Back in the Swing of Things!

Dear Friends and Family,

We are back in our summer routine! The kids started swim lessons, and Claire loves them because she has gained so much confidence in the water with all the pools we visited on our travels. Will begrudgingly goes to lessons and spends most of the time negotiating what he will and will not do. (Sigh) I told the teacher that if she can get him to go underwater by the end of the six lessons, I'll call it a success! We've also been taking our evening ice cream walks to the beach and we even headed into D.C. to explore our favorite Smithsonian, the Natural History Museum.

On our way down to D.C. I spent the drive as I always do, praying to God for good parking! We arrived to a spot almost right in front of the museum (happy dance and songs of praise). It was at the National Gallery of Art's Sculpture Garden. Before kids, I used to go there for summer happy hours to listen to jazz music and to drink sangria with friends. Now the kids and I decided to stop there for a quick morning snack. I pointed out works of art around the garden and asked if I could get their picture in front of the fountain. They declined, so I asked Claire to take my picture.

My wonderful sister-in-law, Katie, got me this Bengals shirt! I decided to wear it to D.C. to see if there were any Ohio tourists and sure enough, the first people we saw after parking were from Dayton, Ohio and they were excited to see my shirt! (Thanks again, Katie!)

Once we were back sitting and eating, I noticed that there was a man lounging in the fountain.  I said, "Uh oh! There's someone in the fountain. He's going to get in trouble!" The kids looked too and noticed a security guard heading in his direction. To get straight to the point, it was a homeless man who decided the large fountain could be his bathtub for the day, so when the security guard made him get out, he climbed out and stood in all his glory! The kids and I diverted our eyes, and Claire later said a prayer for "the poor man who doesn't have his own bathtub,"at bedtime.

Will and Claire smile at a balcony that overlooks the oceanic exhibit.

Ahhhhhhhh.... It's T-Rex! (I love having them do this pose!)

Another great Claire photo!

Will liked watching the fish!

 Later, our friends the Hiedlers, met us at the museum and we went to see the butterfly exhibit!  Michelle even thought to bring colorful headbands to help attract the butterflies. They worked great!

Michelle with the kids: Estelle, Claire, Elanor, and Elizabeth

 

Will stands still for the butterfly in his hair!

I had one ride in my hair for most of our visit!

Claire had the most flowers in her hair and the most butterflies come to visit!

 

We now have a big project on our plate. Our tenants for the past seven years are moving out!  We already had lots of work to do to get the house ready to sell. Then just before I left for my big road trip, the main water pipe that runs into our townhome burst and flooded the first floor! UGH! Needless to say, Chris did a great job working with plumbers, insurance evaluators, and contractors to get the problem repaired and scheduled for further repair. He also got a Real Estate Agent to help him figure out what needs to be done to get the house ready for listing.

Please pray that we make all the right decisions on this house and that it sells quickly!

I'll close with a few photos from the beach!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful week!
Love,
Bethie