Berry picking, ward party, and new calling

Yesterday was an action packed day with dad home. It was just what we needed since Spencer had been out of town, working in Philadelphia the last half of the week. We went blackberry picking out at Butler's Orchard in the morning. When I got out there and saw the blackberries I realized that I'd never picked this kind of berry before. I was shocked by their enormous size- I wasn't sure whether to put a whole berry in my mouth or take it in bites! Because of their different look and feel, the girls weren't even tempted with eating the berries like they are with raspberries and blueberries. Spencer quickly showed us the trick for picking the sweetest berries and we ended up a little basket of the yummiest berries. Madi totally got into it. Elle gave up quickly and resorted to the snack bag.

When we got home, Spencer fed the girls and layed Elle down for a nap while I snuck off to spend a nice quiet hour relaxing by the pool (very needed after being a single parent for 3 days)! Then when I got back, Spencer took Madi to the pool for an hour for her daddy- daughter swim lesson.

After swimming we headed over to Bar-T (our Bishop's place) for the ward party/BBQ. My girls never eat at these kind of functions, and we can always count on having to feed them when we get home, but it sure was fun to hang out with friends and just let the girls run around.

The Bishop's got so much fun stuff out at his place that it's hard not to have a great time!

When we got into the car to head home Elle was the first one to say, "That was fun." Madi quickly chimed in about having a good time. We got home close to 8pm, fed the girls a quick dinner while we did scripture reading and stories, then put them straight to bed. While I cleaned up the kitchen Spencer made homemade blackberry ice cream . So soooooo yummy- the perfect use for our freshly picked berries!

Today should probably also be documented because today Spencer was released from his calling as Stake Young Men's secretary (that he's had for the past 2 years) and then called as the 1st counselor in the bishopric (and ordained a High Priest)! The calling was extended to him last Sunday and I think he's been in shock ever since. One of his comments last week was, "Dang, I feel like I gotta grow up now." It was crazy to have him ordained as a high priest today- knowing that he'll never have to (I mean get to:) serve in the Elder's Quorum. It was also an awakening to me, knowing that I will now be on my own for the majority of Sunday's from now on. Today was especially exhausting because being a 5th Sunday, I taught the entire 2 hours in primary. I'd planned a super fun game and everything went pretty good, but it's just tiring to not get much of a break from arriving at church, trying to keep the girls quiet during sacrament meeting, and then going right into primary and being "on" for almost 2 hours straight! Then after church Spencer had to stay after and we hadn't yet figured out our plans with to and from church yet- not knowing when his meetings would be, etc. Thankfully, the Lundell's saw the girls and I getting into our car (Spencer was just gonna get a ride home), but instead they volunteered to let us hop in with them. It was probably more work than they'd anticipated, but we somehow managed to move car seats around (in the 90+ degree weather) and squeeze everyone in. I can already tell that getting a second car will need to happen in the very near future! Big thanks Lundell's for being so accommodating!