Summer Days
This summer has been packed with fun and work. It has been a non stop revolving door of adventure, big and small, and although we always long for days that we do nothing...turns out, we also can't sit still lol go figure.
Our summer bucket list has been such a blessing to us! It continues to encourage us to do things that we wouldn't normally do.. like, take our beef on a bun crockpot dinner for a picnic on a hill overlooking the city skylines views!
This particular evening was amazing. We brought a football, had perfect weather, ate dinner and admired the iconic saddledome that is going to get torn down. The view won't always look this way and it was actually really cool to take it all in for exactly what our city looks like this summer.
New experiences have been given so freely this summer too. Carter and Brian recently came back from a one night rafting camping trip. They rafted down the bow river and camped on a little island with some guys from church and said that minus the billion mosquitoes, it was super fun.
That same weekend, Bentley gave an awesome talk in sacrament about service...
"Hello Brothers and Sisters. I’ll start off by introducing myself for our new ward. My name is Bentley Reed. I have an older Brother, Carter and a younger sister, Penny.. which makes me the unfortunate middle child of our family. I love all sports but have a passion for basketball and am about to go into Grade 8 at Red Deer Lake school.
Today I was asked to talk about service. We are lucky that we live in an area filled with service opportunities. Service opportunities are easy to find and can start at home. They don’t need to be big, but a simple hand lent to a neighbour or a friend can go a long way.
Serving others is a way to show our love for God. Service is not just a task but a divine privilege. Looking for ways to serve without recognition or reward but simply because it is the right thing to do. Serving others helps us feel joy and gratitude.
A couple of weeks ago I noticed that our lawn was getting really long. We had gone away to BC for a week and when we got home both my parents were working a ton. I offered to help my mom mow the lawn while she was working. She was so grateful I had offered. So, I put in AirPods and got to mowing. I felt happy that I could help her and take one task off of her to-do list.
What I didn’t realize was that the middle of the day hot sun would melt me from the inside out. I did my absolute best. The front yard was ok but when I went to the backyard I realized how much bigger it was. I immediately regretted my offer to serve.
I will admit the job looked like a toddler had stolen the lawn mower and the backyard might have even looked worse than before I started however to my surprise my Mom was still so grateful to have had the help with a chore that she couldn’t find time for. She did say “this looks like it got a bad haircut” but she followed it with a big hug and smile and I knew my service, although not perfect, was still so much appreciated.
Our greatest example of service is our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Jesus exemplified service throughout his life. He helped those in need. He helped the poor, the sick and the people struggling the most. He was always found with the most vulnerable people. We can learn from this example. We can meet people where they are in their life and help them.
I know service is a great way for us to show kindness and love just like our Saviour. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen."
And.. as tradition has it... he got a candy bouquet when we got home. He absolutely nailed his talk! We are so proud of him!
Bentley and Penny even did a science experiment on their own where they stuck an egg in a cup of vinigar for two days and watched the shell peel away and the egg turn into almost the consistency of a fragile bouncy ball.... it was so weird, pretty cool and fun to see them just do it on their own!
We've had lake days, usually multiple times a week and it has been glorious. This wagon has been through so much and still going strong! Full rogue packing for the beach and I wouldn't have it any other way!
Last night we made fancy milkshakes. It was Mint Chocolate chip/Oreo base topped with whip cream, a york mint, an oreo and surrounded by the biggest gummy snake candy I've ever seen! It was delicious!
Although our summer days have been so good on so many levels, they have also had an overstimulated mom, a messy house that is begging to be cleaned, late nights and early mornings of editing and photoshoots and even recently we found out our classes for the fall and poor Bentley spent 30 minutes in the bathroom bawling after finding out all 4 of his best buddies are in the other class. So, we took the time we needed to process it, sat in the trenches and processed the crap outta that news until he found out one guy friend is in his class and started to feel better.
So although the days have been filled with glorious adventures, we are still cleaning, arguing, overtired, overstimulated and working our way through the beautiful summer days that we have.
Definitely NOT ready for school to start. Wishing summer could last forever with these kids of ours!