.  We did some shopping at Jefferson Pointe and ate at Flat Top Grill.  Nice day away with the family.

Everybody enjoyed Flat Top, even our picky eater!