October

Happy Fall Y'all!

 

Vallerie treated Bridgette and I to a special day at Lucketts Holiday Market (the perks of homeschooling that we could just take off for the day!).  The weather was perfect for wandering through the beautifully decorated stalls. 

Gretchen went to her school's homecoming dance!  She joined a group of girls from her class to get ready and then I got to drive the lovelies to the dance - so fun!  She had a great time!

Camping weekend for Ryan's birthday!  We were grateful for perfect weather.  We tried a new spot and it ranked pretty high up on our list.

Stopping for a treat before setting up camp.

Happy Halloween!  We hosted our annual party and I did a horrible job of taking photos, but thankfully Vallerie snapped this photo of Bridgette and her friends when they trick-or-treated.  The girls dressed up as "fruit" this year - ha!  Bridgette's the only one left who is still trick-or-treating.  The older two opted to watch a scarp movie with friends while mostly the adults hung out at our house.

September

Gretchen's first day of high school!  We are thankful for the opportunity she has to attend a classical Christian school with friends.  It's not super close to our house, but also thankful for a good carpool from our neighborhood.

 Bridgette's first day of seventh grade!  She is back at the homeschool co-op we were part of two years ago.  We're both grateful to be back in that community and she is ready to tackle the Logic years.

Gretchen began running more over the summer and decided to try running a 5K race raising money for a teen pregnancy clinic.  She did great!

Getting out for a hike on Saturday

Four out of five Paynes are big fans of basketball!  Thanks to VetTix, we've been able to enjoy a lot of local games, including Bridgette and I getting to see the Mystics play.

Then . . . we scored five (nosebleed - ha!) tickets to see another WNBA game: Mystics vs. Fever - woohoo!!  Forced Family Fun for some, but a great night and we were part of a record-breaking crowd . . . so many people at the game!

We are grateful for Rooke's school basketball coach; he is patient and encouraging with our Big Red player.

An early birthday present for Ryan: tickets for the two of us to see Sigur Ros play at The Anthem.  A fun night of beautiful music.

August

August started with a week of camp for Gretchen and friends.  She participated in an "outdoors" camp, which turned out to be far more intense than she was expecting, but she did it!  And MIGHT be willing to go again, now that she knows better what she's getting into - ha! 

The moms dropping off girls for camp =)

Meanwhile, Bridgette and I went on a very special trip together.  Bridgette saved up her money and paid for her portion of a trip to Colorado Springs to take part in the Adventures in Odyssey 1,000th episode recording event - what a blast!!  We had so much fun together!

Looking around the grounds on the beautiful Air Force Academy 

The view from the walking trail in the backyard of our Airbnb - gorgeous! 

It's true - she's a superfan!

And we unexpectedly got to meet Kris IN PERSON!  What a fantastic surprise.  Also fun to connect that we both know and love a mutual friend, Kelly =)

A special friend from high school who was a bridesmaid in our wedding: the "other" Angela!  What a treat to meet up and catch up in DC for the evening

Ryan also got an evening with a great friend who was in town to go to the Nats game

I was incredibly blessed to take another amazing trip in August.  I went to Amman, Jordan for a week to help take care of missionary children while their parents were taking part in a ministry conference.  I love traveling, experiencing new cultures, taking care of children, and getting to meet brothers and sisters in the faith - it was an incredible trip on every level.

Stepping in the Jordan River - what?!

The supposed place of Jesus' baptism!  Wow!

The view from the conference center

Yes, please

On the last day in country, I joined a small group to drive a couple hours until we found an access point to the Dead Sea along the road.  I changed in the hut (yikes!) and waded in - incredible!

Back at home, Gretchen was attending a week of "introductory classes" for her new school.  She's entering as a Freshman and is excited!

And getting familiar with her locker!  This will be her first time as a student not homeschooling.  Cue the Mom tears.

She just HAD to try the Dude Perfect smoothie at Smoothie King

Beautiful summer colors

Read time with Dad

It was a big month for Rooke also - he got his driver's license!  And just in time to drive himself to and from school as a Junior.  Woohoo!!