apple-a-day

How cute is this... the stairway down to pre-school.

Such a fun place. Sophie's favorite spots are the loft and the block area underneath the loft.

See the little blonde off to the right? Click on the pictures to make them big, then tell me that Josie and Sophie couldn't pass for sisters. One of the "grandmas" even thought they were sisters on our "Sneak-a-Peek" night. Her mom and I are expecting quite a few Sophie/Josie mix ups this year. From the back, even I would make the mistake!

The wall in the hallway outside. Our family picture will be inside the pink fish on the left!

We even got a rather cute little picture last weekend that we could send with her! Thankful for digital and the option of taking 15 pictures to try and get 1 good one. :) (Thanks, Mom!)

first day of preschool.

I was able to sneak away from school today so that I could take Sophie for her first day of pre-school. She was so excited!

Leaving Jessi's... how cute is this? All their little handprints with their names written on them! Plus Jessi and her husband's. His is the big blue one. :)

Walking in together. Still excited... love that smile!

Sophie started playing right away and wasn't clinging to me at all! (That is a big deal for her!)

My little organizer... see how all the sea creatures are all lined up in their spots? Miss Renee' said they had never had a child do that before.

After school with Miss Karri. She had the best time! Her first question to me was, "Do I get to come back here again?!"

So proud of my little girl and the big steps she took today! Such a different experience than pre-school last year. She is going to have such a great time! Kindergarten will be here before we know it!

walls.

So excited to come home today and see this...

promises.

Our contractor has promised that he will be here at 7:30 am tomorrow framing walls. We'll see...

parade.

Lawson's still not crazy about these loud sirens and horns. He turned around buried his face in my shoulder when the motorcycles came by. "Dey scare me." :)




Gotta love the small town stuff.


Checking out the candy.


Not just candy... a frisbee and Mardi Gras beads.


During the parade, one of the Shriners crashed his little motorcycle and ending up hurting his leg. We weren't sure if he broke it or just hurt it. The parade stopped for awhile, all the Shriner cars tried to get out of the way and the EMS vehicles that had been at the beginning of the parade had to come back around to help him. I've always been amazed at how these little old men zip around on those motorcyles, weaving in and out without crashing into each other. I guess they do crash...

rodeo.

My family has attended this small town rodeo for as long as I can remember. Many years we watched in our warmest clothes, wrapped in blankets and drinking hot chocolate. Now long sleeve shirts are almost too warm. At least until the sun goes down.









Mutton busting. They put little kids in bike helmets on the back of big wooly sheep. They burst out of the pen and the kids try to hang on as long as they can. Most only last a couple seconds, but there are always a few that make quite a run. The funniest is when the sheep fall down and the kids are still holding on tight... with the sheep on top of them!


The kids had so much fun! They clapped and clapped and after every cowboy (or cowgirl) Sophie would say, "Did they win?" Her favorite was the closing ceremony with "Quiet Thunder." It's an all women's group that rides with American and Kansas flags. They perform to their own version of "I'm Proud to be an American" and at the end they turn all the lights off. Fireworks shoot out of some of the flags and some of the women have letters on their shirts that light up and spell USA or KANSAS. (It's my favorite part, too!)



So sleepy on the way home. Way past bedtime.

lumber.

All the lumber for the garage was delivered last week. No actual building has taken place yet, but the lumber has been well used. It's great for climbing, dancing, playing and jumping.