{725}

July 25th...It's a great day!  Our Nephew Lukas was born 10 years ago today.  Today Phil's sister Carrie and her husband Jason celebrate their Anniversary!  But for me, tonight, I'm thinking of my Grandma.  She passed away 1 year ago today.  It was a cloudy, rainy day.  We had enjoyed 4 beautiful days on Torch Lake.

 It was a Wednesday, time to pack up and head home.  But...God and Grandma had a different idea!  As I sat with my Grandma on the bed, she told me to get up and go enjoy the lake.  She said "go ahead, I"m not going anywhere."  I replied with a nervous laugh and said "GG, it's pouring rain outside, I'm staying right here!"  She snapped back quickly "fine, but don't make me drink that nasty protein drink your dad keeps giving me!" :)  We laughed together...for the last time.

 I sat there with her for a while longer.  She told me I was a good Mom.  She told me I had a beautiful family.  She told me not to cry.  She told me she wasn't scared.   And then again, she told me she wasn't leaving the cottage.  She was right, and I almost feel like she knew it from the beginning of the weekend.  I almost feel like this was the plan.  She was a strong, courageous woman...she held on until she was in a place that she loved.  She held on until she laid down on the bed, and my dad laid next to her and told her it was ok to go.  That is a sight I will never forget.

 God had us right where He wanted us.  God had my dad right where He needed to be.  God had my mom there to help support my dad.  God had Casey (the neighbor) available to help with the girls.  God gave me (and Nicole) the grace we needed to handle this difficult situation.  It was hard, but honestly looking back, I'm thankful.  Thankful for the minutes I shared with her before I left the cottage.

{TL}

 This past weekend we were up at Torch Lake.  This trip was bittersweet.  We love the lake, and everything that goes along with this trip...but we REALLY missed GG!  This is where she loved to be, she loved the sunrise, she loved the water, she loved watching her family enjoy each other.  This is where she passed away last year.  This is where she wanted her final time on earth to be spent.  

I know that each one of us thought of her at one time or another!  I don't know how you couldn't! She was such a huge part of this trip, she was huge part of everything our families did!  

Gosh...I miss her so much!!! 

Well, she wouldn't want us to not have any fun, right? :)

Anyway...enjoy a peek into our time up north

{J-Lube}

We were invited out to the DeJong Dairy Farm again this summer!  Yeppers...that's Maggie from the last post! ;)  This place is Heaven!  This year they upped their game with a huge slip and slide.  Where else can you go down a slide slicked up with calf birthing lubricant?  It was so slippery the kiddos couldn't even stand up at the end!  Madison even braved the zip line...twice!!! 

{Risk}

We took a quick family trip to Holland State Park.  Phil and I were enjoying the sun...the girls were bored and grouchy.  Despite what you all think, our girls don't ALWAYS get along! ;)

We needed to split them up for a while!  I took Emma out into the water and Phil took Madison for a long walk!  When they returned they had great news...they found a friend!  Madison spotted Maggie, her good friend from school.  HALLELUJAH!!! This was a turning point in our day. 

As you can see we decided to spice up the day!  There were a ton of people jumping off the pier.  There were no waves...we talked it over and decided to let the girls give it a try!  They were more than willing to take the plunge!  I think watching me jump off was the icing on the second half of the day! :)

We even had a quite ride home...BONUS!!! :)

{Memories...just around the corner}

The Saturday after the 4th a group of us took a drive south...all the way to Shipshewana. I know...surprise, surprise!! We are pretty predictable. 

We've been talkin' up the ol Rise & Roll to our friends Kenny & Crystal..and they finally decided to make the trip down with us.  I don't think they were disappointed! :)  After we filled our bellies with  doughnuts & pretzels,  and our coolers with Yoders Meat & Cheeses...we decided to head home.

We didn't get far before Emily suggested a quick stop at Bonneyville Mill.  

We toured the mill and bought some stone ground flour.

Then..things got a little crazy! :)

Numbers go with pictures below...

1.  We saw the mill

2.  Oh look at that nice waterfall!  We should take our picture in front of it!

3.  A man stops us and tells us there is a path to take to get to the top of the fall

4.  Staying at the top of the waterfall wasn't good enough...we had to hike up the shorts, climb down the falls and wade in

5.  Wait...there's a huge tree limb!!  We should all stand on that! :)

6.  Then we remembered that the same man told us that there was a rope swing "just around the corner"

This is truly where the adventure begins!! It was quite a hike back to the "rope swing" (sorry about the poison ivy Wes!!).  When we finally found it, it wasn't going to be as easy as we had hoped.  Long story short, someone had the climb a tree to reach the rope, which then had to be tossed to Eli on the slippery branch so he could swing.  Lots of people ended up with wet bottoms trying to help Eli make his maiden voyage!  But he totes (this is our new summer word!!) had to do it!!!! 

He only got one shot to swing, that's how long it took to get the rope in the right spot! :)

But it was a magnificent swing..one that we won't soon forget! 

One day, 15 years from now, we'll all be hanging out remembering this adventure!

Great memories! :) 

 A few weeks later, Wes & Em hosted an outside movie night!  We watched Despicable Me...the adults in comfy lounge chairs and the kids in the pool! 

 I told you we were having a great summer.  

It isn't hard for us to find something to fill our free time, 

especially when we have family "just around the corner" :)

{Treasures}

A few weekends ago Phil and I took the girls to their very first Flea Market!

We love the Allegan Antique Show.  It only opens once a month...well worth the wait!  

Phil purposely drove the Prius, thinking it would prevent me from finding/purchasing any "large" items!  He should have known better!  I found the perfect pink night stand for Emma's room.  He also made me buy an orange Fiesta-ware pitcher...he wouldn't take no for an answer!! ;)

As many of you know...we here at the Kilian household LOVE DD (Duck Dynasty for you newbies)

This little treasure I found at Meijers made me Happy Happy Happy!! :)

I didn't buy it, but I REALLY wanted to!!  

I wish I could get a static sticker for my car...I'll have to look into that! :)

{Land that I Love...}

To quote my Grandpa Herbie... "It's the 4th of July, SUMMERS OVER!!!"

He use to yell that after every 4th of July fireworks show I every saw with him.  The sad part is...it feels true.  More true now than it did 20 years ago.  He was a teacher, and now that I'm back teaching Kindergarten I feel the same way.  So much so that I have been back to school twice since July 4th.  I know that I'm really only half way through my summer, but man...time flies!!!  Especially when you're having as much fun as we are!  

I hope you and your family had as much fun celebrating our freedom as we did.  

We started the day off bright and early!

Kenny and Crystal invited the girls to join their twin boys in the Schoolcraft Firecracker Fun Run.  It was a 1mile course that was set up for kids of all ages to run before the Firecracker 10K.  We asked the girls if they were interested...and to our surprise they said "YES!!"  We again reminded them that we would have to be there around 7:30, but they didn't care! And I'm glad they did it..even if this non-runner had to get up at the crack of dawn!

Both of the girls finished in under 10 minutes, which I thought was great for their first "race."  It was so exciting to watch them push through the finish line, and receive their medal.  Dane and Nyle finished the race too...but only Dane would let me take his picture! :)

After the run, we picked up some breakfast and prepared for the annual Schoolcraft Parade.  Don't the kiddos look cute in their red, white & blue!!

We filled the afternoon with burgers, brats & bathing suits! 

I'm not exactly sure who had more fun in the water..the kids or Phil & Rob!!

We finished the night with...you guessed it Schoolcraft fireworks! :)  This is my favorite part of the 4th!  And these fireworks NEVER disappoint!!