Andrew turned another year older July 1st! I tried to cheer him up by telling him he is not old, and that we still have babies so he has at least twenty years to be young and active! I don’t think I helped! 🙂

For Andrew’s birthday he wanted to cook. Most people want to go out and enjoy a dinner they don’t have to prepare themselves, or clean up after, but not Andrew. He wanted to cook! He grilled steaks, boiled sweet corn, and steamed some green beans! He did an amazing job! We had enough steak left over that I made steak and cheese quesadillas for lunch the next day too! I made homemade vanilla ice cream and chocolate cake for his birthday dessert. I wish I could say that the cake turned out perfectly and that it was the most stunningly beautiful cake I’ve ever made. I baked four layers of deliciously moist chocolate cake. I made homemade chocolate frosting. I was in the middle of frosting the layers and stacking them. Something wasn’t right. My frosting was too runny. I needed something to keep my layers from sliding. I got up to go get some skewers to hold it in place. I heard something and turned to see the top two layers of my cake in the floor. I stood in horror for a moment before bursting into tears! I was so disappointed and frustrated! Andrew assured me it was okay, and that two layers would still be enough. He is such a sweet husband! I finished frosting the two layers and we had a delicious two layer cake!  I learned a few things, so next time I make it I think it will turn out pretty near perfect! 🙂

We had a fun time celebrating Independence day! We spent the day at my parents house visiting with family and eating! Andrew smoked ribs. Mom grilled hamburgers, cooked baked beans, fried squash, and cheesecake. Dad made a bomb fire and roasted hot dogs, and my aunt Sharon made potato salad and a strawberry cake dessert. The best meals are those where everybody has a hand in it! 🙂 Later that evening after arriving back home, we watched fireworks from our back porch. Emma was excited about seeing the fireworks! David doesn’t like the noise so he watched from inside. I’m so thankful for our freedoms and our blessings!

In other news of the week. Samuel sat up for the first time today! He can get up on all fours. He doesn’t yet have the coordination to crawl (he army crawls), but figured out how to sit up. I can’t believe how big he is getting so fast!

The kids are enjoying summer! They have been playing on their slip n slide, riding bikes, hunting bugs, fishing and swimming. David is taking swimming lessons. I will share this story in my next blog post. Just pray we survive this week of swim lessons! 🙂

Happy Summer!

Love,

PK