Travels | Amy Scott's Thoughts

These February Days are Flying By… February 21, 2025

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf,Family Time,Homeschool Adventures,Travels — Amy Scott @ 10:51 am

I’m truly shocked to see the end of February creeping up on us! After a quiet start to our month, our calendar picked up pace and now it seems like we’re flying through the month! How is it almost done? There is so much to share today so here we go!

Our homeschool co-op had a field trip to Kalama Sourdough Bakery last week. Best smelling (and tasting) field trip ever!!! We learned how a homeschool student started this company by selling loaves at a farmers market as a young teenager and now as and adult he has grown it into a full time business with 30 employees. It was neat to see how something so small grew into something quite large. The bakery tour was fun and informative. We all received a giant sourdough roll to sample at the end of the tour. So yummy!

We finally got our “snow” day last week! Around 11:00am on Thursday, it started to snow and it was clear that it wasn’t going to let up. Jeremy came home for lunch and decided to stay home due to the condition of the roads. With Jeremy home, we were able to go sledding by pulling the boys behind the minivan on the driveway. Jeremy also passed on his skills for making a “snow bear” (instead of a snowman) to the boys. The kids even made snow angels in their swimsuits when they got into the hot tub that evening. Craziness! It was an afternoon for chilly snow play and warming up with hot cocoa. I got my “grass-fully-covered” snow accumulation that signifies a true snow day in my mind!

The snow day put our Valentine’s Day plans in jeopardy, but thankfully, we were able to keep them despite the winter weather. We try to make Valentine’s Day a little special, but it’s not a big deal in our household. This year we had dinner plans with friends that helped us to up our Valentine’s Day vibes. I decorated with paper hearts on the wall, tablecloths on the tables, flowers and chocolates on the tables, sparkling cider, and HeartBaker pizzas from Papa Murphy’s. Our friends brought all the fixings for chocolate fondue and we used our fondue pot for the first time in many years! It felt decadent and it was the perfect Valentine’s Day dessert. It was fun to share this holiday with friends.

After Valentine’s Day, our long weekend of adventures continued! On Saturday, we joined my parents in a visit up north to see our sweet GG. We enjoyed chatting, eating Chipotle, and hanging out at GG’s house for a few hours. Sunday, our family ran errands down in Portland. We were on a mission to find a bookcase at IKEA and we grabbed the last one before they were officially out of stock. It felt like a miracle! Monday, we rearranged our living room after Jeremy built the new bookcase. I spent quite a bit of time moving things around on the shelves, trying to find the right arrangement of items. I love how it turned out! I’m not great at interior design, so I’ll let bookcases display books and games as a form of lifestyle décor. I’m all for displaying what we value. Monday wrapped up with a book shopping outing to Goodwill with a friend. It was good, good day!

I realize that February is a short month, but it always catches me by surprised! The days are flying by so quickly! I’ll see you back here at the end of the month for my monthly reading recap and we’ll see what adventures are right around the corner for our family as the calendar moves away from winter and toward spring.

Our rearranged living room! I love how the bookcases look beside the television.

We moved the bookcase that was on this wall into the living room. Now we get to reimagined this space… I’ll keep you posted on how it goes!

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January Adventures January 25, 2025

Filed under: Children's Ministry,Family Time,Homeschool Adventures,Travels — Amy Scott @ 2:04 pm

January in the PNW tends to be wet and I often find myself indoors wondering when I’ll be inspired to go outside again. January 2025 has been surprisingly dry and as a result, our family has been a little more adventurous. Outings are much more enjoyable when it’s dry… However, the trade off for dry is the cold… I guess I’ll take freezing sunshine over rain. At least for now. You know I appreciate a good rainy day as well.

This last weekend was filled with activity. I met with my monthly book club on Friday night. Book time with mom friends is a winning combination. Even though book club keeps me out past my bedtime, I look forward to it every month. We had dinner/game night fun with friends and family. We’ve enjoyed teaching Organ Attack to anyone interested. We even had a blast from the past moment this weekend when we took the boys to The Great Train Show in Puyallup. Owen went when he was tiny and Graham was too young, so we decided to go again with our older kiddos. The LEGO train layout was the highlight, but all the model train layouts were appreciated. We haven’t dabbled in model trains for years now, but they still hold a soft spot in our hearts. We also did a little more window shopping for potential living room furniture at the Old Cannery Furniture Warehouse. It’s a quirky place and the boys were thrilled to have free popcorn while we looked around.

This week, our adventures included the start of chess club with our homeschool co-op. The boys learned chess at co-op a few years ago. It was fun to brush up on their chess skills and compete with friends again. After a couple rounds of chess, the boys and their friends switched to a game of Organ Attack (I’m sure you’re not surprised to hear that). It’s been sunny the last few Tuesdays which means playground time after co-op to run out extra energy. The boys also worked on a project for church this week. Our lead pastor requested that kids make a recap video for the book of Genesis. Our boys selected the creation story. They worked together to create a picture depicting the seven days of creation and they explained the picture on camera Wednesday night. I’m looking forward to seeing how the video turns out in a week!

The final adventure I have to share is our family trip to the beach yesterday. We had errands to run and the weather was so nice, we thought why not run our errands out at the ocean! It was a beautiful day for a drive out to the coast. We had breakfast our favorite spot, Pig ‘N Pancake. We took a chilly walk on the beach at Cannon Beach and then explored a few spots in town (the toy store, candy store, and bakery). We hit Costco and Walmart before having “linner” at Mo’s (Yay! Clam chowder in a bread bowl!). We were home in time for sunset which was very important to Owen. With all these clear nights, Owen’s hobby of stargazing has picked up again. He is quite passionate about searching the skies in the evenings.

We’ve had a bit more activity this January then previous years, but it’s been balanced with time at home. Today as been an around-the-house day and it’s been a good balance of productivity and downtime. The sunshine coming through the window certainly inspires me to be more active. My family jokes that I’m solar powered. When the sun goes down, I’m ready for bed! I have take advantage of all this sunshine-inspired energy while I have it. On that note, I’m off for a walk!

Furniture shopping is more fun with free popcorn!

The hardest part of visiting the coast in the winter is keeping the kids out of the water! So cold!!!

When walking back with the wind in your face… these kids are creative problem solvers! Ha!

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Christmas 2024: All The Festive Fun December 27, 2024

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf,Children's Ministry,Family Time,Tasty Treats,Travels — Amy Scott @ 2:19 pm

So much Christmas magic has happened since my last post! It’s almost too much to recap in words so you’ll notice a LOT of photo collages to share the last two weeks. We’ve had church Christmas gatherings, Christmas lights galore, Christmas baking, Christmas movie watching (we introduced the boys to Home Alone 1 & 2 and Journey to Bethlehem), Christmas family celebrations, Christmas shopping, and Christmas gift wrapping. So. Much. Christmas. This time of year is truly magical. The sights, the sounds, the flavors… They bring out child-like wonder in all of us. It’s a joy to celebrate together as a family. All the Christmas festivities are a chance to remember the true reason for Christmas – Jesus Christ, the Light of the World. Emmanuel, God with us! I hope and pray that your Christmas season was filled with light, joy, and peace. Merry Christmas from our family to ours!

Jeremy turned our family into cartoons! The kids had a blast helping Jeremy make our Scott extended family into cartoons for Christmas as well.

A weekend filled with Christmas shopping and wrapping, our church float in the Lighted Tractor Parade, and Advent after multiple church Christmas parties.

Christmas Baking: I made molasses softies and sugar cookies. I used Starbucks holiday cups as my color inspiration this year.

Enchant Christmas Light Maze in Seattle, WA

Christmas Day: Stockings and gifts at GG’s house

Day After Christmas: Woke up to no power due to a wind storm, so LEGO building happened by lantern light. We still did our Day After Christmas shopping – books and Pokémon card were a highlight.

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November So Far… November 18, 2024

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf,Family Time,Homeschool Adventures,Tasty Treats,Travels — Amy Scott @ 2:23 pm

November hasn’t turned out to be a hibernation month like I originally thought it would. I assumed we would slide into a quieter schedule after all the hubbub of birthday month in October. But… November had other plans. I’m thankful to say we’ve found a good groove now that we’re in the latter half of the month, but I’m still waiting for my hibernation feels. I doubt I’ll find it with the holidays right around the corner… Maybe January will have the quiet, chill vibes I’ve been longing for?

Our first weekend of the month was a restful one. It was nice to recover from Fall Fest with a puzzle, cider in the crockpot, breakfast out at a local favorite (Berry Field’s pumpkin pancakes – yum!), lots of fall baking, and some LEGO building. The first full week of the month was filled with a co-op field trip and an out of town conference leading into multiple family birthday celebrations. After that, I moved into friendship focused week. Lots of good stuff happening here!

Our family enjoyed our visit to a hands-on pioneer farm with our homeschool co-op. We learned about pioneer school rules and pioneer chores and housekeeping. I’m so grateful for modern conveniences. I’m not cut out for farm chores and pioneer housekeeping. The kids loved getting a wagon ride and testing out many of the farm chores for themselves. Owen really enjoyed his time at the blacksmith forge. Graham liked fiddling with the tools. The farm animals were super friendly and the boys made good friends with Bacon Bits, the pig.

A highlight of our weekly family calendar right now is watching our good friend, Megan, compete on the Holiday Baking Championship on Food Network. It’s such a neat experience to personally know someone on television. We watch Megan bake on the edge of seats each week! Our family is a whole cheer squad. It’s a big deal and we take watching Megan very seriously. Can’t wait for week three to air tonight!

While the calendar has been full these last few weeks, it’s been filled to the brim with the people we love. We’ve celebrated three family birthdays this month. We had pizza and cake with Nana, we went to a trampoline birthday party for my nephew, and we had a surprise party for Jeremy’s aunt. I’ve also been thankful for time with forever friends. I got a red cup and talked books with Christy last Monday, I had a phone date the next day with my out-of-state friend, Maggie, and then dinner with Christa on Wednesday. I’m extra thankful this month for the friends and family I get to do life with!

November is over halfway over, but there is still so much fun ahead this month. It’s crazy to think we are breezing through November and while it hasn’t been the quiet month I expected, it’s been a good month. As we focus on gratitude this month, I am thankful for the people who color our days with love, joy, support, and a bit of excitement! We certainly keep things interesting around here!

Snickerdoodles were giving me all the fall baking feels.

Visiting a pioneer farm with our homeschool co-op

Nana & Papa had the boys overnight so Jeremy & I could attend a conference. The kids had a great time!

Wishing Nana a very happy birthday with her favorite dessert, German chocolate cake!

Piano lessons with Nana just got better! Nana gifted us a hand-me-down piano so the boys have a bigger keyboard to practice with. They get to bond with Nana over a shared love of piano!

A beautiful sight! Peppermint hot chocolate, Christmas books, and time with a beloved friend.

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Concluding October November 1, 2024

Filed under: Children's Ministry,Family Time,Homeschool Adventures,Travels — Amy Scott @ 10:20 am

October came and went with a flurry of activity! What a fun month! The final week of the month was just as exciting as the rest of the month. We wrapped up homeschool soccer on the 24th. The boys enjoyed getting a better handle on the sport and playing with friends. Their coach was patient and kind. The overall experience was perfect for our family. It was low-key and the once-a-week time commitment was just right for our calendar. I’m actually a little sad that the season is over, but I’m also thankful to have our Thursdays back to normal. Owen is already talking about spring soccer!

Last Friday, we visited the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle, WA. Originally, we planned to go on Graham’s birthday, but the weather was wet. I love the zoo, but I don’t enjoy it in the rain. We postponed to a dry day and it was worth the wait. We saw animals that weren’t out when we visited last year for Graham’s 8th birthday. It was to nice to feel like we’ve seen all that zoo has to offer now. We loved the snow leopard cubs and getting to see the maned wolf. We found a free-roaming peacock and got to watch zookeepers take a parade of flamingos on a walk through the zoo. The brown bears came right up to the glass and the elk were out this time. I keep waiting for our family to outgrow the zoo, but I don’t think that’s going to happen. We love animals!

Saturday was a full day at home and it was delightful! It was the perfect balance of productive home projects and restful downtime. We went all out with a full turkey dinner. We even had a Costco pumpkin pie that we had picked up the day before. It was like Thanksgiving! Yum! We also carved pumpkins on Saturday. Graham made a monster that looked like his Boo Bucket from McDonalds. Owen made a Minecraft wolf which he named Pupkin. Jeremy surprised us all and made Bluey. We’ve used homegrown pumpkins for carving the past few years and I actually appreciate skipping the pumpkin patch. I love pumpkin patches, don’t get me wrong. October is such a full month that it’s okay with me to skip one of the traditional outings so we can make space for something else on the calendar.

A surprise highlight of the week was Jeremy shooting a buck in our backyard. I’ve shared that Jeremy does archery in past posts. He didn’t get an elk this September, but he had a deer tag that was good through October. This buck had been near our house the entire day and Jeremy took advantage of the opportunity! We got home from a playdate right was Jeremy found his downed deer. Owen helped Jeremy gut the deer and was very interested in the whole process. It was a fantastic science lesson – one that will end in pepperoni sticks!

Yesterday was the final day of this special month and what better way to celebrate than as Ender Dragons from Minecraft. The Ender Dragon appears at the end of the game which fit perfectly with the end of a very Minecraft-themed month. Fall Fest is a community event that our church hosts and Jeremy is responsible for each year. We went down to the church yesterday to bring Jeremy lunch and to help with the final preparations. We came back down fully in costume to enjoy the event with our community. Because it was a rainy Halloween, the event was a big. Gotta love being inside on a wet Halloween! Jeremy and the team added a maze this year that was a hit and the kids came home with a ton of candy which is fitting since dragons love to hoard treasure!

To recover from the big event last night, we have a puzzle on the table and spiced cider warming in the crockpot today. It’s nice to be snuggled warm inside while it’s dark and wet outside. I’m thankful it’s a quiet day to rest. I’m a little sad to see October in the rearview mirror, but… I’m also ready for November. In fact, I just might go put on some Christmas music to welcome the new month! : )

Minecraft Wolf Pupkin and Boo Bucket Monster

Dragons protecting the treasure in the castle maze

Sir Jeremy – the knight in blue jeans and sneakers! We had a medieval theme for Fall Fest this year.

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October is the Best! October 23, 2024

Filed under: Family Time,Homeschool Adventures,Travels — Amy Scott @ 2:24 pm

Some people wait all year for the Christmas season. For me, I wait all year for October! Excuse my redundant exclamations, but you just can’t beat October. It’s the best! The flavors, the outings, the birthdays, the weather, the colors!!! It’s all my favorite! I’m truly my happiest self in October. This October has been no exception. It’s been a truly amazing month.

I’ll try to keep this post brief so that I don’t overwhelm you with all the October awesomeness, but I can’t keep it to myself! I hope you enjoy this recap of our autumn activities and celebrations. The major highlights since I last wrote were visiting GG, another birthday celebration for the boys with my side of the family, a family vacation to Sunriver, celebrating Graham’s actual birthday, and launching rockets with our homeschool co-op! Never a dull moment in October!

Sunriver Resort is one of our favorite places to visit. The Cove (the indoor/outdoor swimming complex) and the miles of paved bike paths make Sunriver endlessly fun. We never run out of things to do there! In fact, there is never enough time and we are always hopeful that we’ll visit again. Our big adventure day was visiting the John Day Fossil Beds and going on a fossil dig in Fossil, OR. Behind the high school in Fossil, you can dig for fossils and keep what you find. We found so many leaf fossils! Jeremy and Owen would have dug for fossils all day. I enjoyed the Journey Through Time Scenic Byway as we made our way down scenic backroads. Jeremy joked on his birthday in March that this was the year he’d find a fossil and we made that dream become reality! My favorite part of our vacation was our bike ride by the river with all the beautiful fall color. The boys will tell you that the Cove was their favorite part. They also enjoyed doing some shopping in Bend with their birthday money. It was such a great trip!

Graham’s birthday was Saturday. We had planned to go to the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle for his birthday, but the weather didn’t agree with us. Instead, we went to see The Wild Robot in theaters. Graham was allowed to pick two movie treats which made his day (we usually only allow one treat). After the movie, we had a pizza dinner with all the grandparents in attendance. Graham wanted everyone to have their own pint of ice cream as his special birthday dessert. It was a very fun day to celebrate our now nine year-old!

Jeremy and the boys have been working hard over the last week to create rockets for our homeschool co-op rocket launch day. We met yesterday with our group to launch rockets together. It was a wonderful afternoon! Jeremy was great at helping the boys assemble their rockets and he was also super helpful on launch day. I was nervous that the weather would cancel this outing, but it turned out to be the perfect October afternoon! It was warm enough you didn’t need a coat, blue sky, little wind – it was just right for launching rockets. It’s always a joy to share these experiences with other homeschool families. I am so thankful for our co-op community!

With a little over a week left in the month, we still have a lot more planned. Can you believe it? We cram a lot into October. I’m looking at my November calendar and it’s intentionally going to be quieter. It’s all a balance! I love getting in as many outdoor outings as possible in October. The fall color just can’t be beat and I know the rain will arrive and stay in November. The seasons changing reminds me of God’s faithfulness and the blessings that arrive with each anticipated change in the weather. I am equally happy with a cozy, gray, rainy day indoors as I am with a day of chilly blue sky and sunshine. Each has a purpose. Each season is meaningful.

Graham’s first biome project in science!

Another weekend, another party! This time with donuts!

The only ones at the Cove! A perk of traveling in October.

The Painted Hills in the John Day Fossil Beds

There is a light snow on the golf course in this picture. It made for a steamy outdoor swim.

The birthday boy at the movies to see *The Wild Robot*

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Happy October! (aka Birthday Month) October 9, 2024

Filed under: Family Time,Homeschool Adventures,Tasty Treats,Travels — Amy Scott @ 2:07 pm

October is here! Hip hip hooray! It’s my absolute favorite month of the year! I am an autumn enthusiast. Fall outings are the best and it’s birthday month for my boys. It feels like the whole month is one big celebration filled with fun. It’s hard not to love a month that feels like one giant party!

Last Thursday was a great family day. Jeremy and Papa were able to watch the boys at soccer in the morning and then our family took off for an afternoon spent at some local farms. We visited Rutledge Family Farm and did their corn maze. We found all the checkpoints in the maze and played their Who-Done-It game for the first time. After learning Clue this fall, the kids loved the mystery in the corn maze. They also loved all the extra games set-up outside the corn maze. Our next stop was Lattin’s Country Cider Mill and Farm. We always enjoy looking at the animals and grabbing a sweet treat from the bakery case.

Sunday, we hosted a Scott family shindig to celebrate the boys’ birthdays. We did an ice cream sundae bar this year. The kids each got to pick their favorite flavors of ice cream and I had fun trying to come up with as my toppings as I could. The kids enjoyed playing soccer with our extended family. The ice cream helped them all cool down after a good game. Then it was present time where Nerf guns were the theme this year. Of course, new Nerf guns meant a Nerf war with the cousins was next on the agenda. Add some pizza and another round of soccer and you have one epic birthday celebration!

Monday was another big day – Owen got his braces off! After a year of being a metal mouth, he is finally in the home stretch of his orthodontic journey. He still has his lower palate expander in – it should come out next week when he picks up his retainer. It’s been a wild ride and I’ve been so proud of Owen through it all. Monday night, we were able to see the northern lights from our backyard. We missed the big event in May and we’ve been hopeful that another opportunity would happen. It finally did! It was such a neat experience. I couldn’t stop taking pictures!

Yesterday was Owen’s 11th birthday! Jeremy was able to take the day off. He joined us in celebrating Owen all day long. Our morning was spent at the Cowlitz Salmon Hatchery. We visited the hatchery as a homeschool co-op field trip a couple of years ago and Owen wanted to see the salmon again. It’s a fascinating place to explore during the fall salmon run. In the afternoon, we met up with our co-op at the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge. It was a day filled with fish and wildlife which perfectly reflects Owen’s love of nature. Dominos pizza, Safeway chocolate cake, and a big bowl of popcorn completed Owen’s birthday celebration.

Every day feels like an adventure in October! I’ll be back with more autumn activities and birthday celebrations soon!

Blackberry Cobbler! Gotta love fall flavors!

My first time seeing the northern lights! So beautiful!

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Autumn Adventures! September 28, 2024

Filed under: Family Time,Homeschool Adventures,Travels — Amy Scott @ 1:41 pm

Autumn is my favorite season. I could be done with my blog in just that one sentence. But… that isn’t how I roll and you know it! Autumn is my favorite season for adventuring. I love fall activities and there is a sense of making the most of the good weather before the rain settles in for what feels like forever. Late September and the month of October hold my favorite traditions and outings! Lots of fun to be had!

Jeremy wrapped up his hunting season on Thursday, September 19th. He is more in sync with our family schedule again. It’s good to have him back! We planned a family adventure for the next day after hunting season. We visited a local zoo thanks to free tickets from our library summer reading program. We had the zoo mostly to ourselves. Homeschooling gives us the ability to visit places while others are at work or school and I love avoiding crowds! In fact, we talked to a lot of zoo employees because we were the only ones around. It was also a cool, misty morning. In the PNW, weather can also keep crowds away. The animal must love mornings like that, though, because they were all out and active! We saw animals we don’t usually see, like the Arctic foxes. The red wolves and clouded leopard were actively running around their enclosures. It was worth adventuring on a chilly morning to see active animals.

The zoo kicked off a busy week for our family. September was very quiet and then bam! For one week, it was not quiet at all! Friday was the zoo and we ran errands while in town. I came home in time to turn around for book club on Friday night. Saturday was a full day at church for our annual Women’s Conference. This year I led a crafting workshop after lunch. My hope was a simple craft would be a good outlet for ladies to sit, chat, and connect. I believe my mission was accomplished! Sunday afternoon after church, our church staff stayed to have lunch together, watch the Seahawks, and play games. Monday was the beginning of our annual staff retreat for Jeremy. I wasn’t able to attend on Monday, so I hosted a playdate at our house after school. Tuesday, I joined Jeremy for staff retreat… and by Wednesday, I was a bit peopled-out. I stayed home all day and recovered from all the activity!

Friday is our favorite day for family adventures. Yesterday, we visited Mt. Rainier National Park. We were a little early for all the fall color, but we were early enough that the marmots weren’t hibernating yet (we missed them last October). We also found a black bear foraging for berries. We weren’t disappointed that it was cool and cloudy. The animal sightings made up for missing a clear view of the mountain and the autumn colors were lovely. The mountain did emerge just before we left. It’s always an impressive sight! We love having a national park so close by!

That about sums up our September outings. I’m looking forward to all we have planned for October. The combination of birthday month and favorite fall traditions makes for the best month of the year! It’s almost here. Hooray!

Beautiful flowers that my mother-in-law grew and arranged! So talented!

Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium – The walrus was so friendly!

Cute little Baby Boos my mom shared with me!

Mt. Rainier National Park – I took so many marmot pictures! Ha!

Mt. Rainier National Park – a pretty place to wander!

Mt. Rainier National Park – the mountain emerged from the clouds!

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A Week at the Beach August 28, 2024

Filed under: Family Time,Simply Me,Travels — Amy Scott @ 2:15 pm

We just got back from our final hurrah of the summer – a week at the Oregon Coast! We stayed in Oceanside for the first time. It’s near a favorite of ours, the Tillamook Creamery (we visited three times on this trip). While the creamery was familiar, this section of beach was new to us. We loved discovering a new stretch of the Oregon Coast. Highlights from the trip include visiting the Yaquina Head and Bay Lighthouse in Newport, exploring tidepools, collecting rocks and shells, daily beach walks, a tour at the Cape Meares Lighthouse, and a walk to the Octopus Tree. We enjoyed our favorite coast restaurants – Mo’s and Pig ‘N Pancake. We visited Terra Del Mar and Pacific City for the first time. We visited Jacobsen Salt Co. and learned how they harvest salt from Netarts Bay. Jeremy and the boys tried their hands at crabbing and clamming. There was also lots of restful downtime around the beach house. We played board games, the boys got video game time, and I read many books! We appreciated the extra time spent with my parents and sister. All around it was a great trip and an excellent way to wrap up our summer vacation!

Collecting cheese samples at the Tillamook Creamery

Exploring the Cobble Beach tide pools by the Yaquina Head Lighthouse

Birding at Sitka Sedge State Natural Area

The ice cream line at the Tillamook Creamery was too long our last night, so we all got pints at Safeway. A tasty way to wrap up our trip.

Last beach sunset (with Jeremy photobombing)

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Kids Camp & Mom Camp August 14, 2024

Filed under: Amy's Bookshelf,Bible,Children's Ministry,Getting Creative,Parenthood,Tasty Treats,Travels — Amy Scott @ 2:08 pm

Last week was a milestone! Both boys are now old enough to go to summer camp as campers! Two summers ago, Owen went as a first-time camper while Graham and I stayed home. Because Graham missed Owen and Jeremy so much (my company wasn’t enough), he and I went last year and stayed with Jeremy in his cabin (Jeremy is the co-director of kids camp). But this year! This year they could all go and I opted (with the blessing of my husband) to stay home.

I’ve dreamt of a having a solitude retreat for many years. I’ve read from multiple authors who suggest solitude retreats at hotels or conference centers, but I don’t have the time or budget for that in this season of life. Staying home while my family went to camp gave me the solitude retreat I’ve been envious of without paying to go away. Also, as a homeschool mom, I’m in the background (or forefront) of most of my kids’ activities. I figured by staying home, I could give them some growing independence and a chance to make memories without me. It’s difficult to say that since I love making fun memories with my kids, but I can also release them to have good experiences without me. I’m looking at it as preparation for launching adults someday. Baby steps toward the main goal!

Summer camp is always a whirlwind of activity! The kids enjoyed snack shack, swimming at the lake, boating, paddling boarding, climbing the rock wall, smores, chapel, and time with cousins and church friends. Summer camp is such an awesome experience not only to have fun, but to connect with God and deepen friendships. I went to this same camp as an elementary student. I love that the boys are making summer camp memories in the same spot I did.

I enjoyed my own version of summer camp – Mom Camp! I definitely had a plan for each day I was home. I’m so happy with what I was able to accomplish! Some of my home projects included mopping, washing all the bedding, and washing the sofa covers (all tasks that are easier alone). I did a mini-spa night with Crest White Strips and a hair mask. I watched Unsung Hero, both the movie and the extras. I worked on a diamond art coaster craft. I’ve never done this craft before and since I’m leading a workshop on it this fall, it was good practice. I was able to make photobook of our Yellowstone road trip on Shutterfly. I did some baking. I took extra long walks. I enjoyed so many good books and did a prayer exercise that really set the tone for my alone time. Right before the start of a new school year, it felt like the perfect time to invest in my physical, mental, and spiritual health. I’m already brainstorming and daydreaming about what next year could hold.