Back to School Again

 Like it or not, today marked the first day of another school year!

This year I dropped off TWO kids at school!

I still can't believe we have a 2nd grader AND a Kindergartner!

It doesn't seem like it was that long ago when my days were spent playing cars, superheroes, reading stories, and laughing with these 2 sweet little boys...

Jonah looked so grown up in his desk all ready to go for 2nd grade! 

He very carefully placed his school supplies in his desk rearranging them multiple times last night at the open house before I cut him off and told him we had to go. 

Not before he sharpened a few pencils so he could be ready for work today.

He was in tears last night after we left the open house last night.

I was afraid it was because he hadn't gotten the teacher he hoped for, but it was because he wished he could just start school then and not wait another whole day!

Adorable!

Elijah was VERY excited to have the same teacher as Jonah had and seemed super excited for Kindergarten. 

He, on the other hand, just threw his school supplies into his desk and when I asked him if he wanted to place them in his desk neatly he said, "nah, that's okay" and proceeded to shove more things inside and slam his desk shut. 

He seemed very excited until he tearfully came to me last night and said, "I have to be honest, I am afraid I might miss you tomorrow. How long am I at school again?"

I was secretly happy to hear this because Jonah was never worried about missing me nor did he miss me while he was at school. 

However, it did make me nervous for the first day and I knew that I would burst into tears if he did.  

I told Elijah it was okay if he missed me and that I would miss him too, but that he wouldn't even notice I wasn't there because he would have so much fun in Kindergarten. 

Then I prayed that would be true for him!

He asked again how many hours it would be and I knew the actual number would freak him out so I told him it would be after lunch and after Isaac's naptime. 

He breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Oh good! I was hoping you would pick me up before supper!"

Fortunately, the chaos of getting all of us ready to get out the door trumped any tears that may have flown from myself or Elijah. 

Both boys were so excited they had their shoes and backpacks on a good 30 minutes before we needed to leave the house! 

Grandpa stopped by to wish them good luck and Grandma Teresa and Aunt Nikki called to wish them good luck too!

Unfortunately, the lack of extra time meant I was unable to take many pictures. 

Elijah looked a bit bewildered when I left him in his class...

Isaac was having a hard time with this too!

He wanted to go to school also and had brought an empty backpack he found in the basement. 

I had planned on taking him to daycare for the morning so I could run some errands and get a few things done. 

I also thought it might help him through this transition as he LOVES our daycare!

He told me on the way there that Livie couldn't come because he was going to school at Helens!

He also wanted me to take a picture with Helen, "just like the boys" and was pretty proud of this shot...

When I picked the boys up they were so excited to tell me about their days. 

Elijah's favorite parts were reading the kissing hand book, going to the library, the prospect of gym class tomorrow, the whole hot lunch experience (he was pretty proud he had remembered his lunch code), and that he realized he knew a few kids in his class. 

Jonah said he was just "so happy to be back at school again" but bummed that they had to listen to so many rules all day long and didn't have much time for learning! 

Isaac reported that his "school" was good and he had a great day playing with his best buddy (Brooks) at Grandma Helen's. 

Everyone was a bit tired this evening and I am praying for a good night sleep for us all!

Looking forward to hearing about the second day of school tomorrow!

Jonah was so excited he had a hard time settling down once he was in bed, but moments later I found him fast asleep!

Praying for a great year of learning, exploring, and growing for all!

Painted Piggies

Anyone who knows me well knows that my toenails are always painted. 

My boys even comment if it my toenail polish is coming off ;0)

Since having a daughter, I have been dreaming of doing fun girlie things with her as she grows up. 

One of these is painting our nails together.

I have many fun memories of having girlie time with my mom and sisters while painting our nails or having them painted. 

I found some kid friendly nail polish awhile ago and thought I would save it for Olivia's first birthday.

However, I repainted mine the other day and she noticed the sparkles and was fascinated with it.

I bought the Piggy Paint at Adley Annes (one of my favorite places to shop for baby things).

If you have never been you should check it out! 

I just couldn't resist so I decided to try painting hers. 

Jonah was very intrigued by this and took a few pictures of the process for me.

I was very impressed with how still Olivia sat while I did it. 

She watched very patiently as I painted each toenail and dried them with a hair dryer (per instructions on the bottle). 

Then, when we were done she babbled and shrieked with joy as she inspected them. 

It may have made me get a bit teary. 

Hopefully we will have many more girlie-nail-painting sessions!

Jonah enjoyed watching the whole process and even wanted his own toenails painted. 

While he has had them painted before, I decided I better wait until I can get a hold of a less feminine color before doing so. 

I guess we could have a family nail painting night! I am sure Richard would LOVE that!

An Olympic 6th Birthday

Elijah had an Olympic themed birthday party this year!

During our trip to Iowa we were able to watch quite a bit of Olympics and the older boys really got into it.  On the way home from Iowa I realized his birthday was the next week and school started the week after. I also realized I worked the next 4 nights and would have to throw a birthday party together rather quickly!  

Thankfully my mom helped out by ordering some Olympic themed party supplies!

I was also able to find a party on pinterest with TONS of great ideas!

It was a bit stressful getting the house cleaned up and ready for the party, but we managed to get it done just in time! I owe a BIG thanks to my mom and sister laura who made the "uniforms" for me and came over that morning and helped out!!!!

Here is the porch all decorated for the party...

Each kiddo got a Team USA "uniform" (t-shirt), a star straw and flag as their souvenir. 

They also each had a name tag.

We had patriotic fruit: watermelon & blueberries.

Elijah was a little disappointed we had a medal for everyone since he wanted it to be like the real Olympics where there is just a gold, silver and bronze medal for each event.

I vetoed that plan explaining we would have a few tears from his friends if we did it like that and they most likely wouldn't be tears of joy!

Elijah thought he should get the most medals since it was his birthday and all.

Richard and I teased him that he was Michael Phelps.

He was quite pleased with that idea. 

Here is the awesome Olympic cake that my talented sister Laura decorated!

Olivia even joined in the Olympic spirit!

 Here is the crew minus 2 who weren't here yet...

We also had "olympic torch" treats (popcorn in ice cream cones)

Only, I didn't realize how small the ice cream cones were until minutes before the party began when I opened them.  Elijah was still excited to use them so we took a picture and ate them right away.

The kids did great with the "olympic games" we had planned.

We did a little archery...

Played a little soccer, ran sprints on the sidewalk, and their favorite was an obstacle course that we set up.  Each kid had to crawl through a tunnel, jump over a foam sword I held up, run around the tree, jump over the tunnel and shoot a basketball in the hoop as quickly as they could. 

Here is everyone waiting patiently for their turn...

Isaac demonstrating (then my battery died....so I didn't get any more pictures of this)

After lunch Elijah wanted to open presents and was thrilled with the wonderful gifts he received.

 He was also quite excited for cake and ice cream. 

"Happy Birthday To You"

It was a great party and I think everyone had a blast! 

We are so thankful for the wonderful friends in our kids' lives!

Elijah,

  

   I am not sure how it feels like just yesterday I was holding you for the first time

And now you are 6 years old and starting Kindergarten in a few days!!!!!!

I am so proud of you and will miss playing legos, exploring parks, and being part of your imaginative play during the day!

I will also miss all your help with your little brother and sister during the day!

I am so thankful that God chose me to be your momma and I pray God will continue to help me as he shapes you into the young man he plans for you to be!

I pray your 6th year will be filled with lots of adventures, lots of learning, growing, and hopefully no more broken bones!

Love Your Momma

Nude in the neighborhood

Last night we were getting Olivia and the boys ready for bed and Richard took Isaac's diaper off, handed it to him and told him to throw it in the garbage, go pee, and come back to get his pjs on.

I was in Olivia's room and heard his little feet running into the other room and then we both heard the front door open????

Richard and I ran to the living room and watched as our nude 2 year old ran to throw the diaper in the garbage outside (most often we throw the diapers outside when they are stinky so he must have thought this is what Richard meant). 

Then we saw him come back from the side of the house where the garbage is and pause to pee in the grass.  Then he came scurrying into the house proud of himself for doing what he had been told and probably because he was able to do it in the nude!

We scanned the perimeter to make sure any neighbors hadn't witnessed our little nudist, and we congratulated him on obeying, but reminded him that he can't go outside nude.

Oh, life with boys! 

Road Trip Summer 2012: Part 1

Last week our family I packed our suitcases, and we loaded up the suburban and headed on a fun filled road trip to Iowa where we lived for 8 years and moved from 4 years ago. 

It was overwhelmingly a bit stressful getting everything ready to go before we left, but we managed to pull away from our house only 3 hours after I had hoped we would leave ;0)

Since moving back 4 years ago, we have only all made the 12 hour trek back to Iowa once and Jonah and I were able to sneak back 3 years ago for a good friend's wedding I was in.

So for the sake of vacation, relaxation and keeping this momma sane, we broke the trip up and spent a night in Minneapolis both ways. 

ALL the kids did spectacular in the car and totally surprised me since they struggle to make it to Fargo without melting down normally!

What a blessing!!!!!!

Once we made it to the hotel, we did a little relaxing

and the boys went swimming....

while Olivia and I waited for a good friend of mine to come visit. 

She had worked in Grand Forks with me and moved away a few years ago. 

She graciously agreed to come to our hotel to visit and it was so wonderful to see her!

I was also able to meet her son Declan, who happens to be only a few days younger than Olivia!

Isn't he adorable?

Missy and I with our babies...

It was so fun to see her (and her hubby and son) and visit, even though it was short. 

Hopefully we can see each other again soon!

After swimming we spent the evening laying around the hotel room together watching the Olympics. 

We were able to watch a lot of Olympics on our vacation and it was sure fun to see the boys getting into it, learning about good sportsmanship from the athletes we watched and seeing them getting excited watching the US athletes participate. 

The next morning we filled up on waffles and delicious breakfast at the hotel and headed to the Mall of America (Richard's favorite part of the trip).

Olivia and I did a little shopping...

Apparently, shopping was a little much for Olivia...

She was fascinated with her reflection and her new "friend" having an entire conversation with herself, waving goodbye when we left and shrieking for joy when we returned again to try something else on!

 Richard took the boys and played on the rides and checked out Legoland.

He took all 3 boys on the Log Chute, which made momma bear a bit nervous, but Isaac LOVED it!

Richard didn't understand why I was leary of allowing our 2 year old to ride it just because he was tall enough, but I was proved wrong when he was super excited about it!

He loved it so much that they went another time!

The boys had been doing extra chores around the house to buy something from legoland and were thrilled with our time there. 

After a delicious lunch at noodles and company, we headed down to Des Moines for the next adventure on our vacation. 

The kids did remarkable in the car again, and our time with our friends in Des Moines was indescribably fabulous!

Tune in soon for another peek into the next leg of our journey!