reflection...

This is the year that we hung the rope swing, planted potatoes, mowed lines in the grass, & got our bees. It's the year that Snow started texting, Emm scared us all to death when she got Sage's lead wrapped around her neck, the year that lightning struck the big tree right outside our back door. This is the year that we got the kite stuck up in the tippy top of one of our tallest trees, the year Daniel made bows with no arrows and wound wreaths from grapevines. This year we planted an orchard and Ben tore down an old building so we could line our walls with metal. This year we took apart the girls' bunkbeds, Ben started remodeling Daniel's room, and Snow went to California. This year Hannah had an amazing birthday with a surprise visit from cousins, we went to Washington D.C., and we all went fossil hunting in Pennsylvania, every last one of us. This year Ben & I had a vacation together in Florida. This year we watched the Olympics and the Breechers stayed with us for a whole week. Sadly, this is the year I found out that my uncle has cancer and my grandparents got divorced. This year we didn't really hike at the Potto that much. This year we took Owen & Sage to the beach for the first time. This year we started our deck and Emmeli will probably get braces. This is the year that we picked blueberries for free and the kids were not in the art fair. This year Snow will turn 16. This year there were hardly any mosquitoes and lots of raspberries. This year we read Ivanhoe, Robin Hood, Once and Future King, Five Children and It, Wind in the Willows, How the Heather Looks, Joan of Arc, & The Princess and the Goblin. This is that year.