Randomness

They love riding in the back of Lance's truck in the neighborhood.

Morning Shenanigans before school.

He loves babies!!

One night Sam and Hayes were looking at our Disney album from our 2011 trip. We had been at Disney at the same time as our friends so they were in some of our pictures. Hayes asked where he and Denver were and I told him they weren't born yet. We decided we needed to plan another trip with them so the babies can go together.

Hayes loves watching baseball and talking it out as he watches.

Reese started soccer with a new club this year. She decided to switch because she wants to focus on soccer and does not want to cheer any more.

I became a leader in Hayes's class at church and it is so fun to see him play with his friends.

Fun on the Square...

I met my mom and Elle out shopping one day when the kids were all at school.

Guinea pigs...

Six Flags...

My cousin had a baby so I went to visit them at the hospital.

I found several of these selfies on my phone.

Making slime...always.

Lance was cooking some meatballs in my apron because I hate frying things!

He loves his kitty.

Homework time. I love that they don't fight me on getting homework done and just do it when they get home from school.

GT v. UT

Lance and I got to go to the GT v UT Chick-fil-a Kick-off game at the new Mercedes Benz Stadium. We had some amazing seats and for the majority of the game, really enjoyed ourselves. It was a heartbreaker of a game so we won't talk about it here.

Our seats! 

Our tickets included accesses to the RPM lounge and that had a bar area on the field. We did a quick peak at this before the game but wanted to be in our seats when the pre-game started.

The roof of the stadium and the jumbotron were really cool to see.

We ran in to an old friend randomly who was sitting a couple of rows in front of our box.

And then we had some UT friends come hang out in our box with us for a little while too.

Unfortunately after half time this is how Lance felt. This picture was taken once Tennessee tied it up  and then no more pictures were taken because...heartbreak.

Overall it was a fun experience...let's just forget about how the game ended.

Boating with Friends

You know what is better than having a boat? Having friends with a boat! Hayes's best buddy from school invited us out on the boat with them one Friday morning. Hayes was super excited but Reese and Sam were so jealous! They said we always get to do fun stuff.

Trying to get a picture of these two is usually a workout...they are so silly when the camera turns on them.

We headed out of the marina and parked in a cove to play. Hayes, Griffin, and Keith all swam to the beach while Bri and I hung out on the boat. Good thing we did because the anchor came up and we drifted away from the beach with out realizing it. The boys played on the beach for a while and then swam back out to the boat.

We ate some lunch and then Hayes and I had to head back because we had other commitments that afternoon. We had such a great time though and were thankful for a fun day out.

The Solar Eclipse

We had a great time watching the solar eclipse with some of our best friends. I found out a few days before the eclipse that K-2 grades were not going outside to view the eclipse and I hated that for Sam. I didn't want him to have to be at school of a couple of extra hours and be stuck inside that whole time. Since their school gave each of them a pair of glasses, I decided to check them both out of school early so Sam could be outside too. Maddy and Dylan had glasses from their school too so we decided to all enjoy the fun together. The babies and parents didn't have glasses but the big kids were kind to share with all of us. We took turns watching the moon slowly eclipse the sun.

While we waited it out, they all played and had a great time being out of school together.

We were all a little surprised at how much sun light was actually still shining through even though the sun was 97% eclipsed. It felt a little cooler and looked a lot like it does at dusk. It was definitely a neat experience for us all but I wish we could have been 100% eclipsed. Maybe next time we will take a trip to make that happen!

Hayes's 1st Day of School

Hayes finally had his first day of school. His was excited and nervous all at the same time. He is usually pretty brave about things and jumps right in but in the last six months or so he has become a little attached, not wanting to leave me. 

He did great though. He had sweet little tears in his eyes as he got out of the car but went right in and did his thing. I have no doubt he was acting like this with in days of school starting.

His sweet curls are back after shaving his hair this summer.

He was all smiles when I picked him up from school. He had a great first day in Pre-K.

We celebrated with a chocolate chip cookie and talked all about his first day.

I think this is going to be a great year for him. He has some of his favorite people in his class and gets to see other ones on the playground. His teachers seem really great and have been doing this for a long time. Before I know it he is going to be starting kindergarten and I will be curled up in the corner crying! Ha!

Back to School ~ 2017

Well summer came to an end super fast this year! I really can't believe how fast the summer went. I know we were busy most of the summer and it wasn't any shorter than last summer but man it seemed to fly.

When we got home from vacation, the kids checked the mail every day to see if their teacher postcards had come yet. Each year the school allows you to request types of teachers for your kids or if you have had family experience with a teacher you can request her specifically but they don't guarantee any requests. I did not fill out that form because I knew the teachers know my kids best when it comes to the classroom assignments and we cover those decisions by them in prayer. 

Reese's postcard came on Tuesday and she was so excited with her teacher. Her teacher used to teach second grade so when Reese was going in to second grade she had hoped for this teacher. Well that year the teacher moved to fifth grade and Reese was bummed. Now was her chance to get this teacher and she was pumped. Fourth grade was a rocky road for us so we have super high hopes for this year and I don't think it is going to disappoint. We decided it was good news/bad news when it came to her class mates. She has some of her sweet girl friends in her class but some of the.most.talkative.boys in her class as well. Reese is a rule follower and doesn't love it when others are not. However, she seems to be handling it really well and even just laughs off the boys silly antics. 

Sam's card didn't come until Wednesday. We had heard Reese's third grade teacher was moving down to second grade. I happened to run in to her in the hallway at the end of the school year last year and told her we would love for Sam to have her. His first grade teacher was so sweet and he did so well with her. We felt like both of these teachers were very similar and thought Sam would thrive with her. When his card came we were all so excited to see her name on his card...we may have done a happy dance knowing both kids were with teachers they wanted. Sam's class doesn't have any of his guy friends from last year but a bunch of sweet girl friends he has made the last two years. It also has several of the high school teacher's kids in his class and that is always a good sign to me.

Being silly...

I think this is the first year that we have all been completely happy and excited with teachers/classes. I can't wait to see how this school year goes. They are going to do great!

And of course, not to be out done...Hayes still has a couple of weeks until school starts but we are excited about his last year in preschool. Ok, excited might not be the word because I am so sad about him growing up so fast.

A comparison picture gets me every time! This was Reese's first day of Kindergarten and first day of Fifth Grade!! (and we did not plan the hand on the hip thing!)

Sam's first day of Kindergarten and first day of Second Grade. His sweet little Kindergarten face and those big nervous eyes. He did so well heading to school this year. He was much more confident and brave than he has been the past two years.

Seeing them grow up so fast breaks my heart but I saw this quote this morning: "Enjoy it because it is happening!" and that is what I want to do. I don't want to long for the past because man, oh man, is this age fun too! I just wish I could squish their little baby faces one more time.