Saying Goodbye

As I recently posted, Grady finished up the big 4K at GCPK. Next fall it's off to Five Oaks Montessori for Kindergarten! It was so hard to say goodbye that last day at school, probably harder for me than for Grady. But it was actually just a great day. Lots of hugs and visiting with all of Grady's friends and teachers from the past 3 years. Grady has been going there over half of his life! It's like a second home, and the GCPK is like family. So as the great Dr. Seuss once said "Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened.". Great things happened for Grady at that school, the biggest one probably being that they helped to lay the foundation for what I can tell will be a lifetime love for learning. Grady and his autograph graduation bear. I had given it to him as a gift that morning, and he was ridiculously excited to have everyone sign it. With Mrs. Jameson, the director With Mrs. Wingo, his 3K teacher Hugs for two of his classmates, Hannah and Emily Anson was there at the family picnic, and he really enjoyed the playground. Next fall it's your turn, Anson! Grady and Hannah, in "the distance" (what they call that part of the playground) We love you GCPK! Get ready for Anson next!

Fun in the Sun

Last week was Grady's final week of preschool. One of the great events they do each year is "Fun in the Sun Day" where the kids wear bathing suits and have all sorts of messy and watery fun. This year I went and brought Anson too. We all had such a good time! Grady and Hannah adore each other. Good thing she goes to church with us too! Fun with squirty paint! Anson and the ladies Bubbles! Shaving cream is so.much.fun! Anson loved the grill. Good thing he got one for his birthday! We finished up with pops

Camille Is Five Months Old!

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Crazy, but cute. It was NOT easy to get shots of all 3 because Anson was not in the mood.











Unfortunately I thought I was done being in pictures and changed into loungey clothes, and then she took a few candids of me stopping to feed her.











Camille is doing quite well, despite a stomach virus which has had her thrown off for the past several days. She is just such a sweet and serene baby, always smiling at everyone she sees. But she is also very physically strong and wanting to go places! She can roll all over (both ways) and has been able to for a while. She can sort of sit for a couple of seconds. She slouches pretty quickly, but it won't be long. She is even sticking her bum in the air like she is trying to crawl! She has not yet started solids, she has 2 teeth, and still has very little hair. What she does have looks to be coming in quite blonde. She usually sleeps quite well, especially at night. She sleeps about 10-11 hours straight most nights. She takes 3-4 shortish naps (50-60 minutes, sometimes longer though). She LOVES books so much for such a small baby. When I pull out a book and start to read she gets a big smile and will even reach for the book. She pays great attention, and I can read 2-3 books straight with her totally engrossed. She is very good about playing on her own a bit and just kind of hanging out wherever we put her down. Her favorite people in the world are her two big brothers. She smiles at them and watches them all the time! She always puts the rest of us in a good mood since she is usually quite happy. I think I can already see what her role in the family will be. We love her to pieces and already can't imagine life without her!

Preschool - then and now

Grady has been at Grace Covenant for preschool for 3 great years. When he started there he was an only child (I wasn't even PG yet!), and now he has 2 little siblings. Our family has changed so much in that time and so has he. Now he reads (super well!), writes (doing quite well after working on it a lot this year), plays soccer, swims for real, and does so many other things he didn't do when he started there as a 2 year old baby (really - he was just a baby!). He had AMAZING teachers that have touched his life forever and will not be forgotten, especially this year. I will have 2 more children go through that school, and we go to church there too, but it was still with a heavy heart (and a few tears) that we walked out the door that last day. As his last school days were winding down, I kept thinking of this picture I had taken so long ago, on his very first day of preschool, when the adventure was just beginning. And I kept thinking how there was one more that had to be taken, as the adventure drew to a close. So here you are - preschool then and now (check out the backpack - it's the same!)... September 2009 May 2012 It's the end of an era in my mind, but new adventures are just beignning for my little G! I can't wait to see what happens next.

Camille's Pool Debut

Recently, on a nice warm day, I decided Little Miss Cami needed to experience the baby pool for the first time. First, the big brothers got things going! Then Camille made her swimsuit debut! She seemed to enjoy the water pretty well She was quite curious With Mama With Grady We are so excited to take her to the big pool soon!

Cami and the Puppy

This Fisher Price puppy was a gift from Gaga and Grandpa Schmidt when Grady was 4 months old. He loved it, Anson enjoyed it, and now it's Cami's turn with the puppy. She seemed to enjoy herself!

My Soccer Star

Grady has been having an incredible soccer season so far. He is great on defense but also scoring lots of goals. We are so proud of him! Here he is, warming up With his teammates. He always stands out with his shades and red cleats! He scores! Again! High Fives with the coach! This is pretty much how Anson spends time during games... We can't wait to root him on for the rest of the season!!!