First day of school

 It's back to school again! Jack is kicking off his senior year, ready to rule the school and dispense some wedgies, swirlies, and noogies to deserving underclassmen. 

And Miss Ellie is kicking off her sophomore year with her sassy self

Besties

 Ellie with two of her besties, Bella and Hailey  

Great Falls

 When the kids were younger we'd go on a lot of hikes at Great Falls. It was such a beautiful day that we thought we'd enjoy it at the falls. 

Loopy Jack

 Jack just had his wisdom teeth out. All is well, but yeah, that first day - a bit loopy, my friends. I promised I wouldn't record him in his loopy glory, but I just couldn't resist one little photo. 

Little Lost Lulu

 Oh my goodness, we almost lost our Little Lulu. Ellie had a bunch of friends over for a pool party and sleepover, and things were a bit crazy. At some point Miss Lulu got out ... and we couldn't find her for HOURS. Six hours to be exact, until we finally found her....

...down here - where she had apparently fallen into the storm drain. Jared got the lid off, climbed on down and rescued our damsel in distress. We're so glad our Lulu is back home and safe!

Working Out with Lulu

 I work out early in the morning, and Miss Lulu likes to come work out with me. Which makes things .... interesting.

Lulu's Vacay

 While we were in South Carolina, Miss Lulu had a little vacay at Grandmom's. We were a little nervous at first to leave her there, but we shouldn't have worried - not only is Grandmom a master pet sitter, but Lulu is a brave little kitty who quickly ruled the roost. 

This is Us

 We were able to get a quick family photo on the 4th. 

Happy Independence Day!

 This might be the last time that Peter and Robyn host the 4th festivities at their current home, so they were sure to go all out with this year's party - water fun, cornhole tournament, an inflatable obstacle course, volleyball, caricatures, and of course crabs. It was a great party, and wonderful to see all the family.

The available Candlands 

Grandmom and Granddad with John, Matthew, Thomas, Peter, Ben, me, and Jeanette 

the annual cornhole tournament

caricature drawing 

Ellie's on the go

 Watch out, northern Virginia, Miss Ellie is starting to drive! Well, in the parking lots so far, but soon on the roads! Hopefully by the time she finishes her practicing I won't be quite so terrified by this concept. 

What is not terrifying but is quite impressive is Ellie's devotion to exercise. She's been working out faithfully 6 days a week, sometimes a couple hours a day. You go girl!

Fun in South Carolina

 I am happy to report that the Sorenson Clan survived a long road trip without any bloodshed! Indeed, not only did we survive, I daresay we had a good time.

We took a quick summer trip to South Carolina. We first made a stopover in Richmond to drop off the kitty (who, alas, still does not get along with the dog) with Grandmom and Granddad and to spend the night there. Bright and early the next morning we hit the road to head down south to Charleston. We spent a couple of days there, enjoying the food and doing a bit of sightseeing. Then it was off to Myrtle Beach for some fun in the sun. After another quick stop in Richmond, we arrived home - safe and sound and still speaking to each other. Road trip ... success!

How to survive a long road trip ... sleep through it

the USS Yorktown in Charleston

On the ferry to Ft. Sumter

Dinner out on the water in Charleston

Food tour in Charleston, starting with some barbecue (it doesn't look all that impressive, but it was tasty)

she-crab soup, shrimp and grits, hush puppies, and some cheese spread

Someone has had enough of touring graveyards 

Hee hee hee 

I don't even remember what this was called - but it was tasty 

As was this - we tried to recreate this at home and got .... kinda close 

Driving through Charleston 

Breakfast at Vicious Biscuits - super yummy - even the oatmeal was decadent 

And on to Myrtle Beach! This was the view from our hotel 

And....on the road trip back