“…of the Year…” Isn’t that what the TV commercial used to say? 

Well, we can’t believe it’s come already, but this morning was the first day of school. We managed to make it out the door with no cattle prods, raised voices, or (too many) poopy pouts, and were even a few minutes early!

With Josie walking her sisters to school on her own two feet now, there were no hands left for documenting “the walk”. So we’ll jump straight to the classrooms. Sophie is thrilled that she is in the same first grade class as her very close friend Ava (right behind her). They’ll be able to get used to the longer school day and greater responsibilities in class together! And hopefully not cause too much mischef in so doing.

“Hey! What are you looking at???? Don’t you have somewhere to go?”

Maddie, meanwhile, snuck off to her new second grade class on her own while we were getting Sophie set up. Proof once again as to how far our Madeleine has come with her confidence - I was pleasantly shocked to not see her anywhere! Josie and I then set off to at least wish her a nice day, and there she was, 3 classrooms and 2 corridors away, already sitting at her desk with a grin on her face. Here, I am almost positive Maddie is telling Josie secrets on how she can sneak away from mommy too. And that’s ALL I need!

As we hung out in the school cafeteria for a few minutes afterwards with the PTA, it once again struck me how much Josie has changed and grown and blossomed. She is so at home with herself and with us, she’s just about ready to go to school too!

“So what do you say, Mom? How about I start 5th grade…tomorrow? Please?”

Sorry, kid. You’ll have to settle for establishing your presence at school through Maddie copying your hairstyle (like this morning). We’re going to selfishly keep you to ourselves for another year! Just think of all the damage we could do!

OH NO! Another few months has gone by and (gasp!) I haven’t updated the blog in forever. Here’s several from this summer to catch you up. I’m still trying to catch up to myself…myself! See what I mean?

Far from doing her best “Home Alone” impression, Josie’s just trying to keep cool in our 100+ heat. Here she is with Target’s “World’s Largest Sprinkler”. It’s big and all, but…we kinda hoped it would be even bigger!

Ahhhh…that’s more like it. Nearby at Discovery Green there were better and wetter sprinklers, and no line!

Josie contemplates whether she can just open her mouth and drink it all down. Sophie’s ready to give her the best advice possible…NOT.

When we weren’t trying to stay cool, we braved the sweat and took a few trips out. We tried feeding the giraffes at the zoo, which the girls loved. It’s great how close you can get to them! Beats feeding goats anytime.

And then, we celebrated our first year with Little Miss Josie. What a change!! It’s so hard to believe. She is such an entirely different child than a year ago, in all the best ways. Each of our girls is as inspiring as the next - what an adventure it has been (and still is).

We finally took a big trip this summer, a driving excursion from Houston to southern Virginia, where Andy’s brother has a vacation house on the Chesapeake Bay. The girls were excited, this was our first long drive in the minivan, and a whopper it was - a 2.5-day drive each way.

Still looking happy - how long could this last?

At some point the natives got restless…

And then just went completely mad. Josie’s muttering little baby swear words underneath that blanket, you know. Just kidding - they did fantastic on the drive, no complaining, and best of all, no videos were necessary!

I’ve been mocked by some for the lack of TV-watching and video games in our lives, but sometimes the results are worth it. I mean, how else are you going to get a pure, joyful appreciation for standing in front a hotel-room’s air conditioner? I can’t tell here whether Josie is cooling her neck or playing some air guitar.

While in Virginia, we got lots of rest, and relaxation. Josie especially took the chance to hone her “I’m two and tough and tenacious” skills. Not “terrible-twos” - in our case, its the “testing-twos”! Let’s see - here we have “Keep Away”…

…and this must be the “Faux-Mope”. Or, maybe we should call it the “Pitiful Pout”. Either way, it’s great acting!

She even got to get her Jackson Pollack on and make her first painting - that kid grabs her brush like a pro. She’s destined for great things!

Hope you all have had a good summer. School starts in less than two weeks, and we’re speeding towards it like gangbusters. Wish us luck!