Dueck's Roost

  And to finish off June, we have ...  Brooks' 5th grade graduation (awww, he looks so cute and tiny here; although I have absolutely no recollection of why in the world I let him do his hair that way)     The release of the newest Star Wars movie Mae & Kev head off for a week at girls camp   and,    Joe (and Brooks) head camping with me for a family reunion   Of course we had to stagger our trips so that our brand new baby restaurant could continue on without completely falling apart!!

For 2018's high adventure it was time to take it back to the place where it all started ... Mildred Lakes. I'm not sure Mildred ( https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/mildred-lakes ) is exactly what it use to be, but it certainly is a secluded and beautiful little spot in the world that holds a special place in our hearts. Many family and friend memories have been made at good ole' Mildred;).  As far as memories go, this trip DID NOT disappoint!!! Of course, there was the beautiful scenery, a bit of small wildlife, a very unique trail (check out the cool root ladders!), and the absolutely gorgeous lake full of fresh fish. There was also the unforgettable memory that cut the trip short (no pun intended) ... our amazing buddy D getting his leg impaled by a sharp knot on a very unfriendly log. I held back on the graphic image, but it was definitely an intense gash.    And, no surprise to anyone who knows him, D hiked all the way back out like it was nothin' with his full pa...

So we have this thing. Actually, the Dad of our house has this thing. It's called hiking. Our Dad looooooves to hike. He really really really LOVES it. The rest of us really really really LIKE it too. Sometimes we even love it; depends if he's tricked us onto a ten-mile trail that was supposedly only two miles. That may be an exaggeration but only slightly;).  Anyway, so every Father's Day we show this Dad of ours how much we love and appreciate him by doing HIS thing. Actually, it's kinda a trick of our own because it's technically a "hike", but in all honesty it's a super super easy one. We're gonna call it a win-win for everyone!!:) The best part is that for this traditional Father's Day hike of ours we go to a nice little spot called Tradition Lake ( https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/tradition-lakes ). It's a pretty tiny lake, but the trail around it is nice and relaxing, and even has some some old rusty objects laying around that are...

For someone who has virtually no artistic ability, I sure do love observing the artistic abilities of others. One thing we always look forward to is wonderful cousin G's yearly ballet performance. She is a beautiful dancer (and person really!!) and the shows put on by her dance company are unique and extremely well done.  Around the same time as G's event, we were also excited to get to see Mae performing with her ballroom dance group. She was mostly just dabbling in ballroom but was so much fun and so beautiful to watch!! She is definitely an artist at heart. Whether it's dancing, videography, or sketching/illustration she impresses me daily with her artistic abilities. This was also her second (or third??) year in a row winning first place in a city art contest commissioned by the local judges and courthouse.

I think it is safe to say I have pretty mixed feelings about our Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting event. On the one hand, there was the traditional red ribbon and over-sized scissors, plus giant veggie cut-outs. Pretty hard not to love that!:) There was also many supportive chamber of commerce members, including the mayor along with his and adorable son. Also great, right?! Of course, this was also a few weeks into the madness of being a new restaurant owner/operator and I think I had lost ten pounds and was just about on the verge of a mental breakdown. You can't tell that from my smiling avocado face, can ya?  Let's just say, Kevin is amazing and definitely carried this day for us. When they wanted us to say a few words, I gave Kevin that "I can't say a thing or I'll cry my eyes out look." You know the one?? And without skipping a beat he took over and bailed me right on out.  I also must say, these kiddos of ours are absolutely amazing. And I'm not ex...

You are the trip I didn't take You are the pearls I could not buy You are my blue Italian lake You are my piece of foreign sky ...   This poem by Anne Campbell has always been what comes to mind when I think of motherhood. Along the same lines, the poem that I always felt described our family, especially when the kids were young, is by Shel Silverstein and goes a little something like this ...   There's too many kids in the tub There's too many elbows to scrub I just washed a behind I'm sure wasn't mine There's too many kids in the tub   Our kids are definitely my biggest struggle and challenge in life, but also my joy and really my everything. I started my journey as a mother quite young (the ripe age of 21), but I would not change it for the world.  And speaking of journeys ... Kevin took us on quite the unexpected journey for a mother's day walk/hike. No big surprise, since that is kinda one of Kevin's things;). This journey took us by some beauti...