Week 1 - Luke was in Alaska for a Passage-esque teaching experience. We had a good week at home which included Isaiah working on scraping paint (Summer income), setting up the pool, a family church night picnic, a Challenge party, 5/6th grade "splash bash" at church, standardized testing, and daily swim club. Several times, people asked if we were doing ok without Luke. This was the first time he's been away in many months! And I realized how much older the kids are now. It is no extra weight for me when he's gone, because everyone is getting older and is so capable! I had help making dinner, doing chores, taking care of the dog... It is pretty awesome to have old, responsible, helpful kiddos all the time - and especially when Luke's gone.
Week 2 - This was a fun week, which kicked off with Noelle promoting into the Youth Group. We are so, so grateful that this transition into Pine Tree has been smooth. "Avocado Sunday" was the morning to welcome the new class into the youth group. It was a fun morning, and Noelle's happy to be moving on up! We also went out to lunch that day with several families that we really enjoy and have been very hospitable towards us. It has been a very sweet blessing to be welcomed in. This week also included Mission Longview. Isaiah and Noelle joined the One Hope crew this year and loved serving alongside those sweet One Hopers / dear friends. In the evenings, we had VBS at Pine Tree. Luke, Isaiah, Noelle, and I led "KidVid" with another youth groupie. It was so much fun to jump in and take part in VBS. AND it was awesome to see the big kids step up into a new role in a new church. Good experience all around as we met more people and served in ways that are familiar and enjoyable to us.
Week 3 - Passage! Luke did a fantastic job with camp being back "on ground" after the virtual version last year. We have heard many positive comments about what an impactful, fun, meaningful week it has been for the campers, counselors, and staff. As Luke worked hard there, Isaiah and Noelle worked hard as babysitters. They put in many hours with Hazel & Harrison Lett, coming home with new experiences and many stories of their first real babysitting. I am getting close to wrapping up my current class, which included a video recording of an intake assessment and working through a psychological report. I decided to drop the class I was going to take in July, so I'm happy for a school break for 8 weeks!
Week 4 - Father's Day, Camp Deer Run, Luke's 43rd birthday - The kids had a great week at camp! We dropped them off on Father's Day, which made Luke sad. He'd hardly seen them in June! It was hard on me to leave my babies at camp. I am sure not used to having no contact with them! But, of course, they did not miss us nearly as much as we missed them. They all had a great week. Lucy was blessed with a super sweet cabin, and we knew most of the girls (Cora, Wiley, Meg, Addison, Halle, and others). Noelle loved being with Chandler and Allie - remembering that she'd gone to CDR Peewee camp with these same friends many years ago! Isaiah was so brave - he jumped in, knowing no one his age. His cabin ended up being almost entirely a youth group from Oklahoma, so they all knew each other. He had a good week though! While they were away, I worked a lot of preparing for Challenge 1, and Luke worked at the office. We got to have a few dates, including dinner out with the Spencers and a birthday dinner and ax throwing date for his bday :) 
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