First day of Preschool!!

Andrew started Preschool today! There's a great little Methodist preschool just across the street from were we live... so close that I see it from our Mailboxes.

Andrew did great! We've been talking about it for weeks. Every time we drove by it (which is nearly every day) I'd point it out. He was at my sister's house a little bit ago and saw Mikayla, his cousin, get off the school bus... Rachel talked up school big time to him too. We've talked all about the fun things that go on in school and how all of his cousins are in school too. This morning when Andrew woke up and came downstairs I asked him what he was going to do today... and with a smile he said "Go to school!"

Started off the morning with a hot breakfast on the ever coveted "You are Special Today" Red plate!

The obligatory picture of the excited little student.

Poetic? Andrew's first year of school... Morgan's last year of school.

 His ADORABLE bag that my friend embroidered!

The happy face we left at school!

So what did I do after I dropped him off? I went home, promptly put Nora down for her morning nap and enjoyed one hour of quiet wrapped up in a good book! My visiting teachers came as well. Not that Andrew is a hand full at all (he is such a joy!) It was such a nice treat having just Nora at home!

When I picked him up, the teachers said he did great! When I asked him what he did, he quickly said that they sang songs, painted, ate a snack, and played with toys. I asked him if he wanted to go back, and he excitedly said "YES!" Success!

It's crazy how quickly he's growing up! Slow down, Andrew!

Shadows.

Andrew has recently become interested in hand shadows. I don't know if Morgan taught him or what, but out of thin air the other day he did a "Donald Duck" followed by a butterfly... I was impressed! So tonight while I was putting him in bed, I thought it'd be fun to do some hand shadows. 

Momma's rendition of a doggie....

 Momma's rendition of Donald...

Andrew's rendition of Donald...

Me and my lover boy!

I love that kid!



*Post Edit: Just asked Morgan, he definitely did not teach him. Who knows where he learned it! (He does have quite a fondness for flashlights... thanks Uncle Dan!)

I LOVE being a MOM!

I cannot express how much I love being a mom! Today, we went to 'Andrew's Park.' It's this little playground in the middle of some ball fields. Whenever we go, we are the only ones there. There are some picnic tables there, therefore we frequent this park at lunch time. Today I asked Andrew what he wanted to do and he said "Go to Andoo's park. Eat yunch nd Play." Made this momma happy to hear him speak so well! So, we did just as he wanted.

The weather was nice and cool (August in Georgia... not a common thing!) and the kids and I had a fabulous time. I was able to reflect on how much I love my life. Every aspect of it! I love being a mom so much. It just so happened to be Nora's half birthday today too. 6 months! I can't believe it. What a blessing she is in my life. I absolutely love and adore my kiddos and am so grateful for their sweet spirits who teach me so much!

Yep, I love my photos (and my kids)! :-)

Our little Stay-cation

Since we're still on a student budget (the end it near though!) we opted for an inexpensive stay-cation instead of forking over money we don't have on a fancy vacation. It was just what we needed!!

We stayed at my parent's house and did a few things in Atlanta.

To start us off we went to Alpharetta's Old Soldier's Day Parade. It started off nice and cool... then it totally rained! I've been to many of them, and I don't ever recall rain like this! Since there was no thunder, we let the kids play around a little bit. Once we realized that the rain indeed was not going to stop - we skipped out early.

Although it was the rainiest parade I've been too, it was probably the most fun too! *Not pictured: the "grown ups" getting onto our kids for trying to lap up the water from the city street! Seriously! You're children, not dogs!! (also, note: Nora and Brooke stayed dry!)

















First up, Morgan and I went to the World of Coke. It was free for us! Thanks for all the Coke Rewards I've been saving for the past year or more. It was recently redone and was completely different from when we went 7 (!!) years ago.

 (The one change they made that I was sad about was that they took away the soda fountain that had the Soda Jerk demonstrating how it was made and what not)

 Trying to figure out the secret formula.

Me with one of the 2012 London Olympic Torches!

Of course... NO trip to the World of Coke would be complete without a taste of Beverly. (I have NO clue how Italians drink and enjoy that!)

Next off we headed to the Atlanta Zoo (also free for all of us! I won some tickets on facebook). Andrew had an AMAZING time! The weather was surprisingly nice and there weren't many people there since most of the surrounding school systems had started back to school.

 First off... flamingos!

 Andrew and I next to Willie B.'s statue.

 This is how Nora spent most of her time at the zoo :-)

Although we saw giraffes, zebras, lions and what not... I really enjoyed the Gorillas! There were several babies. I just could get over how much those babies love their mommas!

 Andrew was pretty excited to find a Blues Clue!

And now... Andrew's HIGHLIGHT of the zoo... the pandas!!

 Seriously, look how close he is to the Panda!

 I figured I needed one shot of both of the kiddos to prove to Nora later on that she was there!

Here's a video of Andrew with the panda. Please excuse my annoying mommy voice!

All in all, a GREAT trip! We have one ticket left, and am planning on taking Andrew back on the day before his birthday.

My dad was also great enough to set up a tent in their piano room so that Andrew and Morgan could "camp" out... Andrew on the floor in the tent, Morgan on the couch next to the tent. Andrew had such a great time camping out!

We enjoyed having fun in Atlanta. Morgan and I were able to escape on a few dates as well. Just what we needed before this crazy semester started. At the end of the week, I think all of us were worn out and ready to get back home and back to 'normal' life!

Yes, that's Andrew... asleep on my parent's toy chest. Funny little boy!

Summer Update: Instagram Style

I've totally jumped on the Instagram bandwagon. If you don't follow me, you should! My name is byu_emily . BUT, for those of you who aren't on Instagram, here's all the goodies you've been missing!

 LOVING the Bounce House at Cousin Brooke's first birthday (back in June)

 Nora and Papa having a little snooze during Brooke's party. :-)

 Look at those eyes!! This picture was taken just a few days before she learned to roll (from back to tummy... still working on the reverse!)

 Spending some time at the local lake. It's nice and sandy, we love it!

Nora snoozing at the lake.

 My little smiley boy!

 My little smiley girl!

 All dressed up for Cow Appreciation day at Chick-fil-A.

 Enjoying random lunch dates with my kiddos at a very quiet play ground close to our house. Honestly, I think I've seen another group there a time or two, and we go a lot!

Morgan and I have also jumped onto the Green Smoothie bandwagon. Don't let the purple color persuade you - there is a whole cup of spinach in that smoothie!! (and they're yummy!)

 Another family lunch date to Costco. Love those hot dogs!

 Mother's dream! Two sleeping kiddos in the car... at the same time! Nora usually screams in the car seat while Andrew begs her to stop. Non stop fun I tell ya!

 Gettin' my move on! Lets lose that baby weight!

 Banana's the bear getting ready for our little staycation. (More on that later).

 Andrew (and the rest of us) getting POURED on at Alpharetta's Old Solider's Day Parade. It' is the first time I can remember it pouring down rain (and I've been to or have marched in a lot of those!)

 My daily 4pm. I love being this little girl's mommy!

Andrew camping out in my parent's living room. My dad was nice enough to put up the tent during our staycation. He had SUCH a fun time sleeping in the tent!