Another First Day...

Sophie is giving the first day a BIG thumbs up!!

Izzy is all smiles too!
My favorite pose...the hugging pose!!
My life calendar seems to be marked by school beginnings. You see, obviously, I went to elementary, then middle, then high school. Then I went to four years of college. School didn't stop there for me...I then became a teacher.

So, I've really never left the school rhythm or the school pace.

So, here we are, first day of school for all of us this week.
It is always an ending and a beginning all wrapped up into one.
Ending of a summer, carefree life, sweet summer plans, and the relaxed summer pace.
It is the beginning, though, of new school experiences, new opportunites, and growth.
Both are good, just different.

You'd think I'd be good at starting school since I've been doing it for 30+ years...but,
I'm still sad on the last day of summer...

I still can't sleep the night before school starts...
I still cry when I kiss my kiddos goodbye...
I still wonder what I've done with my summer...
I still start a new diet every beginning of school....(not sure when that one started)
I still feel a little sick all the way to school...
I still wonder if I'll have a friend...
Hoping this year is great for all of you who are beginning school soon!

Fourth of July at the DUNES!!

We spent the 4th at Indiana Dunes State Park.
(I think the rest of Indiana had the same idea!!)
So much for originality.
It did not take away from our perfect day at the beach!
Evan (the one who's buried) ALWAYS asks to be buried.
He's insistent until the other kiddos oblige.
They always bury him...and he can never understand why he has so much sand in his pants!
Izzy giving Sophie a piggy-back ride in the water! LOVE the smiles!

If you look really closely at the horizon, you can see the Chicago skyline.

Izzy always makes a comfy seat/reading spot out of sand...this is her 4th of July recliner!
What an incredible day!

Perfect in every way!

She and They...

She needs to take the time to paint her toenails...

They paint theirs several times each week.

She wants to spend her time in the summer doing things with them...

They want to spend their time with friends.

She is trying to negotiate the tween/teen years...

They are doing just fine!

She wishes she could stop the world and hold them for awhile...

They hold their i-pods.

She waters the garden,

They grow.

She mows the lawn,

They cut their dinner short.

She washes the dishes,

They wash their hair (and dry it and curl it).

She picks up the house,

They pick up her spirits when she sees their beautiful smiles...

It's all perspective...

After making my kids watch Secret Millionaire with me, we had a discussion on homelessness.

Sophie: "If that were me, I would go get a job...and a place to live."
Izzy: "They can't."

Sophie: "But----"

Me: "Sometimes it's hard to convince people that you are a determined, hardworking person when you're homeless."

Sophie: "Well----"

Izzy: "He did it in The Pursuit of Happyness." [Our all-time favorite movie]

Me: "Yes, but that was just a movie...sometimes..."

Sophie: "It's easy... you just fill out the job application..."

Me: "But they ask you...what your last job was...what have you been doing that shows that you are a hard worker...that type of thing..."

Sophie: "Well, I would just tell them...I'm making my come-back!"

There it is, folks...easier than we might have thought...but what a great perspective...when you're down on your luck and people are questioning you about it, just tell them...

I'm making my comeback!

Chicago happenings

Can you believe how awesome our room was from HOTWIRE??? It was ginormous...and that is always good when you have girls and outfits and hair and late night snacking... Left to Right:

1. The Grand Lux Cafe...so yummy/awesome! We even got a seat right there in that window area...it was cozy...warm...and yummy.


2. The next picture is a view of the gardens on the tops of the neighboring buildings. We also spied on the people in the other buildings and made up names and stories for them. Some of the names included...Shelly, Kathy, Ribsy, and Grandpa Joe. I won't even get into the fabulous stories that were invented about them!


3. The room again...with a MURPHY bed!! :)


4. Sophie standing in front of the coolest lightbulb fixture/exhibit at Urban Outfitters. So illuminating, don't you think?

Can't LOVE Chicago enough...I think I will live there one day!

Chicago Spring Fun!!

Oh my, do I ever love the city!!

Izzy, Sophie and I spent a long weekend in the city and walked our ever-lovin' legs off!

Here are a few of our highlights...

How nice to spend time with these lovelies!

Einstein Brothers bagels for breakfast every morning...

WALK, walk, walking all day...

Good food, LOTS of shopping, and LOTS of laughs! More to come on this trip!

Cassie Week!!! :)

We loved our week with Cassie again! Here are some highlights!

Jr. Miss 2010--you read that right!

I'm only a year behind, right?

*Big "Wish-I-were-more-timely-with-things" *sigh*

Jr. Miss--Indiana

It is Junior Miss Week...which means that we are a host home for girls who stay in the area to compete in the state competition.

Our first year, we hosted two beautiful girls who are now in their sophomore year of college!

Cindy (had the coolest dance ever!) and Emilee (won the academic award)...

We decided that we wanted to be a host home EVERY year!! :)

In 2010, we had Cassie and Abby come to stay with us!

They are both such beautiful souls! And, as you can see, we had so much fun with them!
We had an excellent time...and they BOTH won the Fitness part of the competition!

Then, on the last evening, Cassie was named Indiana's Junior Miss!

!

So, the cool thing about that is that she comes back this week to lead the program for 2011!! (AND she is staying with US---again!!)

YAYYY!!

That SMILE!!

A smile is a curve that sets everything straight!
--Phyllis Diller

Sophie's smile is sweet and contagious!

I just LOVE it!

I just love my Sophie!!!

Weekend ABCs...

Well, this is a little late...my goal for this year is to be more timely about my posts...better late than never, right?

A- Amanda's---favorite thrift store in Indy...moved!
B- Being together with my girliepoos!!
C- Cookies (peanut butter...shared with us by Lori!!)
D- Delightful time with JUST US!! :)
E- Enjoying our gift of time!
F- Fifty percent off of everything at Goodwill!
G- Girl's lazy weekend!
H- Hairdos...we tried a bunch of new ones!
I- Ipod playlists...we sang at the top of our lungs in the car!
J- January 7th, 8th, and 9th...Sophie gets the front seat on odd days...lucky her!
K- Kept the dishes done consistently all weekend! (I know...don't judge)
L- Lil' Ceasar's CRAZY bread...oh my...yum
M- Movie Night...(Charlie St. Cloud and Despicable Me)
N- New style from Sophie (should have taken a picture...)
O- Online frustrations...(spent 5 and a half hours on the phone with ATT Uverse)
P- Printing pictures for the Science Fair!
Q- Quest for bargains
R- Recording Surprise...all of our shows were still recorded...
S- Snowed a little bit too...
T- Tech Support...(see O)
U- Uncle Marshall and Aunt Phoebe's house for lunch!
V- Vintage maps...a beautiful, map themed Christmas tree was given to us!
W- West Clay Shops in Westfield
X- Xtreme service calls...(See T and O)
Y- Yummy Peanut Butter PIE!
Z- Zero meltdowns from anyone all weekend...it was truly HAPPY!

It's the most wonderful time...of the YEAR! :)

Well...this was a weekend that had great plans...all to be rerouted (as my GPS would say)!

We planned... to write Christmas lists on Friday night...the girls and I SORT of pulled through on that one...but we got hot and tired...and ended up eating a pretzel and heading to Barnes and Noble where we all got our fix of magazines!

We planned... to see our friend, Andy Best, in a play called A Redneck Country Christmas...but the show was sold out and we were turned away! :(

We planned... to go to Kokomo to visit my parents...but the snow was predicted...and we didn't want to chance it with school work and many other things on our "TO DO" list...so we ate out after church and then headed to Walmart.

Our plans were all kind of changed, but it ended up being an excellent weekend anyway! We were able to spend a LOT of time together, laughed a LOT, and we also had our alone time.

We played bananagrams. If you haven't played this game yet...get it, play it, and buy it for someone for Christmas!! We are bananas over bananagrams!!!

We made Christmas cookies. Izzy was my helper...Sophie wanted to watch TV instead. :(

We made hot chocoate.

With marshmallows...only the tiny ones because SOMEONE keeps opening the bag...getting a few...and then leaving the bag opened so that we are left with COLD, HARD marshmallows...who could be doing that? I have my guesses!! (She's watching TV!!)

We shopped...made lists...and DID find some PEACE!

NOW...there's a 2-hour delay for tomorrow!

You know, I can deal with plans changing!
I LOVE it! Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!!

NUMBER 22--CHECK!!

Number 22 on the list...Keep the house clean all week!
Well, no one thought it could be done....and I'll admit, I had my doubts too!

I did it.

I kept the house relatively clean ALL week!!

Here's proof...Sunday night at midnightish!

Okay, now...I've had my share of things to deal with this week...someone gave Sophie a popcorn popper for free at a yard sale...I heard popping, but found that Sophie was nowhere to be found...she was in the bathroom...when you have to go...you have to go...meanwhile, popcorn was popping out all over everywhere!!! :) A fun memory is better than a clean house, right?
Lesson from this week: A clean house is overrated...and kind of hard to do...memories are more fun to make and sustain! Anyway...we all made it and we lived to tell about it. I'm not sure it is good for the family when I'm serious about keeping things clean, that's all I'm saying.

Home...

Okay, I know I need to stop doing these, but folks...I think they are here to stay. I will maybe begin housing them in a different place on my blog...but I'm addicted...

I love this song with these pics...the girls really are "home" when they are together. Like it or not. :)

I hope you enjoy it like I am!!

Mourning Period...

I know, I know...I HAVE a job, so I should be thankful. And. I. Am. But I'm feeling pretty whiney lately. I loved summer so much that I'm missing it...just like Izzy said the other night on her way to bed on SATURDAY..."I don't want tomorrow to come because then the next day is Monday...and I miss summer!"

MY. THOUGHTS. EXACTLY.

I'm posting some first day of school pics...a week late...(I've been in denial for that long!)

Izzy Grace is in SEVENTH GRADE!!! And she looks like a 7th grader...

Sophie Leigh is a FIFTH GRADER...and she is absolutely darling...

Look at that cutest smile!!!

There she goes...

this is her last year in elementary school...

The picture is blurry because my eyes were blurry...

I didn't take MY first day of school picture...probably a good thing...

the tears would have you all choked up!

Just kidding.

Fishing and Oval Beach

I just tried my hand at making a video and I'm TOTALLY addicted! :) How cute are these kiddos when they're fishing?! I have to say, I've never considered fishing to be hectic, however, with four kiddos needing worms on their hooks (because a fish had nibbled theirs off, or it was in the grass, or the one that got away had a great snack), I had a lot to do...and it was hectic! :)

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

More beach fun...

The sand castle in progress...It wouldn't be an "Izzy" castle without PEACE! :)

Izzy is putting the finishing touches on it...complete with a peace sign and rock wall...it was excellent!

Izzy relaxed in the comfort of her castle and read one of the books from the Percy Jackson series! That was her book series for the summer of 2010!

It's what we did each day...at some point...never got boring...new rocks to discover, games to make up, waves to ride, castles to create, sand pictures to draw, books to devour, plums to savor, meanders to take...and Vitamin D to soak in!!!

This picture is of a rock shaped like a heart...we always look for them...I just happened to have my camera with me when we spotted this one!

We happened upon a girl one night who was very intently sculpting sand...she was only about 10, but she made some excellent pictures in the sand! This one is a happy octopus...pretty great, huh?

This one (made by the same girl) is an alligator!

Izzy drew all kinds of pictures in the sand...this is just one of the many!!!

This is a "drip castle" that looked WAY cool in person...

Those were some of the day-in, day-out beachy things we did...tomorrow, I will post a picture of the cutest sculpture that we came across! Look forward to it...SO cute!!

Tomorrow I'm back to work from my luxurious, lovely summer. So many quotes are running through my head..."all good things must come to an end," "it's better to have loved (summer) and lost, rather than to not have loved at all," "there's always next summer"...but the quote that is most appropriate for this situation is simple: "Whaaaaaaaaaaa."