Girlies being girlie!

Ken went to NC this weekend to play in a golf tournament with his dad.  He decided to give me the sweetest birthday present (a few days early)--a weekend alone with my daughter!  He took Harris with him so he could have some fun alone time with his Mimi. 

I have never spent an entire weekend with just one of my kids and it was such a treat!!!  We had a great weekend together.  Hannah took me out for an early birthday dinner on Friday night (isn't she sweet!).  We then went shopping for new fall clothes for her, which was fun for both of us.  We watched several girlie movies of her choice, decorated the house for fall, and then went to see "Cloudy with a Chance for Meatballs" on Saturday.  She picked the dinner place on Saturday night, and ordered a hamburger as big as her head.  I was shocked when she ate almost the whole thing--I even couldn't finish mine!  We had a sleepover in my room both nights, which was her favorite thing of all. :)

As much fun as we had, she and I have both missed the men of the house.  We are looking forward to their return tonight.  By the way, Harris had a wonderful weekend with Mimi.  She took him to pick apples on Saturday.  They also got to watch a college baseball team practice (where Harris was given a baseball by the coach) and went to look at some airplanes before leaving today.  Sounds like a great weekend was had by everyone. 

The last days of summer...

We are outside as much as possible, trying to cherish these last few days of summer!  It won't be long before the leaves start changing and it gets dark at 5:00 p.m.!  Here are a few pictures from our back yard and a "hike" we took at a nearby metro park.  We feel so blessed to have three really wonderful metro parks within a 10 min. drive from our home.  This particular one is smack dab in the middle of our city, but inside it feels like you are out in the country.  The kids love it!  

Big Man on Campus

Harry started preschool today!  He really enjoyed meeting the kids in his class and he likes his teachers.  There are lots of fun toys to play with, new things to explore (he loved the science center), and new friends to make.  After dropping him off, Ken and I celebrated our kid-free morning by going out to breakfast together.  It was REFRESHING!  Although I enjoyed my few hours of silence, it was nice to have Harry home.  The house is too quiet without him! :)

School days!

Here are pictures of my lovely little girl on her first day of school (yesterday).  So far, the transition has been wonderful!  She loves her teacher, loves her classroom, and is looking forward to getting to know her friends.  The BEST part:  I have wanted to WALK my kids to school for as long as I have wanted children.  What a blessing to live 2 blocks away from her kindergarden!  We have walked to and from school together these last two days, and it has been a wonderful opportunity to talk about life, to pray for her upcoming day with her, and to share stories of my own childhood school experiences.  It has been exactly what I hoped it would be.  I'm so thankful.

P.S.  The 2nd picture if of Hannah and her principal.  I was taking her picture out front and he walked over and asked if he could have his picture taken with her.  He is super nice and great with the kids.  She was, of course, tickled pink!  You can see it all over her face! :)

End of summer countdown!

18 days until the start of school!  We're cramming in as much fun as we can until then!!!

Garden Art

We're trying to cram in all of the fun we can before school starts in a couple of weeks!  Yesterday we went to one of our metro parks and participated in a kid's event on "Garden Art".  We heard a presentation from one of the park scientist and then got a chance to make our own art for the garden.  It is so fun to watch the kids learn more about the world that God has created for them to enjoy!  

Pizza night!

We started a "make your own pizza night" at our house this summer.  Here are some pictures from this weekend.  We are pizza fanatics, so this is a little way to have our pizza and save some moo-lah at the same time. :)