Summer Jam

For the first time ever, we didn't have any kids participating in VBS. This year, all of us were able to serve as volunteers. Leah had the biggest role in our family...she got to star as Rosie, one of the main characters on stage throughout the week. She did a phenomenal job and we were blown away by her bravery on that stage in front of so many people. 

Caleb did a great job embracing the job of being a color leader. He was in charge of helping the red group get to where they needed to be and helped hype kids up throughout the night. He grew to have quite the fan base and was lovingly known as "Kool-Aid Man", which was quite fitting!

Tyler and I helped with games again. The only downside to that job is water night, but I managed to stay fairly dry! Joel did a great job with his first VBS serving experience as a group helper. It was so much fun to all serve together and we can't wait for next year!

 

Beach Besties Reunion

I know I say it all the time, but we are so thankful for the friendship that has grown over the years with our "Florida friends". Our yearly meet-ups in Florida might be behind us, but we still make sure to get together once or twice a year to see them and we always have a great time when we do! This time, we threw together a very last minute overnight trip to the dunes. They are from south of Indianapolis and had never been to the Indiana Dunes, so it was fun to share our love for the dunes with them. Plus, our favorite place to be together is the beach, so it just made sense to make this our next meet-up. We all had a great time hanging at the beach all day and then catching up at our hotel. We took an evening adventure to Dairy Queen and went to the beach to watch the sunset. The following day was Father's Day and the dads spotted the Bass Pro Shop right down the road from our hotel, so their Father's Day wish was to go there. We enjoyed breakfast together and then planned to head over to Bass Pro when it opened. We had a slight detour to urgent care with Caleb when he had a teenage moment of stupidity and ran at full speed on the treadmill in the workout room....with sandals on! He faceplanted and ended up with 2nd degree burns all over his legs and had a busted lip. I'm hopeful that he learned his lesson and thankful that his injuries were somewhat mild. We finished up our time together at Bass Pro and then parted ways, but we made sure to promise for another get together sooner than later!

 

Happy 40th!!!

We had a milestone birthday in the family this year....Tyler turned 40! For his 30th birthday, I planned a surprise party, so I knew I needed to come up with something fun for this new decade. This time, I didn't plan one big surprise, but planned a bunch of smaller ones. He knew we were going to head to Carmi for the weekend to celebrate, but that was about all I clued him into. We headed down on his actual birthday, June 1. When we got there, Aunt D was there to surprise him. Everyone was so happy to see her (the only other person who knew was Joel....I had to tell him because he was super upset about going to Carmi and missing his soccer tournament, but knowing that Aunt D would be there made it all worth it). That night, we celebrated with pizza and an ice cream cake....and lots of fun decorations!

We spent the next morning hanging out and catching up. The kids enjoyed the time with Grandpa, Grandma, and Aunt D. Leah helped a lot in the kitchen, Joel played tons of pool, and Caleb loved getting in lots of driving practice with Grandpa Ron. The next surprise came that afternoon when Tyler's best friend (who lives in Houston and drove through the night to Carmi) showed up at his parents' house. He was so shocked to see Matt and the two had a blast catching up all afternoon and evening. We ended the evening with a huge meal and more cake.

Saturday morning was more of the same....time to catch up and hang out at home. That afternoon, the kids took off to Evansville for a fun afternoon while we got ready for the next surprise adventure. We met up with Matt, Meredith, and Grant and headed to Evansville to see a hilarious comedian (Nate Bargatze). We had an awesome time and laughed SO much!

We woke up on our last morning and headed over to Uncle Randy and Aunt Sharon's for a yummy breakfast. We loved getting to catch up with them and definitely wished we had more time to hang, but they were heading out of town and we had to get back home before the busy week of camps began. Thankfully, we got the joy of bringing Aunt D home with us for the week! We loved having her here and treasured the memories made with her. Overall it was definitely a fun-filled week of surprises for a really special guy! We loved getting to spoil him like he deserves :)

 

Spring Recap

Spring Break usually serves as a great getaway before the busy Spring season hits in the Sturm home. We enjoy the time away where we can relax and rest up for the exhaustion that lies ahead! We got back from Florida just in time to celebrate Easter. We had a great day and enjoyed our Easter dinner with two of Nyla's friends before they headed back down to school to finish out the semester.

The school year began winding down and that meant all sorts of projects, tests, and other time consuming tasks. The kids all worked hard and pushed through to the end. I also felt like the end of the year couldn't come quickly enough. I've forgotten just how squirrely and distracted kids get at school when Spring hits!

Spring also seems to be the time when our to-do list piles up around the house. We checked A LOT off of the list, but one of the biggest (and most bittersweet projects) was getting rid of our playset. Thankfully, it is gone completely...just relocated to the Rojas house a few doors down. It was a tedious process, but Tyler and Iggy got the whole thing down in one day. Then, Tyler got the bare spots tilled up and seeded just in time for the rainy few weeks we had in April/May. It was great to get that project done and motivated us to keep up with all of the other tasks we've been putting off!

Leah had a special moment in her spring lineup...she got inducted into NJHS! We were quite proud of her and recognize that she's come such a long way in school. It isn't always easy for her, but she works incredibly hard and we are blown away by how well she does. Leah has taken on junior high like a champ. She is organized, rarely needs reminders to get things done, and is an amazing advocate for herself both socially and academically. She isn't afraid to ask for help and isn't afraid to stand up for what is right. We are so proud of her!

The kids kept us quite busy with all of their activities this spring. All three had several band performances. Caleb had a final performance and we are excited that he is continuing on with band next year. Leah's band made it to the state competition. They also marched in the New Lenox Loyalty Day parade. Joel finished out his first year of band with a great concert and even got awarded a scholarship for private lessons in the summer! Joel also used what he learned in band by entering the school talent show with his friend Ethan. They played a duet of the Harry Potter theme song and did great! Leah finished up another season of dance with a great recital and we are excited that she is continuing on with it next year. The sports schedule was also jam packed. Caleb finished up volleyball and the team did great overall. They were so fun to watch and we felt like Caleb really enjoyed being part of that team. Joel did another season of soccer and Leah played softball again. We spent a lot of time dividing and conquering, but managed to take it all in! It'll be so great to have the summer slowdown before the craziness of fall hits!

 

 

We are definitely ready to head into summer mode and put this past school year behind us! It's been busy and hectic and full of fun, but we are ready to start making some summertime memories!