August Photos

Grant has a clean desk ~ We found a frog ~ Campout with Daddy

Star Wars game with Wyatt ~ Emoji Movie ~ Slip N Slide Kickball at gymnastics

Lunchbox notes ~ Kip and Monk found treats in Korea ~ Millie's bug friend

Journaling with Wyatt ~ 3rd Graders in the tree ~ Grant's band "Loaded Money"

Brothers ~ Mimi selfie at school ~ Splits

Lego Creations ~ Millie ~ Lego Creations

Solar Eclipse 2017

The long awaited Total Solar Eclipse finally arrived! Levi was so bummed to be in Korea when the total solar eclipse was at 99.4% totality right in our own backyard!!! The weather was looking a little sketchy in the days prior, so we were praying and praying we would still be able to see it! The school had a fun day planned, so I headed on up there to sit with first grade (keeping their glasses on was a little bit of a concern). It had rained for some of the morning, but by lunchtime the clouds were clearing and we were hopeful it would say that way! It was SO gorgeous as I was walking up to school. But when we walked outside to find our spots, the clouds rolled in and they rolled in thick. We saw a few seconds here and there but most of it was a bust. With our glasses on, we could see the shape of the sun behind the clouds, but it was hard to see much. We did feel the cooler temps, the darker feel, and the crickets and cicadas started chirping. Even the school lights came on outside. So it wasn't a total bust, but still quite a bummer! Next time, we may have to road trip to totality!!!!

Summertime Froggy Swim

Last summer, the boys and their cousins found a frog one evening they named Billy. They swam with him for the whole evening until he finally hopped away! They were always on the lookout for another froggy friend they could enjoy the pool with. Well, Grant got his wish! The boys went downstairs to say goodnight to Mimi and PawPaw and Mimi was outside and saw a frog on the steps of the pool. Grant wasted no time hopping and to go for a swim with his new froggy friend! It was short lived as this little froggy was ready to leave the pool area and hop far far away! But it made Grant's day to finally find a froggy friend again!

First Day of 1st Grade!

My little baby boy had his first day of ALL DAY SCHOOL!!! How did we get here?!?! He was so excited and I hope his enthusiasm for school never fades because his attitude is awesome!!! He jumped out of bed and was so excited to get ready! He picked out his outfit way back when and could NOT wait to put the whole ensemble together (down to the socks and underwear!). He only wished his backpack was red and black so he would totally match! We walked to school together and took Grant to his class first because I knew his drop off would last 1 minute or less, which it did. We walked down to Wyatt's pod and he confidently walked into his classroom, found his desk, looked at the instructions on the smart board and got busy putting his things away. He had some fresh playdoh on his desk and he got to playing. He seemed very quiet and nervous, but once his buddy Matthew sat down two desks over from him, he perked up and started chatting, which was my cue to leave. After school, when he saw me, I got a giant hug and I could tell he was a little relieved to be done for the day! But he said his favorite part was having 2 recesses!! We went and celebrated his first day with a celebratory Blizzard and it was well-deserved!!!

Last night, as I was tucking him in, I prayed that his teacher would know how to teach him in the way he learns best, that he will have confidence from knowing he is a child of God and remember the God and mommy and daddy love him SO much, and that his year will be filled with learning, growth, joy and fun!! I will keep on praying those words every single day this year Wyatt, so you will love 1st grade even more than you loved Kindergarten!!!

First Day of 3rd Grade!

Can't believe we have a 3rd grader!! Time sure has flown! After Sneak a Peek night Monday, while walking home, Grant said, "Ok, now I'm excited for school!" The afternoon prior he was still insistent that he was not going to school!! But, he woke up chipper and excited and had a big 3rd grade pep in his step!!!  He's still such a sweet boy, letting me hold his hand while walking to school, letting me and Wyatt walk him to his class, and give him a hug in a kiss without the slightest hint of embarrassment. He was already getting to work when I left the room and my heart ached a little bit knowing I wouldn't be seeing him for 8 hours!!! I met him in the hallway at the end of the day and he had a big smile on his face and said he loved it! Recess went awry with a kickball game that turned out "disastrous" but all in all, he gives 3rd grade two thumbs up!!! We celebrated with our dessert before dinner- Blizzards!!!

I prayed over the boys last night and asked God to help Grant follow in Jesus' footsteps and grow in wisdom, that he will be the light of Jesus to everyone around him, and that this school year will be filled with learning, growth, joy, and fun! I will continue to pray this everyday Grant, so that 3rd grade may be your best year YET!!! 

Stand by the Sign

I love the tradition of standing by the sign each year! This year we have a new sign, which is kind of a bummer since there are no cool pencils or crayons or rulers to measure against each year, but I guess the new sign will have to do! We've been able to capture the first and last day of school with these kiddos for 3 years now and I LOVE it!!  

3rd Graders

2nd Graders

1st Graders

 And now the new crew of siblings get to have their chance to "Stand by the Sign" for yearly pictures!

1st Grade

 Kindergarten

First Day of School 2017-2018

My heart wasn't quite ready for these two to be away from me for 8 hours a day, but the day arrived and seeing how excited they were made me excited for them! And hey, a free afternoon to go out to lunch and shopping with my mom and a trip to Target alone isn't as bad as it sounds ;-)

After Sneak a Peek night on Monday, we all were excited about their teachers, their classes, and knew it was going to be a great year, so that made walking out the doors alone ok with me!

Its hard walking away from a building that is holding your whole heart inside there, but I am SO confident they are going to have the best year yet!!!

Date Day with Grant

Before school starts, I always like to take the boys out for a special date, one on one! Wyatt was at a birthday party, so it was the perfect occasion for Grant and I to have our date! He had been asking to try cheesecake for a while, so we thought we should do an afternoon snack date at Cheesecake Factory! He was blown away by how fancy the restaurant looked! We sat down and looked over the cheesecake menu and he was so overwhelmed with the choices, he didn't know what to choose! So, we got the chocolate chocolate cheesecakes (don't remember the actual name but it had chocolate in like 5 different places) and the cookie dough cheesecake. I am so glad I got a video of him trying the chocolate cheesecake for the first time- hilarious how much he loved it!!!! That one was definitely his favorite! It was so great spending that time with him, especially trying something new! After cheesecake, we went to Mardel to pick up a few things for my preschool, which he loves helping me shop for! It was the perfect date afternoon with my biggest fella!

Date Morning with Wyatt

The day before school started, we had BIG plans! Date morning with Wyatt, a birthday party to attend in the afternoon and date afternoon with Grant! So much excitement! Wyatt chose to go to Chuck E Cheese for his date morning. We went right when it opened, in hopes of beating any "day before school starts" crowd there might be! We got super lucky because we were the ONLY ones there, PLUS we got all the free tickets from them turning the machines on and giving them a test run! We hit the jackpot (well, figuratively speaking!). We got the run of the place and had a great time playing games against each other and collecting as many tickets as possible!! We were able to collect 300 tickets, so we had some decisions to make when it came time to prizes! It was tough, but a game and glasses were the final decision! So after we spent our tickets, we sat down at a booth and played our game he chose!!After we left CEC, we made a swing by QuikTrip for a slushie!  I just love that little man so much!

Staycation Stop #6: Bowling

It had been quite a while since we had been bowling as a family! I love a good game of bowling! Usually the boys are more concerned with hitting up the arcade, but they definitely got into the game this time! They each used bumpers but this might have been the first time Wyatt bowled without a ramp! They both did so great...but my favorite part was in between their turns when they would sit and snuggle together and do sweet things! It was the perfect end to our awesome Staycation!

Staycation Stop #5: Advanced Laser Tag

We were all super excited for this activity! Grant was the only one who had ever been to laser tag. We weren't sure what to expect, as he's only been to birthday parties and never to open play. We signed up for 3 games. The first game there were TONS of people in there- mostly some high school kids who were practically professionals! We sure didn't stand a chance against them! I got shot like a million times! The second game, the high schoolers were gone and there were a few other boys and moms there, so we did parents vs kids. I can't remember who won that round, but the kids definitely took advantage of trying to tag their parents out! The third game was just us a few boys Wyatt's age. So it was me and Levi vs. the kids. They all got a kick out of that- they definitely ganged up on me! Little rascals! That was such a fun activity that we will definitely be doing again!!!