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Captains Log: Week 9





Week 9 

The almost summer sky has been so blue and clear.
 I doubt we even saw a cloud float by last week !



Our pool service guy retired and we got a new one. 
It has been fairly inexpensive to have this service and honestly, if we didn't,
 it would look like a swamp!
Anyway, as it turns out, he wasn't that great and our new guy and his son have made it look beautiful!
We are having fun with this pool knowing we'll never have another one again but we really want to invite people over to swim!

okay, I made them pose in this picture with their jamba juice...haha

I call her the Lizard since she likes to lay in the sun :)

sidenote: one thing about everything closing is not being able to go to the orthodontist. It has been a source of inflamed gums, loose wires
...this is when my frustration level rises...
I guess you can buy marijuana but not see your ortho!



Chester reading away his day during a swim break :)


He has been lonely and has craved friends. 
The older kids don't have the same tenacity in pool play...or any other thing he wants to play with someone. They'll go along with it but when they are done, he is like, "we just started!" 
So he is frustrated and seemed to be so grumpy last week :(
He is never like that.
Made my mom heart sad.

We picked up his belongings from school last week and got to say goodbye to Mrs. Green. 
She has been a young, fun teacher. 
He still has a few weeks left of school but I can tell he is just limping his way to the end. 
Sigh. 
What else can you expect from a 10 year old?

When we got home, he turned to me and said,
 " it's like I've been fired Mom"

hahaha
true


Meanwhile, Lucy and Henry completed some AP exams, Clay has been building these pots for a container garden, and I have been trying to stay busy doing projects so my mind doesn't wander too far.


Saturday we decided to go down and grab our favorite Thai food near El Segundo. 
That thai place feels like home to us :)

Clay started to nod off but we told him he might look homeless with all the food containers scattered around him :)


We parked up on Grand Avenue and walked down the hill to the beach. 
To be honest, a lot of people were doing it. 
Los Angeles opened their county and state beaches this week but you cannot park in the parking lots and you are not supposed to sit on the sand.
 Most people are walking and then occasionally sitting,
 but it's not crowded at all.
So, there's that :)
We defied orders...we sat on the beach.

We got down to the beach around 6 o'clock



the kids are going to have so many photos of their backs turned to the camera :)
and me

faint hint of the Santa Monica Mountains in the background 



Audrey and Henry have become best friends and total goof offs during this time together :) 
I really hope it continues in high school.

Meanwhile, Chester keeps hugging on Lucy 
(or really, it's Lucy who is a THE family hugger ...she can't help it
...it's her love language)



Everyone's legs are just so long. 
I am glad we live somewhere pants are optional!

Chester is beginning to look more and more like a tween.



catching a peaceful sight of a  sail boat off in the sunset :)
postcard worthy


I told Clay we should head for the beach every Saturday night :)
The water on our feet, breathing in the salt air, beach combing, walking in the sand dodging tar chips combined with the sound of crashing waves definitely
 fills our bucket.

And today, Henry was ordained a priest by Clay. Our masked Bishop came over to help with the ordination. The blessing that ensued was heartwarming.
 Being who you are at 15 is not who you will be the rest of your life. 
But these important decisions to progress in the gospel of Christ will have a lasting effect on your life. 
He was really happy.


We took some family photos and then went inside where he blessed the sacrament for us. His voice was calm, low and steady. 
He was ready and he wanted to be ready to take this step. 
We were all proud of him!


outtakes :)


Sometimes life goes sideways,
 I hope Henry knows we will be there for him always.

We're still  here.
This amount of time away from school
 has given way to being so bored that it feels overwhelming. 
 Audrey and Chester especially feel like this.
 With this prolonged experience I've realized how much I needed this time away from the world. From the demands that others were putting on my time or my family from all angles including the church.
 Henry says he is still thriving so maybe this is the same for him. 
I signed up for daily prompts to "walk with Christ" from comeuntochrist.org (click on that to read more).
I could not get past Day 1- Christ in the Judean Desert.
 Preparing, taking time away from all distractions to take on his role as our Savior and redeemer.
 Then President Uchtdorf shared this on his social media account this week and it just came together for me. 
 I am cherishing this time away to prepare for what Heavenly Father has in store for us :)




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