There's 104 days of summer vacation...

They totally lie.  There are not 104 days, sorry Phineas and Ferb, you've been bamboozled.

And besides being shorted several days, this summer has gone by waaayyyy too fast.  As thrilled as I am to see it end (the fighting! OMG!!1!)  I am sad because every year goes by exponentially faster and these little humans are growing up in spite of me, and I'm not sure I'm giving them the best memories to hold, the best experiences to cling to, the magic of childhood that we all view through nostalgic lenses...  but I think we've had some good times.  And then they have grandparents to boost it all a bit for me ;)

We skipped out on any and all day camps this year.  We wanted our schedules to be open and free.  Free to sleep in, baby!  But we road tripped up north to my hill billy roots, seeing several family members on the way.

Btw, glow sticks can be a lot of fun in the dark (well, dark, duh) for a camera enthusiast like myself, always looking for that great shot.  Or at least the shot that makes you thnk 'What? the... what?'

And Owen got to learn how it feels to NOT be the youngest...

While we reminisced about our good ol' days playing at Granny and Boom-pa's house

And learned how to play in the dirt... and water...

And then we enjoyed some laid-back country living

After which Zach got to fly his grandfather's plane...again... and we ventured into Lewisburg, WV, and saw a few interesting uhhh things.

We swung by Grandma's house for a couple of nights, and then through Pigeon Forge for a day of fun.  Although we mostly got caught up in the traffic at the Cade's Cove loop.  I loved the environment, but the boys weren't as thrilled.  So we cut it short and headed for some Cowboy Tubing but sadly, I could not take the camera on that particular adventure :(

Then we came home and never fully got organized because Hey, it's SUMMER VACATION! So we just took it easy, went to the beach, made popsicles, tried to keep cool.  Florida is pretty darn hot in the summer.

THEN... Zach and I went horseback riding, did lots of swimming at Grammy and Grandaddy's, lit of some fireworks for the 4th of July...

And went to Wet N Wild with some friends...

And THEN some cousins came to visit again for a few days and that was a very busy, fun time.  Kaiden showed some pretty awesome rock climbing skillZ.  As did his mama, and she enjoyed some very well deserved beverages after that day was over...

And THEN...

Zach got his hair cut.  My almost teen <3 :="" entirely="" grown="" looking="" p="" too="" up="">

And THEN...

Owen had a birthday.  Little fart went and turned 6 years old on me.  We had a pretty awesome party, if I do say so myself.  The kids all came (to Grammy's house, thank-you!!) for secret agent training and ended up capturing the evil Dr. Chaos, who had stolen their party loot.  Unfortunately, Dr. Chaos hid the loot in the bathtub and when pressed to reveal its location with the help of squirt guns loaded with truth serum, the kids all high-tailed it to the bathroom and burst through the door... only to reveal another (adult) party guest taking some time on the toilet.  LOCK THOSE DOORS, peeps.  Unless you're like me and so accustomed to a kid in your space that privacy no longer has any currency.  But it was fun.

And NOW... I have a first grader and a 7th grader.  I'm a little nervous about this year, we were hoping to have Owen in a transitional class since he's relatively young for his grade and not the most mature kid on the block, but that class was canceled (boo!  Hiss!) so I'm crossing my fingers and holding my breath that it all evens out for him.  His school is amazing and I know going in that I have to be on my toes.  Zach is going to middle school/jr. high, a big change there.  We need to hone our organizational skills and self discipline to stay on top of his accelerated courses.... le sigh.  I just want to swaddle them up and hold them close, humming 'Clementine' in the rocker.  But they are such amazing individuals, and they hold my heart.