sidewalk sunday

last sunday was slow and lazy

cool and breezy

....kinda' perfect in a fall-ish sort of way

peach found this wiggly little guy in the yard and spent the better part of the afternoon just checkin' him out

grandpa and grandma had delivered some huge punkins

and they were just begging to be painted

in this house...there is nothing...NOTHING...that takes precedence over paint

these girls will drop EVERYTHING to get out the brushes

sparkle hung out with us on the lawn

looking adorable as all get out

and my little picassos went to work

oh how my idea of a perfect weekend has changed over the course of a decade

it's a far cry from the way i was spending my sundays ten years ago with my girlfriends in college

but, these days, i'm convinced that you just can't beat a sunday on the sidewalk :)

almost 5 months

this pretty princess is almost five months old

is that really possible?

5 months in this wide world and not a speck of hair to show for it :)

i have to say, i'm pretty proud of how i captured that drip of drool on her chin just before it made its descent to the floor

what a peanut

what a gift

as you can imagine, she's fitting right into life at our house :)

so glad she's ours

tying the knot

so,....i've been feeling sorry for myself lately

Peach entering the world of pre-school has signaled another end to her baby days:

She's no longer little enough to nap.

Nap time has been a sanctuary of sorts for me

Just that little quiet window in the middle of the day...

time for me to hear myself think

to pray

to read my Bible

to throw in a load of laundry without someone wanting a piggy back ride down the stairs

to cut up veggies for supper without little fingers wanting to get in there and "help"...

and i'm not above admitting that nap-time has often provided the brief snooze on the couch that got me through the rest of the day without completely losing my marbles.

but now she's decided that she's done napping....

we still "rest"

but it's not the same

so, i was feeling sorry for myself that i had lost this all-important island of peace

but then i made one of those decisions that has to be made over and over and over again in life

do what you can

with what you have

and make it beautiful

so.....just the other day as naptime commenced, Peach announced that she was ready to tie her shoes.

funny how she's almost always ready for the next thing before i am

i convinced her to "rest" on the couch for a bit with some books while i got a few things done around the house and promised that i'd be back upstairs in no time to teach her

over
under

around the tree

swing past the knot hole

pull and see!

it didn't take long before she had it down

today i'm trading nap time in for a new path with this inquisitive little lady

i might not look as bright eyed and bushy tailed as i did during my nap-time days, but i've got a four year old who has an ocean of exciting things to learn and do, so i'm hopping in with her

both feet

no looking back

a hot date

this is what you get when good fortune and hard work collide

a phenomenal daddy setting aside his exhaustion to make good on a promise for a bonfire in the driveway with two pretty little ladies

they may not realize it yet, but these are some of the luckiest chicks i know :) 

time flies....

this week was full of firsts for us

first time sending sparkle to day care

first time getting all three kids dressed, ready and out the door by 7:15 am...that was fun! :)

and peach's very first day of school

i don't have a whole lot to report.

she's been talking about it for a year, so i knew she would rock her first day.

she embraced it with the same energy and enthusiasm with which she's tackled most of life thus far.

easily letting go of my hand and walking...no, more like running...into her classroom with only one look back and a confident smile

a smile that was probably more for me than for her.

i was the one with a little tear in my eye.

her giving me confidence as she winked before taking her first strides into a beautiful new world.

it doesn't seem that long ago that i was folding her onesies,

nursing her in the middle of the night and frantically calling my mom to report her first smile...

her first words...

her first steps.

i guess what they say is true...

time flies when you're havin' fun :)

augut extras

i don't have much to say tonight

partially because i've got my first round of students tomorrow

partially because we were at my parents' house this weekend and sparkle decided to be part-racoon and go all nocturnal on us

and partially because i sliced my finger on a broken jar when we got home...typing just ain't my thang right now with a huge bandage cramping my style

anywhoo - here are a few pictures from august

some dear friends are loaning us a play house, which has led to all kinds of pretend in the backyard

the favorite make believe happens when i give them old bowls and spoons and they go on a hunt for ingredients for "stew"

rocks, flowers, sticks, leaves...and the previously mentioned "toxic" berries are just a few of the varieties of stew i've been privileged to try :)

miss fancy pants learned to roll this month

although there is still no hair to report, she's gotten cuter by the minute

we had another round of "nastics"

(which, when translated from 2-year-old, is gymnastics :)

j did his best to get peach to brave the bike without training wheels

but she's gonna' hang on to them for a bit longer 

had a few sweltering days where we tried to beat the heat....

then finally settled for a glorious labor day at grandma and grandpa's house and lots of fun on their massive tire swing

we even got great grandma out there for a spin and a few songs

grandma made a colored rice treasure hunt to top off the weekend and we came home exhausted, but full of happy memories

 

on that note, good bye august

good bye late nights

good bye wearing yoga pants all day every day

hello to september

hello to a routine

hello to an outfit that cannot be mistaken for pajamas

and hello to a 9:30 bed time

it's good to be back :)