Happy 6th Birthday, Amelia!

Dear Amelia,

Today, you are turning 6 years old!

And you are so excited and happy about it that you counted down the days until your birthday for the past few weeks. Over the past year, you have grown up so much. Not just because you mastered Kindergarten with ease and are now a 1st grader but it seems like you are ready to be called a big girl (even though for me you will always be my baby girl). I still find it hard to believe that 6 years ago on this day, I first held you in my arms after you were born and you were so teeny tiny.  You might still be petite but you took the world by storm and whoever comes in your way, you will set them straight. 

You love unicorns and because dreams do come true sometimes, I arranged for you to have a photo shoot with one (with the talented Tanya of Reflections by Tanya). -It may was a dream of mine too but I don't mind sharing it.- You loved it and you still talk about Ditzi-Do and how you rode her up the hill.

You are true gift from heaven even though some days I have a harder time appreciating it as life with you is not always easy. You test our limits and patience and surely know what you want. You are smart and outgoing and don't mind switching schools in the middle of the school year or being the youngest in class. I'm delighted to see that you love to read just as much as your parents do and that you are becoming your brother's most important teacher. He looks up to you and wants to do everything you do; although, some days you are bothered by that. But you two love each other and can be found daily playing together with the peg dolls, Little Ponies, an array of Superheroes, or Lego's and often some imaginary friends join in on the fun.

We are so proud of you and the person you are becoming. You are six years old today and I know it is a very important celebration for you but also for me because six years ago you made me a mommy. You truly make my life fuller and I love you to the moon and back. You are my mini-me, even though you look a lot like you daddy. 

Happy 6th birthday, big girl!

Love, 

Mommy and Daddy

Back To School

The first week of August is over, which means here in middle Tennessee that it's back to school week for all the kids. Somehow, I was not as ready as I was last year for this to happen but there was no stopping it either -so I embraced it. And both Amelia and Elliot were eager for their first day at school. 

Last week, we had registration night at Amelia's school, where we saw her new classroom and met her new teacher, Mrs. Romer. She seems very nice and loves to be a teacher, which is always a great plus.

Her classroom theme is Splat, the cat, which is perfect for my little cat lover. 

On Friday night, Elliot had his open house at preschool and he was excited to see his new classroom and meet his new classmates. His teacher is Mrs. Williams, sweet and loving, just what Elliot needs. 

While there is lots of focus on playing and practicing those fine motor skills, this preschool also uses a curriculum to teach them about letters, numbers and colors. 

Elliot's class (K-3) consists of 9 children, all born between September and December, with Elliot being the youngest (but biggest!). Amelia is also the youngest student in her class, only 5 days shy of the cut-off date. She started first grade as a 5 year old but will turn 6 within the first week of school. My little boy looks so grown up here:

And finally, yesterday was the first day of school! Even the Back-To-School fairy (aka Oma) brought a little treat to make the first day of school a bit sweeter:

 Now, I have a first grader and a preschooler:

 Off they go:

We first dropped off Amelia at her school and made sure that she got to her classroom a okay. Ready to start learning on her new desk:

Then, I dropped Elliot off at preschool. He was crying and I had to run out so that he would calm down. Within minutes I received this pictures from his teacher, a smiling and happy little boy:

I felt teary-eyed all morning though and missed them a bunch, even though I knew that they are well taken care of. And both kids did great on their first day at school. Elliot and his class:

Amelia is riding the school bus home once again, which is so much faster than me picking her up with the car. And she likes being such a big girl:

Because the first day was exhausting and we all were kind of tired (Daddy is traveling this week for business), we took it easy yesterday afternoon and just celebrated back to school with a milkshake. Tonight we continued the celebration by making homemade pizza. 

While the first week of school is fun and exciting, it is oh so tiring too. Which means cranky kids in the afternoon and early bed times as we are still trying to figure out the morning routine and making sure both children get enough sleep. Also, in a couple of days, I have a 6 year old in the house! 

Summer Fun is Coming to an End

We are on the last day of summer break before school starts back off on Monday. Somehow, this summer break seemed much shorter and I do not think we are ready just yet for 1st grade and preschool. I have a feeling that the first week of school will be tiring and exhausting, especially since a special little girl is turning 6 on Thursday.

This last week of break, we took it easy and stayed home and played a lot, met friends at the pool and just relaxed. Being off work on Monday and Tuesday was nice as we enjoyed our slow mornings, watching the road construction crew rip up our street and putting new asphalt down all within 24 hours. 

This summer we also read a lot, even our cat likes some magazine articles:

 Tuesday we met some of my MOPs friends at the pool for some fun in the sun. 

But we also started back up with the chore chart and easing in to helping out around the house as well as doing some homework every afternoon. That way, the first week of school won't be too rough. 

The rest of the week, we hung out indoors (while I was at work in the am, Derrick watched them and then we switched for the afternoon) as it was rainy and the kids seemed to be getting over a little virus/ growth spurt. Keeping them entertained with painting, play-doh, toys and movies:

But for the past 3 days the weather has been awesome, so we all spent lots of time outdoors. Especially since we woke up to high 50s F (15C) on the weekend. Lots of yard work got done as well as a run in the park by myself and a couple of visits to the playground. 

Lunch on the porch was a must:

Derrick has worked hard on evening out the yard with extra sod and taking care of the "pool maintenance". Hopefully soon, this big eye sore of a pool will be gone and we can start reclaiming our backyard. 

Look at my humongous pumpkin plant. Yes, this is one plant, grown from one seed. It is growing like crazy, even after Derrick hacked off one side, but no pumpkins on it yet. 

Thanks to my husband who captured me and the cat taking a little nap on the floor after lunch: 

We also worked on sorting thru tons of paperwork (Kindergartners bring lots of papers home), organizing a closet and getting ready for the new school year. This meant that my two guys were busy fixing things up and putting a couple of nightstands together. I love how Elliot admires his Daddy and wants to do exactly the same thing as his role model. He is always ready to assist his Daddy: 

My mini-me wanted her toenails painted just like me and how can I say no to that request:

While this week has been a good ending to a fun-filled and busy summer, it also signaled the upcoming start of the new school year. We had meet-your-teacher night at Amelia's school on Tuesday and on Friday at Elliot's preschool. I will talk more about it in my next post. Both children are excited and ready for their new adventures and to kick off the school year with a bang. Backpacks are packed and ready to go for tomorrow, their school outfits are hung out and my babies are eager to meet their new classmates and start learning. I'm on the other hand are not as ready as they are to let go. My last little one will be going 5 days a week to preschool while the big one takes the school bus home. I'm certain at least one of us will have tears in their eyes tomorrow at drop-off...

Weekend in Cincinnati

On Friday after work, we drove up to Cincinnati, OH, to visit our dear friends. Amelia was so excited to see her best friend,Eva, and I was just as excited about seeing my dear friend Betsy Jo. We received a warm welcome and then the kids cooled off in the pool:

Two happy girls being reunited for a weekend:

 Dinner time: Noah, Elliot, Eva, and Amelia:

After a relaxing evening of good conversations and some wine, we all got up ready to explore what Cincinnati has to offer. The day started off with the perfect weather (low 60s and low humidity) and a delicious brunch at Wild Eggs.  

From there, we went to Smale Riverfront Park in downtown Cincinnati and hung out for a couple of hours taking in the scenic view over the city and the Ohio River. The 45 acre park features an interactive playground as well as some water activities for the kids and a beautiful garden with swings for some relaxation in the sun. 

I loved spending time with my friend and her family: 

Swinging away:

The guys also enjoyed each others company. Derrick and Nelson chatted away while Elliot wanted to do everything Noah did. 

 Weekend trips with my family are the best:

In between water activities, the children all enjoyed riding the old carousel:

The water fountains were a big hit:

We walked around Freedom center where we discovered a Berlin Wall Memorial. This memorial featured a piece of the historic Berlin Wall, which was a gift from my hometown to Cincinnati. It stands there to teach people about the history of a broken city and that inclusive freedom is attainable and that it is possible to overcome oppression. 

We enjoyed spending time in the Queen City and I really liked it's flair and wouldn't mind moving there one day. 

After lots of walking, we finished the day off with some delicious treats: Dewey's Pizza (this Arugula Prosciutto Pizza was to die for), handmade ice-cream from Aglamesis and freshly baked donuts from Busken. 

On Sunday morning, we joined our friends at their church for worship and then headed back to their house for one last meal and a quick chat before driving back home. Amelia is very interested in playing the Violin so when her friend showed her how well she can play (Eva takes lessons for a couple of years and Betsy Jo is a talented Violin player herself), Amelia wanted to give it a try. We might have to sign her up for Violin lessons as she has an ear for it. Of course, Elliot needed to give it a try too on a toy Violin. 

Thank you, Wesley family for such a fun and enjoyable weekend and for being such gracious hosts. It is always nice to catch up with each other. We hate saying goodbye but only for a little while as I'm sure we will meet up again soon. 

Besties:

I'm sure we will be back to Cincinnati one day...