Yes, It's Really Happening!

This sweet little girl has decided to grow up and be old enough for kindergarten! Where did those five years go?!? I remember the little peanut we brought home from the hospital and now she's ready to hop on the big yellow school bus tomorrow! I thought I was okay with this...I teach kindergarten after all!...but now I know how all those mommies feel as they drop off their babies in my classroom each September. It's probably a good thing that I have to take Bruiser to his first day of preschool and Daddy is taking Tater to kindergarten. It could be a bit embarrassing for the kindergarten teacher to be crying at her own school!


Oh, and a note to Tater: This is it! No more growing! I going to by a brick for your head tomorrow so we can put a stop to this silly business! We want to keep you little a bit longer!

Have a great first day of kindergarten, Tater!

Mourning the End...

...of summer, that is! It is my last night before I must return to work. And I'm sad. I know some of you (Papa!) have little sympathy because I did have the entire summer off...and I know that others of you truly understand my sadness. I do love my job, but I also love those carefree days with nothing on the schedule, sleeping in (until 8!), not getting dressed until noon, lounging by the pool, heading to the beach, and vacationing at will. Now I will have to fall back into routine...working in the morning, sending the older ones to school in the afternoon, dance class, therapies, meetings, etc.

So good-bye, summer...*sniff*...hurry back!

One Last Summer Day!

Our friends invited us to head down to the beach for the evening yesterday...and, of course, we agreed! A few other families joined us and it ended up being four families with eleven kids between us...and it was a blast!

It was about an hour drive and then a little bit of figuring to make sure we were at the right place...and then you stepped off the boardwalk and saw this:

I decided I didn't want to leave! It was amazing and beautiful and the perfect end to a wonderful summer!

Boys and trucks = heaven!

(Love this one!)

Handsome boy!

Most of the kids (and a grown-up kid!) on the lifeguard stand.

I even made into the shots this time!

(love this one too!)

The kids played so nicely together that the adults even got to sit and relax for a bit...what more could we ask for!

Count them!

We got all 11 to sit for a picture!

There was lots of sand playing, some wave riding, a bit of surfing, yummy food and drinks...and an amazingly relaxing day to mark the perfect end of the summer!

Thanks to Cheryl Adams for the AMAZING photography! So glad I forgot my camera!

"Fun, Food, Fantasy!"

The highlight of the trip to Papa and Mimi's (other than seeing Papa!) was our trip to Knoebles. I grew up going to this park...as did my parents!...and my kids love going too. It's the largest free admission amusement park in the country. You use paper tickets to pay for the rides, which the kids really enjoyed! It was a hot day but there was plenty of shade and enjoying the kids' excitement overran the heat.

Sassy loved being like the big kids!

Love this of Bruiser!

Fishing!

Don't know who the boy in the front is but he shared well with our two!

Tater was so excited to pick this pink ostrich!

Watch out! Sassy has a weapon!

I think this was the highlight of Bruiser's day!

He got to operate a "real" dig truck and really dig dirt!

Papa thinks we should put one in our backyard!

Love that you can't even see the boy's head over the steering wheel!

One tired, dirty, happy girl!

Can't miss the merry-go-round!

We had a great day. The neat thing is that my grandparents live within miles of the park so we stopped by for a visit before going to the park and headed back there to bathe the kids after we were done. The thought was that everyone would be sound asleep by the time we got home to Papa's house...Bruiser had different plans and stayed awake the entire time! Oh, well!

Thanks for a great day, Papa and Mimi!

Take Me Out To the Ball Game...

Papa arranged for us to attend a baseball game at the local stadium while we were visiting. And the best part? Our seats were in the pool pavilion! Yes, that's right! You could swim and watch the game...can you think of three kids who were in heaven?

Walking in with Papa

The adults watching the pool...and the kids!

Where Bruiser and Sassy spent most of their time...since they refused to wear the life vests...and Uncle J had to rescue Bruiser once from a near-drowning! It pays to have a life guard or two in the family!

Tater LOVED it!

See the baseball field behind the pool?

Sassy loved the stairs!

Tater watching the game!

Crystal Cave

During our visit to Papa and Mimi's we looked for things to entertain the kids. Daddy has always wanted to go to Crystal Cave but we never had time. So, Papa and I found time and the kids seemed excited about it so off we set to explore the cave!

We went, we explored, we may never be welcomed back! The children screamed...a lot...and didn't enjoy it as much as anticipated. And then it was pouring rain as we left...fabulous! But, in spite of it all, we had time with Papa and that was worth it!

Side note: This entry is for Papa, who demanded a post. Now I am going back to the couch to lay down my sick head...because my children decided that they can know how to share when it comes to the stomach bug (but never with toys!).

Splash!

This summer we joined our local YMCA. We love the Y we go to on a regular basis - great childcare, outdoor pool, good classes - but we also get to visit other area Y's and access their facilities. Near Daddy's work there is a splash park at the Y...and we ventured down one evening with our neighbor friends!

Testing the water!

Waiting...

Our friend, J

We had a blast and can't wait to visit one more time before the end of the summer...maybe tomorrow if everyone stays healthy!