Friends like family

Our beloved next-door neighbors, the Scherreis, are going through a hard time in that Kim (pictured below holding the mouse in April while daughters Gretchen and Natalie look on) was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. The diagnosis was made on July 5 and Monday, Aug 1, she will go in for a double mastectomy. Serious business. I have the privilege of organizing meals and other help for them, which I'm so glad to be able to do... They are dearly loved by everyone in the community, so scores of people are clamoring to help (which makes the job easy).

Love that family so much and trusting God for Kim's surgery and recovery.

Our other close friends, Courtney and Dave Graham, are moving to Bartlesville, Oklahoma on Monday. Dave is switching careers to become a physician's assistant (P.A.) and is doing his schooling there, where cost of living is much cheaper and they have a close friend who is a doctor. We are very, very sad to see them go. (Courtney is pictured below left, in turqoise, visiting the mouse and me in the hospital shortly after her birth with two other friends.)

Camping at Coy Flat

This weekend we went back up to Camp Nelson, a town we like in Sequoia National Forest. Our first CA camping trip was there in 10/08, and we went back in 11/09 and rented a little cabin. This time we went with the Dibiase family and camped at a site we'd never stayed at before (because the one we knew and liked was already full) called Coy Flat. There was neither river access no climbing boulders at Coy Flat, which made it inferior in our minds to the nearby Belknap campground where we'd stayed previously. There were, however, campsite neighbors who stayed up partying till 4 AM at high volumes, as well as more distant neighbors whose boom boxes were continually on from 8 AM to 7 PM. Thus the steady sound of background bass will forever reside in our memories when we reflect on this trip.

In spite of those unfavorable elements, however, we did manage to have a fun trip with our friends. We had three little river visits at various spots which featured fishing (one small trout caught by Uncle Dan and Noah), wading, and dam-building. Water was cold! But folks braved it pretty well nevertheless; the dads and the three oldest kids (Monkey, Roo, and Noah) all got themselves pretty much doused by the end.

Campsite activities included fort-building (pictured below), fire and s'mores, hide-and-seek, and the favorite: kicking up loads of dust by scratching in the dry dirt.

The advantage of doing a 1500 round-trip excursion to OR last month which spanned 4 night and and nearly 5 days was that it made a venture like this seem very doable!

Swimming lessons

Pondering...

Taking the leap:

Yahoo!

Mud-player in the peanut gallery:

Updates by kid

Our little mouse is three months old today! Lucky girl to have TWO such beautiful dimples! She is such a joy.

When it comes to potty-training, doesn't this photo say it all...?! The hat is such a perfect addition. Goose is good for #1; no accidents in 3 days. #2 we're still working on... Had some hits in the potty on Saturday and yesterday. I'm hopeful that by this time next month she'll be done.

Roo is doing ballet this summer, a "pre-ballet" class for 3- and 4-year olds, with a little friend. She was apprehensive at first (seen here) - though not about the duds which she adored at first sight. She now loves it. It's a 45-minute class that runs eight weeks, and it's halfway through at this point.

Swim lessons this week and next, and the monkey (pictured below with friend Paul) and Roo are both doing great.

Tidbits

Yesterday the big two kids and their dad took the pop-up camper on its maiden voyage, up to nearby Wheelers' Gorge campground. They left around noon and returned at 9 AM this morning. The little girls and I went up to visit for a few hours after their nap. There was wading in the river, story-telling, dinner, and a concerted effort to avoid the poison oak that was scattered around.

I enjoyed several quiet snatches in the house with the two little girls (the older of whom is doing quite well overall with her potty-training, though one so quickly forgets what a grueling effort the first week or so of this kind of thing can be for the mom!):

The big two kids did a little building with their dad in the garage this afternoon after rest time. Results:

Goose goes potty

VBS last week was a big hit. The theme was Son Rock Kids' Camp, and everyone had a great time. Our church puts on a great VBS, and the camp theme was loved by all. It's amazing how catchy those songs are too; we're still singing them daily this week. Mouse was the wild card in the group, since she naps three times a day just now and I rather expected that napping in the nursery would not go as smoothly as it does at home (true); she did very well overall though.

This week our big effort is potty-training for the goose. She has sensitive skin and is prone to terrible diaper rashes, which require medication (almost monthly). So she and I have been housebound, basically, since first thing Monday doing the Three-Day method that Monkey and Roo have done. It's the end of day 3 and she seems to have it down, at least for #1...

I must say, potty-training is one of the least fun parts of parenting, but a mom could do worse than spending three consistent days with the goose. She is one fun and funny kid.