A New Chapter

The day has finally come where we send both kids off to school. While I shed a few tears, I'm so proud of these two.  They're both very bright, funny and excited to learn.  And as you can see in the pictures, they're pretty cute too!  It will take me some time to figure out what to do all day.  I'm feeling a little lost without my Skip-Bo partner. :(   Here's to another year!

Drew - Kindergarten

Alivia - 2nd grade

Lake Erie

 We enjoyed our visit at Edgewater Park in Cleveland.  Thanks to Dale and Cindy for telling us about it!  The kids loved "rock climbing" and walking on the beach.  It was such a beautiful day for it!

 

Belated Father's Day Trip

Our annual Father's Day trip was a little delayed this year.  Drew was unable to travel for two weeks after surgery, then before we knew it the July 4th holiday was here and summer was almost over.  We're thankful we found time this past weekend to visit Cleveland, the Crockett's, explore along Lake Erie and just be together.  It was a great way to end summer break and celebrate Brad and the wonderful Dad he's become.  I believe this marks the 7th MLB ballpark we've visited since Alivia was born.  Enjoy the pictures! 

 

Farm Life

Brad and I both had to work this week, so we called on Mamaw and Papaw Bine & Miss Karen to help with the kids.  Drew and Alivia spent 48 hours on the farm and loved every minute.  I think the kids were more worn out than the grandparents!  They rode bikes, played basketball, went swimming (in the pool and hot tub), saw baby pigs, made crafts, went to a movie, visited with Mark's family and played with Smoke (Mark's huge dog).  We were beginning to wonder if they'd want to come home.  They had a blast!

 

Three little pigs and cousin Mark. :)

 

Alivia was so excited to hold them.

 

Drew thought the water was to hot, but Alivia loved it!

Swimming in Miller's pool. 

 

They were riding bikes back Mamaw's lane by 8am!

 

Playing at McDonald's after watching the Minions movie.

Applebee's Fun

Alivia loves this game when we go to Applebee's.  She and Daddy had lots of fun!

Pool Day

 Ms. Terrie was kind enough to let us enjoy her pool this afternoon.  The kids had a blast!

Shoe Shopping with Aunt Leslie

Aunt Leslie loves taking these two shopping for shoes.  The only problem is she has great taste!  We met her at Nordstrom at the Fashion Mall to find the perfect fit.  Alivia has her first pair of Toms and Drew found some Under Armour tennis shoes.   I've warned Les that this could get quite expensive as they get older.  She wasn't to concerned.  ;)  Thanks so much for spoiling these two, Aunt Leslie.  They love spending time with you!

Change

There are a lot of changes happening in our lives right now.  We're embracing it and preparing to adjust to our new normal.  While all of these changes are for the better, I know change can be hard.  I'm anxious to see how these next few months play out.

Brad decided to look into a job opportunity at Warren Central High School last spring.  Anderson Prep has been so good to him, but the days were getting longer (it was rare for him to be home before 5:30) and the drive was not going to get shorter unless we moved.  The 40 minute commute was taking a toll on all of us.  My old boss use to say "the reward for good work is more work" and that was very true for Brad.  He's great at his job and good at many other things too.  This meant more on the to-do list and 2-3 hours each night catching up at home.  When the offer was made and the door opened at Warren, we both knew he needed to walk through it.  This job provides more security in a big corporation, has 18 less days on his contract and is three miles from home!  It means he'll have vacations with the kids, the luxury to be home by 3:30 on most days and a lot less stress.  We simply felt it was impossible to say no.  Besides the perks mentioned above, it also helps that he knows a handful of people in the school already.  His first week has gone very well and we're so grateful! 

The next change comes as we send both kids to elementary school this year.  Alivia will be in 2nd grade and Drew begins Kindergarten at Mt. Comfort Elementary.  This will be a much bigger change for me than anyone else.  When we made the decision for me to stay home part-time it made perfect sense and I wouldn't trade it for the world.  I'm so thankful we've had that time to be together.  Now they're both going to school and I'll be home without anyone to take care of.  I'm hoping to volunteer in both of their classrooms and find a new hobby or two.  Drew is convinced I'll spend most of my time cleaning. :)

I think we're all excited and anxious at the same time.  We know deep down this is what's best for our family and that's all that matters.  We're going to have so much time together with the kids these next several years.  Here's to enjoying every minute!

Rain Rain Go Away

After one of the wettest summers, we're ready for some sunshine!  Hoping these last couple weeks of summer vacation will give us a chance to enjoy being outside. 

July 4th

 We spent the July 4th holiday at the Indians game with the Greulich's.  It was a beautiful night for a baseball game.  Despite the ugly 9-2 loss, we all enjoyed the company and lots of fireworks.  The Indians shot off fireworks from the outfield then we watched the downtown show from the stadium.  We had a perfect view!

 

A rare moment when these two aren't fighting.  I'm sure I bribed them with something to get this picture!

 

Ethan, Drew, Alivia and Nolan

 

  

A great view from our seats.

 

Nolan & Alivia

 

Ethan

 

Camden wasn't always this happy (it's not easy to ask a 1 year old to sit through a game!), but he did love Brad.  We saw lots of smiles and giggles. :)