Summer fun somethings begun

So this summer has kept us all very busy. A good busy though. I have learned that I can in deed handle 6 kids varying in age. My oldest nephew is keeping us on our toes with normal teenager stuff. My other nephew is a home body, who I discovered has a love for baking. So far this summer, Wyatt, Lana and I have made bread, a cake and some whole wheat Spenda mini M&M cookies. Wyatt has been so happy and excited about each project. It really made Larry's and my day when he was telling his dad about everything. Here are some pictures of our end products. Note: the cake has two different types of frosting on it. lana did the pecan side and Wyatt did the cream cheese side.

Each treat was delicious and brought two wonderful smiles. I love being a mom and an auntie. Now to have Wyatt makes something else.

Here comes the summer.....

        So it has been a while since I have last blogged and their is a good reason for this. I have not just been busy, I have been overloaded. Yes I have (and Larry) done it again. We have piled as much as possible upon ourselves. It's what we are good at and we succeed at it :) So for many people summer is a time of fun in the sun, vacations and down time, for us McCrackens it means complete as much as you would in a semester in less time. We love it though and it keeps us going and gets us to sleep at night, many times in mid sentence.

       Larry is transferring to UNM this fall but is already into his major work. He has a little over a year left (I can't wait!!). He is going for a major in Nutrition (a fav. topic in our house) and is thinking of a minor in chemistry. They go along really well together and the nutrition program requires a ton of chemistry classes. He is loving his classes this semester, 3 classes and 2 labs. They are each keeping him busy. I am finishing up my Social Work degree this December (hallelujah!), although I may continue on to Highlands Univ. for more schooling but I don't know. My classes this summer are a little overwhelming but do able. I am taking 5 classes and a lab. EEK! Three of my classes are on campus. Last month I took my personal training certification test and passed. WHOO HOO! I am a certified personal trainer now. I had been working on that while I was going to school and working. I am slowly chipping away at my goals. I plan to take a fitness nutrition program here in the near future as well. Larry is working on his personal training as well. He should be finished here in a month or so.

           So not only are we going to school, we have our two little angels. They are also keeping us busy as well. Lana has a trampoline and a swing set that she has really enjoyed and she got a new puppy. His name is Scooby Doo and he has kept us pretty busy so far. Now I am sure you are telling yourself, man that's a lot but I am not through :) On top of our two little angels we have three other angels that we watch. My nephews (who arrive at 5:30 AM) are here for the summer, which I thought 13 and 12 year olds didn't need much watching. LOL. Although they are independent they still need to be reffed. We also watch our friend's daughter aka Lana's best friend Emma. Lana and Emma really know how to keep a house busy :) It's a ton of fun though. Thankfully Larry is here to tag team with me.

        Since Larry and I have our schedules worked out pretty well there is even some time for the gym. Oh what a wonderful bliss hour it is. I love the gym, there is nothing like lifting weights to clear the mind and strengthen the body. My weights have gone down since I stopped lifting about 3 months into this last pregnancy. Larry and I have also been riding our bikes to school. That is some nice alone time as well. Somehow we achieve all of this, plus our mini projects and somehow get our homework done. Mini project= 1994 5.0 Mustang. We also have a 1968 Cougar (Vicky you may remember this machine cruising our neighborhood). Both are at a stand still until we are completely fixed on a good schedule.

     I can't wait until we are done with school, but I have no clue what we will do with the extra time. We are hoping to put Lana in ballet this November. She really wants to dance and we are putting the word out that a wonderful present would be a month of dance lessons for her. That means less stuff in our home and our pickle can live her dream.

   Thankfully Larry did some housework while I was at school today, kids are down for naps and I could finally write! I hope to have some pictures sometime soon!! If I am MIA for a while that means this semester got crazy.