It’s amazing how quickly this…
became this…
He starts ‘school’ today.
Two mornings a week.
And I am so, so excited.
(He is, too.)
But I’ll miss my little buddy.
We ‘shore’ do have a-watt of fun to-geh-fer.
And share the best naps.
But he’s gonna have a blast.
And we will, too.
He didn’t even look back when he walked in.
I guess that’s a good thing.
This weekend we took a trip to the mountains.
We were supposed to go to the beach, but you know…there was a little something going on that kept us away.
I have so many pictures of our weekend away – camera and phone pictures -
But we don’t have reliable phone service up there, so I wasn’t able to upload much.
We picked flowers and made s’mores.
We went to our favorite antique mall.
We (well, the children) played in the creek in their birthday suits.
And Lydia gave us our big laugh of the weekend when she proclaimed:
“Nekkid is what makes happy.”
Here’s what you would have seen on Instagram or Facebook if I’d been able to post:
‘Real’ pictures to come tomorrow (I hope).
I’m a day late and a dollar short, but I wanted to share these anyway.
Find more Weekly Winners over at the lovely Lotus’ blog.
That was HILARIOUS!
Round and round and round we go. Where we’ll stop, nobody knows.
Sweet, Sweet Baby
Let them eat cake.
Friday Night Lights
Little Cousins
I saw that the i{heart}faces challenge this week was eyes.
I have several pictures of eyes that I really love, but the idea is for you to use a current picture.
I didn’t have one, but I was doing Alden’s 6 month pictures (I’m only a little late) and ended up with this one.
Oh, sweet girl. I love her to pieces.
And I hope to have the rest of her pictures done sometime soon!
Carter will be back at the same school as last year.
Lydia will join him there as a full-day Kindergartener.
We all greet the year with excitement,
But I would be lying if I didn’t admit it’s also with a twinge of sadness.
Time does indeed march on.
My, my…look how they’ve changed.
“Young boys (and girls) should never be sent to bed… they always wake up a day older.
And then before you know it, they’re gone.”
-Finding Neverland, parenthesis mine
I thought I was ready for school to start.
I have been frustrated with the kids.
They have been frustrated with me.
We have spent way too much time inside.
(But it’s just so dang hot!)
But as I watched the “Back to School” pictures post on Facebook,
I found myself thinking, “I’m glad that’s not us today.”
I wasn’t expecting to wish for more summer.
The days are long and exhausting.
I am frequently tired and overwhelmed.
(Even more so than usual.)
But we’ve had so much fun,
Made so many great memories.
Snuggled this little cutie.
Visited the wildlife rescue center.
Celebrated Gaga’s life
Did a lot of swimmin’!
Washed the car (and each other).
Celebrated our country.
Rode the waves.
Had lots of bedtime giggles at the beach.
Hit the lanes.
Played scientist.
Gave big googly eyes while painting.
And so much more…
So…so long, summer.
You were more than I imagined you would be.
(Also? I am not excited about having to set an alarm clock for the first time in months. Ugh.)
Today we tackled the chaos and the clutter. I’d say we’re a pretty good tag team.
Well, three outta four ain’t bad! I’ll get the table tomorrow!
You, my love, are five years old today.
Five - I can hardly wrap my mind around that.
I feel like we somehow skipped year four.
Has it really been a year since you rode horses with Jess?
A whole year of preschool behind you, Kindergarten now looms ahead.
I worry about you. (Needlessly, but still…I worry.)
Assertive and talkative at home, you hold back when you are out.
You know what you want and you are certain to go after it.
But you do it quietly, discreetly.
When you think no one is looking, you chat with your friends…
Using your vivid imagination, you lead your peers into a Utopian play world.
One glance from an adult, however, leaves you quiet and reserved.
You appear unsure, but you aren’t.
You are taking it all in.
Absorbing everything around you
And analyzing it over and over and over again.
(I know because I have a habit of doing the same thing.)
But you can also be tough and stubborn and unstoppable.
(I know this, too. I see it every.single.day.)
You dive right in and keep the boys in line.
You don’t hesitate to tell me when I’m wrong (or when you think I’m wrong).
You are kind and loving and caring, always wanting to help the littles.
You feel every thing so deeply, love so fiercely.
You are unapologetically you.
And I love that about you.
(And maybe even envy you a bit.)
Keep it up, my big girl.
Keep on being you.
Because you?
You are amazing.
And I love you.
Happy birthday, love.
I won’t lie; this week has been tough.
My days have been long and my fuse has been short.
Anna Alden is working hard on cutting some teeth.
Overall, she’s still a very pleasant baby…
But she’s cried more in the past week than in the past two months.
Summer is wearing on me.
I love the lazy days of summer,
But sometimes they are hard to fill.
Especially when it’s so dang hot!
But…through it all, I am constantly still amazed at all the small things that make me smile:
This week has been full and colorful and wonderful.
I have friends who are twins. Between them they have 4 kids.
I (obviously) have 4 of my own.
I was in charge of all of them (plus a friend here and a cousin there) this week.
We had so, so much fun!
We colored and tie-dyed and painted.
And made lip gloss and paper butterflies.
We made chalk (that was supposed to glow-in-the-dark).
We watched movies and swam and splashed in the pool for hours at a time.
This week there were a lot of small things, but we made big memories.
I may have stolen this idea from Heather, but she loves me so it’s all good.
