Tuba is 18!

I've been a Mama for 18 years. Our sweet Tuba had his birthday recently. 

He's now an adult and Cam and I have loads of official paperwork to do. We have to apply to the court for guardianship. This means that we will have decision making power over finances and medical decisions. It's A LOT. We are trying to save the $2,000.00 an attorney costs and do the process ourselves. We also applied for SSI for Tuba. This was also a ton of work but will be really nice when he is approved. 

Well, that's all the boring stuff that happened around his birthday. We did also have loads of fun.

The kids and I started the day with his favorite breakfast of eggs and bacon. 

After Cam got off work we took the family out for dinner....burgers and fries! Tuba's favorite!

Then we went swimming. Tuba's favorite thing EVER!! We tried a local outdoor pool but it was in the shade and really windy out. Instead we went to an indoor pool. It was tons of fun! The kids LOVED it....and it cost a total of $13 for our family. Bargain!

After the pool we had dessert at home. Raspberry shortcake with whip cream. 

Happy Birthday to my precious boy! Tuba, you see the light shining in the world. That light shines from you and your innocent soul. You delight in the little things in life. You notice the sunset every night and alert us to look too. You are fine tuned to the emotions of other. That is a beautiful gift. You love campfires, pools, chips, beads and babies! We love you Tuba!

The Slice

Outside My Window - Every night....a beautiful sunset.

Right now it's daytime so....It's summertime and I'm outside the window sitting on our new deck! The kids are playing in the yard on their new slip-n-slide. I tell ya...that is some good entertainment. It's hilarious watching them.

From The Kitchen - Fresh popcorn and iced coffee. I cook popcorn in a bit of olive oil and then sprinkle on some coarse sea salt. Delicious! The ice coffee is so good too. I don't drink coffee in the a.m. but I occasionally enjoy one in the afternoon. Today's drink is coffee, a bit of chocolate syrup and milk stirred together and poured over ice.

I Am Wearing - Teal shorts, a white embroidered t-shirt and black flip flops. I love flip flops! Hair in a ponytail.

I Am Creating - Order out of chaos....getting closets sorted and back to school clothes ready. Getting school supplies bought and sorted for each kid. That doesn't seem very creative...but it's all I got. 

I Am Going - To the salon tomorrow! Woot! Hair day and relaxation time. Love! 

I Am Reading - For book club we are going to read The Botany of Desire: A Plant's-Eye View of the World. I haven't started it yet. For now I'm catching up on all my magazines. I get Martha Stewart Living, Sunset, and Real Simple. 

I'm also reading an issue of Christian Parenting (issue from 1996) and Thriving Family, A Focus on the Family magazine. My new neighbor left them in my mailbox yesterday. 

Hmmm.....I wasn't sure what to think about this..... 

A. She thinks I could use some parenting help.

B. She is trying to evangelize me.

C. Both A & C. 

Ha!! I got a good laugh out of it. I'm choosing to believe that D. She just wanted to give me some magazines she thought I'd like. :) And actually the Thriving Family issue has some good info in it. 

I Am Planning - A few more trips to the beach before school is back in session. And a few more S'more roasts in the backyard. Mmmmmm.

Around The House - We have a new deck.....almost complete!!! It's amazing and I'll be posting pics soon.

One Of My Favorite Things - My flower pots. These are my Mother's Day pots the kids and I planted. I love how lush they get by mid-summer. I have five of them and now with my new HUGE deck I could use a few more.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week - Sit on the deck, go to the beach, get school supplies for last two kids, ride bikes, soak up the sun....

A Picture Thought I'm Sharing -