Everything's Ernest: July 2026

Thursday, July 9, 2026

Skylar's Cheer Camp

Skylar switching from dance to cheer has truly been such a blessing. She has really been enjoying every minute of it and, best of all, she never complains about having to head to practice—even during the summer!

She recently attended her first cheer camp with her team at USD, where they spent three days learning a bunch of new skills, stunts, and routines. At the end of camp, they performed everything they had learned for their parents and the other teams. Skylar even got to stay in the college dorms with her teammates, which made the experience even more fun and memorable.

The three days were definitely long and exhausting, but the girls still managed to have a couple of fun nights filled with themed activities and games. Her team did an amazing job and came home with several top ribbons and trophies for their performances!

We are so excited to watch our girl cheer all year long and couldn’t be happier to see her loving this new adventure!

Saturday, July 4, 2026

4th of July

The kids had such a great 4th of July this year! They both headed down to the beach for the first part of the day, but it was absolutely slammed. According to Skylar and her friends, it was shoulder-to-shoulder and basically standing room only. They didn’t end up staying too long because the crowds were just so overwhelming, and they quickly got over being there.

Skylar and her friends eventually headed back to Grace’s house, where Jake and I were hanging out with the adults. They swam for a bit before getting ready for the evening festivities, which included a house party with all of their friends.

Madden, meanwhile, spent the afternoon at the beach with his new group of friends that he’s been hanging out with all summer. They were there from about 12:00–6:00 before heading over to a friend’s pool. He ended up having such a fun day that I didn’t even pick him up until after the fireworks! It was definitely a great 4th for both of them, just in very different ways!