Blackberries

This is the very first time since leaving Oregon that we have been able to pick blackberries. I have heard there were a couple of farms that had them, but the season is pretty short, and the available times to pick aren't always consistent. Every year I seem to miss it. Casey works with several different farmers in the area, and he knew of one farm that was ready for picking. So, we ventured out for a few buckets of scrumptious blackberries.

The picking went pretty fast, but boy was it HOT. It was nice and breezy until you entered the rows of blackberries and you felt like you had just entered a sauna. The air stood still and sweat began pouring off our faces. We started with two buckets and went back for a third, but I just couldn't do any more.

The fun thing about this farm is they have homemade strawberry ice-cream available, so we purchased a couple of cups and sat down to cool off and enjoy the breeze.

We made a few batches of jam, a blackberry pie(sorry, no picture. It was consumed too quickly.), and froze a few bags for later. I'm looking forward to enjoying several blackberry desserts this year! Thank you Moon Farms!!

Summer Job

Paying the boys to take down our bathroom wallpaper...

$$$Priceless$$$.

Pictures

This is the look I get when I ask my 10 yr. old to smile(without bribery)-

And this is the look I get when I take pictures of my two teenagers(no bribery needed)-

Hopefully it's just a phase.

Summer

School has been out for almost a month, summer has arrived, and the time is passing way too quickly. I cannot believe we are in the last couple weeks of June already. We have had so much going on these last few weeks, so here is a brief overview of our activities...

We had a new baby join our family. Joshua Charlie Ritz was born on May 15, weighing 9 lb.s 2.7 oz. So exciting!

Janelle suffered with gal bladder issues her entire pregnancy and had to go back into the hospital two weeks after having the baby to have it removed. Poor thing. They came here soon after, so she could recover and have help taking care of sweet baby Joshua.

We loved every minute of it!!

In fact, we just couldn't get enough. We argued over time with the baby, and fought over who would hold him next. There is just nothing greater than a newborn baby in your midst.

Once everyone was feeling better, we ventured out for some water activities.

Baby slept through most of it.

We enjoyed an afternoon at Menchies - yum!

A couple days were spent at the lake.

And again, baby slept through most of it(so sweet!).

There were several games of basketball played.

In the middle of all of our fun activities, our sewer line needed pumped. It was a stinky mess. Good thing we called them when we did, because another 6 months and it would have been a whole lot more stinky, costly, and messy.

I took lots and lots of pictures

Way more than I thought I did.

We relaxed, snuggled, shopped, and enjoyed every single minute we had together!

We are now counting down until our beach trip in July!

I LOVE SUMMER!!

Seventeen

I really cannot believe Cody is 17, and we are heading into his senior year. He was my biggest baby(all 9lbs. 7.5oz. of him), but he was my easiest delivery. I'm not sure how that all worked out, but I was grateful. My Aunt Bev flew in from Oregon to help. The hospital was about 40 minutes from our house. We lived in West Virginia, but the hospital was in Maryland. We made several trips back and forth over the course of just a few days. I was induced, and they sent me home. We didn't know if we would be having a Memorial Day picnic or a baby. As it turned out, we had a sweet bundle of boy. Time has went by so quickly. I am feeling older by the minute! I will try and slow things down as to enjoy every single moment of this next year with our Cute Cuddly(not so much anymore - but I still try) Cody.

17 Fun facts about Cody

1. He is quiet on the outside, but noisy on the inside.(quiet if you don't know him but crazy if you do.)

2. He does a great Gollum impression from Lord of the Rings.

3. He taught himself how to play the guitar and is really good.

4. He does not enjoy reading.

5. He loves science.

6. He's a good cook.

7. He's sensitive.

8. He's smart.

9. As a toddler he would bring in walking sticks, preying mantis bugs, and any other creepy crawly he could find.

10. As a 2-3 year old, he could identify any animal on the planet.

11. A hard worker.

12. A super saver. He will save his money forever.

13. Mexican Cuisine is his favorite.

14. He's an Eagle Scout.

15. Extremely competitive.

16. Self motivated and organized - don't touch anything of his, because he will know.

17. Collects hot sauce bottles.

And, he is fun to tease! We can always count on Cody to help out when things need to be done. We are so glad he is part of our clan. Happy Birthday - We love you Cody!!

Happy Birthday Andy!

Andy is the oldest and doesn't get featured too much on the blog, because he has flown the coop and has his own nest(family) to attend to. But since it is his birthday, we will dedicate this post entirely to him!

26 Fun Facts about our Andrew James Ritz

1. The only one of our children that was born in the same state as his parents(Oregon).

2. Broke his arm twice before the age of 12.

3. The most awesome Big Brother.

4. The only one of our children to go to Disney-world.

5. Mom - Has the most giving, compassionate and tender heart.

6. Kaitlyn - Loves his easy going personality and his love for Desitin(inside joke).

7. Cody - He is fun to joke around with and a good friend.

8. Ryan - He is nice and helpful.

9. Dad - He has a positive outlook on life.

10. Loves playing and watching sports.

11. A great daddy.

12. The most outgoing friendly child - would talk to anyone.

13. Loves to cook.

14. Very easy to get a long with.

15. Can be a little Diva at times - haha.

16. Sensitive and kind.

17. Loves Chocolate chip cookies.

18. Was nuts over Ghost stories and Ghost hunters.

19. Loves History.

20. Would take toys, books, anything to school and trade it for whatever. Had to take inventory of everything with this child.

21. Loves to read.

22. A good friend.

23. Loves the outdoors.

24. Enjoys life, doesn't sweat the small stuff.

25. Has an awesome 3-point shot. He may not have the height, but he does have the touch.

26. Always fun to spend time with our Andy. Looking forward to next weekend when I get to snuggle the newest bundle of boy. Thanks for making me a grandma and letting me spoil the little ones. We love you lots!!

Happy Birthday to you Andy-poo!!

Strawberries

It's that time of year again, and I am loving it. There is something so satisfying about picking buckets and buckets of strawberries, turning them into jam/syrup, and enjoying the fruits of your labor. The more I have, the more content I feel. It may sound crazy and it's back breaking, but I just can't stop, and the rewards are plentiful. We have enjoyed strawberry shortcake, strawberry bread, toast piled high with jam, and Ryan's pb&j's are better than ever.

This year picking has been tricky, because it has been raining most of the weekends, when we do the majority of our picking, so I've taken along some helpers during the week to get the job done. Avery was my first helper. The first trip was just to see how the berries were doing this year. However, Avery was most intrigued with the outhouse and how that all works, but we did manage to pick a couple of buckets. It was fun.

The next time we went it was serious business. The farm was having a sale. You could pick 2 buckets and get the 3rd for free, so I intended to get as many buckets as we could pick in the time we were there. I had more help this time. The two youngest were more interested in the taste testing, so by the time we left they were covered in strawberries. We managed to get 13 buckets in a little over an hour. Success!

Ryan really wanted to go and pick strawberries, so one afternoon he and I went and picked four more buckets.

He was a very good helper

But wasn't all that interested in pictures

He should know better by now...

You come with me, and you will be posing.

What a good boy, Thanks for the help Ry! (since it is consumed mostly by you & Seth.)