Kindergarten, Second Grade, Twins!

It has happened. It is official. My kids are now ELEMENTARY age. No more "preschoolers" at our house. The formative years, by definition, are now complete. On to the next amazing phase that God has planned for our lives as a family. As I woke the kids up this morning, they were both excited. Mackenzie jumped right out of bed (unusual for her) and Josiah tried to stay in bed (unusual for him)! Once up and dressed for this first day of school, we headed downstairs for a special confetti pancake breakfast, courtesy of Aunt Jemima. Last night, as we laid clothes out for the week, the kids decided they wanted to match! Twins. I love it. I was happy to accommodate them by laying out khaki shorts and white polos for them both. How fun that they can match since the school uniforms are the same for both genders!

Mackenzie eagerly ate both of her pancakes.

Josiah was so excited (or perhaps a bit nervous); he ate only a few bites of his pancakes.

My baby boy, ready for his first day of Kindergarten!!! Where, oh where, has the time gone?! I am so proud of him. He is so smart and ready for this step. He is already reading, and I am confident that he will do just fine in Mrs. Haluska's Kindergarten class.

Posing for the camera. I had to take lots of pictures for the first day of school. Even more so since it is his first day of Kindergarten! Today is only a half day. 0745 to 1130 today. They stagger the Kindergartners this first week, so his next day of school will be Friday. Friday will be a full day, 7:45 am to 2:45 pm. What a big week for my handsome little man!

My beautiful baby girl. All ready for Second Grade! It is truly hard to believe she is in second grade already. She is smart, and she is ready. She has 11 of the kids in her class that she already knows. I am sure she will get to know the other 7 or so kids pretty quickly. Mrs. Scott is her teacher, and Mackenzie is excited about that, too.

Isn't she beautiful?! I love how you can see her two permanent teeth coming in already. She has lost the two front bottom teeth. Classic second grade look! I am so proud of her.

My "twins," all dressed alike and ready to head to school!

This picture captures their personalities quite well. Mackenzie, standing all proper-like; Josiah, standing all crazy-like. She is a rule keeper; He is an entertainer. Great combination for our family. Would not trade either one of them for anything! I am so thankful that God has blessed me with these two precious children. I am so thankful for the school they get to attend. Humbled by it all, and grateful for God's blessings. To Him be the Glory. Always.

My precious babies!!!! (Who cares if they are starting Second grade and Kindergarten...they will always be my babies!) We read the books, "Kindergarten, Here I Come," and "Love You Forever," last night at bedtime. Fun and sweet. Mrs. Haluska will read, "The Kissing Hand," to Josiah's class today. That is also a good book, but we don't have that one!

They sure where good to pose for pictures today! I love it.

One last picture on the door step before loading into the van.

This is the first time I have taken them BOTH to school at the same time and for the same amount of hours. Wowwie. Changes things on the home front. I am grateful for my job and the flexibility it allows me to have with the kids schedules. I have been able to stay home with them, for the most part, and I will continue to do so. I will be able to drop them off and pick them up every day. I will be able to work while they are in school, and be home with them when they are home. What a gift. I will still be able to use my nursing license in home care, too. Best of both worlds. Praise the Lord!!!

All buckled in and ready to roll! And, David is on call this week. Another blessing. When he is on call, he does not have to go in to work until 0930. He was able to be with us for our entire morning routine. How special is that on the first day of school?! All four of us laughed and talked on the way. I am so thankful that David got to be a part of that. He mentioned that he will not soon forget this day.

(We even had a date to McDonald's for coffee together, just the two of us, after getting the kids situated at school!) ;)

My two babies. Ready to enter the school. I was impressed that the Head Master was holding the door for everyone. I love the visibility of the administration.

I held Josiah's hand while walking down the first part of the hallway. I turned loose of it so that I could snap some pictures of the two of them heading towards the Kindergarten room! Can you believe that I did not even cry? I kinda surprised myself. I feel a peace about it all.

Mackenzie leading the way around the corner into Mrs. Haluska's room with Josiah right on her heels.

The sign above the door.

Josiah followed the directions, put his backpack in his cubby, and got his supply box out of his cubby. He was very intent on doing everything the right way. He got really quiet and serious when we entered the classroom. I could not get him to smile for the pictures after that! Very reminiscent of his first day of preschool. Too funny. He will warm up very quickly. He is familiar with the room and the teacher from Mackenzie's time in Kindergarten. That is a gift for him, indeed.

Standing by his cubby for me to take a picture.

Posing with Mrs. Haluska. We love her and are so thankful that Josiah gets to be in her class this year, too! I believe he will have a wonderful year.

I think he was ready to get the day started. There were just going to be a few other children there today, due to the staggered schedule, to allow the kindergartners more one-on-one time to adjust this first week. On Friday, all 16 kids will be there together. We are so happy that he has Mrs. Haluska! :)

One last picture of Josiah sitting at his desk before David and I headed upstairs with Mackenzie to the second grade classroom! I think Josiah was happy to have Mackenzie help drop him off on the first day of school. :) I love knowing they are there together, even if they are not in the same classroom lol.

My big girl. She is now upstairs! Second grade. That's a big deal, ya know?!
She led the way. David and I followed her up to her room.

Mrs. Scott is the new second grade teacher this year. She has 8 or so years of teaching experience. About half of that was in Florida. The other half here at a different Christian school. I think she will be great. Mackenzie seemed pleased with her after we met her at the Open House. I am thankful that Mackenzie is with several other children that she already knows!

My beautiful girl, at her desk, ready to begin her first day of second grade. It is a half day for her, too. Full days begin tomorrow. Second grade hangs backpacks on hooks instead of using cubbies!

Here is Mackenzie with Mrs. Scott, her second grade teacher.

Mrs. Scott has four children. Her oldest, a boy, is in 10th grade. Her youngest are in 4th grade. They are twin girls. She seems excited about the school year, so that is good.

I guess that completes this post. Major milestones at our house. It is a good day. I hope you all have a blessed day, too!

Catching Up

The summer seems to be gone already. Back in June (12th through 18th) we spent the week in Maui with my momma, my brother, and my brother's wife. We all had so much fun. I was going to post LOTS of pictures from the trip, but somehow that just hasn't happened, lol. I figure I better type some of the highlights here while they are still fresh on my mind...and before another busy school year begins! :)

We stayed at Aston's Kaanapali Shores on Maui. It was fabulous! We had two bedrooms, a full kitchen and living areas, and two full bathrooms. We enjoyed a view of the pool, gardens, and Pacific ocean! Amazing. Maui is windy most all of the time. The rain forests on Maui are among the wettest on earth, receiving tons of rain per year. We drove part of the Road to Hana and stopped at Twin Falls for a hike, complete with splashing underneath the falls themselves! That made for some great pictures.

Another highlight of the trip was getting to eat at Mama's Fish House. Thanks to my mom, we enjoyed a meal that is beyond description. It was THAT good, folks. Extremely expensive, but totally wonderful! What a neat memory. We loved walking around the grounds at Mama's Fish House, too. Maui is simply gorgeous. Love the tropical beach areas!

Josiah loved hunting for hermit crabs, catching them, storing him in his bucket, and then releasing them. He still says, at least once per day, that we will be moving to Maui someday. He LOVED it, and he bawled when we loaded our luggage to head home on the last day of our trip. He could not stand to leave. He also loved getting to drink Coconut Milk from a real Coconut!

Mackenzie enjoyed all the swimming, and seeing a real Sea Turtle. She is a fish herself, and enjoyed the ocean with boogie boards, the pool with goggles, and our snorkeling tour to Molokini and Turtle Town. She says going on the boat ride was her favorite thing. A giant Sea Turtle swam up to the shore during our professional portrait session. It was amazing! We all loved seeing the turtle. Mackenzie also enjoyed the shopping in Lahaina and playing in the Banyon tree in Lahaina. Josiah loved climbing on the Banyon tree and all the swimming, too! He has learned to swim without floaties this summer.

Thanks to Evan (my brother) and Mia (his wife), we all enjoyed the Old Lahaina Luau and a professional photo shoot. The photographer was Mariah Milan, and she was amazing. Mia did a fabulous job of researching photographers on Maui and choosing the perfect one for our family. This was Mia and Evan's gift to my mom for completion of her doctorate in nursing this past December. They surprised my mom with the photo session. We got such great pics! What a neat gift for us all. Thanks, Evan and Mia! And the Luau was neat, too. Great food!

I am sure there is much more that I could type about the Maui trip, but for now, this will do! Maui is 6 hours behind us in time zones, so we all had quite the adjustment to make going and coming from that trip! Totally worth it, though. Thanks to my grandparents and my mom for making this trip happen, from airline tickets to lodging, for all of us. Wow. What a gift.

Other things to remember from this summer...Mackenzie lost her 2nd on July 24th, 2011. Our friend, Bill, pulled it just like he pulled the first one. Perfect!

On Tuesday, as in this coming Tuesday, August 16th, BOTH of my kids will start to school. Wow. Mackenzie will be in 2nd grade. How is that possible? And, Josiah will be in Kindergarten! I always thought it would be sad to see my "baby" start Kindergarten. Somehow, I think we are ready for this step! Mackenzie says she is a little nervous about starting back to school. Josiah says he is worried that no one will like him. I assured him that he will make lots of new friends and they will like him. He already knows one child, Lexi, in his class. He told Lexi yesterday, "You're gonna get to see me every day!" It was very funny. Mackenzie knows 11 of the 19 kids in her class this year already. Josiah has Mrs. Haluska and Mackenzie has Mrs. Scott. I am very pleased. School year, here we come!!!! :)

Just wanted to get those updates recorded before the school does start. I am sure there is much, much more that I should type, but for now, that will do.

David and I got to take a two night get-a-way, just the two of us, for the first time ever (since the kids were born) last week while his parents watched our kids. What a gift! Thank you, Zearl and Betty, for staying here with our kids while we enjoyed some one-on-one time.

Oh, and on June 11, 2011, Mackenzie was a flower girl and Josiah was a ring bearer in Aunt Mallory's wedding to Tom in Arkansas. What an honor for the two of them to be included in Mallory's wedding! How neat!!! We have some great pictures from the wedding, too, but for the sake of time I am just typing this post without pictures. Sorry.

5x7 Folded Card

Blurred Edge 5x7 folded card

Send Shutterfly Valentine's Day cards to those closest to you.

View the entire collection of cards.

Josiah's 5th Birthday!

What a week! It has been a great one, full of milestones at our house. You'll see from the previous posts that Mackenzie lost her first tooth this week. Well, Josiah has completed "preschool" and turned five years old, all in one week! I no longer have preschoolers at my house. I have elementary aged children! Crazy. Life is good and I am thankful. This post will recap some of our week.Josiah and "Kwali," his new Webkinz, on his last day of preschool.
Josiah receiving his certificate of completion from Mrs. Wendi, his teacher. He had his last day of preschool (MDO program Tues/Thurs) on Tuesday, May 17th. When his name was called to go up to Mrs. Wendi to get his certificate, he gave her such an enthusiastic hug that he literally knocked her over! Very funny. I love how freely she returns his hugs. She has been a wonderful teacher and such a huge blessing! We love her!!


Here is the whole class on the last day of preschool! From left to right: Sydney, Brooke, Ava, Josiah, Lexi, Callie, and Logan.

For his birthday party, Saturday, May 21st, Josiah wanted a "play date with friends and a pizza party." So, going off of his request, we invited "boys only," also per his request, for a play date and pizza party at our house. Shortly after mailing out the invitations to the boys from the 4 year old classes at school, Josiah decided he would like to invite Lexi, too, even though she is a girl. :) I talked to Austin and Lexi's mom. I am thankful she was able to come.

Here's Josiah and Logan eating Sam's Club Pizza with the Star Wars Cupcakes nearby.

David did a GREAT job of ordering the Star Wars cupcakes from Sam's Club for the party. When given the option of me making the cupcakes or just buying them, Josiah choose store bought ones. Sure was easy for me!

Uncle Zac was here to celebrate with us, too. We are SO thankful for all his help!!!! He just jumps right in and helps out in so many ways. We really appreciate his visit.

He lit the candles on Josiah's cupcake. Notice the Birthday Jedi Knight ribbon on Josiah? He spotted that at Target when we were buying the plates and napkins. He picked it out himself and was eager to wear it! I thought that was pretty cute. Surprised me!

Birthday Boy blowing out his candles!

Enjoying his cupcake.

Josiah, Lexi, Logan, and Mackenzie gathered around while Josiah opened presents. Uncle Zac is on the couch in the background.

Josiah has really enjoyed all his gifts this year!

Krista, Logan's mom, offered to take a picture of the four of us together. So, here we are. ;)
And, YES, I can still hold my babies. I love those cuddles from them both.

Josiah and Mackenzie with Uncle Zac. We have all enjoyed having him here!

Yesterday, Josiah got lots of packages in the mail! Above is a Star Wars Lego set from Poppie and Lili.

Another package....this one is from Granna and Z-pa...and notice the plastic snake from an earlier package! Ha, ha. Thanks a lot, Dad!

Opening new DS games from Granna and Z-Pa. He played them right away. Gotta love those EYES! Isn't he a cutie?!

Lego Pirates of the Caribbean DS game.

Cool packaging that pops from Mzee.

Boy squinkies from Mzee. Josiah was proud of those boy squinkies. Just like his sister's set, except these are made for a boy!

Earlier in the month/week, Josiah received cards and/or packages from everyone. I, however, neglected to grab my camera for each of the incoming packages. My sincerest apologies to those of you reading this blog who sent packages and aren't getting to see the pictures of his total enjoyment of the said package. Thank you all. He really has loved EVERYTHING! I just happened to have the camera handy and at the ready yesterday.

On another note, Mackenzie's last day of 1st grade was today! Her class party was also a surprise 40th Birthday party for her teacher, Mrs. Hatmaker. Josiah opted to stay home with Uncle Zac while I attended Mackenzie's class party. Fun times. Neat memories. Mackenzie received an award for the highest Grade Point Average in Phonics, Reading, and Handwriting! She received the top award in 3 out of 5 subjects. The Math award went to Raley and the Bible award went to a couple of kids that tied. I was so proud of her! And, thanks, Zac, for helping out with Josiah today.

Above picture, from left to right: Mackenzie, Savannah, Reagan, Kendall, and Alyssa.

As soon as David got home from work today, Josiah got to open his birthday presents from us.
Thanks for the wrapping paper, Zac!

Zac with Mackenzie and Josiah. He is one loved Uncle.

After Zac headed home this afternoon, we got a call from Geri and Trifon, our Bulgarian neighbors. They invited us over to their house so that Josiah could open a present from them. What fun! We were out the door in no time. Josiah got a Guess Who Star Wars game from them. We've already played it! I'd say he's had a HUGE birthday. He certainly has a lot of people to love him.

I just can't believe he is FIVE already! I am so proud of both of my kiddos. Josiah is so loving and hands out kisses and hugs freely. His manners have been those of a true gentleman as of late. He has a tender heart and is in tune with the emotions of those around him. He shares readily with others. He loves his legos, Star Wars, and pirates. He enjoys computer games, DS games, Wii games. He loves to cuddle and he loves being very active, too! He is 42 lbs and 44.125 inches. He is boy, through and through. He loves to catch worms and caterpillars. He is reading and surprises us with the signs he reads as we drive along the road. Mrs. Wendi reports that he was always ready with the answers in school. She says he at the top of his class with his reading skills. He has learned a lot of his addition and some subtraction, too. I am amazed at the questions he asks and how much he is learning at such an early age! We love to hear the funny things he has to say. He does keep us all laughing! He is a joy. We are truly thankful that God blessed our family with his arrival five years ago! What a delightful little boy! We love you, Josiah.We are so proud of you.

Mackenzie's Tooth-Pictures

Last night I posted the video of Bill pulling Mackenzie's first tooth. Today I am posting the pictures. Below is the tooth that Bill pulled in my hand right after he got it out. Mackenzie opens her mouth to show off the gap!

Bill did a great job of taking these pictures for us!

Notice how far back the permanent tooth is in her mouth? That would be why her baby tooth was not getting any looser.

Mackenzie holding pressure to stop the bleeding. (And, smiling with delight and pride!)

I do hope the other ones come in under the baby teeth and push them out in the process. Otherwise, we might need Bill's assistance again in the future. ;)

Holding the paper towel in her mouth for pressure.

When we got home last night, Mackenzie wrote a letter to the tooth fairy. She found the little pillow I made for her over a year ago. She placed the tooth in the pocket of the pillow, on top of the letter, under her pillow.

Here she is in her room holding up the letter and pillow for the picture.

I zoomed in so you can read her letter.

Proudly pointing to the gap in her mouth.

Holding up her tooth and smiling to show the gap left in her mouth. I love this picture! What a milestone.

Her dainty hands placing the tooth into the pocket of the pillow.

Now she's ready for a visit from the tooth fairy! As I tucked her into bed at 9:00 pm last night, she excitedly began to tell me all about the tooth fairy. She told me what the tooth fairy did for her friends. She wondered aloud what the tooth fairy would do for her. She was overflowing with excitement. I wasn't sure if she would be able to sleep! She did eventually fall asleep. I also had NO idea just how much the tooth fairy does for that first tooth these days! Who knew?! Not me. What a surprise. David and Uncle Zac made a trip to Wal-Mart after the kids went to sleep last night. ;)

Sure enough, just like Mackenzie said, the tooth fairy DID leave sparkles on the bedroom floor! And big shiny stars, too.

In the middle of the decoration was a letter from the tooth fairy for Mackenzie, along with the keepsake box that Mackenzie has had since birth. It was a gift at a baby shower before she was born. She has always dreamed of placing her first lost tooth in that special box. Turns out that the tooth fairy even did that part for her, too!

Here's the letter from the tooth fairy. Mackenzie woke me up at 1:22 am to tell me that the tooth fairy had already come to her room. She was bubbling over with excitement. She said she found a dollar bill and a quarter in the pocket of the pillow, but her tooth was gone. I suggested we go to her room to check it out. So, at 1:25 am, she and I went to her room to investigate. We found the sparkles on the floor, the shiny stars, the letter, and even the box with her tooth in it! And, with the closet light turned on so that we could see, we noticed that the tooth fairy actually left a $5.00 bill and a Fifty Cent piece as a keepsake! (Rather that a dollar and a quarter like Mackenzie first thought in the dark.)

We had one very happy little girl at our house this morning. She showed her brother and her Uncle Zac, too. Her daddy got up in the middle of the night to go admire it with her, too. Today, I'm confident that she is enjoying showing all of her friends at school! Fun times. Huge milestone. Congratulations to my little princess.

Josiah cracked me up today, too. He is already wondering if he'll get sparkles on his floor or maybe even his bed when he loses his first tooth!

You'll have to watch the video from yesterday's post to see the tooth actually being pulled. Perhaps tomorrow I will get Josiah's birthday post done! Hard to believe he will be five years old tomorrow.

Video of Mackenzie's Tooth!

It finally happened! After being loose since early March, Mackenzie lost her first tooth. The permanent tooth came in behind the baby tooth, so the baby tooth was loose but not getting any looser. It was definitely time for the baby tooth to be out, but try though I might, I was unable to pull it! After seeing the video of our good friend, Bill, pulling his daughter's tooth, I made a plan. ;)

At our Bible study group tonight, I asked Bill if he would mind pulling Mackenzie's tooth. I asked Mackenzie if she wanted Bill to pull her tooth. Next thing we knew, Bill had Mackenzie's tooth out on the second quick attempt! Mackenzie was SO incredibly proud. I am so thankful to have it out. David is thankful to have it out, too. He says he doesn't "do teeth."

Mackenzie is delighted. She has enjoyed showing everyone her tooth, the gap in her mouth, and retelling the story of Mr. Bill pulling her tooth. The funniest part of her telling the story is when she mentions that Mr. Bill saved us a lot of money because now we don't have to go pay the dentist to have it pulled. LOL. I guess she heard us talking about that, but I never expected it to be a part of her telling the story. So funny.

I have to say, too, that Mackenzie was incredibly brave. She has wanted to attain the "status" that goes along with losing a tooth for several months now. How cool that she can now show off her new gap tomorrow at school, just before the end of first grade! She has only 2 days of school left for this year. Nice timing to get to show her teacher and her friends. Had this event happened in early March when we first discovered the tooth to be loose, I would have cried as it is such a huge milestone. My baby girl is growing up! However, after almost 3 months of being loose and not coming out even though we tried to pull it, I am truly thrilled right along with Mackenzie!

Thanks to Bill and Cindy allowing us to use their camera at their house tonight, we have the above video! I so appreciate their willingness to be a part of Mackenzie's huge milestone! How fun that we were able share the big event with so many good friends. Uncle Zac is here visiting, too, so that is special, as well.

Cindy loaned us the book, Silverlicious. It is a cute book and perfect for tonight! We read it together, Mackenzie and I. Then, as I tucked her into bed, she excitedly told all about the tooth fairy's upcoming visit to our house tonight. Needless to say, we are all excited!

I have some really good pictures of Mackenzie at Bill and Cindy's house right after the tooth was pulled, and I have some cute ones of Mackenzie preparing her pillow and letter for the tooth fairy. I hope to get those uploaded and posted tomorrow. For tonight, I am tired. The video will have to suffice! Enjoy. :)