The Mergenthaler Family

We signed Ricky up for his first soccer experience this summer. He participated in a Tiny Tot Soccer team that played every Wednesday evening for 6 weeks. I was able to be an assistant coach (which doesn't mean much except that Andrew ran wild during most practices, but Emily and Makayla took pretty good care of him). Overall, the experience was OK. Remember that post about Lyme Disease last month? Well, Ricky just hasn't been himself since then. He was complaining of leg and back pain, was easily exhausted and unusually emotional. I took him to the Dr. three times in order to get to the root of the problem--a mom knows when their child isn't well and he was not well. The first two Dr. visits are documented in that other post. The nurse at the Quick Care Clinic said he had Lyme Disease (which at the time I didn't believe and I am sorry for that). She had him see his usual Dr. the next day to confirm with a blood test. The Dr. did not order the test and instead said h...

Rick got that nap he had been dreaming about . . . it only lasted about 15 minutes (if that). I got my hair cut. I donated about 2 feet of lovely locks. I don't love the new hairdo, but I don't hate it either. We have zucchini coming out our ears. I forgot to check the garden for a couple of days. When I finally got out there, I found a couple of baseball bats. The following is a picture of about 1/4 of what we have picked so far. I have made 4 loaves of zucchini bread, tons of fried and baked zucchini, and one chocolate zucchini cake. Yesterday, we shredded 5 one-quart size freezer bags full of zucchini . We have given it away to colleagues and neighbors. Still, that is what is left on my counter and there are untold numbers in the garden. As this is the first time I have planted zucchini, I had NO idea I would get this much. Rick said, he liked the stuff, so I planted 5 plants. I guess, for a family of 6, 1 plant is sufficient. This is also the first time I have planted ca...

I don't like being asked, "So, what are your weekend plans?" Not because I think people are nosy or because that usually means I'll have to sit through a list of all the fun things they will be doing that weekend, but because we rarely have any exciting weekend plans to share. Here is what our weekends are like: Friday Night: Date night. Probably the best day of the week--not because we do anything really fun because we usually rent a movie and eat ice cream. It is the best day of the week because both Rick and I get to spend time with each other just relaxing without any responsibilities. Saturday: Usually all work. Mow the lawn, clean the house, go to the kid's sports events if it is that time of year, and sometimes we have the missionaries over for dinner. Sunday: Church, naps, usually a family walk around the neighborhood, and sometimes games with the kids. That sounds like a great weekend to me, but usually when I'm asked what my plans are, I say, "...

Rick rarely looks at blogs (except ours) and rarely says anything about them. But, one picture caught his eye--there was a guy taking a nap on the couch. He told me, "See, his wife lets him take a nap on the couch sometimes." I agreed, but reminded him that maybe he has forgotten that he is allowed to do the same thing sometimes. He scoffed at my reply, "You never let me just take a nap on the couch." Well, here is my response to Rick . . . . When we were dating--this is at your sisters' apartment. With Emily and her "baby." I know you aren't actually sleeping here, but you were and woke up when I got out the camera. You and baby Makayla . . . You and Little Ricky . . . (OK, not-so-little-Ricky). Story time after church . . . I know it has been a long time since you have had a nice, long nap on the couch. Nowadays, it seems our house is so noisy that even if you are allowed a nap, you have to go hide in our room while the kids are banished to...

Oh, what do you do in the summertime when all the world is green? Go to the beach to play in the sand. Swim for a bit--maybe get a tan? Go to a parade and stand in the rain Just to get candy--are you insane? Celebrate Independence Day with sparklers and marshmallows---Hooray! Eat ice cream and lazily dream. Is that what you do? So do I!

After trying to catch some candid shots of the wildlife we see in our yard often, I have some bad, but not unexpected news . . . I will never be a photographer for the National Geographic. I don't have the patience, nor the will to get just the right shot. Besides that, I think the noise level of our house is a large factor in me not getting great shots. When I tell the kids, "Be really quiet, so I can get a picture of that bird before it flies away," their excitement gives us away and the bird is gone. I have a lot of blurry pictures of cardinals, blue jays, and goldfinches (the Iowa State Bird), but I won't make you look through them. Instead, here are a few pictures that came out OK. The geese were honking so obnoxiously loud, that the kids didn't scare them away. The beaver was close to the garden fence, but by the time I got the camera, he had waddled to the edge of the woods. It is a beaver, though. Believe me. I caught these deer eyeing my new fruit tre...

My garden is growing like crazy. I will try not to brag too much, but I really am proud of what we have here--especially after five years in Everett with a dinky, shady yard that I could hardly grow strawberries in. I built the garden boxes all by myself. It was a lot of work, but not that complicated. Ricky and Andrew helped a little (you know how that is). I began the project in April. I tried to work on it in the afternoons when it was warm enough outside. At first, it was a big mess. Within a couple of hours, I had one of the boxes built. Once the first box was done, the second box was easy and took about an hour. Rick helped me fill them with dirt and by May, the garden boxes were ready for seeds. Well, it has only been about 6 weeks and look at this garden! I have heard the goal for corn is "knee-high by the 4 th of July." Well, the corn is much bigger than that so far and still growing. Andrew and Ricky are standing by the corn, carrots, and cantaloupe . I just pl...