First Day Of School!!

After months and months of anticipation, the day is upon us!! Today is Caleb's first day of school!! With a new Thomas shirt and backpack to set the tone, he was set! After a good lunch I convinced him was necessary for school and much clock watching, we headed out. Nana, Elton myself and the eager schoolboy! Would you believe we made it there early? He had time to try out the bathroom and go wait outside the classroom door. He kept asking "Where is Mrs. Gallagher" as we waited and one of the other mothers commented on how well he was able to say it. This is because he has been talking about Mrs. Gallagher (in the picture wearing pink) since we received the official letter in the mail telling us her name.

Meeting her in person last week signed the deal and he even knows his sign to use if he needs to use the bathroom (they encourage sign language). My boy is set!! He never looked back and couldn't have been more ready. There were no tears, Elton is down for his nap, and now I may have take one too!

Helping Celebrate!!

Here is a picture of Elton helping his cousin Jack celebrate his first birthday!

The Carpet Looks Great!

I think the pictures speak for themselves! Between all of the painting Dan did and the new carpet, everything looks fresher, brighter and cleaner! We are very happy with the end result and can't believe the difference from just a year ago. We never thought we would have all of this done and have to say the house feels great!

I am now working on what I have decided to call "Shelley's Cafe". You will just have to wait to see the pictures when I get a little further in this project.

On To Bigger And Better Things!!

The boys had their last day at Classy Castle (their daycare) on Wednesday. Next week Caleb starts pre-school at Immanuel Lutheran on Thursday and Friday afternoons and then they will go to the Child Development Center (daycare) there. I have to say though that I amazed at the structure of their days and activities, which I think makes it alot like a pre-school too. Like with Classy Castle, they will go there 1 or 2 days a week. Elton can't start until September 7th, however my mom is coming next week for a couple of weeks.

I have told many of you that Caleb has been wanting to go to school for over a year. The summer has been very long for him with having the playard of the school being right behind our backyard. Yesterday I took him to the Open House where we found his class room and met his teacher. His teacher will be Mrs. Gallagher and she seems like a wonderful lady. The classroom is incredible! There is one main table with chairs and then there are theme areas set up all around the room for the kids. There is a bug/lizard area with a fountain, a princess area, a car truck area, a puppet show area, a jungle area, and a bible story area. Mrs. Gallagher says she is constantly changing them. Once Caleb got in there, what I was afraid of happening did. He didn't want to leave!! We spent an hour there and he was very upset when I made him leave. I am happy he is so excited about school and feel blessed to be able to send him there this year!! Next week I am sure I will have some pictures of his first day of school.

The Carpet Is Here!

Our new carpet is here and in the process of being installed!! The bottom 2 pictures are of the old carpet. It is a really dark yucky brown color and has been very well worn. There was also some old berber that was a very light color that was really stained and nasty. The previous owners of this house had 3 teenage boys and a very large dog that had reign of the house. From what the neighbours say, our house was the hangout for them and all their friends. The second picture from the top is the new carpet. When they are done I will get some better pictures.

As you can see, the stairs are bare for tonight. That means the boys can't go up and down them as their are multiple nails sticking up. I think once they are up in the morning, the boys and I will eat breakfast and then make an escape. I think a walk on the canyon would be nice, stop for coffee and then play it by ear. You never know, we may even have to hit McDonald's playland for lunch if they behave so that they will be ready for a good nap!!

18 Months Old Today!

Weekend Getaway!

This weekend we escaped to the cabin in the mountains and had a beautiful weekend! Caleb mastered three 70-77 piece puzzles all on his own. All we did was separate the edge pieces for him to figure out first. I was actualy surprised at how quick he figured them out. The biggest ones we have at home are 25 piece. We went for a couple of walks, roasted hot dogs and smores, watched movies and ate!!

First Big Owie!

So Elton is almost 18 months old, and while he has had a few tumbles and scrapes, I am calling this his first big owie. While goofing around with Caleb tonight, he bonked himself good on the coffee table. We were quick to get some ice on it, but he wasn't too impressed with us doing this. I am sure it is going to bruise up really well. The funny part is that he couldn't wait to get down and away from us to keep playing and tearing around. I think this is a good indicator he will be all right! If you can imagine me chasing him around trying to get a picture and I never get this good of smile when I am trying! The little stinker is chasing Bingo around with a dog toy right now!

Sunroom Serenity!

Ever since we moved in we have talked about and discussed different ideas on what we could do with our sunroom that goes out into the back yard. You have seen previous pictures of it with the some of the kids toys and the kids playing out there. This is where Elton got stuck in the dog door.

Today we decided to get a rug and bistro set so that it can be an area of solice/serenity or whatever you want to call it, for us to hang out in. Maybe drink coffee in the mornings, drink ice tea in the afternoon, read the paper/book or just whatever we feel like. Gradually we may add some plants and a little more decor, but at least a decision has been reached and we can start enjoying!

My boys!

In the first picture, I caught Elton and Bingo raiding the pantry this morning. This was after Elton had already had breakfast. They got out the Lucky Charms cereal. Elton was picking out and eating the marshmallow charms and then feeding the cereal to Bingo. Bingo was quite happy to assist!

The second picture is of the boys in their new matching church outfits that Nana got for them. They look very sharp. Caleb still had slippers on though. On the mornings I'm not up first getting ready for work, Caleb likes to wake me up the same way I wake him up. He says "wake up sleepy head" and then says something about "we have to go get your coffee". He is a smart boy and knows those are magic words to me. How can I argue with that?

The Celebration Of Three!!

Basically the last 3 weeks that my parents have been here have been one big birthday celebration. My dad turned 65 on August 1st and he will tell you that he is now working for the government. Today was my 33rd birthday and next Saturday is Dan's birthday.

So you see, we had to celebrate big!! Last night Dan, myself, and my dad went out for sushi while Nana babysat and it was as wonderful as it always is. It was last year on my birthday when we went out for sushi, that our house had its final showing in which we sold. Its hard to believe that the past year has gone by so fast. We have done alot of work to our new home and will finally be replacing the nasty old carpet with new in the next couple of weeks. Its hard to believe how far we have gotten!!

This morning we hit IHOP for a birthday breakfast, which was followed by a walk on the canyon. We saw some BASE jumpers and it was a beautiful morning. We then came back to the house and got things organized. Then, my dad and I went for coffee and to read the paper. This afternoon family joined us in our backyard to hang out and have birthday cake. All in all a great past few weeks and weekend!!