Ava's 1st day of Kindergarten

On Monday August 25, 2014 my first born started Kindergarten! (tear) My heart broke a little (ok a lot) leading up to the big day but it gave me peace of mind knowing how excited and ready she was. We have been talking about Kindergarten for some time now and the big day was finally here!

(picture is blurry because it was early in the morning, not a lot of light, and we were using our phones)

She woke up bright eyed and bushy tailed at 6am and was ready to get dressed and eat breakfast so she could get out the door. 

Daddy went in to work a little late so that we could all walk her in together as a family. This is such a huge milestone that we wanted to share with her. 

Once we made our way to her classroom she put her backpack away in her locker that is located in her room. 

Her teacher is Mrs. Gray and so far seems like a wonderful teacher. She is new to the school but not new to teaching. She has a masters in Education with an emphasis on Reading and Literacy. Couldn't ask for better credentials for her Kindergarten teacher! She is also from San Antonio and has a Golden Retriever. :) I feel like my prayers for Ava's teacher have been answered. 

Every morning when she walked into the classroom she would give Mrs. Gray a hug. 

There is another Ava in her class so she will be known as Ava S. this year unfortunately. She doesn't seem to mind and has already gotten used to writing Ava S. (with a fancy curly S I might add) on all her papers.

I was very proud of her and I on her first day. We were very brave and I only shed a few tears. (I guess I got all my tears out the days leading up to her 1st day)

One final glance at our big girl as we walked out the door. I got a little teary eyed leaving her behind (and when we first walked into her school hand in hand. The reality really set in then)

Some other things I want to remember about her 1st week:

*Her favorite part about school so far is recess. Not surprised!

*She gets scared when they sing "Going on a bear hunt" at school and has asked us to pray that she doesn't get scared by that song.

*She has been in bed by 6:30 every night because she is so worn out.

*I picked her up in the carpool line on Monday and Tuesday. I arrived extra early and did a lot of waiting in the car which baby sister did not like so I had to get her out and hold her in the front seat with me till the line started moving. I learned that I could leave the house 5 minutes before dismissal (rather than 30) and just park and walk up to get her rather than waiting in the carpool line with a fussy baby. We did this the rest of the week.

*We walked her in to class every day except Friday. I gave her the choice on Friday if she wanted me to walk her in or if she wanted to do it by herself and she wanted to go by herself. I let her lead the way to her class on Wednesday and Thursday so I was confident that she could find her way. There are lots of hallways and turns before getting to the Kindergarten hall and it would have been easy for her to get lost amongst all the kids. She did great on Friday and said that she found her room right away. Seeing her hop out of my car and walk in with the big kids made me both proud and sad that she was becoming so independent.

*All week she had been talking about all the yummy food in the the cafeteria so I let her buy her lunch on Friday.

*Every day that she came home from school she was so excited to show me all the work she had done. She called them my "surprises". :)

Ava, your 1st week of school is complete! You did beautifully and we are filled with such pride and joy. I can't wait to see what this year holds for you and all the learning and growing you will do. I am excited to support you and cheer you on in this new chapter of your life. I will always be your biggest cheerleader! I love you Ava Munchie.

xoxo, Mommy

Ava at 5 1/2 years old

Ava Marie, how is it that my baby girl is already 5 and going to Kindergarten?! I swear it feels like yesterday that you were in diapers! The past 5 years have been the absolute best years of my life and it has all started with you. To say that I am  blessed to  have a daughter like you would be a huge understatement. You mean everything to your daddy and I and we are so proud of the person you are becoming. I am so sad that I won't have you home with me next year and that  I can't tuck you under my wing and shelter you from the world BUT I know that going to school is part of growing up and you are ready for Kindergarten. You are ready to meet new friends, be independent, soak up information and learn. I am so grateful that you love school and are ready for this next chapter in your life. It makes it a little easier on your momma to let you go. You are such a special little girl and we couldn't love you more!!

Here are some things about you at 5 1/2 years old:

*You are still very in to princesses. Probably more than ever actually! You love anything princess related, especially your collection of little princess dolls and your princess dresses. Frozen is your current infatuation, along with every 2-8 year old little girl.

*You wear your dress up clothes more than your regular clothes. 9 times out of 10 if we are home, you are in a princess dress of some sort.

*You like to put on dance shows (or fashion shows as they have recently become).

*You also like to play "hair salon" and have tea parties.

*You still enjoy coloring and doing crafts. You ask me at least once a day (no lie) if you can do a craft. When we don't have craft supplies on hand you get creative and will take boxes out of the recycling bin and make something out of them, such as a fairy house or a princess castle. I enjoy doing crafts with you so much.

*You love your little sister so much and as much as you hate to admit it, I know you love your little brother too. When you are sweet to him and include him in whatever you are doing he just follows your command. He looks up to his big sister a lot.

*You love school and love to be with your friends. You told me yesterday that " you couldn't wait to start Kindergarten". :)

*You are still shy (or reserved as some may say) but once you get comfortable you open up more.

*You are still very self aware and don't like a lot of attention put on you. If you are hurt or sad at school or somewhere else in public you wont show your emotions because you don't want others to notice. We are working on this.

*You are currently sharing a room with Connor. You go to bed around 7 and sleep till about 6:15-6:30. We lay you down first in Kendall's room so you can fall asleep without the distraction of your brother and then once both of you are asleep we move you back to your bed for the night.

*You wake up about once a night to go to the bathroom and then you go back to sleep. You are scared of going to the bathroom by yourself for some reason and you usually ask us to go with you. :/

*The things that scare you most are thunder, lightening, volcanoes, and thought of a fire. You ask us to pray every night that you won't have bad dreams about any of these things.

*Aside from your amazing sense of creativity and imagination, you have a great deal of determination. You don't give up easily and I admire that about you.

*Your favorite color is purple.

*You want to be a dentist when you grow up.

*You wear mostly size 5t-6t but 4t fits you best in bottoms.

 Pretending they are real bugs

 Making recycled crafts

 Playing hair salon

 Tea party time

 Dress up with best friends

Best big sister ever

Ava Marie, you are a beauty on the inside and out. Being your mom is my greatest privilege and the past 5 years that I have spent with you at home have been such a blessing. I thank God every day for you and for the opportunity to be a stay at home with my precious children. I have loved every day with you since the day you were born and I will always look back at this time in my life and remember all the many many memories that we have made together in my early years of motherhood. You have taught me so much about what it means to be a mother, to be kind and loving, to be patient, to be a good role model, to be creative, and to live in the moment and have fun. You are so very special and I love you more than you will ever know!

xoxo, Mommy

Kendall 3 months old

Happy 3 months old Miss Kendall!

Here are some highlights from your 3rd month: 

*You started cooing and you are smiling a lot more now. :)

*You have found your fists and suck on them often.

*You are sleeping about an 8 hour stretch every night before waking to be fed. I nurse you for the last time around 7:30 pm, lay you down around 8, you wake again around 4am, and then go back to sleep till about 8-9.

*You are napping better in your pack-n-play (big brother is still using your crib :/ ). I have been trying to lay you down sleepy but awake and about half the time you are able to put yourself to sleep. Sometimes I have to bounce you or carry you around in the Ergo till you fall asleep and then I lay you down. You are not on a distinct nap schedule (primarily because your wake up time varies so much) but I hope to get you on a better schedule soon.

*You are a little less fussy during the day and more content in your swing, rock and play, or your play mat.

*You like to held but only in the upright position. You like facing out and looking around.  You hate the cradle hold. I think this is due to your reflux which I still notice. You spit up much more than your brother or sister ever did. We have to carry a burp cloth with us at all times but often times Mommy is covered in dry spit up by the end of the day.

*Bath time is one of your favorite times of day. You smile and coo the most in the tub. :)

*You met two of your great grandparents this month, Mimi and Big Bob. :)

We love you Kendall Vaughan! xoxo

Connor at 2 1/2 years old

My sweet boy, you are growing and changing by the month! You are looking and acting more and more like a little boy than ever before. You steal my heart with your cheeky (sometimes mischevious) grin and those sweet hugs and kisses. I love that you are still a momma's boy! Your daddy and I tell each other all the time how blessed we are to have a precious boy in our family. We love you so very much Connor James!

Here is what you have been up to lately:

*You are HUGE! You are in the 95% for height and weight and wear size 3t clothes and size 6 diaper (they don't make them any bigger so I guess potty training is in our near future :0 )

*You are very affectionate, especially with mommy, and always want to snuggle. Lately you have been telling me "hold you". I think the jealousy with your baby sister is finally starting to show.

*Your vocabulary has really taken off lately. You are starting to speak in sentences (a little choppy but oh so cute!). I love hearing you try to talk!

*You are ALL boy (ok, other than the fact that you occasionally wear your sister's dress up shoes and bracelets around the house!). You are the perfect blend of active and calm. You like to climb (and jump!) on the couch and be rough with your daddy and sister but you also LOVE to sit on the couch and just look at books. In fact that is one of your favorite activities and you must have a minimum of 20 books with you at all times, including in the car. We have multiple baskets of books in the living room because you insist on having them close by.

*You like to wear shorts with "pa pa" (pockets) and you stuff them full of little random objects (hair clips, legos, cars, cell phones, bracelets...and the list goes on)

*You are also obsessed with lawn mowers, construction equipment, and garbage trucks. Another favorite thing of yours is to help daddy mow. Be still my heart! You put your gloves on, put your hat on backwards, and grab your mower (all to be just like daddy) and you follow him around the entire yard as he mows. I can't help but stare out the window and watch you with a huge smile on my face. And as far as garbage trucks, you think they all have "poo poo" in them because you know that is where all your poopy diapers go. You can't say the word garbage truck without mentioning poo poo. ;)

*You love being with your daddy and try so hard to be just like him. (He eats it up too by the way!). You like wearing cargo shorts, polo shirts, and flip flops so that you look just like your daddy. More and more people are starting to say that they are beginning to see more of your daddy in you. " See bud, dreams come true", as your sister would say about that. ;)

*Sleeping in a toddler bed with free reign of the room didn't work out so well for you so you are back in your crib and you are still wearing your sleep sack. You haven't tried to escape, even though I know you can, so we are going to ride out this crib sleeping for as long as we can (especially since you are sharing a room with Ava). Your baby sister Kendall may never know what it is like to sleep in an actual crib. :0

*You take one 2 hour nap a day and go to bed around 7 and sleep till 7. You tend to wake up before your sister and growl at her to get her to wake up. This does not make anyone happy. We have been laying your sister down to sleep in Kendall's room and then moving her over once the two of you are asleep in seperate rooms so that yall dont play and keep each other up, which has happened too many times in the past.

*You are about to start going to preschool 2 days a week. We know you are ready and if your experience is anything like your sister's was we know you will thrive!

Little Guy, we just love you so much! xoxo