WB

Miracle of miracles...Marty and Donna had their Sea Oats house one weekend in September and we had no football conflicts! That never happens. So we got to go to the beach last weekend when it was warm and beautiful- the perfect little break from the school routine we were already deep into.

Friday afternoon we headed straight for the beach. It was warm and breezy and all three kids got straight to work playing on their own. I just supervised soaking in the warm sun and soft breezes. It was perfection!

Collins opted for the water...

while Addie and Luke preferred the sand.

Luke was covered from head to toe in sand and loving it. He crawled all over the beach...

and then headed up the hill with an impressive bear climb.

Then it was time for some sand surfing...

and a show from the "fancy dancers" which basically involved crazy dancing, loud singing, and then leaping off the cliff.

Later that night, we had a little tooth drama. Collins lost another one! And this time, she yanked it out by herself. The drama happened when the tooth accidentally got thrown away in its napkin and then we couldn't find it. Oops!

 

But Collins handled it like a champ and decided to communicate directly with the tooth fairy...

 

but luckily, a deeper search found the tiny white tooth at the very bottom of the trash can. :)

The next morning, I got to go for a run. It was neat because I got to see the morning glories stretching up toward the sun and the sunrise...because as you know my children don't sleep! I also got to see the WB Triathalon in progress which was cool to watch.

Later when we headed to the beach, we realized that something was not right. The ocean was dumping water right up to the cliff- we had never seen it come that high before. Then we saw that the breakers were bigger than we had ever seen before. We were seeing the effects of Hurricane Maria that was still very far away. Crazy! So we were not able to swim in the ocean because it wouldn't have been safe- the waves were just way too powerful. But Collins didn't even want to be out on the beach because of the "hurricane". The pictures don't do it justice- the ocean was amazing that day!

 

But even more amazing than the ocean was coming back to the beach house later on to see my baby pushing his big sister on the train!

And then his even bigger sister?!? Luke you are one strong boy!

 Addie and Luke both had colds while we were down there so they both slept terribly. So not surprising, but we saw a second sunrise. This one was amazing to me...Addie got to see the moment the sun "peeped out" over the ocean.

 

Another trick Luke learned while at the beach? Climbing the stairs (sigh)...it was only a matter of time.

One more morning at the beach and then off for a taco lunch...

 

because we had to head back to Raleigh early this time. Brian (Red Snapper) and Collins (Sparkly Dolphin) had their first Indian Y Guides meeting!

 

A Space of Their Own

Lately, we have had some frustrations with Collins with needing her own space and not being able to get it. Because she and Addie share a room and because Addie wants to play with her big sister when she gets home from school, that doesn't leave Collins a lot of alone time. She is an introvert and reminds me that she has to be around 18 other people all day long and sometimes just wants to be by herself. I get that; I'm the same way.

So recently Collins had the idea to turn the dormer attic space within their room into her personal "office". She got really excited about this and drew up some plans for the space. But that space is not insulated and has no real flooring. It would take a lot of work to get it ready to be played in.

Then the other day she came out of the walk-in attic space next to our bedroom where we keep the gift wrapping and other random non-important items. She likes to go in there and grab boxes and gift bags for crafting purposes. She came out of the closet and said nonchalantly, "I should just make this into my office." Later I was thinking about it and thought, "Why not??"

That space was not being used to its full potential. It was housing golf clubs, old paintings, and craft supplies. It was really just a walk-through to our bigger attic space that holds all of our seasonal decorating- the real important stuff. :) The closet had carpet and walls and most importantly a door you could close...the only catch is that it is not heated or cool so things could get stuffy in there. But I decided that Collins would love it so I moved out all the junk and cleaned the space thoroughly. Then I moved her desk in there and reorganized all the craft supplies.

Addie and I surprised her after school with her new space- she was thrilled! She immediately started decorating the walls and organizing her things in her new "office".    

This was her old desk area in the nook of her and Addie's room...a disaster area at all times. It was a tight space that she could not keep organized. So I realized that another benefit of her new office space was that I could close the door on her hoarder tendencies!

 So now that Collins was all set up in her new space...(which very much interested Luke)

it was time to create Addie her own space!

We decided to clean out Collins's old nook and make that area into Addie's special private area. We hung a curtain that she can draw when she wants to play by herself, and put her dollhouse, special toys, and some other cozy items back there. She loves it and has started referring to it as her "idea box". :)

Although I think it's a neat thing that the girls share a room, I also feel bad sometimes that they can't have their own room. Not anymore! We got creative and now they each have a space of their own.

And the first thing to come out of Collins's office? Special gifts for all the family members. :)

Settling In

Wow- first grade is a different animal. In a good way! There is so much independence given by the teacher and expected of the students. They can go to the bathroom down the hallway by themselves and are dismissed from class without any teacher supervision. Collins now walks in confidently by herself in the mornings and reports that 1st grade is "easier" than kindergarten. She told me one day last week was "super fun", and appears to have made lots of new friends.

After an anxious kindergarten year, this all makes a mama's heart happy. :)

Brian and I went for the PTA open house last week, and were happy to see her classroom and talk to her teachers. I also unexpectedly volunteered myself to be Room Parent when no one else spoke up. Hope that doesn't get me into trouble! We also got to see some artwork Collins did that was hanging in the hall...

Writing about sharing bunk beds with her sister!

Classroom rules: No chewing gum! :)

And the other day I suggested that Collins read to Addie instead of me, and she did! Her reading is really improving, and I love hearing her tiny voice reading to her sister.

Collins had one issue early on with a little boy in her class who sat next to her and was very distracting and disturbing to her. She got upset about it, and then decided to ignore him and that helped. Then he got moved to a different table which made her really happy. I think she handled this difficult situation well.

She is also having homework each night with some required reading. So far, not many complaints.

Overall- really pleased with how well Collins is settling into first grade!

Signs of Fall

Yep. It's officially here. The best season of the year! The Fall weather came early this year, and we were all loving it. Then it got hot again (boo), but that did not derail our mission to fully dive into the season.

Signs of Fall at the Farmer's Market...

and in all the festivals and events going on around town. This was the Canes FanFest last weekend...

Signs of Fall in my kitchen! These apple streusel muffins turned out pretty tasty and made the house smell like Fall...

 

You know it's Fall when my favorite berry wreath makes an appearance...and how much do I love seeing that tiny happy face when I'm unloading the groceries?!?

And finally, you know it's Fall when my kids can't stop talking/thinking about Halloween! Plans are well underway for Collins to be a witch, Addie to be a sparkly black cat, and for Luke to be a bat this year. The looks are coming together... :)

Still to come? Pumpkin patches, Fall Festivals, sweater weather, and the best month of the year- OCTOBER. Cannot wait!

Love for Ms. Wuf

The girls have always loved Ms. Wuf with her twirly cheerleading skirt, her large gingham bow, and her general girlie-ness.

The girls have always been afraid of Rameses with his twirly horns and his mean arched eyebrows.

Sigh...hence why my daughters are State fans instead of Carolina ones!

We arrived at the tailgate party early enough on Saturday to make the pep rally and to see Ms. Wuf. When the girls show up in their matching cheerleading uniforms, they become little celebrities! They kept getting photographed and videoed by cameramen. And turns out, they can smile for the camera if need be. :)

They giggled with Ms. Wuf...

hugged Ms. Wuf...

and twirled with Ms. Wuf.

 

 Go Collins!

 

Then watched the team come in to the stadium...

  

and then headed back to the woods for some breakfast burritos and...

 some play time. :)

Maybe some day Rameses will marry a girly ewe and things might be different?!?