A Day in the Life...

I have a new friend and I'm being taught how to make kombucha. The scoby/Pelical is a nasty placenta looking thing but it makes a beautiful drink. I'm almost certain that what I actually made was a strong alcoholic beverage. But I'm hoping after a second ferment it tastes like apple cinnamon.... Kota and Copper's team is killing it this season. Tonight they won 11-0. Tim's coaching this year and it's fun to watch. Dakota is number 5 in the picture and copper is in the back just to Dakota's left. So fun they are on the same team this year! Micah saved up $$$ to buy this and she's pretty excited  Hanging out in the kitchen chatting away is my favorite way to spend our evenings  I cannot handle this baby. He's my favorite little one. Taryn and Brenner are pretty awesome.  

 I came to work yesterday morning and walked into darling paper cranes hanging all over my ceiling and a poster on my wall. All of my staff, at least 24 of them, wrote me personal notes of things as I transition out of this position and onto their "big boss" (as I've been named, haha).  I love personal notes! I love them so much I can't even describe it. I almost  cried after I spent a very long time unfolding every crane and reading. Very heartwarming. I immediately texted Tim about it, and added that I would appreciate a note from him. He said, "but I don't have any paper" and that was that. 😁 The poster was full of fruit and vegetables, with some food dye monsters hidden in, and some other inside jokes from my gang. I think they all know how I feel about food dyes and they take every chance to throw it back at me. Most of them are very young college kiddos, and they are so fun- I will miss seeing them everyday.  I got tired of taking pictures of all ...

Right before I left on vacation I got an official offer for a promotion.  I thought it was coming, but then was unsure after some interviews and follow up questions. I'm glad I found out right before I left because i didn't want to wonder all of my trip.  I'm choosing gratitude. My first goal is confidence to tell my new boss no when I can't do any more.  I tend to overwork and I'm trying to back track that little habit.  There will always be more work than time and life means more to me than work. I'm excited for some growth and the compensation will be  nice. Not excited for a drive to Provo. Could definitely be worse though!  

Last day of camp.  Her dojo brought 14 of the total group there, which was the biggest group from a single dojo, and they are all so wonderful.  Micah got to watch her favorite karate mentor Kassie get her second degree black belt.  Most of these folks have watched Micah grow in karate the last five years so it's cool to see them all together in a place like this.  I'm grateful for the invitation to ISKA and taking good care of her. We watched the ceremony, cleaned up cabins, said so long, and had five hours to kill before needing to be back at the airport. At Micah's request we headed back to San Francisco. The winding, winding road... a slow descent from the forest... My in-flight project: little farm boy overalls for the baby love of my life  

 Saturday at ISKA! It was still rainy, which made the forest beautiful but fairly boring.  Tim and I made friends with two of Micah's classmates' dads. I should say one of the dads made friends with us. He's cool, super social, so we had someone to eat meals with while in camp and chat with.  Saturday morning the four of us parents went and explored the outsides of the camp more in "the valley of giants."  Such a beautiful place, really.  Probably one of the most beautiful places I've ever been, especially with the rain. The trees are so tall and wide that they trap fog and mist almost all of the time, so everything stays green and misty.  So pretty.  Oh yeah, and Tim woke up feeling better. We saw some of these slimy guys- banana slugs. I poked one with a stick and it did not like it. After we got back from our hike I was drenched and cold. I had put on socks and shoes (instead of sandals), a heavy sweatshirt, a vest on top of it, and jeans. Tim and I...

 We had time to kill before checking in at camp, so we hit the aquarium and found all sorts of cool stuff  Tim started really hurting so I drove the few hours to camp. The road at the base of the forest is pretty brutal as far as curves, and the curves stretch for 20+ miles at 25 miles an hour. So he got really motion sick on top of it. I thought I'd be cleaning up puke in our rental but thankfully it stayed down. We put Tim to bed once we checked in and got our cabin, and Micah went to karate classes. It was rainy outside, and there's nowhere to sit outside, and the inside of the cabin was pitch black. I didn't want to turn on the light since Tim was asleep, so I crocheted in the bathroom while sitting on the shower chair and putting my feet on the toilet. There's also no phone reception at camp except at the mess hall across the other side, so reading and crocheting we're about my choices. You do what you gotta do...