Jack's First Day of School

Today was Jack's first day of VPK.  Our big guy is now 4 and ready for school.  He goes to school at our church, which is great for familiarity, and it is only from 9am - 1pm.  Perfect for "big school" a few years down the road.  We went to orientation yesterday and met his teacher.  She seems wonderful and everyone who has had her before loves her, so I think it will be a great year!

This morning he walked right in and went straight to the dinosaurs to play for a bit and Kate and I were off on a big adventure!  Well, we went to the grocery store and it was fun.  Anyway, we chilled out here and played with Brian and Lisa and went to get Jack after lunch.  He was excited to see me, but seemed really happy and seemed like he had a great day.  Here is post first day interview (note:  nothing was altered, these were Jack's answers):

Where do you go to school?
At Church

What grade are you in?
VPK

What is your teacher's name?
Mrs. Cindy

How old is your teacher?
7

Who are your friends in your class?
Lennon

What did you learn today?
Nothing

What do you think you'll learn tomorrow?
Learn about Jesus

What was the best part of your day?
Playing dinosaurs

What was the funniest part of your day?
Painting

What was the worst part of your day?
I liked everything

Some of these were taken with my phone, so not the best quality, but he was excited to get there and get learning and playing!  I made his shirt last night and thought it turned out pretty cute.









Kate's big day is tomorrow!

Happy Birthday Kate and Kiki!

Two years ago today, a chubby little baby girl changed our lives.  Katherine Tess entered our world and we love her to the moon and back.  She talks a ton, does everything Jack does, knows what a Baryonyx is (I know, random) and is so happy.  She can also put out that bottom lip fast when she is not happy.  She has made our lives so much richer.  She has gone from a baby to a little girl over the past year and changing every day.  Happy Birthday, Katey-Poo!





Another special lady is celebrating her birthday today and that is my amazing sister-in-law, Kimberly.  She is a wonderful mom, a great wife and a daughter of Christ.  My brother got a good one.  Happy Birthday Aunt Kiki - we love you so much!

Roooaarr! - A Dinosaur Birthday

Saturday was the big day!  Jack and Kate's 4th and 2nd birthday celebrations.  There is not much to say that pictures won't say, but we had a great time with family celebrating our little dinos birthdays.  We had it at our house this year in the front yard.  The theme was dinosaurs, so we had a dinosaur dig and a dinosaur egg hunt.  Preschool parties tend to move along quickly, so we threw in a few Red Rover games.

Katesaurus and Jackosaurus

Jack and Kayleigh

Red Rover

Kate's new shoes!

Happy Birthday to our favorite kids!  Mommy and Daddy love you both more than life!

Four Years Old

It seems like yesterday, I was writing this post (Jack is 3!) about Jack turning three.  Now our big guy is 4 and starting VPK next week.  I love it, though.  So many people are sad about "losing their babies", but I love seeing them grow up and learn and go to the bathroom on their own; you know, stuff like that.  Jack is so funny.  He makes us laugh all the time and is so smart.  He is asking more about Jesus and God and we are explaining to him His love and forgiveness.  This truly is the most difficult job we have had, raising kids, but so rewarding and so fulfilling.  Jack loves playing outside, dinosaurs and cuddling with mommy.  Jack, you are amazing, and so glad God chose us to be your parents.

San Antonio

Hola!  My mom and I just got back last night from a fabulous weekend in San Antonio, Texas.  My mom travels a few times/year with work and myself and/or my sister-in-law tries to tag along to get a break from life, spend time with each other and travel a bit.  We flew out early Saturday morning and made it to San Antonio about 2pm that afternoon.  We checked into our great hotel right on the Riverwalk and explored the sites downtown a bit.  We decided to do the Riverwalk Boat Cruise.  It was about 35 minutes and was really nice.  That was our favorite part of the trip.  It was very relaxing and informative.  Highly recommended if you go.









We met up with my mom's coworker for dinner.  It was hot there.  Since I am southern girl, I am used to heat.  Everyday it got up to about 107 degrees but with little humidity.  We just stayed near the river and out of direct sun.  Nighttime was quite comfortable.

Hotel Lobby and San Antonio River




Sunday my mom had her meeting, so I made my way to the rooftop pool for some sun.  I stayed there a few hours and then went back to room and relaxed.  I watched 3 episodes of Law & Order just because I could!  That night we went to dinner with my mom's coworkers and had a great meal at Biga on the Banks.  Delicious food and it was fun.

Monday we decided to rent a car and explore some of Texas.  Our main goal was to get to the outlet malls about 45 minutes north, but we made a few stops along the way.  We picked up the car and drove to TPC at San Antonio to get some golf hats for the guys.  We then drove to the Natural Bridge Caverns, but decided not to go in them due to poor shoe selection and the potential for slipping and sliding on the tour.  So, we headed to the outlets.  We didn't go crazy, but we were able to shop where we wanted and take our time.  Our rental car battery died towards the end of our day, but thankfully, the security officer at the mall was able to jump our car and we made it back safely.  I was super stoked because I found a Vera Bradley Outlet store!  I got something for me and something for Kate for her birthday.  We got back to San Antonio and went to Bourdo's for dinner.  I relished their Texas guacamole and enjoyed our last night in Texas.

Tuesday we set aside for The Alamo.  Our hotel was across the street from it, so it was really close.  It was a pretty cool place.  I think I would feel more about it if I was a Texan, but it was still cool to see where men died to protect their freedom.  We have men and women doing that today for us and it is still such an honor to have them serve for us.

The Alamo


The Alamo - The Indian Converts stayed in these rooms


Cactus


Check out this hummingbird in the Alamo gardens


Federal Post Office and Court House - Downtown San Antonio


I really enjoyed spending the time with my mom and exploring a new city.  The people of San Antonio were so friendly, the city was clean and the atmosphere was so family friendly and nice.  I definitely recommend this as a place to visit with your kids or anyone.  We would love to see the missions, go to Austin, visit Sea World and do other things next time we go!  Adios, Texas, you were good to us!

Beach Day

Today was BEACH day.  As in earlier posts, we go to a great beach about 45 minutes away with no one there, shallow water and today...DOLPHINS.  There were 4 swimming not too far from shore, so we got out in the water to see how close we could get.  We got a good show for a few minutes.  This morning we went down with Lisa, Kayleigh and Brian for a morning trip and had a great time.

2 Dolphin Fins

Brian was a little tired

Sand Dollar

Jack said he had to go pee, so we said go in the water.  We just assumed since Kayeligh went a few minutes before with all her clothes on, he would do like she did.  Nope.  We turned around and white butt and pants down.  I snapped a pic and then reminded him we don't pull down our pants in public...even at the beach.

Summer Randomness in Photos

I am a self-proclaimed blog stalker.  After checking my usual blogs, I check in on people who I may not know as well or have never met at all to see what is happening in their lives.  My life is great, but I like to see what other challenges, happy times and everything else they are going through.  In my stalking today, I ran across someone who had a post about some random funny summer pics and thought that was such a cute idea.  I put the "good" photos on here but sometimes forget the "stuff" that just happens...Enjoy!

I see this face a lot...from all out tears to pure happiness in seconds.  Amazing.




Newest silly face - Kate does EVERYTHING Jack does.


Attempt at "studio photo" in the house.


My loves.


Recent beach trip


Our little swimmer at the beach.