Storyland- 2018

We made it all in one piece to Fryeburg yesterday!  We got the camper set up and everyone ready to go for the fair this week.  Since the fair doesn't officially open until tomorrow we took today to visit one of our favorite places, Story Land.  Everyone still loves the antique cars and Ben continues to very adamantly refuse to go on the roller coaster or anything deemed too fast.  Meanwhile, the other 3 couldn't ride on the roller coaster enough times.  Luckily Ben doesn't mind waiting too much (as long as we don't force him to go on the ride that is;)). 

Pottery!

We are so lucky to have talented people in our lives!  We have been trying to find a time have a pottery day with our friend Cherie who is an extremely talented artist. Her easy shop is here if you would like to check out her work. She is so patient with the kids and they were beyond thrilled to make these pockets to hang on the wall.

We started the day by taking a nature walk to find different textures in nature that would compliment the clay pockets with were making.  It was so neat to see the kids each doing their own project and how they took the creative interpretation of what they were learning.  Thank you Cherie for a wonderful and educational day.  The kids's can't wait to come back and glaze their creations!

Farmington Fair and Honey Extraction 2018

The weather is finally turning cooler!  Gabe's work has been a bit crazy so he wasn't able to attend the Farmington Fair with us this year, but he will make it to the Fryeburg Fair the whole time we are there this year.  Since Gabe wasn't able to attend with us, we hit the fair while everyone else was in school.  We always get the best education when we can attend at slower times.  The kids got to chat with the bee keepers, the wood carver, the maple syrup producers, and the tractor salesmen;)

We also finally extracted our honey this weekend.  We didn't get as much as in previous years, but we did get enough to process and, as always, had fun doing it!

Welcome Sunday and Webb Lake Beach

We just keep packing our weekends as full as we can to take advantage of this gorgeous extended summer we are having!  This weekend we welcomed a new ministerial candidate at church so the weekend was filled with pizza parties with s'mores, pot lucks, and activities at church.  We also snuck in a birthday party and spent some time at Webb Lake State Park's beach.  Exhausting, yet fun and productive!

Ben's 7th Birthday Party

Ben was so excited to have a "puppy" birthday party theme this year.  We had obstacle courses that people had to crawl around like dogs, pin the tail on the dog, and even a stuffed animal dress contest. Most of all, Ben was so excited to give out small stuffed puppies for adoption complete with an adoption certificate:)  Thanks so much to all who came and helped us celebrate!

Ben Turns 7!

We pried ourselves away from vacation and back to reality just in time to celebrate this guy turning 7.  He is also insisting that this is also the appropriate time to celebrate the one year anniversary of him wearing his sweatband. One year of wearing it 24 hours a day unless he is in the shower or pool.  When asked how long he plans to wear it, his response is a quick, "forever, I plan to wear it until I die"... we shall see;)

Ben is such a loving and tender hearted guy who loves physical contact. He is so thoughtful and helpful around the house.  We rarely have to ask him more than once to get a job done.  He is always the first to clean up his room, get his school work done, empty the dishwasher, and get in the car when we are leaving the house.  He loves creating with legos, playing make believe with knights and army men. When we asked what he wanted for his birthday dinner he immediately responded with Pizza Hut and insisted on the pizza cookie he always sees advertised, but has never been able to order... until now;)  We love you Ben and can't wait to see what next year brings!