The month of July...

Gracie swimming at our pool

Gracie

Owen decided he would eat his spaghetti all by himself

Looking in the mirror at mom

Riding in the wagon

Gracie giving Caleb a ride in the jeep

Gracie and Dad swimming in the pond

Owen sleeping down by the pond

Gracie and Ryleigh getting a ride in the canoe

Gracie thought she should join Owen in his crib

The month of July has come and almost gone, with lots of ups and downs. We returned early from our trip to Missouri because Nick's grandmother took a turn for the worse and was in hospice care in Pella for two weeks before she passed. I am very glad we got to spend the time with her that we did. So for those two weeks, we saw much of Nick's family who came to visit from Ohio, Illinois, and Tennessee. I believe on one occasion there were over 50 people at the Merrill household. It was an exhausting week or so, but well worth it. I feel so blessed to be a part of such a great family!

Our kids have both been sick in the past couple of weeks. Gracie was first sick a little over a week ago with a fever, but that only lasted a day or two. Then Owen was sick with a fever for at least three or four days and following the fever, he developed a rash due to the high fever. He coped with it pretty well, all things considered. Gracie has also been fighting swimmer's ear for about a week now and it is pretty painful for her. It makes sense considering how much we have been taking her swimming. We took her to the doctor on Monday to make sure it wasn't an ear infection and she was given drops for her ear, which she hates. She has been waking up at night, not able to sleep because of it. It probably didn't help that she has had so much going on, too. But she is still doing very well during the day considering the lack of sleep at night.

I feel like we are finally starting to make some progress on building our house. Nick went out to the lot on Sunday to stake out where the house will go. Our builder and the foundation guy were out there with him. We met again to go over more specific details and discuss all of our options. Our builder is hopeful that we will be able to begin next week, but he said that there is a hold up with the driveway. So we will keep patiently waiting if needed.

I have started my next class for grad school and am already in the third week. It seems harder than the last class, but that may be due to the fact that I have never studied diversity and multiculturalism before. I should be done with this class after the second week of September and I'm sure it will come faster than what I expect.

I am down to my last few weeks of summer vacation. I have been working 10-15 hours per week still, but it has been so nice having time to myself and not being so hurried before and after work. It has also allowed for more time to study. We are supposed to be able to move into the new school the first week of August, but we'll see if that actually happens. I have been working all summer without a phone in my office and now my computer is gone, so I hope we can move in soon!

Nick took a few weeks off from work, which has been so nice. There will only be a couple more weeks for him, too, before he starts to get really busy again. Football is just around the corner! It's amazing how quickly time passes. Gracie's and Owen's birthdays are also coming up soon. I can't believe another year has almost passed. I asked what Gracie wants for her birthday and she told me: ice cream and maybe cake. She will be starting 3-year-old preschool this fall and Owen will be moving up to the next room. They both amaze me every day.