first day of school 2013

A mother sits on her couch in silence.  "Do you hear that?  That's the sound of September."

It's the first day of school!  And while my house isn't totally silent, Finn is still here with me; Katie, Evie and Liam are all gone.

Jason and I took Evie and Liam to the school this morning and hugged them goodbye in their classes.  Liam did really well, no crying, though he did admit he was a bit nervous.  And even Evie went bravely into her class without us persuading her to go through the door.

Finn and I walked Katie to her bus stop and I gave her a big hug (which I'm sure embarrassed her) and then I suggested she go wait with the other 4 kids already there.  She sort of looked at me like, really?  But slowly started their direction.  I was happy to hear one of the other girls welcome Katie and introduce herself!

After all that, Finn and I went and had some fun!  He cried for a bit this morning once he realized "Tatie, Feefee and Weeum" were gone.  We visited the fish in their tanks and the gerbils in their cages at Pet Smart and then we had tacos.  Finn loves tacos!  At least that's what he told the guy who delivered them to our table.  :)  

Our devotional was so appropriate for the first day of school!  Our verse was Jeremiah 29:11, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future."  And the devo, written as though Christ is speaking went on to say, "I know that trying something new can be frightening.  But I also know you, and I understand you completely.  You can trust Me to wrap you up in My love - a love that never ends."

Katie, 6th grade

Evie, 3rd grade

Liam, kindergarten

Honestly, I DO miss them when they are gone.  But I don't cry about it either.

  

katie's 11th birthday

Katie turned 11 on August 17th and to celebrate, we had a few young ladies over the weekend before to have pizza, swim and then to go see "Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters".  Katie is so full of expression and enthusiasm!  I love that she gets excited about everything.  She was thrilled she blew all of her candles out in one breath and you can tell how she felt about her presents.  On Katie's actual birthday we went and got her ears pierced.  (We attempted that last year for her birthday, but it didn't happen.)  If the gal piercing hadn't been so quick, Katie might actually be walking around with only her right ear pierced as it was....

images of fun

I received a new camera for Christmas and while I haven't had a chance to work on my skills (f-stop this, aperture that...) I have found the action setting to be fantastic!  The kids are constantly moving and I hated the fact my old camera was soo slooow.  My pictures were always blurry or I missed the action entirely.  We went outside one evening this summer for me to play around with the high speed set up and I captured a few images of joy.  Now, if I could just figure out if my editing software will let me copy and paste images of Liam running up the slide so all 4 progressive images are in one...

father's day

This year for Father's Day I made Jason spend some time in the backyard jumping in the air at the count of 3.  Buh-bam!  As Katie would say.

The kids really blew him away!

the last day of school

The last day of school is always one to spend in contemplation of how much your children grew from their first day of school picture to their last.  Mine changed so much they look like two new children!

Evie September 2012

Evie June 2013

Katie September 2012

Katie June 2013

It's also a day to say an extra thank you to those teachers who spent so much time investing in your kids.  It's always a challenge to give them something that they will like, that isn't tacky or too cheap/out of my budget.  This year I got each teacher a cool reusable bag with a beach towel, mini sunscreen, water bottle, homemade granola and a Better Homes and Gardens magazine (cause Katie felt everyone likes that magazine.)  Evie had one teacher this year, Katie two and both girls said their teachers were genuinely pleased with their gifts.  (Yay!)

graduations!

Graduating is a big deal here.  I don't remember leaving preschool or moving from 5th to 6th grade having such pomp and circumstance when I was a kid... but that doesn't mean I can't jump on the "let's celebrate" bandwagon with the best of them!  This year we saw Liam don the cap and gown for pre-k and Katie for 5th grade.

 Liam was first in early May

Katie was next in June

Katie was voted "most helpful" by her classmates

family visit

We haven't seen the Colorado Earley's since we moved to Texas.  So it was a real pleasure to have Jason's mom, dad and brother Keenan visit in early April.  They were only here for a couple of days, but we enjoyed a family dinner, a tour of the capitol and a meal out.  Everyone was excited to spend time together and it was wonderful to see them!