And just like that, she 's off...

It's hard to believe it, but Leah is off to her first official year of preschool. She did go last year, but it was just for two hours one day a week. This year, she is in for 2.5 hours and goes twice a week. There is a lot more learning going on versus the socializing (which was very important and helpful) she did last year. She grew and changed so much in the "Giggle Garden" and we can't wait to see more changes this year as an official "Pumpkin Patch" kid.

And to carry on the tradition, here is a fun little survey completed by our little Miss Leah...

What is your name? Leah

How old are you? 3

What do you want to be when you grow up? a dolphin trainer

What is your favorite food? mac n cheese

What is your favorite drink? water and milk and juice

What makes you happy? movies and babies

What makes you sad? bumping heads

What is your favorite thing to do at home? watch movies

Who is your best friend? Olivia and Caden

Where is your favorite place to go? Chilis

What is your favorite thing to do with Mommy? play games

What is your favorite thing to do with Daddy? build tents

What is the best part about Caleb (brother)? he builds tents

What is the best part about Joel (brother)? he likes his blankie

What is your favorite book? The Berenstain Bears

What is your favorite movie? The Berenstain Bears

Where is your favorite place to eat? Chilis

What is your favorite thing to wear? my coat

Not quite ready...

Though he is over-the-top excited and ready, I'm just not quite there. It's so hard to believe our sweet, first baby is old enough to be in school. Caleb is beyond ready for the fun of kindergarten five mornings each week. He loves to learn, read, write, and of course, socialize. It's hard, though, to really accept the fact that his schooling journey is beginning. In teaching, it always seemed like you'd blink and the kindergarten babies were turning 10 and in intermediate school! I hope and pray that isn't the case for this little guy. I am hanging on to the innocence, sweetness, and love that comes with him being five. I'm also quite thankful (unlike many moms with kindergarten kids) that we only have half day kindergarten in our district. It's just enough time for him to get into the groove of school, but we still get plenty of quality time at home. Tune in next year for full day first grade, and I'll really be a sobbing mess!

And to keep up with the tradition, here it is. The back-to-school survey:

What is your name? Caleb

How old are you? Five

What do you want to be when you grow up? a hot wheels guy

What is your favorite food? desserts

What is your favorite drink? a smoothie

What makes you happy? tackling

What makes you sad? when somebody hurts me or when I lose something

What is your favorite thing to do at home? play games with Daddy

Who is your best friend? Dash

Where is your favorite place to go? on vacation to the lake

What is your favorite thing to do with Mommy? practice reading books

What is your favorite thing to do with Daddy? go swimming

What is the best part about Leah (sister)? When she goes to school, because I get peace and quiet!

What is the best part about Joel (brother)? He plays with me a lot.

What is your favorite book? the big superhero book

What is your favorite movie? Spiderman

Where is your favorite place to eat? At home

What is your favorite thing to wear? my Angry Birds and Mario shirts

Swimming Away Sadness

At the beginning of the summer, we planned to go to the lake three times. The last time we went, in July, we helped the kids get over their sadness about leaving by reassuring them that we'd be back again soon. Sad to say, that didn't happen. The week we were scheduled to go down turned out to have a TERRIBLE weather forecast. There is hardly ever a week straight of rain at the lake, but for some reason, it happened. And it happened to happen during the one week that we could go down one last time for the summer. Major bummer!

Since the kids were so bummed, I decided to plan a surprise getaway for the night to an indoor waterpark. I figured an indoor waterpark wouldn't be too crowded during the summer and I was able to find a great deal on a place we'd gone to once before - TimberRidge Lodge in Lake Geneva. They had a blast enjoying the pools and slides. It was just enough of a getaway to take our minds off of the sadness that there'd be no more trips to the lake this summer!

Cedar Point

For two nights, we were fortunate enough to sneak away to Cedar Point for some fun with the Lamont family. Almost the whole crew has made it out to Cedar Point a few times. The first time we went, I was still in high school....needless to say, the experience in much different now with three little kids! The weather kind of stunk for our first two days, so we missed out on riding as many rides as we would've liked to. We made the most of it, however, and the kids had a blast.

Caleb and Leah rode their first rollercoaster (it was a REALLY small and slow one designed for little kids). After realizing that Caleb enjoyed that one so much, we decided later in the day to take him on his first "real" rollercoaster. He was quite excited about it until we made it to the front of the line. He then began to panic quite a bit, but with enough encouragement from Daddy and Mommy, TiTi, Grandpa, and all the Lamont cousins, he finally gave in. Though he looked scared out of his mind on the ride, he said he thought it was awesome!

The day we were scheduled to go home turned out to be a gorgeous day, so we stayed a bit longer and played in the pool and at the beach. The kids had so much fun and Joel LOVED his first real beach experience. He was COVERED in sand by the time we were done. There are still pieces of sand being found throughout our house that he brought home with him!