Remember us?!

Probably not.  We'll see how long it takes for my 3 dedicated readers to see that I found my computer after a month-long hiatus.  I should apologize for the silence, but I won't.  We've been enjoying the summer sunshine and relaxed routine, filling our time with summer activities.  It's hard to believe that it's already the middle of August and that the new school year is only 3 short weeks away.  I talked to a friend today about how sad we are that summer break is almost over.  Unlike many parents who are eager to get their kids back to school, I love the summer schedule.  We've enjoyed many lazy days this summer, just hanging out at our usual haunts - the beach, the outdoor pool or the spray park - either just us or with friends from town or with visitors.

We're in the middle of a month of visitors right now, which is what has probably contributed to my lack of writing.  We had a fantastic week with Uncle C and Auntie S and enjoyed having Grandma Lady and Sam here too.  They've in fact been here since the end of July, complete with their travelling home, the Lady Slipper.  We had a few great outings with the new Minks, including a spin around the lake on Uncle C's Seadoo and a girls hike up Pulpit, just me, Auntie S and Schmoo. 

They weren't even gone 8 hours before Team Indi arrived for a fantastic week's visit.  The two families just meshed into one as we came and went during the week.  The DuPonts returned to town and so we had a big celebration on the 5th at our house for Grandma Lady's birthday, complete with 9 adults, 7 kids and 2 dogs!  It was great to have Team Indi here....each year we manage to convince them to stay a bit longer and they usually manage to convince us to buy some fancy new piece of technology!

We had a few days of quiet this week, in between daytime visits from the DuPonts and Grandma Lady, before our latest set of visitors arrived - my cousin's wife N and her two daughters.  Schmoo was especially excited for their arrival and has been pleased as punch today to be one of the girls.  They're all tucked up downstairs tonight for a sleepover!  We have a fun weekend of sightseeing and beach visiting to do with them before Grandma Lady returns to town with the DuPont kids for next week!

There have been other highlights this month.  The kids had a great week in Alberta with Grandma Lady, while Papa and I enjoyed a quiet house for a week.  Bean got to be in his very first parade on the War Amps float in Penticton last month and has been working away at wearing his "helper hand" for 15 minutes every day.  Schmoo had a great time this week at art camp, where she discovered her inner designer and seamstress, creating a number of hand sewn purses and pillows.  We got new neighbours who look to be a welcome addition to the neighborhood after a year of noisy experiences!

There's still lots ahead for the summer.  A big anniversary this week!!  Our one and only camping trip of the summer next weekend and then a road trip to Tofino to finish off the summer!  I will try very hard to be a bit more diligent with some updates!