summering it up.

well, june was just kind of a month of bliss.

matt didn't work much, weather was sometimes good (lots of rain, but that's okay), and we tried to cram as much fun as possible into the month. 
parks, zoo, restaurants, lots of play time, lots of reading books, lots of attempting to eat play dough.

mom brag moment (feel free to skip...): also, we've had fun micah changes... he somehow learns everything! his colors, letters, animal names and sounds, numbers to 13 (random, i know), names of things and people... so much fun! he also kicks a ball now, runs a lot, is constantly challenging my patience, and sleeps in a big boy bed with no problems. okay, all done.

also projects, the biggest of which was matt spending an entire day (9 hours in the hot sun) re-staining our deck. let me tell you. it looks AWESOME. 800 square feet of cleaning and staining. yikes.

also: projects coming next post: pictures of micah's new room, our room redone to include a craft area, and the redecorated play room!

so, here are some pictures of the greatness that we just had...

cousins. everywhere.

loooooots of this happened.

started this, finally!

healthworks museum with grandma. 

homemade popsicles. 

don't get too excited, this is the only popsicle we were actually able to get out of the mold. so then i bought snickers ice cream bars. at least i tried, right? 

cousin time. be cuter, you two.

finally set up the awesome easel some friends passed down to us! painting just got more fun.

so artistic.

baby shower for kelsey. i looove this picture! haa

and then to kick off july, i went to indiana to visit one of my best friends  and her family and meet her new baby, blake!

learning baseball from lonnie, amanda's dad.

that's a smile of summer.

finally met this crazy character, blake!

camping, the best way. that and only for an evening.

bubbles. with amanda's mom, cindy.

indiana state dunes. beach style. he's a natural, amiright?

and i have no pictures of amanda and i together. luckily, she does, i just have to get them...

oh, and one food photo... white chicken chili. an ebright specialty that i just finally made for the first time!

recipe (stolen directly from matt's mom herself!):

2 lb. chicken, cooked and shredded(or use rotisserie chicken)

2 (15oz) can white beans, undrained

1 16 oz. jar salsa (Pace medium)

8 oz. Monterey jack cheese, grated

2 tsp. ground cumin

Combine in a 3 quart kettle. Cover and simmer 

about one hour, stir occasionally and add water or broth if too thick or 

3 hours in crock pot on high. Serve with white corn chips or scoops.

You can tweak the amounts to your preference. It 

starts out pretty thick until the cheese melts and you must watch that it 

doesn’t scorch on the bottom of the pot.

june may be over, and matt's back to work, but his july schedule looks to be the best for this upcoming year... so let the fun continue!