Days With the Duerksens

Happy Birthday, Delaney!  Apparently, this is her golden birthday year - turning 9 on the 9th!  She opted for homemade ice cream sundaes for her birthday treat.  And, since a volleyball net has been on her list for about 2 years, we finally made that wish come true! As a 9-year-old, Delaney is still her fun, imaginative, hard-working self.  She continues to enjoy playing with her Legos, playing with her sister, and is continuing with piano and exploring basketball and volleyball. She also has a growing sense of responsibility in caring for the animals around the farm.  This is a good thing since she continues to say her future goals include becoming a veterinarian.  We love you, Delaney!

The girls and I enjoyed a short getaway to KC with Grammy in early August.  Delaney actually hasn't been in KC before, so she was especially excited.  And Cambry has only been there a couple of times - once when she was only 6 weeks old!  We enjoyed our stay at the Sheraton on the Plaza - a hotel I was familiar with from an earlier girls' trip.  We were only there for 2 nights, but the girls got 4 swims in - that's really what vacation is all about for them:  the hotel and the swimming!  We were in room 1111 - the 11th floor of 18!  Delaney wasn't so sure about being up that high at first, but she soon got over it.  Our main stops included showing Grammy the public library - mainly the parking garage across the street.  The walls are painted as if it is a giant bookshelf - just amazing!  We also went to Crown Center, the aquarium, Hallmark Visitors' Center, the Cheesecake Factory, did some shopping, and arrived at the American Girl Store (as part of Delaney'

July began with baking for the 4H fair concession stand.  Cambry met a new friend at the event, Ellie Just.  She has been someone that Cambry now looks for at other 4H events, and this is one of the benefits of 4H.  She even invited her to our church's swim night, and they had a great time!  Hopefully, this is a friendship that can continue. We woke up on July 4 to quite the watery scene.  Over 3 inches of rain fell overnight, which led to the creek rising higher than I've seen it in a long time and water over the roads where I've never seen it go over.  The girls had a great time in the temporary water hole and Biscuit was frustrated that she couldn't walk where she usually does!  Luckily, our basement didn't flood this time, even though we were prepared for it! The creek is almost ready to run over the bridge Fair Time!  Cambry took 5 photos to the McPherson County Fair this year - with only one project, why not?  She came away with 3 r

We had a slow, laid-back, low-key kind of summer.  While I longed for a family vacation, I did appreciate the time I had to simply enjoy what summer has to offer:  sleeping in, time to read (for fun!), having time to work with my garden produce, baking more often, teaching Cambry how to take good photos (for 4H), and periodically working on school (or at least thinking about it).  Here is a "Summer Summary" in pictures: June highlights included summer basketball, wheat harvest, and practicing photography skills mainly.  Caiden did a fair amount of the soybean planting behind the harvested fields this year - a giant leap from the days he stood and watched Dad and Grandpa.  It's been fun to watch him gradually take on more responsibilities, with their guidance, of course! Unloading wheat at home Always planning! Filling up Filling up with Dad - one of my favorites! Walking home after the last field was cut! Caiden spent Wed. evenings pla