Awesome August

I'm sad to see another summer come to an end. We had a great time, though. Many fun times & memories made with the kids. Here is a look at some of our things in August.

Lauren loves to dress up -- especially in Dylan's old halloween costumes. Her favorites are Winnie the Pooh & a monkey. It is so cute!

Lauren sure is looking older as her hair just keeps getting longer & longer. I swear she had hardly any hair this time last year. One of our favorite things is going to the pool. We all love the water & sun. Dylan was quite the swimmer this year. Hard to believe he never had swim lessons. Lauren has never had any fear near the water either. I have to really watch her because she thinks she can swim without her floaties.

This was Dylan at Tokyo steakhouse -- he hated the fire from the hibachi grill & he wore my sunglasses. :)

Back to School

Wow -- the summer flew by. I'm so sad our lazy days of summer are over. Now back to schedules, packing lunches, carpool & most of all missing my kids. Yes, it's plural now. Dylan is my big kindergartner. I can't believe he's going to be gone all day from me, too. As you can tell, I'm emotional about this. I'm going to miss him so much & I don't know what Lauren is going to do without him. They are buddies. I know it's the way life goes & I know most moms can't wait for summer to end. Not me! The kids were excited though (even Dylan). Alyssa got Mrs. Haug & Dylan got Mrs. Hoyt. They both seem very nice & sweet. Surprisingly, Dylan didn't even cry - which is huge.

Alyssa's Slumber Party!

Alyssa with her sleepover buds Trinity, Elise, Andrea, Mallori & Olivia. So, Alyssa wanted a sleepover this year. I let her invite her 5 closest friends -- that was my cut-off. I have to admit -- I dreaded it, but it turned out to be so much fun & the girls couldn't have been any better.

The girls played for a bit, then it was off to the pool for a couple of hours of swimming -- I needed to wear them out. ha!! :) We then came home for pizza & a craft -- they each decorated the letter of their first name with jewels. Instead of cake, Alyssa wanted to make ice cream sundaes. So, the girls loaded up their ice cream with lots of candy & stuff. We ended the night with a movie. It was such a peaceful, drama-free night. I know Alyssa had the best time. She can't wait for the next one! (We'll see about that!)

I survived!! ;)

Alyssa Brooke turns 8!!!

Happy Birthday my baby girl!!! It's truly hard to believe I have an 8 year old!!! We had an awesome day. There's something to be said about summer birthdays -- a day full of summer fun! We started our day at the pool -- it was Alyssa's choice. We hadn't been there since her July 31st surgery, so it made it that much more special. After a few hours of fun in the sun, we came home for presents, then finished our night with dinner at Tokyo Steakhouse. It was a very special day. Here are a few pictures of my birthday girl!