Happy Kindergarten

Toby and I took Alexandra to Great Wolf Lodge before she started Kindergarten. She LOVES this place and was elated that it was just the 3 of us. We had such a great time! She could ride all but 2 slides. She kept us busy climbing those stairs to ride the slides. She also enjoyed playing in the kiddy area, lazy river, wave pool, and getting water dumped on her. We had such a great time! I can"t believe my baby is starting Kindergarten.

Rainforest Cafe

Kindergarten Luncheon

Our church had a luncheon for all of the children that were starting Kindergaten this year. This sign was the first thing I saw and I think my heart stopped. I definitely teared up! Wow, my baby really is starting school. When we walked in, each child got a bag full of candy, markers, pencils, and a notepad. This is their bag for church. What a great gift! Once they get into K they go to big church with their family. Alexandra has been going with us and really enjoys it. I knew it was coming so I wanted to "practice" before it was the real deal. They were taught about cafeteria etiquette. How to hold their trays, make choices, eat in a given time, and dump their tray. The moto was line up, eat up, clean up, and listen up! It was very exciting to see the children do so well. We did not have one spill. Everyone had fun and even the moms and dads had a great lunch too! It was good to see Alexandra could do so well on her own. I know she will love school and enjoy every minute of it. She loves to play school at home. My sweet little girl is ready for K now it is my turn to be ready and let her go.....A small gift I gave her was a cross charm. I want her to remember that God loves her and He is with her even when I am not. I know God will take good care of her when she is out of my hands! That is what is going to get me through the first day of school!

The Lord is always with me. Acts 2:25a











Gracie and Alexandra















making choices














carefully carrying her tray

Mommy and Avery Day

This weekend Alexandra is staying at Nana and Papa's. So Avery and I are getting to spend some one on one time together! I wanted to do something special for Avery so I decided to surprise her and take her to Build a Bear! She had a wonderful time choosing her animal and filling it with stuffing, giving it a bath, and especially dressing her up. The look on her face was priceless when she was carrying Kitty in her special home. Mission Accomplished!!! Avery then wanted to take Kitty to the water fountain. It was HOT outside so we headed back to the car and went to Sonic for Happy Hour. What a fun day with my sweet Avery! I guess this is a glimpse of what it was going to be like when Alexandra starts school! I am so blessed to have two amazing daughters.

Summer days.....

Playdates
















Hawaiian Falls

Playing in the rain

Playing with sweet friends

decorating cookies

slumber parties and pillow fights

having lots of fun......to be continued!

Family trip to Michigan

This summer my parents and my family went on a road trip to Michigan! The girls were amazing! We were so blessed on how well they did. I googled activities to keep them busy in the car. The activities included creating animals or things with foil. The girls did a great job and even came up with foil jewerly! Then they worked on reading, writing, puzzels, coloring, and so much more. We had so many activities that I don't think they got to them all! On their down time they watched movies. We even chose to drive straight through on the way home and were in the car for 22 hours other than eating and taking rest stops. I would definitely take my girls on another road trip if they would go!

creating things from foil

puzzels and books

Cracker Barrel break.....Nana and the girls

Papa and Avery

That was the end of day one. We arrived at the hotel in Tennessee around 3:00 p.m. After we unloaded the luggage Papa gave Alexandra and Avery a ride on the cart around the room. Once we got settled in we ate dinner and then headed to the pool.

We were all in bed by 8:00 that night because it was such a long day. We were blessed to be serenade by Papa's snoring and Avery's singing!!! Toby and I laughed so hard we were crying. We were on the road again by 7:30 the next morning. Day 2 went by so fast I didn't get many pictures. The first stop in Michigan was meeting my Aunt and Uncle at Rudy's hot dog place. Uncle Keith and Aunt Annette surprised us with my cousins David and Brian. Meeting at Rudy's for hotdogs has been a family tradition for many years. What a great time we had at the hot dog place!!! The girls had a great time visiting with the family. Then we headed to uncle Keith's house. She made the most amazing dessert. It had ice cream sandwiches in it and I can't remember whatelse but it was GREAT!!

My family stayed in this camper while we were visiting. It was perfect. We basically just slept in it. The girls played outside. They got to feed the chickens, water flowers, feed the birds, and play with their 2nd cousins!

Our sleeping quarters...

2nd cousins...isn't it amazing how much Alexandra looks like her cousin Harley (behind Alexandra). Sweet, sweet girls!

The girls relaxing after a busy day!

Our last stop......Independent Dairy..this is the best ice cream in Michigan! It was yummmy!

Uncle Keith and Aunt Annette eating ice cream with the girls. What a wonderful ending to our exciting trip to Michigan!! I am glad that I relive those memories with my sweet beautiful girls!!!

The Toledo Zoo

On Father's Day we went to the Toledo Zoo! Dad's and grandpa's got in free, what a treat!! We all had a great time! We got there when it opened and was able to leave before it got too hot and before the crowd arrived. The girls had a fabulous time! They ran around and enjoyed seeing the animals. We got to play chase with an elephant and watch them eat their treats while they were taking a bath. I have never been so close to an elephant before it was awesome. This zoo was very kid friendly. There were masks hanging of different animals for the kids to hide behind. What a brilliant idea! This would be a great addition to our local zoos! Lots of picture opportunities that were very neat. We even got very close to a sloth. On the way out we got to see this cool polar bear show off some tricks! The girls had such a great time they fell asleep in the car on the way back to my uncle's house! What a great memory for Father's Day!!