What's New With The Carter Family

Summer brings out the "goofy" in Jem. Something about being outside, in the sun, half naked (which is of course acceptable since he's in his swim trunks), makes him act a little kooky. Take this day for example. It was a warm enough day (in between the weeks of rain we've had this summer), and Jem was outside, playing with the sprinkler hose. He was having a blast. Running around. Acting silly. Having the best time. And giving me the silliest faces. So of course I had to capture some of his funny poses! Seriously. Oh how I love this goofy kid of mine :)

Every year we have our summer 'homework' that we (and by we I mean "Jem") have to do. This year he is working on a Math workbook, writing a page in his "journal" each night, and a little bit of reading before bed. Nothing too strenuous. But yes, the poor child doesn't even get a break during the summer :) Mean, aren't I? Here he is in the morning doing some fractions work....in his cute little red robe!

This year goes down as one of the best 4th of July's ever! It was a PERFECT day - sunny & warm, and we spent the holiday with our family and friends. Can't get any better than that, right? The Skinners were generous enough to host at their new house...and it was a great day! We played some games, ate some food, and talked while the kids played. The Bakula Boys brought their scooters, and the kiddos rode and rode and rode....they also had fun with chalk, and with their water guns :) Burkey got a little TOO close with the water gun, as you'll see a little later on! The cutest thing ever was how little Adam was Jem's little shadow :) He kept wanting to be near him, and when we saw him scratching Jem's back we thought it was the CUTEST thing ever! April was missing her Mexico warmth...towards the end of the night she was covered in 2 blankets and 2 towels LOL. The fireworks show was spectacular, as usual! We set off some mortars and we had a whole bunch of sparklers...

Ok...before I start talking about this picture let me first say this: It HAS been a long time since I've updated this blog! SIX WHOLE WEEKS in fact! I'm sorry about that. The end of the school year has been (and always is) a C-R-A-Z-Y time of year for us, and as a result, my blogging suffered. But fear not! I'm going to update you on ALL of the exciting things that have been going on with us, The Carter Family, these past 6 weeks. So be prepared for some posts. I think I have about 5 or 6 of them. And I promise to be more on top of 'updating' our family blog in the future! So go on...read away! COUSINS Jem just adores his two cousins, River and Piper. And while River is maturing and getting a little old for the kind of games Jem still likes to play, he has found a happy and attentive playpal in his young cousin Piper. Piper absolutely ADORES music - and her cousin Jem! And Jem is only too happy to have her sit with him and play a few notes on his piano. He is so pat...

This year Jem and I surprised Brandon with a Keurig Coffee Maker! He'd been eyeing his sister's one, and liked using them when he went on business trips...so we bought one for him to use at home! They're nifty little things - they use these disposable little cups of coffee, that come in over 200 varieties. Very quick, convenient and (according to Brandon, since I don't drink coffee), very yummy! At our church that day was a "car show". We got to look at all kinds of cool cars - old ones, new suped up ones...and Brandon and Jem really liked this one. It was a GREAT father's day!

Brandon just LOVES his Clematis plant, and I have to admit, it IS a beautiful plant. It blooms every year with an abundant amount of flowers, and is the most gorgeous & vibrant purple. Here is what our porch looks like this spring...

Jem's annual end of school year celebration is a "Field Day". The kids really get excited for this day to come around, not so much because it signifies the end of school and the beginning of summer...but because it's a fun day spent with their buddies! This year both Brandon and I were able to go and watch the games...and the weather held out! Here is Jem during the tug-of-war....it's boys versus girls and.........THE GIRLS WON!!!!! Here is Jem with his best school friend, Garrett. Honestly, the best part of the whole day for Jem was getting to play with Garrett the entire time! Here's to hoping we have a great, long, warm summer!