A Perfect Summer Evening

Our Week In Pictures (In No Particular Order)

Jay and Alice

Jack and his new favorite animal, the alligator snapping turtle

Scooby Doo toys + Wikki Stiks = Aliens

Alice discovered the toys hanging from her swing this week.

Jack and a sea lion

The Boris of the raccoon world

Playing at a party

Wearing some new clothes

Alice at the party

The new baking cups we got for Muffin Tin Monday meals

Alice and Great-Gran

When our neighbor fell off the playground equipment at the park, we called the ambulance because neither of us had a car at the park. The firemen loaded the neighbors' bikes on the truck to bring to our house and the boys thought this was pretty neat.

12 Weeks Ago...

Alice came home from the hospital.

This outfit pretty much swallowed her.

What a difference 12 weeks can make!

Goin' Buggy

Yesterday Jack had a zoo class all about bugs. They had several live bugs in the classroom for the kids to see.

They learned did a dance to "Head, Thorax, Abdomen," which you may know as, "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes."

All dressed up as a bug!

Checking out some caterpillars

At craft time, the kids made bug viewers.

The butterfly gardens were beautiful!

The kids got to try to catch butterflies. We didn't have any success.

After class we saw a few animals and played for a bit.

Alice was pretty good for her first zoo class!

Happy Birthday, Jay!

I'm definitely not winning Wife of the Year based on this year's birthday celebration. Yesterday I baked some cupcakes, which I was going to send to work with him. Then my cough got worse and I felt like a bus had run me over, so they sat out all evening. This evening we stuck a candle in one and sang before Jay left town to get some more house stuff done. It doesn't get much more exciting than this!

Getting Closer...

We finally have a railing!

The south end of the living room

Standing in the dining room looking into the front entry

Looking into the dining room from the front entry

The built in bench and cubbies by the garage entry

We locked in our rate last week, so things will definitely be finished up within 52 days!

What Made Her So Happy?

My guess is the offer on our house, which we accepted today. If all goes smoothly, we will close September 30, which is right around the time our new house should be ready!

The First Day of Kindergarten

We started kindergarten this morning!

We're going to keep using our version of the Workbox System to keep us organized this year. I know I've said it several times before, but I really am planning on posting about our experience with this sometime.

After completing a couple of envelopes, we went to an exercise class at the library. (The light in there is terrible for photography!)

We're participating in Muffin Tin Monday this year--maybe I'll even figure out how to link up sometime.

Jack thought this was a really fun way to eat lunch!

After we finished our story (more details later), Jack was inspired to do a little artwork.

All in all, the day went pretty well. I would rather that Jack hadn't been awake before 6:00, but at least he was excited. We have a busy week with school and other outings (as well as a house showing in a few hours!), so posts may be a little slow this week!

And the Winner Is...

Sue! Just pm me your address and I will send the book this week. Thanks for playing, everyone!

Their First Day of School

Last night on Facebook, it seemed like all of the posts were about getting ready for the first day of school. When I finally got Alice to sleep for more than five minutes, I started getting ready, too. I had to stay right next to her, but at least I accomplished something.

When the morning rolled around, though, instead of getting on the bus and meeting a new teacher, Jack was trying to teach Alice about the solar system. I'm not sure how successful he was, but he had a good time. And it's a good thing he didn't need to be on a bus at 8:30, because we were almost late to our 9:45 meeting. We're starting kindergarten Monday morning--but not bright and early!

I Won! Now You Can, Too!

I don't know why the picture above is rotated, and I'm not taking the time to find out. What is important about the stuff in these pictures is that I didn't pay anything for it! When Mardel had their 20% off education sale in July, I won a drawing for a $150 classroom makeover with Scholastic and Teacher's Friend products. Hooray!

As I was going through some books last night, I realized that I already had the sight word game book on the right, so if you would like your own copy, please leave a comment on this post by midnight Sunday night and I will draw a winner.

Jack is especially excited about the animal art projects book. We start next week, so there's still lots to plan!

Random Pictures

Apparently Grandma wants an update, so here are some pictures from the last few days. Jay is out of town frequently to deal with house and job things, we are constantly cleaning the house since it's on the market, and Alice wants to nurse every hour and a half (but not sleep for more than 20 minutes or so), so my blogging time is limited right now. Hopefully I will be able to post more frequently soon!

Spinning at the science museum

Alice being wild at a birthday party

Hanging out on Daddy's lap

Goofing off for the camera

Grape pox! Jack never gets tired of this.

Jack trying a frog float at a party

Alice impersonating Buddy Hackett

Jack with his new-to-him "rare film camera"--we'll see how long the film supply lasts!