Oregon Trip and Sam turns 13!

Summer is definitely flying by, as it always seems to do.  We celebrated 7/11 by getting slurpees and then headed out for our weeklong adventure in Rockaway Beach, Oregon!

We had an awesome house right on the beach with the 5 of us, Faith and her family, and Danny and his daughter; 11 in total.  Hello ocean!

Sam was in heaven finding all sorts of shells and crab parts!

The water was COLD!

We spent some time on the beach doing beach things!

Taking beach naps!

The house also had a hot tub, which was perfect for the 60-70 degree weather!

We did some hiking and explored the forests, trails, and beaches of Oregon!

Short Sandy beach was an unplanned, but amazing spot!

We found a local restaurant that offered genuine Italian soda, so Isaac had to try it!

More beach days building castles and digging trenches!

The kids actually went in the water, even though it was so so cold!

Noah, Sam and X all went fully under - crazy!

More beautiful hikes with waterfalls!

We found one of the biggest cedar trees in Oregon - the estimate it to be 900 years old!

Fire & S'mores on the beach!

Cousin selfie!

We took a trip to Tillamook to see how the cheese is made!

Free Samples, yes please!

Definitely had to try the ice cream, we all agreed that Noah's Oregon Cherry flavor was outstanding!

More hikes and cousin fun!

Sam found a salamander!

We also so some slugs, ew.

Lots of downtime at the house playing Minecraft too - Noah was helping Addy.

Beverages with an amazing view!

Sam, Faith, X and I woke up early one morning to go tide pooling.  I'm so glad we went - we saw some amazing sea life!

Of course Sam and Isaac had to try more seafood on our last day.  Isaac got a crab melt - which he loved!

And Sam devoured a Salmon Sandwich!

We had a great time just being with our cousins and hanging at the house too!

Back at home, the cats had clearly missed us and were happy to hang around wherever we were.

On to more fun - Sam's birthday!  He chose a porcelain painting party at a local spot here in Schaumburg.

He had a great crew to celebrate! Happy 13th dude!

And last night Mike and I attended the wedding of my dear coworker, Natalie.  It was a beautiful night with a beautiful couple.  The Walker School crew did not disappoint!

So now we relax and enjoy the rest of our summer days here at home, whew!

First half of summer fun!

Well, I would say we had an excellent June!  Once I was finally able to join the guys on summer break, it was nice to spend more time together and to just slow down.  Diablo IV came out, and it has been a favorite past time for most of the people in our household!

We started having "Lauren Days" where I go early in the morning and get my lovely niece from Aurora and bring her back to spend the day with us.  The first time she was a little unsure about it all, but the park and Sam and Isaac made it better!

It's been very fun to watch the different gaming styles of Noah and Sam, but it's super awesome that despite their differences they can come together to enjoy it.

The boys have also just been great cousins too, and love spending time playing with Lauren.

We did some tie dye, this year Isaac did a baseball hat!

Another Lauren day, this time the Worsts came by.  Birthday Buddies!  These two have the same bday, just spaced out 14 years apart!

Yes baby, you get whatever you want at Aunt Abby's house!

Walks with cousins.

Evidence that I am not needed whatsoever - they just take over.

Tie Dye turned out nicely!  We made some shirts for Lauren too!

Noah got his Driver's Permit - let the lessons begin!  He loves to pose for my photo opps too!

We took a quick trip to the zoo to see the new Director of Facilities there, my cousin Dave!  It was a great day!

Summertime means more snuggle time with cats!

Then it was off to Mexico!  Mike and I headed south and the boys headed north to Michigan with my mom.  We stayed at a resort in Puerto Vallarta.

We had a great time (minus one horrific self induced hang over on my part) celebrating Monica's birthday with her family!

A great whirlwind weekend!

Meanwhile the boys were in great hands having mocktails by the lake with Bamma!

The learned some life skills too, like how to play spoons!

Lots of swimming in the lake.

And some projects with Pops!

Back at home we all recovered from our various trips and we got a new van!  This Toyota Sienna Hybrid should hopefully last us 10 years, it's so nice to have a new car!

More days with this cutie pie!

Then it was back up to the lake, this time all together (minus Mike who had work) for the pre-4th of July weekend!  This year's parade theme was favorites from the past, so the Benharts did Pirates of the Caribbean complete with pirate ship.

Josh, Kjersten, and Lauren made it too!

We did a cooking competition, this year it was charcuterie boards.  Deb won with her amazing sliders!

July birthday fun!

Then it was back home for more Lauren fun.  This week, we did the Farmer's Market, the Library, and the Oberweis splash pad!

And just this weekend, Isaac did another successful rocket launch with Mike!  We love summer!

So, now we prep for our next adventure - the Oregon coast with the Rodriguez family!