July 2023!!!

WOW, I'm behind, which is a total shame because July was our FAVORITE month so far this year because my nephew, Alexander, finally came out for a visit with Grandma!!! We packed a ton in for his trip - we visited the Grand Canyon and took the Grand Canyon Railroad, went to the Odyssea Aquarium, Legoland Experience (next time, Legoland!!!), took a ride in a driverless car, drove through a haboob (dust storm), swam in our pool and flew drones. We had a ton of fun. I think Alexander's favorites were the haboob, swimming, and all the ridiculously silly jokes told by our guide on the train. He wasn't quite accustomed to the noise in the house (poor kid). I will miss all of his big hugs, silly jokes, and him telling me "thanks for not yelling at your kids". I'm glad my restraint was appreciated. LOL.

For the 4th we rented a boat with friends on Tempe Town Lake. It was a ton of fun, but super hot. We were interviewed by the local news as we headed home. I think they wondered why we were out there when it was so hot. LOL. I was able to take a solo trip to visit with a friend in LA and go see John Williams perform with Gustavo Dudamel and the LA Philharmonic. It was sooooo much fun! Ben also did engineering camp - he says he wants to be an engineer when he grows up :).

Big congratulations to Craig's student, Sean Czarnecki, for successfully defending his dissertation AND big congratulations to Aunt Debbie for retiring!!!

Last but not least, Ben started 1st grade!!! It's been a tough transition for him so far, but we think he'll adjust. He'll be in chess club and taking piano lessons this semester.