Fair Day 2010

Fall wouldn't be fall without a trip to the State Fair of Texas. This is something we look forward to every year, and the girls have been talking about it for weeks. They were so excited when "fair day" arrived. Sutton didn't remember much from last year--he was only 5 months old then. As we were loading everyone up in their strollers, he didn't seem too excited.

All that changed when we made our first stop for cotton candy. Again, he was a little unsure at first, but as soon as that fluffy, sugary goodness touched his tongue, he was hooked. What a treat for us all!

Our next stop was a State Fair classic...

Yummy (0r as Sutton says "mummy")! Corny dogs aren't on our normal menu, so having them at the Fair is a special treat. The girls ate about 1/2 of theirs, and Travis and I were happy to take care of the rest :) Sutton wasn't sure how to eat his. He took bites out of the middle and then wouldn't let go of the stick.

Then, it was time for the petting zoo. Ella LOVED this! She wasn't afraid at all and got right up next to the goat pen. Sutton kept eating the animal feed--ick! Grace may be getting a little old for this (how is that possible?) because she seemed a little impatient.

I'm only including this picture in my story because about 10 seconds after it was taken, the giraffe they were looking at got a little too close to Ella. She freaked out and dropped her cup of animal feed and has since been telling everyone that the giraffe tried to bite her.

The highlight of our trip was definitely riding the Texas Star for the first time. The Texas Star is a giant ferris wheel, and Grace and Ella insisted on riding it. They visit the Nature & Science Museum at Fair Park pretty frequently and had seen the Texas Star during their past couple of visits. Travis and I tried to convince them that it would be better to wait until after dark, when everything would be lit up, but what do we know. They're not really into delayed gratification. So, we deviated from our normal Fair route and headed over to the midway.

I am NOT a fan of heights and/or amusement park rides, but I was a total sport and didn't complain once. As fate would have it, we got to ride in a pink "car," and the girls were just beside themselves during the whole ride. I just tried to breathe deeply and keep my eyes focused on them. It was so worth it to see their sweet faces as they experienced something new. Even Sutton enjoyed it, and he put his hands behind his head just like he does when riding in his car seat.

After a successful ride on the ferris wheel, Grace rode her first roller coaster. She loved it! She's obviously not like her mother. After riding on my first roller coaster at Neff's Amusement Park in San Angelo when I was around her age, I haven't been on one since. So, this was mommy's second roller coaster ride. Go me!

Poor Ella isn't tall enough yet to ride anything except the carousel. She was so upset that she couldn't ride the roller coaster with Grace, but she loved riding the carousel with Travis. This carousel went much faster than the one at the zoo, and it was impossible to get a decent picture. Ella's horse was right next to Grace, but you can't even see her in this picture.

Sutton was the observer again. He'll get his turn next year.

Our last stop was for our favorite Jack's french fries and dipped ice cream bars. I promise I'm not a bad mother. My kids usually eat very healthy, and I normally wouldn't consider a dinner of cotton candy, corny dogs, french fries and ice cream to be an acceptable dinner. Sutton's shirt is evidence of two things: (1) all the yummy food we ate, and (2) he is such a boy. Look at that mess!

These three are triple trouble. Although we had fun, they really weren't behaving very well. We heard lots of whining and had many moments of parental frustration. I think you have to approach the Fair knowing, "It's going to be a lot of work. It's going to wear you out. At least one child is going to have a meltdown. Don't think too hard about all the germs." At the end of the day, we spent time together as a family, and that's my favorite thing in the world. I'm already looking forward to next year.

End of School Program

This is one of those "catch up" posts that I'm doing because I just found these pictures on a memory card and realized that I hadn't posted them before.

Before school ended in May, our school had its end-of-year program, and Ella and Grace loved being a part of it. Ella's little class was so cute. They dressed up as monkeys and were supposed to sing two songs, but Ella just sat on the stage looking precious. No words. No motions. Nothing. I wish I had pictures, but my darn camera ran out of batteries. Typical.

Thankfully, Travis showed up with my (his) good camera, so I was able to catch pictures of Grace. She was a zebra and fully participated. It's amazing how much difference two years can make. Her entire class sang, moved and entertained the audience. Even my Gracie (in the yellow dress on the front row).

I love seeing my kids love on their amazing Daddy. Grace was so happy that he was there.

Dear Blogger

I'm sorry I haven't posted much lately. I'm doing my best to catch up, although the 1000+ pictures I have from our Seaside trip are proving to be very time consuming to edit. On top of that, I just found tons of pictures on some memory cards that my dear husband had at work. Some of my next posts will likely be dedicated to events that happened months ago, and then I'll attack all of our recent events. Thanks for understanding.

Ella's First Day of Dance

For the past two years, Ella has been waiting to go to dance class with Grace. Today, she finally go her turn. She started ballet and tap lessons at our favorite neighborhood studio and was super excited! She was a little confused about not actually being in Grace's class, but she has another little friend in her class and felt very comfortable there. She's the cutest ballerina!

I'm so glad I found another personalized ballet bag like Grace's. Ella loved it!

Here's Grace on her first day way back when. I can't believe how much she's grown!

Grace's First REAL Soccer Game

After playing Small Fry soccer in the spring, Grace was anxious to start "real" soccer this season. Real soccer = no parent participation and real games! She had one goal in mind: to score a "real" goal because she didn't get one last season. Here she is looking cute before her first "real" practice yesterday. Notice the pose. It's her new thing.

Travis accompanied her, and he said that as soon as they began playing, Grace got the ball and scored the first goal. She immediately turned around, looked at him and gave him a huge thumbs up.

Then, she scored a REAL goal in her first REAL soccer game! Woo hoo! She turned to us and gave us another huge thumbs up. This is how she came off the field...

She cracks me up! I took lots of live footage, but in most of it, you can't really tell which one she is. She's #5 (her choice because that's how old she'll be soon), but I saw at least two other #5s on the field. It must be a popular number.

Grace was so proud of herself, and we're so proud of her too! I love my soccer star!

First Day of School 2010

It's that time of year again! Grace and Ella started school today, and they did great. I got a little sentimental thinking about the fact that this is Grace's "last" first day of preschool. I cannot believe that she'll go to kindergarden next year! I get teary-eyed just thinking about it. Her class is called the "junior varsity" class and meets three days per week. We considered putting her in the varsity class, which meets five days per week, but we decided against it for two reasons: (1) Grace loves free time with Ella and Sutton and would miss them terribly if she was gone everyday, and (2) she has the rest of her life to go to school and work on a five-day week. I'm so glad she has one more year to enjoy being a kid!

We started the morning with yummy waffles, then got dressed for the day, complete with fancy new shoes that fall within the rules (no sandals or Crocs). The first day of school isn't complete without new backpacks and lunch bags (except I didn't buy new lunch bags, just cool bento box containers that will save me from hunting for multiple bowls and lids and wasting Ziploc bags). Does't Grace look like such a big girl?

Our photo session was less than ideal because of torrential rain, which resulted in horrible lighting and a few drops of rain on my camera. We were also interrupted by two huge snails that were obviously more interesting than me.

Okay, now back to business.

Ella was surprisingly cooperative this morning. I didn't hear "no take my picture" even one time!

I could just eat her!

This is what happens when I try to get two silly girls to stay still for me...

Goodness, they wear me out sometimes! Now, this little guy is loving the camera lately and even says "CHEESE!"

Unfortunately, the rain did not let up all morning. Our walk into school was wet and exhausting as we lugged all our school gear, raincoats and umbrellas.

Grace went first this year and didn't seem a bit nervous. She might even have been embarrassed that I was following her around with a camera.

We met her teacher (after we missed Meet the Teacher Night because we were on vacation), and as soon as Grace walked in, she spotted her best school friend with whom she shares a name. They hugged each other tightly and her friend said, "I have to tell you a secret!" It was so sweet, and I'm glad they'll have each other in class again.

Ella was definitely apprehensive, as she tends to be around new people. Her nervous habit is putting her fingers into her mouth. She came close here...

She's got two very sweet teachers this year, and I know she's going to do well again. She remembered one of them from last year on the playground, and she hopped right into her lap. Her daily report card said she was very chatty, so her nerves must have disappeared quickly.

We are so thankful for our school and its wonderful staff. I pray that Grace and Ella have another wonderful year!

Go! Go! Go!

That's what Sutton kept repeating at his 15-month checkup today. We had plenty of fun in the waiting room visiting with other families and watching the fish...

All that changed once we went into the exam room. Sutton checked the room out and then decided that it was time to leave--before the nurse and doctor even arrived. He kept grabbing my hand and pulling me to the door, shouting, "Go! Go! Go!" I tried explaining that we couldn't go yet, which made him really mad. He threw a huge fit, which is becoming more common these days, complete with real tears, screams and back arching. I do my best to keep him from hurting himself and me, but he's so much stronger than the girls. He apparently thought that I didn't understand that he wanted to leave, so then he started grabbing my purse and his diaper bag and trying to lift them and again telling me to "Go! Go! Go!"

Needless to say, it was an exhausting visit, but the doc assured me that this is typical for the 15-month visit. Sutton is healthy and right on track developmentally. I did have one concern to raise that I've never had to deal with in almost 5 years- "What can I do to make him eat?" I told her all about his picky eating habits, which were confirmed by his low weight. She gave me several tips which I hope will work to put a little meat on his bones, but chances are, he's not going to be a chubby baby anyway. She's not concerned at all considering the size of the rest of his family and the fact that he's perfect in every other way. Here are his stats:

Height: 31 inches (40th percentile)

Weight: 19 pounds 4 ounces (less than 5th percentile)

Head: 18.5 inches (40th percentile)

Home Again

We just got home after spending a glorious week in Seaside. More to come later!