23 on the 23rd

Yesterday, August 23rd, Amanda was officially 23 months old. I love the symmetry of that event. And I also love the way it lends itself to a little reflection.

23 months...on the verge of two

As I filled a work request today at the utility department, Amanda charmed the women behind the counter. One said, "She must be two." It shocked me to look at Amanda...my baby...and realize that she really looks two. She is quickly approaching toddlerhood. More and more (actually most of the time) she wants "down. walk. walk." She climbs up the slide and races down it again. "No" is a common word. And, she loves her brothers.

Here is a picture of her taken on the 23rd while we were at Andrew's soccer practice. She loves to be outside and really enjoyed exploring the mud.

girls day

When all the boys are away, the girls play and play. I've never had a "girls play day" at my house, but it was full of dolls, squeals and dress-up. These girls are not yet two, but they still managed to play like girls. The hardest part for Amanda was sharing her dolls. That's generally not a toy she has to share with her brothers!


Oh, and they loved the pigtails!

Farley was the only boy around, but they both loved playing with him. Elizabeth just laughed when Amanda threw the toy for Farley to fetch. That made Amanda laugh and do it again.

We had a wonderful day!

Andrew school = more adjustments

After a week and a half of waiting (plus two years of watching Scott go to school), Andrew finally had his turn for "first day of school." For him, it was a true first day of school. He already LOVES it! He said his favorite part of school this week was playing with the Transformers, but he has spent most of his time talking about who is fastest on the playground. School is so fun at age 4 and he can't imagine that Scott's classroom doesn't have toys. After all, that is how he spends the majority of his time in the classroom.


Miss Chris greets him at the door.


And, Miss Lisa is also there to say hello.

So, now for nine hours a week, it's just Amanda and me. She "helped" me haul recycling on Monday. Notice how she is just wearing one boot. It's all she can manage to put on by herself.

As a funny note, I have to share a story from yesterday. As we left the library, we walked past a big bulldog statue (like Chicago has cows, we have bulldogs all over town.) Andrew asked if that was once a living bulldog.

Confused, I answered, "No, it is a statue. That's kind of like a painting, but 3-D"

"Well, when I grow up, I want to be a scientist who digs old bulldogs out of football fields."

I paused a second and then it was all I could do not to laugh. Scott wants to be a paleontologist (hence the digging up bones reference) and Andrew just assumes that bulldogs roam on every football field in America. I guess that's what you get for growing up in Georgia Bulldog country. :)

Then, he told me that he really wanted to be an astronaut and that was also a scientist.

School!

I can't believe it has been two weeks since I've posted...and I can't believe school has been in session for two weeks. We are settling, we are adjusting, and we all love where we are right now. Here is a recap.

Here is Scott exiting the bus after his first day.



And, we were all outside waiting for him.

But, we did not sit outside all day on the hot driveway and wait. We had plenty of fun playing with games and toys. Andrew set up his Legos on the couch and orchestrated a Star Wars battle.

Amanda is very interested in her dolls and their "dirty" diapers. However, she is more interested in posing for the camera, so I had a hard time actually getting a picture of her playing with the doll.


We also spent a few brief moments outside on the swing set and pirate ship. Yes, Amanda has figured out how to get on the ship and thinks she is quite the big girl while she is up there.



Andrew loves viewing the world upside down.

And, these curls prove the extent of the humidity. I'm sure we won't see them in the winter, but they sure do come out in full force in this August heat.

First day in the First grade morning update

It was pretty dark this morning when Derrick left at 5:50. He likes to beat traffic and not get stuck behind the school buses. Plus it is always nice to have some breathing room before the kids arrive.


Scott was ready for the first day of school. Doesn't he look so grown up!

The boys wait patiently for the bus. Amanda did not make it up to see the bus.


Here comes the bus at 6:46. It is a bit lighter than when Derrick left, but in the winter it is still very dark outside this early in the morning.



Scott was so excited about loading that he almost forgot to turn around for the compulsory picture. Miss Alice, the really kind bus driver, had to remind him to pause for the camera. It helps also that she is a scrapbooker, so she knows the value of photos!

Back to School

Tonight is officially the last night of summer. To celebrate, we went to the pool early, ate Scott's favorite dinner (tortellini) and Popsicles...and had everyone in bed by 7:32.

We are really excited about this school year for the kids. We met Scott's teacher today, Mrs. Shoemaker. As Scott entered the room, she asked him to select a little animal from her desk that would be his "desk buddy" for the year. At the end of the year, it is his to keep. He is really excited about his kiwi bird (and, yes, he knew it was a kiwi bird when he chose it, thanks to Nana and Pop's trip to Australia and New Zealand a few years ago.) He was also excited to find a Star Wars Eyewitness Book in her reading area.


This has been a really long week for us. Derrick is working again and Scott was really eager to begin school as well. Yesterday, I decided it was time for an outing. In the pouring down rain, we set out for the local thrift store to see if we could get some soccer cleats. Wouldn't you know, but they had a pair for each boy. At $1.50 and $2.99, you just can't beat the price. And, while we were there, we lucked out and got a new electricity kit for the boys (also $2.99!). They spent the rest of the afternoon creating electric currents and playing with magnets. The only thing that the kit was missing was an instruction guide, but we have one on its way thanks to a quick email to the company. I even picked up a fairly decent copy of a Sandra Boynton book (The Belly Button Book) for 15 cents. Amanda isn't super excited about it, but I sure do think it is a funny book.

Back to School

Derrick began school yesterday and Scott starts next week. Summer is over for us, even though it is still almost 100 degrees outside.

As I folded laundry yesterday, I thought that it will be a long time before I again fold a load of Derrick's clothes with six pairs of shorts and no dress shirts. It may be in the upper 90's outside, but Derrick is back to long pants.

The stores in Georgia are all having back to school sales. Who wants to buy plaid sweaters and corduroy pants in August? I'll just wait until the Labor Day sales...or perhaps the Columbus Day sales...or even the "end of season sales in late November when they are trying to clear the racks for spring clothes!

Or maybe I won't have to shop at all, if our hand-me-down clothes hold up. Sometimes by the time we get clothes, Scott and Andrew are the fourth and fifth boy to wear them. Jeans just don't last that long without getting holes in the knees!