okay, this is the deal...

I live in a place that has hot summers...

like VERY hot summers...

but, this is the thing...they may be hot...
but it's a 'Dry Heat!'

this is a typical conversation...
someone that doesn't live in Redding, CA,
     "How can you live there, it's so HOT?"
someone who lives in Redding,
     "Well, it's a dry heat!"

and we are very {very} proud of our dry heat...

but then, this week something horrible happened...


115+ heat {today's high is supposed to be 117!}
37% humidity!

guess what people?

That's.NOT.a.dry.heat!

and folks, that's where pride gets ya...we get all proud of our dry heat and smack, right in the kisser, 37% humidity with 117 degrees outside...

it's like having extra sweat glands on the outside of your body!!!
nasty sweaty swollen glands...

summer plan...where are you?

Last summer I was all over it...I had our summer plan planned before school ended...
I knew how to make our summer not too boring, and not to scheduled and we had a wonderful summer...

We are 2 weeks into summer and I keep thinking I need to look at last years plan...so I finally did, this morning...wow I was on top of it!

We did start the summer by camping on the Oregon Coast {only a 7 hr drive on the last day of school!}...

I can also see how things are a little different this summer but I still like the basic idea...and to top it off the kids and I have been brainstorming some 'bucket list' ideas, things we want to do before summer is over!

Here is our plan for summer this year...

*Swim Team again...and boy to they love it {sarcasm!}, it's a little earlier this year starting at 8 rather than 8:30 and that 30 min make a HUGE deal...there have been 4 practices so far and my kids have made 2 of them, {that's 50%}...I'm buckling down on bed times this week so they can actually wake up...and by 'buckling down' they need to be in bed by 9:30, last week they were getting in bed after 11, it was CRA.ZA.Y! around here, we took the whole "Schools out for Summer!" and lost it a little!
anyways, M-W-F an hour in the pool...it's great for them!

*Summer Reading Program...they are signed up for the reading program at the library, and the boy child will participate in the Barnes & Noble Summer Reading again {it only goes to 6th grade and girl child is going into 7th!...so disappointed in B&N for not continuing to reward and encourage older kids to read!}.  The reading is actually huge this summer, the girl child got reading glasses the last day of school,

that coupled with the 'reward' for completing the Library Summer Reading {for teens} is that they are entered into a drawing for a Kindle...she has had her nose in a book most afternoons, this.is.not.normal!  I usually have to encourage reading using various little tricks, but I have actually said to her, "you need to put that book down!"  Seriously, this is a sentence I never thought I would utter in my life to her, I am so blissfully excited about her reading!!!

*Piano...summer is the easiest time of year for them to buckle down and actually get in ALL of their daily piano practicing and listening {they have a CD that they are supposed to listen to daily}...and it helps me when they are begging to watch something or play a video game to say, "have you done your piano yet?"...

*Summer Journal...I didn't do this last summer and it was obvious when school started up again that they weren't use to writing...we have always done summer journals, not sure why I flaked last summer, and when Wilson was too young to journal he had a summer doodle book, where he would draw things he had done.

*Limited Screen Time...I know it's summer and summer is all about zoning out and losing yourself in tv right?  wrong...I HATE the kids to be zoned out in front of that thing!  But I also know it's summer so I relax my tone just a bit.  They are allowed 30 min screen time before they have to do their reading and piano for the day, and then after that I will look at our day and decide if they need/can have any more screen time....but also depending on the day we may be too busy for them to have their 30 min before reading & piano and I may use it as a reward for them getting all their tasks done and with a good attitude.

Now for our weekly 'schedule' {I use that term loosely, it is summer}
Movie Monday's...either a trip to the 'dollar theater' or a movie at home.

Work Day Tuesday's...this is the day we will pack up and I will drag them into work with me {they can take their bikes and ride in the HUGE empty parking lot}!  And then when we get home they will do any 'work' they need to around the house above and beyond their normal daily chores {clean bathrooms, organize bedrooms, help to clean the garage, weeding, etc}...I figured we should get this done earlier in the week...help the rest of the week go more smoothly.

Activity Wednesday...their piano lessons are early {right after swim and before lunch} so we have the whole afternoon to do whatever, this is one of the days we'll try to check items off our bucket list.  This is also the day that the library has activities planned that correlate with their summer reading program...
And of course it's church night, this is a great night for them to have a friend spend the night because they can come to church with us {or pick them up from church} and bonus no swim team Thursday morning so they can play all they want on Thursday.

Bucket List Thursday...I will let the kids sleep in while I head into work and get a few hours of stuff done, my goal is to be home by 10:30 on Thursdays...then we will do an item or two from our bucket list, we'll probably choose the items at the beginning of the week so we can plan accordingly.

Family Fridays...Friday is Beau's day off so we will treat it like a Saturday and just do whatever needs to be done or whatever we want to do....hopefully we can also check off more bucket list ideas on these days.

to create the Bucket List I opened up my pinterest and had the kids look over ideas I had pinned in 'School Vacation,' 'Yum - Cookies,' & 'Craft Ideas'...and other ideas were just theirs...

and now the Bucket List!!!

just in case you can't read the list above or want links to some of the ideas...

flubber ... Paper beads … Glitter play dough ...  paint rocks …Glow in the dark slime … Newspaper fort ... Bubble week {giant bubbles, bubble blowers, bubble snake}... Water blob … Bleach t-shirts ... Soda can jewelry ... Duct tape purse & Wallet … paint t-shirts ...  homemade tootsie rolls... homemade nutter butters ... Make pudding pops ... Make butter ... make bagels... Bake treats for neighbors ... film a cooking show ... Circus animal cookie truffles … Berry picking ... Kayak {picnic on an island}... Bowling ... Museum ... Zoo beach {sand castles} ... go to the snow {Lassen National Park usually still has snow in late July}... Bumpass Hell ... Sun River {we usually go to Sun River every summer with my in-laws, great summer place}... bike river trail ... Build a catapult ... Make sling shots ... origami ...  Fireworks

.....
so that's our summer...
do you try to organize your summer with a plan or do you just let it happen?

Summer Menu {1/2 camping addition}

a fast little menu post while I have a break in between errands...

School is out tomorrow...it is HOT here in Redding...headed towards 110 on Saturday!
{so sad that we'll be at the Oregon coast in the 60 degree weather and missing the 100's}

Making menu's around the weather is a must, no soup or hot baked dishes for summer in Redding,
I.just.can't.do.it!

Our Menu

tonight-breakfast {eggs, bacon, fruit}

tomorrow night =McD's for us...{our kids get McDonald's twice a year, 1st day of school and last day of school...}

Friday & Saturday- Camping food {chili dogs one night, hamburgers the next}
we have a few camping desserts planned camp fire cones, baked apples & of course S'Mores

source: Chef Jessica Bright

source: Cooking Outside the Box

Sunday -sandwiches and leftover camping buffet {we'll probably be driving, so we'll just snack, and stop and make a sandwich on the road somewhere}

Monday-Chicken Patty Sandwiches {girl child's request}

Tuesday-grilled chicken pasta salad {so many recipes for this}

Wednesday-Indian Taco's

source: the Pioneer Woman

Thursday-Tuscan Garlic Chicken

source: the Recipe Critic 

Friday-Easy Mandarin Chicken

source: Yummy. Healthy. Easy 

Saturday-Honey Mustard Pretzel Crusted Chicken with Salad

source: Half Baked Harvest

and that's all I have for now...
what's a favorite for your family in the summer...

oh, hello there

well, hello...

guess I took a summer break!...

lets see....

boychild had a birthday...he chose 'Viva Pinata' as the theme...

yep...random...maybe, someday in the future I may blog about how to throw a Pinata themed birthday...maybe not...

we went to Sunriver, Oregon....BTW this is Oregon...blue skies and trees....

weird things happen sometimes...didn't plan this at all...

we were driving to Sunriver, OR on boy child's actual birthday... 

we were getting hungry for dinner and were passing through Klamath Falls, OR 

(where Beau was born...36+ years ago)...

we asked Wilson what he wanted for dinner...

he said pizza.... 

so, we pull off at the last Klamath Falls exit and follow the signs to Abby's Pizza...

then Beau begins to reminisce 

(he grew up in FAR, FAR northern California, Tulelake...and the "big city" was Klamath Falls......)

guess what/where Beau had for his 7th birthday...

yep, pizza @ Abby's Pizza in Klamath Falls, OR...

I don't think we could have planned that if we wanted to!

while in Sunriver we caught some toads...we were actually officially on 'Toad Patrol'...yep...
might also blog about that...I have some catching up to do...

Sunriver was great...we were with the in-laws...whom I love so very much...
seriously...I married into a great family...
and then my brother-in-law went and married good too...so it's all good....
I don't have any really great pictures from the whole time we were in Sunriver, but take my word for it...we had a great time...
my sister-in-law organized the "Chambers Family Olympics 2012"...
so much fun...games from Minute-2-Win-It...
loved it!

boy child did baseball (t-ball with Jr. Giants...amazing) for the first time this summer...loved it...all of us!...one magical thing about Jr. Giants t-ball...the games are 2 innings/1 hour...that is so.very.magical when you are thinking about baseball in Redding in July!

we took a quick trip to the 'Bay Area' (aka San Francisco & Oakland) with friends to visit the Oakland Zoo and the Exploratorium...fun times...BTW...Oakland WalMart after dark...not AS scary as I would have thought...not that I wasn't a little, teeny-bit scared...but not as bad as I was expecting....

both girl & boy child participated in the YMCA's swim team this summer...which meant I had the opportunity to work-out three mornings every week...or sit by the pool and read...I'll let you decide what I did!

we had a great summer, with lots of fun memories!

and then...before I could blink...the summer was over...and back to school...

boy child off to 2nd grade...

and...gulp...girl child off to middle school...aka jr. high...she is ONLY is 6th grade...I grew up in small-town-Oregon where we had Elementary (k-3), Intermediate (4-6), Jr High (7 & 8), & High School (all the others)...so even though she's technically in middle school...and ONLY in 6th grade...since she's with all these really big kids...and has 6 classes a day...it feels like Jr. High to me...

Okay...now that summer is over and things are back to normal...
I will start to blog again...I have to, I have blogs that have been trying to write themselves in my head and I must get them out of there!

wake up God, our neighborhood is ON fire!

so, our neighborhood caught on fire this past Saturday.
actually it was the 'green belt'/canyon behind our neighborhood that burned...
it was one of the craziest experiences of my life....

It was Saturday afternoon and I was on the computer in our home 'office',
Beau and Wilson were also in the office, Wilson watching a movie and Beau sleeping soundly on the futon.
Madison was not home...she was swimming with a friend....

I heard a loud airplane overhead...
it sounded loud, big, and really low...
we have a small airport not too far from our house,
so we hear plans overhead... but small plans
so I began thinking...that was big and really low for the airport....
seconds latter I smell smoke...
why do I smell smoke?
I get up, look out front to the street...
it is smoky and eerily quiet...
I went to the back and our yard was filled with smoke, I couldn't see our back fence...

I yelled for Beau and Wilson...told them we were leaving, the neighborhood was on fire!

we jumped in the van (both Beau and Wilson with no shoes)...

Beau wakes up fully at this point and decides we need to know what is actually happening...

he runs out back, sees trees on fire and decides we're going to stay and fight the fire.

By this time the eerily quiet scene of our street, from moments before, has turned into chaos...

people running down the street carrying belongings, 

dogs running, 

kids crying, 

fire trucks, 

firemen, 

reporters, 

neighbors and strangers...

after some 'discuss-ments' Beau and I decide to stay and try to fight the fire...
We get Wilson out of the car and have him help us with hoses and stuff in the back yard...

we open up our gates...
now our backyard is like the street...
firemen...
reporter/cameraman...
strangers...
neighbors...

and then Beau tells me to call Steve..

Steve is our boss...

he's our Senior Pastor...

& most importantly he's a great friend...

so, I call & not-so-rationally tell him our neighborhood is burning down and to pray!

he does...and he sends out the request on our church email prayer chain ...

up to this point...the trees in our neighbors back yard were engulfed in flames...
the fire was feet away from our other neighbors fence...
the wind is blowing up the canyon towards all the houses...

the fire stopped moving forward...

against all reason...

against wind and dry grasses...

the fire stopped moving forward... 

the neighbors teenage son was fighting the fires with all the neighbors hoses...

the firemen have shown up...

but really...

the fire should have burned more...
houses REALLY should be burning...
...the prayer went out...and the fire stopped moving towards all the homes...
the bombers where dropping flame retardant
and helicopters were dropping water

the firemen were everywhere...
they saved many homes that day...

but God had a huge hand in the direction that the fire didn't take...

seriously...the fire came up to the neighbors stacked firewood...but did not burn it!

below is a bird's eye view of our neighborhood and the 'green belt' behind us...

(our house is the red X in the middle)...

the black is the approximate path of the fire...

it's my lovely paintshop job...so, it's not an actual picture of the fire damage...but you get the idea...

do you see ALL of the houses that the fire didn't burn...

did NOT touch...

60+ homes were threatened by this fire...

and NOT one was burned!...not one house was burned... 

don't worry...I didn't take this during the chaos...

when things had calmed down...these two firemen were just casually walking down the block back to their truck..I asked for a picture with Wilson...

two of the many many blistered oak leaves that litter our lawns now (both front and back)...

we are keeping these as a reminder of Saturday...

a reminder that in chaos we need to stop and seek God first...

ironically...or maybe not so much

Steve preached about "Kingdom Challenges" on Sunday...

Mark 4:35-41

where Jesus & His disciples are in the boat at night and a storm comes up...

Jesus is sleeping and the disciples are freaking out...

only to wake up Jesus...not to ask for help...

but to tell Him the boat is going down...that they are all going to drown...

Jesus stopped the storm with his words...

He then looked at the disciples and said, 

    “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

...

hmmm...I was in that boat on Saturday...

I was in a sinking boat and Jesus was sleeping in the back...and rather than wake Him up and ask for his help...

I FREAKED OUT...

and even when I did 'wake Him up'...rather than say, 

"God, you can stop this fire"...

I said..."wake up God, our neighborhood is ON fire!"

God knew there was a fire...and...

God stopped that fire!

beating the heat

Redding, California is HOT...

it's sort, kinda known for being HOT....

(although it's a dry heat...if Redding had humidity it would be inhospitable and would have a population of 2!)

I really don't mind the heat...

it's just a fact that you need to be willing to live with if you choose to live in Redding...

which we do!

This is the thing...everything in Redding has AC. 

blog note:  I say that, knowing that we lived almost 6 years in our fixer-upper sans AC...

we had a swap-cooler...

or an evaporative coolers, as those in denial call it...

which takes our lovely dry heat and in turns makes it humid...classy!

anyways...

most normal sane humans that live in Redding have AC...

no cars are sold in Redding without AC...

it's not an extra...

it just IS...cars have AC...

side note 2:  we bought a brand new car back in 2000 and while looking at the extra packages we said, 

"Oh, yeah make sure it has AC!" 

the sales guy looked at us and said, 

"Um, we can't sell cars in Redding without AC!  it's not considered an extra but a must have!"

okay...back to our regularly schedule blog...

about it being HOT and getting the HECK out of Hades!

the forecast for Monday was HOTx10...108+

which is pretty normal for July in Redding 

(as previously stated...

that is why/how Redding is known for being HOT)

so, to beat the heat, the kids, some friends and I packed up and headed for the snow!

yep...we went and played in the snow in July!

something that I've done a few times...but not nearly enough..

pack up the car...

pack lunch and plenty of water... 

and drive (usually...always...without the husband!)

have a minor goal in mind, but be flexible...

our goals...

1.  get out of the heat

2.  hopefully, possibly see/play in snow...

then go...

be spontaneous...

this is the fun part...

drive...see something pretty..

neat...

weird..

interesting...

stop the car...enjoy...

....look kids, it a Sound-of-Music mountain meadow....

trying to get a Sound of Music picture
look really really hard and see the teeny tiny pink spot to the right...
yeah, that's one of our kids!

our closest Sound of Music shot!

we spent about 30-40 minutes
(20 of that crossing the colder than ice creek to get to said Sound-of-Music mountain meadow)
enjoying the beautiful meadow

hey, kids...
look a patch of snow across the street from our meadow...
enjoy!

love the contrast of green field below the snow!

this snow is fun and all...but it's sort-of-kind-of a snow cliff...if the kids take a step or two back they will plunge to their deaths...or at least break a bone or two!

girl getting tagged by a snowball

seriously...
how many times have you had a snowball fight in July!

it's snowing in July...or maybe we just threw snow up in the air

okay, so this is great snow and all...but it's not fun/easy to play in...it's a snow cliff...so lets pack up and find what we set out to find...enough, safe, snow to play in!

hey, look it's a snow tunnel...so what if it's in a parking lot...
it's a SNOW TUNNEL...in JULY....
stop the car...get out and enjoy!

blog note #3...
try not to look too closely at the snow...it's snow in July...
so, this is not pristine white snow...
it's actually old dirty snow...
but, just don't think about it...
and make it VERY clear that there will be absolutely zero eating of any snow! 

okay, so this is fun and all...
but it's a parking lot...
so, lets pack up and find a better place to play!
eventually...
we reach our ultimate goal...
an area with enough snow...
that's not on the edge of a cliff...
or in a parking lot...
and let the kids play...

 midget July snowman!

Get some posed pictures at the ice cold Lake Helen....

Pack up and head home!

*special note...

when heading to the snow...even if it's July...

it would be wise to pack snow/rain boots...

your kids may or may not suggest this to you before you leave for said snow trip, and you may or may not think, "it's JULY and we don't need that"...

it would also be wise to bring mittens...

possibly also something that your kids may or may not have suggested that you bring...

and you may or may not think it's necessary because it's JULY...

trust me, bring the mittens!

so, your kids may or may not have the chance to say, "Told you so, mom!"

also good things to pack for a snow trip in July:
*flip flops 

*towel

*bug spray...snow and mosquitoes don't compute in my head, but swampy muddy areas around melting snow drifts and 75 degrees is the perfect environment for mosquitoes...and since there are little to no humans in these areas you will be eaten alive by them!

Go out and embrace the spontaneous trips!  Pack up the kids, invite some friends...and pack all the things that your kids may think you'll need!

and take pictures!

These are memories that you and your kids will cherish...

so don't NOT go because your husband/wife might not want to go or have to work

don't NOT go because friends can't come

don't NOT go because you have laundry to fold

this was an amazing day...it was in the high 70...when back in Redding it was 108+
the kids, our friends and I all had a great time!

just go...and embrace the spontaneous trip...

don't have any mountain snow anywhere nearby (we drove an hour and half to reach snow), drive to the lake, a waterfall, the beach, a local pick-your-own produce farm...etc...

what are some spontaneous trips that you've taken...or wanted to take?

How Clorox Wipes Ruined my Kids

back story for my not-so-short story about ruining my children!

....

so my children are responsible for cleaning their bathroom once a week...

Monday's to be exact...

and they clean the bathroom with non-other than Clorox or Lysol Wipes...you all know you use them...

I tried about 3 years ago to go all green in this area and stop using the cleaning wipes...yeah, that wasn't happening...

anyways, the kids clean every surface of their bathroom minus the inside of the toilet bowl, with the wipes, it works, they get it done, end of story...this is all they have ever used to clean the bathroom...the cleaning wipes and the toilet bowl brush...

summer is in full swing...and that means I have the kids 24/7...

like some home-school mom or something...

and so, things like errands...not happening!  

because taking the kids across town to WalMart to buy things like cleaning wipes and paper towels, when we could actually live without them 

(because in the history of the world we have lived without them), 

is not on my list of things I like to torture myself with...

end of back story...

so, first Monday of summer hits...

kids clean bathroom...all is well...

minus the fact that they used the very last cleaning wipe and failed to inform me...

second Monday of summer hits...

kids go into bathroom to start the cleaning process when they both realize the world has come crashing down around them! 

THERE.ARE.NO.CLEANING.WIPES!

boy child instantly sees this as a miracle releasing them from bathroom cleaning duties...

but girl child knows...

she's old enough to remember back...

back to that black time in history...

when mom went all green and there were no cleaning wipes in the house....

there is some discussing going on in the bathroom...

slight arguing...

boy child is elected to tell me the news about the cleaning wipes, 

probably because he's younger and I would never think to make him clean his own bathroom without the aid of cleaning wipes...

FAIL...I tell them to use...paper towels and cleaning spray...

back to the trenches they go...

then some more arguing...discussing...

girl child emerges now...

..."um...Mom...but there are NO paper towels left...none!"...

confidence has soared...they are golden...

NO cleaning wipes

NO paper towels

that can only mean one thing...NO cleaning the bathroom...

FAIL..apparently I have never introduced them to the wash rag!

what had I done as a mother?  

my children had no idea that they could clean surfaces, other than themselves with a wash rag...

AND that I actually had a stack of wash rags, in a long forgotten cupboard in the garage....

kids clean the bathroom...all goes well...

third Monday of summer hits...

paper towels have been purchased by the husband...

cleaning wipes have yet to be purchased...

because I have not come to the point of running that horrible errand mission...

but kids now know...

they have been educated on the old school ways of cleaning...

they are smart kids...

so, the smart kids that they are...and slightly lazy...

    they know they don't need cleaning wipes...

so, they start thinking outside the box....

do we really need wash rags?...

     all the way out in the garage...

or the paper towels?...

     all the way to the kitchen...

no, we can think outside the 'cleaning wipe' box that our mother held us in for so long...

and look, there is this roll of paper that we use to clean our bums...

why would that paper not work to clean the rest of the bathroom?

oh, and that cleaning spray...

     it's all the way under the bathroom sink...

     we'd have to like, open the cupboard door to get that...

but look, there is soap right here sitting nicely on the counter...

     nice soap...foamy Bath-&-Body Works soap...

     that's good enough to clean our hands...

     must be good enough to clean the entire bathroom...

     ...including the mirror...

yes...you read that right...

my children 'cleaned' their bathroom with toilet paper and not-so-cheap Bath-&-Body Works foamy soap!...their entire bathroom...

yes...Clorox Wipes have ruined my children...

and now I'm off to buy stock in them!

my mom in a swim suit!

yep...
I'm posting a picture of my mom in a swimsuit on my blog...

the date stamped on this makes my mom about 6
...the same age as Wilson...

isn't she adorable!...

I was looking thru some pictures to change out and add a summer vibe to my living room decor and I found this one and a few others that just felt like summer to me...

here it is on the whole 'pia-ntle' (piano trying to be a mantle)

she's to the left of the plant...held up by a large teal clothes-pin

and a step back...

my summer subway art is framed and on the left side of the piano...

and because she loves when I post pictures of her in her swim suit...without asking permission...
here is the other swim suit pic of my mom...

this is framed and on the right side of the piano

doesn't this picture just 'scream' summer to you?...I love it...I'm guessing mom's about 17...and that's her mom..my grandma...making grandma about 64 in the picture...love the pose from both of them...
and looking at the age of my mom...I'm just guessing that my grandfather (her dad) had died maybe within the last year before this picture was taken...this might have been a really hard sad summer for both my mom and grandma so it makes my heart happy to see them being a little spunky at the beach!

any maybe my most-favorite 'embracing the summer' picture I found of my mom...

framed in the center, slightly to the right of the plant.

love this picture...my mom talks about being shy as a child...but this picture..at the beach, standing on a bench, hands on hips...says she wants to take on the world...or at least the next 3 months of summer vacation...
...
do you ever look at pictures of your parents or grandparents at different ages and wish you could step back and spend a day with them at that age...
I see the little girl in that top picture, the same age as my son, and think how much fun the two of them would have running around on the beach together...
the carefree teen with her beyond middle-aged-mom I'd love to sit and share lunch with the two of them...
or the spunky little girl that is taking summer by the horns...I can just imagine her and my daughter laughing and giggling and being amazing little girls together...

happy summer...
hope you enjoyed my mom in her swim suit...

so far...so good

the summer plan is working out okay...
we are foregoing the Movie Monday today
....for my new favorite day...
Nap Monday...
kids weren't in love with the idea...
but both promptly fell fast asleep!

we had a
"welcome-to-the-summer-slumber-party"
last night
all kids tucked in 'bed' by 11
aka futons, couches, floors
...last time I was out of bed to yell at them tell them to sleep was 1:30...
not too bad...
only 3 of the slumber party kids (my 2 + one other) had swim team bright and early this morning...


I want to share this summer subway art I created...
saw a few on pintrest...none of them had the all the right words for our family and/or colors I loved...

leave me a comment with your email and I'll send you a pdf version so you can print one off if you'd like...

happy summer!