August

 My dad pointed out that it had been quite a while since I last posted photos.  An entire year, in fact.  Long enough to kill the blog, he said.  I decided I wasn't ready to kill the blog.  At some point I might try to go back and get caught up, but for now I will just pick up with where we're at.  August - one year later!  And it was a full month of so much fun for our family!  This update is especially for you, Nana (and anyone else who happens to still check this space).

The month started with a special trip South.  We took our time, stopping to see friends for a night, but the destination was Pine Cove Springs for these two cuties to spend the week at their first overnight camp!

During college, Ryan and I were counselors at Pine Cove Ranch Camp in Texas.  Years later, the camp has expanded and this was their first summer to host a kids camp just over the border in Georgia.  Yes, we drove an entire day to take our girls to Pine Cove in Georgia.  We love it, and we hoped they would too!

Thankfully, our girls were able to experience the week with their dear friends, making the memories all the sweeter

I was so excited to pick them up and hear about their week.  They both had an incredible time!

The fun continued the day after we returned home from camp with a special visit from the McTaggart family!  After driving all the way across Canada, the McTs dropped down into the U.S. and spent a week with us.  What a treat!  We packed in plenty of DC sight-seeing, and also made time for memorable family hangouts.

Caught in a rain storm running back to the car.  Everything is more fun with my sister and her family!

Long overdue double date to one of our favorite spots (Ambar) followed by a flight of Jenni's ice cream that was enough to last us for the next four double-dates to come.

Lunch with Steve and Vallerie!

We ALL joined Sooner Steve on his legendary trolley tour.  

Our friend was able to get us plugged in to a White House tour on the McT's last day in DC.  Follow the tour up with some District Donuts and we felt like we were sending them off in style. =)

I really like my sister.  And I'm really glad she married this guy.

We finally made Bridgette's summer wish come true and closed the pool down with our neighbors - such a beautiful night

I really like being his mom

In an effort to squeeze the life out of summer, we spent the last week of August in Maine.  Ryan and I have wanted to go since moving to this part of the country, and we finally made it up there.  We spent the night in Portland (photo of hotel shenanigans below), then picked up my parents from the Bangor airport and headed to an Airbnb just North of Mount Desert Island.  It was a splendid week!

The oldest lighthouse in Maine

Our "backyard" for the week!  This was probably the best part of the whole week.  The kids went kayaking and swimming in the lake every day.

We were grateful to share Sunday morning with the saints at Southwest Harbor Congregation Church

When in Maine, eat fresh lobster.  We did!  But my dad and I were the only ones who enjoyed it - ha!

Our first visit to Acadia National Park - we started with the best view: the top of Cadillac Mountain

Jordan Pond and Bubble Rock in the distance.  We hiked to the top of the first bubble!

My parents were brave adventurers as we traversed some pretty tricky terrain.  

Lots of games were played!

We walked on the Ocean Path where every twist and turn presented another breath-taking view of the coastline.

It became tradition to eat ice cream every day.  Why not?!  The Blueberry Hill Dairy was extremely generous with their "small" scoops!

It was great sharing the week of special memories with Kaye K and Big Daddy.