Kindergarten

Sadie started Kindergarten today.  We have been talking to her about it for so long, I am pretty sure she thought this day would never come.  We took her backpack to church for the "Blessing of the Backpacks", which is the first picture at the top.  I went to wake her up this morning and she said one single, sleepy word: "Ready."  That pretty much sums up her attitude about school.  She couldn't wait to get there.  When we dropped her off at her room, she asked the teacher where to put her backpack, gave us a kiss and never looked back.  She was smiling when I picked her up and started telling me about her day before we even made it to the car.  In her words, "We read 3 books, made a Coconut Tree for the book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, did some art and music and played some games."  Her Dad and I couldn't be more proud of our big girl!  She is going to ROCK Kindergarten.

Instagram Christmas

I joined the legions of iPhone users and am addicted to Instagram. It just makes everything look nostalgic and sweet. So, instead of trying to do something holiday-ey everyday (it just seemed too overwhelming this year), I decided to document the little things through this great app. So, here is our month leading up to Christmas in pictures.

Touch-a-Truck

I took the kids to an event called Touch-a-Truck, which is totally genius...by the way. They bring every vehicle you can think of and put them all in a parking lot so that kids can climb all over them and experience them first-hand. We spent a lot of time at the fire engine, but we also enjoyed a school bus, UPS truck, convertible yellow cab, construction and military vehicles. Brilliant!

Cashion at 21 months

Mayfield Park

Mayfield Park is a hidden gem not too far from our neighborhood. Peacocks roam the grounds and there are short trails that are easy for families. The house and grounds make me wish we could host a party here.

Halloween 2011

Mermaid Sadie with Magician Davis

Super Cashion!

Bebe found this onesie in a catalog that you could customize, so Cashion became SUPER Cashion for Halloween. Too bad he wasn't feeling so super (he was getting over Hand Foot and Mouth Disease, yuck). I almost added red tights to the get-up, but decided against it (which I hope he will thank me for someday). The crocheted mask and mermaid tail came from Etsy. Sadie decided that her Rapunzel wig would complete the mermaid look. The kids were thrilled when Papa joined us for trick-or-treating. Sadie was a totally different kid this year when it came to trick-or-treating. Last year, she wanted one of us to go up to each door with her because she was nervous. Now she is so independent that she took off with a pack of neighborhood kids as they ran around the neighborhood. It was fun to watch and it gave us a little insight into what the next few years (or more) could be like.