Who else is in denial that it is already September?

Summer seemed fast, and slow, and fast!

Time is such a strange thing, isn’t it?

August was a wonderful month full of many wonderful things.

Topping the list of wonderful has been the healing and progress with my hand.

SO thankful for all the function the Lord has allowed back into my right hand!

Just last week I visited my hand therapist and was told “You don’t need me anymore!”

How great is that!!

All the work every day on my hand therapy exercises have paid off.

My hand is not 100%, but it is working, and I can write, and I can cut up food.

Praise the Lord!

Glad to say good riddance to the hospital!

I am glad we were able to swim quite a bit in August.

As I type this, our swimming days are probably over!

Our pool has been a constant blessing this summer.

Not only do we use our pool for swimming, but we were SO blessed to have some folks baptized in our pool again this year!

We had two Sundays with baptisms here at Twin Oaks!

Since we are talking about swimming, let me tell you what a rock star Tate has been with his swim therapy that started in August.

He had a therapy evaluation and swim therapy was recommended for him.

We go to the hospital once a week for it to hopefully strengthen him in all the right places and help him with some pain he is having.

He works SO hard for his therapist!!

And then he comes home and eats the rest of the day, ha, ha!

Good job, Tater Tot!

We are very thankful for all of the amazing people that make up Team Tate.

Tate also works hard on his at home therapy too.

Do I mention in every single post that I write that we eat?

Well, we eat, you eat, we all eat!

I just happen to take photos of what we eat – sometimes, anyway!

I still love to feed people – why does that bring me so much joy??!

And I still have the BEST trio of helpers.

The name of the game for this meal was to put zucchini in any and everything I could.

We had so much of it coming out of our garden!

Let’s talk about these donuts.

They are supposed to be donuts.

I made them.

Stop laughing.

I wanted to bless my hungry boys with a treat!

I need to leave the baking up to Addie Mae, obviously.

I soon found out it doesn’t matter what your donuts are like as long as they are FOOD.

Cracked me up so much!

My helpers not only help in the kitchen to earn those treats.

They are constantly helping with so many things!

Like floors.

Floors are my thing.

Do you have a thing like this?

A thing in your home that when it is clean it brings you the most peace?

It’s floors for me, windows for Blake.

Floors are a big job here at Twin Oaks because – so. many. feet.

I have used this swiffer for years and years now, but we just got this new mop and it has changed my life!

I put Young Living Thieves Household cleaner in it and it cleans the floor SO nicely with very little effort.

We were blessed to attend another wedding in August!

Our eighth wedding this spring and summer.

It has been fun!!!

We are still enjoying our monthly hymn sing with lots of other families.

It is a highlight of each month!

Eliza (and I!) love the pups at our friend’s place!

They are super cute.

We love our pups too!

I can’t decide which way I love Ruby Jane more…terribly in need of a haircut, or with a fresh haircut.

She is SO cute!!

And we love our favorites!!

I don’t have many photos of them for this post…but we LOVE THEM SO MUCH!!

I also love the cute things our littles say.

Eliza loves this new top she has, but it is too big.

She tried it on one morning and said, “Look, Mom, it’s getting smaller everyday!”

I said, “It’s not getting smaller, you are just getting bigger everyday!”

To which she said, “But I don’t like me getting bigger!”

I don’t like you getting bigger either, sweet baby!!

Isn’t she beautiful though?!!

Speaking of getting bigger, I saw Chad combing his hair as we were getting ready for church one morning because he hollered “Who hung these mirrors in this house anyway?!”

Ha, ha, ha.

Chad is almost 6 foot 4 inches!

August started with lots of rain and flooding….but then brought some gorgeous weather for things like playing outside, going for walks, haying all the fields around us, and many sunsets to remind us of our Creator.

The great weather also allowed these three kiddos and their Dad to sleep on the deck one night.

Even though they put on warm clothes and had lots of blankets, they only made it until 3 a.m. before it got too cold and they had to come back inside.

Memory made though!!

We had Eliza’s last appointment with UW Madison over telemed!

That means we did a video chat with her doctor.

Crazy, isn’t it? This technology, I mean?

Here we are sitting in “the waiting room.”

August brought some date nights for Blake and I.

And also a date on a Sunday morning for Blake and I with another sweet couple.

And also a date night with our trio, that ended in a fun game that Addie joined us for.

It was a lot of fun dates!

Speaking of that game night – Tate got the game Rummikub for his birthday at the beginning of August, and we LOVE it.

I think we need a Rummikub intervention here!

We play it almost every night!

It is super fun in that addictive kind of way, ha, ha.

We also have some days that we call “down days.”

Down days are much needed amidst all of this craziness!

Down days are days where we don’t go anywhere, and after our work is done we just hang out, read, watch a show, nap…see why I love down days?

It wasn’t quite a down day when we drove almost one hour one way to pick up some jeans we needed for Lane.

I could not find his size anywhere!

So when I finally found them we did a curb side pick up because he needed them.

It was a beautiful day for a drive though, Addie went with us, and there was coffee!!

This has been our determination to stay healthy this past month – and the months ahead too I am sure.

Do you all use essential oils and a diffuser?

You should!

I can help you with that if you would like to!!

Here’s to August!!

A great look back on a wonderful month!!

Did you all have a nice August too?

Summer might not be slipping away for all of you depending on where you are, but it is getting chilly here, the beans are turning golden in the fields, and the nights are coming quicker!

We always, always welcome a new season!

The change of the seasons is one of my favorite things about living up north here.

It just points to God and ALL that He allows for us!!

He did not have to make seasons!

But He did it for us to enjoy!!

I hope you see God as you watch fall roll in too.

He is showing Himself to you!!

Happy September, everyone!