I.MISS.SUMMER!!!

I can't help it but I do. We went from lazy (L-A-Z-Y) mornings, fun filled days, and late nights to a bunch of running around, schedules, early mornings, and utter craziness!!! I am feeling overwhelmed. There seems to be so much to keep up with and I find myself living for the weekends. I know that isn't what I am supposed to do, but every single Friday I have such a joy knowing that the weekend is upon us! Then by Sunday night, there is a heaviness that sets in. Hopefully, I can get my life organized and begin to sinc with our new routine! It is sooooooooooo hard!!!! Anyone else feel that way???

Noah's First Day of Kindergarten

Noah started school the day after his sisters did. They break the K classes up according to alphabet and his name fell on the second day. We were all very excited and also a little anxious ( well mommy was).

I had to remake the same "first day " breakfast:



My big boy:



We had to bargain about the backpack. He wanted 'Star Wars' and I wanted his name monogrammed on it. The Star wars backpacks are made of a plasticky material and couldn't be mongrammed so........he got a Star Wars lunch box and thermos and I got the plain blue backpack. He did pick "lightsaber red" for the color of his name!



Silly boy:



Who wouldn't want to teach this little guy?



Noah, I hope that you have a wonderful year. I have been praying all summer that God would give you the teacher that he wanted you to have. I am trusting that you will learn so much with Mrs. U this year. I hope you always keep your happy and fun personality. I LOVE YOU!

First Day of Middle School:

Wednesday was the big day. Madeline and Meredith started Middle School. This is such a big turning point for us. So far, they LOVE it. I think they feel quite grown up. Here are some pics of the day:

Our traditional first day breakfast ( cinnamon rolls and scrambled eggs):





The backpacks they had picked out. You only put initials on your backpack when you are in middle school! No full names!



Meredith



Madeline



My beautiful girls:

Navarre Beach Part 2

The rest of the week just seemed to speed by. Of course it was not without its share of drama. I will not go into detail, but lets just say it involved things that were out of my control and I probably failed the test of going with the flow.

Mom and the girls



Went shopping in Destin and met up with the Embrys ( Meredith and Ally are best friends)



Noah and I on the balcony



Greg and I got to go out on a date because my mom volunteered to keep the kids. We had a very nice evening.



All in all, a very nice vacation. I can't believe the summer is almost over. We are on school countdown here. We are under 2 weeks now. Part of me is not ready, but part of me is READY! I think the kids need some structure and so do I!

Navarre Beach Trip 2009 Part One

We arrived home safely this past Saturday after a 10 day trip. It was alot of fun, but there is truly no place like home. I was so happy to sleep in my own bed. I am slowly getting things unpacked, washed, and put away. I don't have a ton of photos which is so unlike me. I left my CF card at home for my good camera so all I had was my Canon Powershot. Most days, I just didn't feel like dragging it out and as you can see, I have little people who do not like to cooperate. Here are some pictures of our trip that I did manage to snap:

We actually stayed in Daphne, AL for 2 days just to go ahead and get closer to the beach. The kids swam in the hotel pool and I did some shopping. Friday night, we drove to Gulf Shores to meet our friends The Smiths at 'The Hangout'. I Heart that place!!!! We also got ice cream at 'Scoops' and played a round of miniature golf. It was lots of fun!!!

Our Kids



Rebecca and Me:



Our Family:



We stayed in Navarre Beach this year. I did lots of research and found that this beach is known for being less crowded and commercialized. Truly, there are only 2 places to eat across the bridge and it has alot less condos. I still thought the beaches were crowded though and we ran across some snobby people who thought they owned the stretch of sand! The condo was nice. We had lots of space and the view was gorgeous. My parents joined us for the trip and we had a great time. It went by so fast though. We spent most of our days at the pool and/or beach. There was a very short walk to the beach which was probably the best thing. The funniest thing was that there was a lady who my mom and I nicknamed "the hawk", who sat under a covering near the pool and watched everyone as they went by. You had to have a bracelet on to be in the pool area and boy did she make sure that everyone followed through with that rule! It was annoying.



Noah ( the water was GORGEOUS)



Most of the nights we cooked in the condo or got pizza. One night we went to a place called 'Floyds'. It was ok!

Yep, this is what I get when I try to take a picture!!!



Part 2 tomorrow...

Signing off....for now...

We are heading out today for our family vacation. I am excited, but I absolutely hate packing. I always feel like I am forgetting something and my husband is the KING of overpacking. Seriously, he brings more clothes then me and my kids combined. YIKES!!!! Anyway, the last few days have been busy and hectic. I finally made it to get my hair colored and cut. It was in deperate need! Yesterday, I had my first meeting as a member of the PTO board at Noah's school. I have never been able to be an active member since I always had a preschooler around. Now I am jumping in. I will be helping with Fun Fridays which happen once a month. I was told this is an easy job......hopefully! The other woman that is co-chairing this with me seems to be very organized, so I think it will be fun! :)

I should be back in a week to update with pics from our trip. :)

4th of July and a trip to Georgia!

I have been on the road quite a bit this summer. Noah and I went to Gulf Shores, and just recently returned from picking up the twins in Georgia. Before we left, we did celebrate July 4th. We had a few friends over to enjoy a cookout and some fireworks. This is the first year that we didn't actually buy any fireworks. The neighbors put on such a good show, that we really didn't need to. It was great. Here are some pics of our evening:

CC, Lindsey, and Kaleb



Stacy, Madison, Logan, and Cole



Me and Noah



Those were the only pictures I managed to snap. I promise there were some men in attendance, but sometimes I feel like I am annoying people when I walk around with my camera. I just LOVE pictures though! Needless to say, we had a fun evening and enjoyed the fellowship! Two days later, Noah and I hit the road to Georgia. My parents keep my girls every summer for a couple of weeks. It has become a tradition that the twins look forward to. They have such a great time. This year they went to the aquarium, Six Flags, swimming, played nightly badminton games, played the Wii Rock Band with Uncle Nathan, and enjoyed keeping my sisters dog company! Noah and I joined them for a few days before heading home. We went to the pool:

Even though this pic is blurry, I love it. Noah jumping in! He is so active!



Meredith showed us her hula hooping skills



Madeline didn't want to smile but I took her pic anyway!!! Ha!



Here is what they enjoyed doing each night! I even played with them and it was so much fun. I had to run out to Walmart and buy one for our backyard!





I can't believe how fast the summer has gone. We are today at one month exactly until school starts!!!! What???? We have one more fun thing planned and that is our family beach trip. We are heading out this Thursday for a week. I know it will be fun and I hope I can savor the last days of summer! :(