Open House for Andrew

Andrew will be starting preschool in just a few short days.  He's going to Cumming First Baptist Preschool which is where Julia went and we're so excited he has the same teachers Julia had when she started there in the 3 year old class.  He'll be going to school on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 9-1 and eating a snack and lunch there.  I sure am going to miss my little guy...he's been my side kick since he was born over three years ago.  However, I'm so excited for him to experience all the fun things he's seen Julia get to do at school and now it's his turn.

Sporting his shades!  Thanks to my mom for his super cute outfit!

All ready to meet his teachers.

Andrew's teacher Ms. Marjorie is one of the sweetest teachers ever.  Julia was in her class two years ago and had such an amazing year!  I was hoping Andrew would be in her class and we're so thankful it has worked out that way.  He's going to have such a great start to his schooling!  

Working on his teddy bear to tell more about him!

Coloring the eyes his favorite color which is green and yes my little guy is a lefty.

There are 12 kids in Andrew's class with 6 boys and 6 girls which is absolutely perfect.  Lots of new friends for Andrew to meet.

Andrew was thrilled about his popcorn treat from his teachers.  I'm definitely excited for him to start school but obviously a bit sad too!

Lunch with Julia

I'm so thankful to be a stay at home mom and since Julia got 4 stitches the day before I thought I would surprise her by going to school and eating lunch with her.  We had such a fun lunch together and can't wait to go eat with her again soon.  Andrew was to busy eating his fruit snack to stop and smile!

Stitches

My sweet little Julia fell on the playground after school one day and got a cut on her chin.  It didn't bleed much nor was it too deep but it didn't look like it would close up on it's own so I took her to Children's Healthcare and sure enough she needed stitches.  It was quite a traumatic afternoon to say the least but we made it through it.  Luckily it's under her chin so I'm hoping it doesn't leave too much of a scar.  Enough said since writing about this is making me feel a little queasy.  

Learning Time

Once Julia gets home from school they have a snack and play for a bit then we have some learning time before they are allowed to watch a show.  Andrew's learning time consisted of cutting out big E and little e and then sort them and glue them onto the paper in the correct spot.  It was great cutting practice for him and he loved using the glue too.

He did great and stayed focused on it and completed it even though a few are going the wrong way.

Julia has been working on learning more sight words since she hasn't had any homework yet.

Exhausted

The day after the camp out Julia took a little nap and therefore had trouble falling asleep at night but still had to get up for school the next day.  She was completely wiped out and fell asleep at the table after having an after school snack.  She's such a cutie!

Camping with Dad

Thomas is all about camping with the kids and has been wanting to have a camp out again so we finally got around to it.  This is Julia's second time sleeping in the tent outside and this will be Andrew's first time since last year we tried but he just wasn't ready.  They always enjoy getting everything ready for the camp out.

Even Andrew helped set up the tent.

Looks like they are ready for a great night.

The morning after.  There were lots of tired people since they all went to bed late and woke up early.

We all hung out in the tent in the morning and played some games.  Sounds like doing a camp out other than our backyard is in the future for these kiddos.  I think I'll continue to sleep in my own bed but I'm glad they love it!

Andrew

We've been working on letters with Andrew and he pretty much knows (depending on the day) capital and lowercase A-E and letter J for Julia and then decided after talking with a friend I need to get him to learn his name.  So we've been learning the letters in his name and hopefully he'll be able to recognize it in a group of other names.  I've incorporated some running into his learning since his attention span is short.  I think going to preschool three days a week will definitely be a good thing for Andrew.  

Andrew and Jude

We were so thrilled to have Andrew's buddy Jude come over and play.  They were so cute together and it was great for Andrew to have his own playdate without big sister around.  They enjoyed playing trucks and even found a new place to play...under the bed.  We're looking forward to many more playdates together while their older siblings are in school.  Love these two cuties!

Spirit Day

Julia was all excited about wearing her spirit wear and was even more thrilled when two of her friends in the class picked out the same shirt as her. She never wanted to wear her spirit wear shirt in preschool so I'm not quite sure why she's having a change of heart.  Go Colts!

Julia's First Day of Kindergarten

Hard to believe but the first day of elementary school arrived!  Julia is more than ready academically for Kindergarten but this Mommy isn't ready for my little girl to be growing up so fast.  Even though she went to preschool this milestone is harder to swallow since it's everyday, all day.  She was definitely excited about going to school since she knows three other girls in her class but also a little nervous.

The sign says she wants to be a mom and a singer when she grows up.

Love those big blue eyes shinning through.

Heavy backpack with all her supplies.

Julia is going to be a car rider this year...lucky me.  I get to spend even more time with my sweet girl.

Ready to go in but she definitely looks nervous to me.

Kelly Mill Elementary opened just two years ago and we feel so blessed to be in a nice new school with lots of positive energy for learning.

Love how she has her own cubby for her backpack and her things.

I was so glad to see such a huge smile when I picked her up.  When I asked how her day was she said, "GREAT!" with such enthusiasm.  It made my day when she told me how much she loved it and I especially appreciated all the details she shared about her day.

Andrew and I went out during the day and got her a little present for her first day.

Love her facial expression.  She was thrilled to get a gift from American Girl and she was so kind to let Andrew open the other present.

Julia definitely has a level of excitement like no other.

Special first day of school blizzard treat from Dairy Queen.

I feel so incredibly lucky to be Julia's Mommy.

Daddy joined us for our special treat which was an added bonus.  We couldn't be any happier with Julia's first day of school...she LOVED it!  We're looking forward to a year full of fun and learning.  I'd be lying if I said I didn't cry but I just couldn't help it but at least I didn't let Julia see me upset.  I'm just really going to miss having her around as much because I truly love being with my kids.

Last playdate for the summer

We get back from the beach with only two days left of summer break.  We spent one of them trying to get things back to normal and running a few errands along with playing with toys since we've been out of town.  The other day we met up with Julia's friend Grace at a playground for one final end of summer playdate.  Since the girls won't be going to the same school we're going to have playdates instead.  So thankful they met each other in preschool and hope they stay friends.

Sandestin...Day 5

Before we left town we made one last trip to the beach to make the most of the time we had left.  The beach wasn't too crowded so it was nice.  I love how clear the water was at Sandestin.

Bikini girl!

Checking out the little waves.

Doing some digging.

Having fun!

Last family photo on our trip.  What a great few days we had in Sandestin.

Julia and Andrew loved riding on the luggage cart but then again who wouldn't?

Sandestin...Day 4

We started off another morning by doing some kayaking.  This time Thomas took both kids so I could actually get in a bike ride.  I like biking with Julia but as one can imagine I need to go very slow and she gets worried someone is going to hit her even though I reassure her she is absolutely fine.  She is definitely my cautious girl!

Instead we met at a little island not far away and checked out the tree house and the swing before I continued on my bike ride around the resort.

Andrew was the first to try out the swing.

Julia really enjoyed it too!

Even Dad got in on the fun.

My turn!

We headed back to our place and had some lunch and made our way to the pool.  The beach was very crowded unless you went at off times so we went to the pool instead since the kids got these torpedoes the night before and wanted to check them out.

Andrew was throwing the torpedoes and Julia was swimming under water to get them.  She's the one on the right under water.

Andrew had a little nap in the car before dinner since he wasn't interested in napping at nap time.  He was quite focused coloring while waiting for dinner.

After dinner we went down to the beach for a few photos.

Such sweet kids!

One family picture on our last night!  Of course Andrew got his shorts wet and Julia was completely dry.  It always makes me chuckle at the differences in their personalities...absolutely love them both!

After a few beach pictures we hit the arcade and played a few games.  Julia and Andrew loved playing air hockey.  Going to the arcade reminded me of when I was little and went to York Beach, Maine to visit my uncle and we always went to the beach during the day and went to the arcade at night and played skee ball and air hockey.  Such fun memories from my childhood!