More on the End of Summer

Jeff has been wanting to take Jonathan out in the woods for some guy camping time. And since trying to sleep on a Thermarest is not very fun for me in my bulging state, I encouraged them to go without the girl-half of our family. When our schedule cleared out on Friday night and Saturday, Jeff jumped at the chance to go camping with Jonathan.

They had a great time together driving on 4x4-accessible roads, kayaking, swimming in a lake, and eating beef jerky. I think it was a special time for both of them.

While they went camping, Grace and I went to IKEA. I'm working on making Jonathan's room more practical as a shared room, and part of that is finding places to store Jonathan and Grace's stuff. After lots of measuring and planning, I knew what I needed to get, so off we went. It's a little crazy to go without help to IKEA, especially with a 16-month-old, but we did it and came home with everything we set out to get. I got more than one "You came by yourself???" comment from IKEA employees, but they helped me get my 72-lb. boxes from their shelves to my car, so I can't complain. Not only that, but kids' meals were free, so Grace got to enjoy some applesauce, mashed potatoes, and steamed veggies, and I got to indulge in some Swedish meatballs with potatoes. Mmmmm. Putting together the shelves I chose for the kids' room is going to take a lot more time than the IKEA trip did, but I'm working on it!