It seems it's been weeks since I posted a family update! July has turned out to be a very crazy month for us here at the Knutson house. From celebrations to sadness, it's been a little of everything. Here's a few highlights:
July 4th weekend was so hot, but we still braved the heat to celebrate the holiday with our good friends Misty and Brandon, and their brand new addition, Madison. That morning we arrived at church with goodies in hand for all the girls' friends. Thanks to Lish at A Beautiful Mess: Project Alicia, we made some super cute red, white, and blue star shaped homemade sidewalk chalk. It was super easy, and can't wait to try some different shapes!
Then off we headed to Brandon and Misty's to enjoy a cookout and some fireworks. We used a FREE printable from
Twig and Thistle to create these sparkler party favors.
The kids had a blast (John David experienced his first sparkler burn. Do you remember yours?), and we stayed till late into the night, laughing and enjoying our friends.
The next weekend, we embarked on a family campout courtesy of our good friend's the Minters. We pitched our tent on their five acres in the country, and had fun cooking s'mores, and enjoying the outdoors. Apparently John David was having a rough couple weeks. He ended up with pretty significant "road rash" after a tumble on the four wheeler. He was very brave though!
The next week was my surgery, and I spent the next several days recouping. Every thing went very smoothly, and hopefully the " girlie maintenance" will help me in the future. The ladies at our church were fabulous, and helped me feed my crew with some really fantastic meals!
Last week, my sister-in-law has some very serious complications with her diabetes and ended up in the ICU for a few days. It was a wake-up call to all of us. She is doing much better, and after a new opinion from a new doctor is on the right meds, and regaining her strength. At one point I thought I was going to be heading to Tennessee to help out with my niece and nephew and try to be a help anyway I could. But our Lord is in the business of answering prayers, and Crystal, my sister-in-law, started making big improvements.
Then on Friday night we received word that our friend, Nat, had passed away. He had been struggling with cancer for many months. Preparing for his funeral, I also received word that my grandmother had passed away. Needless to say, when it rains it pours, but God is my comfort! We are heading out tomorrow morning to attend my grandmother's funeral, and help show my grandpa that he is not alone in his grief. Looks like we will be returning sometime on Monday.
Even though it's been a hard last couple weeks, we are looking forward to the month ahead with two big reasons to celebrate! Our baby boy, Luke, turns two on August 18th, and my best friend's son gets married a week from this Saturday! God is so good! Even when it seems you're traveling through a valley, you can be comforted by the realization that a mountaintop is just ahead!
