Apple picking and painting

Yay for holidays off from school and long weekends! Rosh HaShanah has become our traditional apple picking holiday which I like because a significant symbol of Rosh HaShanah is apple slices dipped in honey which represent hope for a sweet new year and are traditionally accompanied by a short prayer before eating that goes: "May it by Thy will, O Lord, Our God, to grant us a year that is good and sweet. Here my girls are picking out some good apples and eating quite a few along the way. As soon as my new oven is here, since mine broke over the weekend, I'll be making some apple pie or apple crisp with all our yummy apples.

Now with school starting I have not been able to let the girls get crafty. I kept it simple and I'm sure you've seen these before. Using the handprint for the tree and then fingerprints for the leaves. Gillian couldn't quite understand the dots for fingerprints so I let her do her own thing. Very cute though still.

Then they let loose and let their creative juices flow :)

Time flies

This was taken on my birthday which was a week ago but it makes me think how quickly life goes by. I can't believe how big my girls have gotten. They are little ladies now with their own opinions and attitudes of their own. When did that happen? On that day I was really missing my mom. She's been gone for two years and I miss her everyday but especially on these occasions. I always miss her at holidays, birthdays (mine and any other family members) and the first of anything.

With Gillian starting school and not having my mom to lean on and ask advice, it's been hard. I miss her phone calls and her stopping by with a little something for the girls. I miss the things that you take for granted and don't realize how lucky you are to have. I know that I am lucky to have such a wonderful family and be so loved by them but I just can't help but think about how much my mom would have loved to be a part of that too.

Starting school and puppy love

Here's my big girl starting kindergarten. Getting back to work and starting school has been quite an adjustment for everyone and I know that we'll get there eventually, even me. I'm exhausted getting back to work, getting to know my own class, and getting back into my routine plus adding the new adventure of kindergarten in the mix. I know I've been neglecting my blog and my blogging friends, but I'll be back soon. Know that I'm sending you all much love!

Although, no matter what is happening with us we always have time for some love from Sonny. I love this picture!

Squeezing in the last of the summer fun

I will be meeting my new class tomorrow and I can't sleep. It is the start of a new year and I'm always filled with excitement. What will they be like? The anticipation is almost too much for me. I'm hoping for another wonderful class, which mine really was last year. I'm usually not blessed two years in a row but I'm hoping to break that streak this year. I will be able to tell by the end of the day who I'm going to have to keep my eye on, who's going to be my little helper, the tattler, the hard worker, the social butterfly, and so many more. It is fun figuring them all out. I'm probably just as nervous as my students when I walk out on that playground to meet them.

So summer is officially over for me! Here's the last of my summer fun with my girls. Yes that is a slip and slide and yes I also tried it out (to show how to use it of course) luckily there are no pictures of that but it brought me back to my own childhood and we had such fun :).

They didn't quite get the concept of sliding but loved crawling on it and then I ended up giving them some boosts to help them slide. Those giggles are priceless.

One last one today a little dip in our mini pool before bed. I will miss our summer vacation together but tomorrow I will be meeting their other children who lives I make a difference in this year. My new second grade family here I come! Wish me luck!

Sprinklers and Sandboxes

I've been loving the simple joys of summer. These lazy days where we don't have to rush out and be somewhere. My girls and I are so happy to be able to be spending some time outside and just being together. Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Back to school...already?

Where has my summer gone? I feel like it flew by. I know everyone always says that, but it really went too quick. So I'm going to be enjoying every minute that I have left and packing in those precious moments I do have to spend with my girls before I have to go back a meet my own new class of second graders.

My daughter is starting kindergarten, which I may have mentioned already...lol. So we went back to school shopping yesterday at the outlets. She is really developing a style of her own. Lately it has been a fight to get her dressed in the morning. I figure if she picked it, she'll wear it. At least I hope and she did pick some cute things. I've also been thinking about how to make that first day extra special. I have a few ideas that I'll put together and share in a post but until then. What do you all do or plan on doing to make going back to school special for your kiddos?

Reconnecting with old friends

We finally got some good weather again so we took advantage and headed back to the beach. I've been thinking about how lucky I am to be blessed with some amazing ladies in my life. Here's one of them, my friend Laura, she is wonderful. We were on the swim team together in high school so let's just say we've know each other for a long time. We lost touch for quite while and connected again last summer. This summer we've been hanging out a lot and our girls get along just as fabulously as we do. I love it! I always imagined that we would be mom friends together and now we are.

Here's our girls...relaxing at the beach just like their moms. If Gillian would just turn her bag around it could be a Sun Chip commercial, right?