The Amell Family Blog

Our July has been filled with some fun and some hard work. Everything seems to blur together when I try to remember what happened and when it happened, but one thing I know is that we had an awesome time at a BBQ with family and friends on Canada Day! We enjoyed great company, great food, and great conversations. Then, I persuaded Josh to take the boys downtown to see the fireworks which Joshua was thrilled for. He was the only one still awake at that point to enjoy them. Jonathan was asleep on his floor; he couldn’t even make it to his bed. Joseph went with Josh and Joshua, but fell asleep in the car. Jordanna and Jonah were both fast asleep long before the fireworks. We were going to go back and watch the July 4 fireworks, but we were too tired that day to go. That is another perk to living along the St. Lawrence River, we get 2 fireworks displays!

Soccer is going great. We did get smoked out with the wildfires a few times in May or June, but the season has been running smoothly in July so far. The rain has held off for Joshua’s games. His team is undefeated so far and they are playing so well together! Josh and I have also been volunteering to help with the soccer camps in the mornings that are run at the soccer club. The camps are such a great way for the kids to learn extra skills, have fun, and hang out with kids their own age. They get t-shirts and lunches included! I notice a huge difference in their skill levels every time they finish a camp or concentrated skills development camp.

We also got a dog! He needed to be rehomed and for whatever reason, God was calling us to take him in. He is such a nice dog albeit he definitely still tries to be the boss, but he is learning that he is not. Bosco has calmed down towards his and in general is more relaxed since we brought Murphy home because now he barks at and chases Murphy around the house instead of the kids. It’s hilarious! After a week of touch and go, the dogs have finally accepted each other and have, for the most part, figured out the pecking order. I think Murphy will be a great addition to the family for sure and the kids love him!

The kids have been at the TISS track practicing their track and field. So far they have been focusing on technique, form, and the 100m distance. Jonathan’s time is about 17.13 seconds (I believe) and Joshua is down to about 16.47 seconds which I believe are great times for their ages and in the beginner stages of training. As long as they have fun and enjoy it, then I think that is what matters most. They are both so good at running though so I definitely hope the enjoy it and stick with it! They have also been to the beach a couple times. I definitely want to get their more now that I’m done the school prep work.

Josh has not yet officially started his final studying session for work. He has been going to the gym though which I think is making him feel great in mind, body, and spirit which is amazing! He has been wanting to get back into the routine of working out ever since I derailed him about 6-7 years ago. I have been encouraging him to get to the gym and I hope he sticks with it! I have not been going to the gym and have been setting an alarm to get up and get walking on the treadmill, but so far, the alarm has just been waking me up so I can turn it off. One of these day I will get my butt out of bed and get walking. I just have to figure out a morning nursing routine that will get me there, but I am not overly worried about it. I am also getting warts on my feet looked at that are quite painful, so that is another reason I am not in a huge rush to get on my feet more. Who knew that ignoring health problems for 3 years would create more of a problem …… yes I know! Me! But at the time you think it’s just going to go away on it’s own, and “who knows what that thing on my foot is but it will sort itself out” has been my mantra! Now, it may be a slower road to getting rid of them since I am nursing, but they can attack them with vigor when I stop. The great thing about Asics though is that even when your feet are sore, the shoes are still comfy!

Jonah is now 5 months old! He is rolling over, laughing, babbling, giggling, and just such an all-around happy baby. He’s trying hard to jump around and is having tons of fun in the excer-saucer. He’s starting to get some lift when he is on his tummy and I can’t believe that in a few months, he will be crawling around here! He is such a fun addition to the family. A soul like his is a great encouragement to stay happy, bashful and loving!

The garden weeds have arrived with a vengeance. I thought tilling everything would help them go away but noooo….. just like Aunt Flo they come whether they’re invited or not! It’s becoming a one-foot tall rainforest that I do plan to attack very soon! The weeds are literally trying to strangle the bush beans so I need to mediate. The ironic part of it all is that this past Sunday’s Gospel reading was about the farmer who grew wheat and the weeds that were thrown in afterward. I will need to be careful dealing with my weeds because they will uproot my plants, but unlike the parable, I can’t wait until harvest time. I’m going to use pruning shears and cut them back.

Another funny thing is that we have beans and tomato plants growing everywhere. Last year at the end of the season, I let everything die where it was planted. Well, after tilling the soil this spring, it has spread the seeds around and they germinated! So, even though my tomato plants died, new ones have germinated. Plus, a very kind family in church gave us some of their tomato and pepper plants after hearing about what happened to ours. I still have to plant them though. That is for tomorrow though.

The boys went to a wrestling event in mid-July that a friend of Josh’s is involved with. Our friend was able to get the floor seats and the boys had a blast. Almost too much fun! Then, the following weekend we picked raspberries from the berry farm near us. We wanted to pick strawberries to make jam, but they were out so we picked raspberries which I have now discovered taste amazing! Just don’t chew them! The trick is to just kind of mush them up with your tongue and taste the flavour of them and them swallow them. I despise the seeds so this technique has worked out well for me and they taste so great!

To end off the month, Joseph finished his first season of Timbits soccer with our soccer club. The Club had a bouncy castle and the Fire Department came out to hose them all down after they were done. It was so amazing and the kids had a blast with it. I think the fire fighters almost had more fun playing target practice with the kids and parents though. I definitely feel blessed to live in a community that comes out to support the youth.

We have some super fun events planned for August though! I definitely would have liked to have gone to the beaches and parks more this month, but we just didn’t get there. Josh does not go back to work until mid-September and the great thing with homeschooling is that we don’t have to start doing schoolwork until Josh is back to work.