Welcome to Kindergarten and Roaring into 2nd Grade!!!

Besides being Gram's birthday, today was a HUGE day at our house. Caroline started Kindergarten! She was so excited and did so well for her first day. She seemed so happy with her teacher, and she loved that she got to go to art for her Specials class today. There were no tears from her, and she is set to go back tomorrow! She even got to ride the bus home with her sister today, which was a huge hit! This week they have short days, so the girls are only at school until 11:00 am. I think this makes the transition easier. I couldn't have been more proud of Caroline today, and I can't believe she is grown up enough to be in school full-time. I know she is going to have a wonderful year.

Allison was super excited for 2nd Grade. We dropped her off first, and she went right into the classroom. She came out talking a mile a minute, and she was very proud that she got chosen for homework the first day. She had to fill a sack with 5 things that she could use to tell the class about herself. She had fun filling up the sack this afternoon. She went to Science today for her Special class. She seemed like a pro with all the processes and procedures to follow. I'm so proud of her, too, and I can't believe how much she has grown up in the last year.

After school we celebrated with a Cookie Cake for starting Kindergarten and 2nd Grade!

Gram's Birthday

Today is Gram's birthday. We celebrated with Bill, Kristen, Katherine and Libby at our house on Saturay night with swimming and hamburgers. Of course, there was cake and ice cream, too! We were able to pull off giving her an annual picture of all of her grandkids. Getting that picture is always an adventure. This year we had a 2, 4, 5, 6, and 7 year old. We actually got a really cute picture, but there was only one! Maybe next year, or the next, will get easier for our picture taking adventure! Gram is worth the effort, though, and we all think we will enjoy looking back on their pictures each year. We all love Gram and are thankful that she is in our lives. Happy Birthday to Gram!

Girl's Night Out

To celebrate the end of summer Allison had three friends over for swimming, crafts, pizza, and a movie. There was much planning that went into this event, and a good time was had by all. Allison has been blessed with a great circle of friends, and we are excited to watch those friendships grow through the years.

Meet the Teacher

The night we had been anticipating all summer finally arrived. Nothing quite compares to the excitement and chaos in the air during meet the teacher. This year was more interesting due to the fact that we had to juggle two classrooms. Allison and Caroline were both so excited and wanted to spend lots of time in their own classrooms. There is also lots to do and lots to sign up for in each room. Caroline's teacher is going to Mrs. Small, and we all couldn't be more thrilled about that. She has one friend named Lauren that is going to be in her class, and lots of other girls and boys to get to know. She already has her assigned seat at her table, and according to her this is "very exciting". Allison's teacher is Miss Yruegas. She is wonderful and cares so much about all of the students. Allison's good friend Aubrey is in her class, and several of the boys from her first grade class are in her second grade class, too. We are enjoying our last weekend before school starts, in addition to filling out lots of paperwork! On Monday, we will be off and running!

American Girl Store

In an effort to squeeze in a little more fun before summer ends, yesterday we spent the day at the American Girl Store in Dallas. Allison brought Julie, and Caroline brought Elizabeth. Each doll got their hair done, and then we had lunch at the Bistro. Gram came along, too, for the day, and all the girls enjoyed the outing. I even think Will had a good time!

Summer Soccer

The girls had a fun time this summer playing indoor soccer. Caroline played on the house teams at Stampede for two different teams. One was co-ed, and the other was all girls. It was no surprise that she preferred the all-girl's team. Both teams struggled, but they had a good time and learned some new skills.

Allison's outdoor team, The Groovy Girls, played in the summer indoor league and did so well. Monday night was the championship game, and they won 6 - 1. Allison scored a goal! They had lost to this team earlier in the season 5 - 7, but they definitely dominated in the finals. Allison really learned a lot about playing her position during indoor this summer, and playing helped the whole team keep up their skills. Outdoor games start in just two weeks, so we are gearing up for a great fall outdoor season with the Mighty Dragons and the Groovy Girls.

Allison Gets Braces

Monday started out with some nervousness and apprehension. Allison was scheduled to get an expander in her mouth to correct her bite and make more room for permanent teeth. Braces across the top four teeth were going to follow about 6 months later. When we arrived, they decided that her permanent teeth had come down enough, so they wanted to put the braces on, too! It was definitely a lot for Allison to take in, and there were some tears. After about an hour, everything was in, and Allison did so great. She has the best attitude, and we all think it is really cool! The best part for her was getting to pick out the colors for the rubber bands on her braces. She definitively chose green, lime green, turquoise, and orange. I am so proud of her and think she looks adorable!

The World Aquarium

In an effort to do some fun activities with the kids before school starts, I decided to take them to see the World Aquarium in Downtown Dallas. They had all been before, but it's been 3 years, and Will definitely doesn't remember going. We started out having lunch at Spaghetti Warehouse. The kids really enjoyed eating inside the Trolley Car.

We spent about 2 hours inside the Aquarium exploring all of the animals and tropical rainforest. They were facinated with everything and spent most of their time exclaiming over all of the things that they saw. Will loved the sharks, and the girls loved the monkeys and the birds. The highlight was the Mayan Performance Troupe. The performers played with fire, and danced a butterfly dance. They made sure to tell the kids not to try the fire tricks at home. I was worried that Will was getting some ideas!

I have not done too many big outings like this with all three kids by myself before, but now that Will is getting older, I was ready for the adventure. I was happy with how well it went, and other than about 7 trips to the bathroom while we were gone, it was a perfect outing. I think we will be doing more things like this in the future.

An Outing With Gram

Gram has decided to take each of the grandkids out for a special outing before starting Kindergarten or First Grade. Wednesday was Caroline's day. She picked going to Sweet and Sassy to get her hair in an up-do and get a manicure and pedicure. As always, she picked blue nail polish, but this time she got a pretty flower on one finger and one toe. She always loves the glitter in her hair and the glitter stars on her face. Gram said she was grinning the whole time they were gone. Thanks, Gram for a special time with Caroline. She loved it!

Will Turns Four

Today my baby boy turned 4 years old. I can't believe it! He is turning into a "big boy" before my very eyes. We celebrated on Sunday afternoon with a Superhero Party. It's a good thing it was a swimming party because it was 107 outside. Our special visitor was Spiderman, and Will LOVES characters, especially superhero ones. His face was so cute when he first saw Spiderman.

They played lots of games, made sword balloons, and had cake and ice cream. Today I took him to get his hair cut. Will loves to get his hair cut, especially because they spike it so well for him! He also got to go to his gymnastics class, so he had a fun day. I am excited that Will is getting older and is able to do more things, but I am also sad that my baby is not really a baby anymore. I am excited to see how he grows and changes over the next year. Happy Birthday to my Will!

Becoming a Blogger

After reading and reading and more reading of other blogs, I finally decided to go on and create my own. I am facinated with the ability to capture the big as well as the mundane things that go on in our lives. I love the idea of having a way to formally capture the special times we share as a family and also to be able to share these thoughts with family and friends. I hope you enjoy, and I hope I can keep up with this new concept to me called posting!