Last days of summer

Last weekend we made our last trip to the pool for the season.  I didn't get a great video, but William has made amazing progess this summer in terms of swimming.  We are so proud of our little boy!

Days with my little guy

 Sending Lily off to school on her third day of first grade 

Now that Lily's in school all day, we have been forced to get back into a routine which is great for us all.  I was a little (or maybe a lot) lax about watching tv at home this summer due to many intensely hot days and trying to maintain some sanity with three at home.  I told William that we are not watching tv at all today, and he said, "Too bad".  But we managed to fill our day with many fun activities, and I think he is enjoying all the attention coming his way.

 First off, we had to build a new train track of course.

 Then we had to build a zoo for our animals.

 We tried out a quick color mixing experiment with colored water and paper towels.  I love quick, easy and inexpensive activities with items found around the house.

 I think it worked pretty well.  William identified the middle color as purple, so we'll call it a success!

 I then got a phone call and was on the phone for 10 minutes, and this was the result of my divided attention.

 Toilet paper stuffed down our vent.

 William was very proud of his experimentation.

 We decided to take the messiness outside and used the colored water in spray bottles to make a picture.  Then William practiced riding on his bike.  Luckily, today is supposed to be the last of the really hot days for a while.  I heard the highs for the rest of this week are supposed to be in the upper 70s; it almost seems too good to be true.

 William wanted to push his baby sister around in the stroller but commented that is was "very, very hot".

 Our walk was more relaxed with just the two of them which was nice.  We took time to check out the sights, including our neighbor's raccoon display.

 We even stopped to smell the flowers.  Can you see the butterfly?

 William took some time to gaze up at the trees...

 ....and examine the roots.

I got a second call from a friend when we came back home.  This time in the 10 minutes I was on the phone, my little guy completely passed out.  It was a good day.

Dance party

I really enjoyed having some one-on-one time with William today.  We played with dinosaurs, cars and construction vehicles.  We even had a dance party.  I know the video above is short, and it's a little hard to see the dance action, but you have to check out the first move.  You won't be disappointed.

Lily's 1st day of first grade!

 1st day of 1st grade breakfast:  cinnamon-sugar toast cut into the shape of a "1" and apples :)

 She has grown so much from last year at this time.

 I can't believe my girl is in first grade already!

 Bus time!

 Yes, I am the crazy mom that puts my daughter on the bus and then races to the school to be there when she gets off.  I had William and Emilia already in the car so I could get there quickly because Lily is on the bus for less than 5 minutes.  William and Emilia were such troopers during this entire process.

 The bulletin board for her classroom

 First grade classroom.  Hopefully Lily doesn't mind that her mom has to be there to document everything.  When I was discussing going back to school with her this week, I commented that I thought I was more excited than she was, and she responded, "Yes, yes you are".

 At least I'm not a blubbering mess this year, but I truly can't express what it's like to look at her in her first grade classroom and see the eyes of the baby handed to me in the hospital that beautiful fall evening in Baltimore.

 Could she ever possibly know how precious she is to me?

 And there's my funny monkey enjoying the bubbles at the entrance of the school with the sister of another 1st grade girl.  We are loving the beautiful weather lately!

I think this is only going to get harder for me with each child.  Just the thought that in 3 years, William will be walking through these doors as a Kindergartner makes my heart want to break into pieces.  I love his sweet nature and will enjoy our time together until that day comes.

Love You Forever

 "I'll love you forever.

 I'll like you for always.

As long as I'm living, my baby you'll be."

--Love You Forever by Robert N. Munsch



Tennis lessons

 After much deliberation...or maybe more accurately, a passing thought...Lily decided that she would like to take tennis lessons again this summer.  She really seemed to enjoy it though and even wanted to stay later in the 107 degree heat to keep practicing - that has to be a good sign of interest!

 Practicing her swing

 I love my little guy so much, and this picture is so him - adorable and sweet but with the potential for making mischief at any moment.

 Best little ball boy around.  The coaches loved him!

 Hydrating was very necessary on this hot, hot day.

While Lily was practicing, I got to play around with my camera.  I'm working on improving my photography skills, and I have a long, long way to go.  Luckily, I have the cutest little subjects around that make my photography look good despite my very less-than-perfect abilities.

Pictures from the day

 We had a fun morning with our playgroup at Team Central Gym.  William absolutely loves this place.  I have to get him into a regular gymnastics class soon!  Unfortunately, he fell asleep on the way home from the gym, and there went naptime!  So, I had a little extra "help" this afternoon when I was trying to get some things done around the house.  As I'm cleaning out my purse while the laundry is going, I hear "Mama, help.  I can't get out."  And there's my little boy stuck in the laundry hamper. 

Later I was putting clothes away in Emmy's room.  I turned around and there was Emmy being accessorized by her older sister.  Emmy, as always, was being extremely tolerant as Lily busily adorned her client, making exclamations along the way such as, "Oh, you do like fashion?!  I knew it; you are just like me!"  Never a dull moment, I tell you.

Doggie kisses

A new study was recently released that suggests that kids who grow up with pets are healthier.  The idea is that pets bring in more dirt and such and build up children's immune systems....or maybe they just get licked directly in the face by their pets.  Either way, now when my house isn't as clean as it should be, I can just claim that I'm doing my part to make my kids healthier by building up their immune systems.  Oh, the things I do for the sake of good parenting.