First Morning

It's my first morning with both kids off at school. Part of me is thrilled and part of me really, really misses my little buddy. William was so proud this morning, you guys - he ran to get his "packpack" and raced out the door to go to school just like Sissy. He walked into school eagerly, and as soon as our neighbor (also his girlfriend and bff) arrived, he was way too excited to have Little C at school with him to be bothered that I was leaving. And so...I'm on my own.

I've got a cup of tea brewing and I tivo'd Ellen just for this morning. The air is cool and crisp, the leaves are turning, and I'm happily back in sweatpants. Life is good, people. :)

And..She's Off!

4-year-old preschool is just awesome. Caroline is thrilled to be back at school with her friends, and they are all moving about the room with confidence. At her school, the 4-year-olds move up to much larger, nicer rooms, there are more children per class, and there is definitely a much more grown up feeling to the program. Combined with lots of old friends from last year and many of the same routines, it is the perfect mix for our girl. We heart our preschool.

Preschool Bffs...

Me and my best girl!

It's going to be a great year!

William's 1st Day of Playschool!

My baby headed off to his very first day of playschool this morning. It's the same school Caroline attended two years ago - I know he'll have a blast there, and I know he's ready, and I know I'm ready to have a couple of mornings a week to myself. It's just big though, to have both kids at school. Suddenly I'm not the mom with a baby on my hip anymore.

He did great! He didn't bat an eye when we left, and he was excited about it when we picked him up. We'll see how the next few days go!

My Little Soccer Star!

Caroline had her very first soccer game today, and it was a HUGE hit! As you've probably realized about Caroline, she's normally more drawn to princesses and ballet than anything to do with a ball, so we held off on signing her up for a year or two because we wanted to make sure her first experience with team sports was positive. That decision totally paid off! She had been asking since last spring to play, and when she joined her teammates on the field day, what she lacked in skill (it was her very first day, after all!) she more than made up for in enthusiasm! We were so pleased!



She adores her new soccer equipment!



We spent the whole day reviewing the highlights of the game (her team color, the fact that they won, how proud we are).

Way to go, little soccer girl!!! A lot of Shimer family members are awfully proud to day. Your Grandpa Jim would have LOVED it!

More Apple Picking - Flashback to 2007

When I uploaded this weekend's pictures to Shutterfly, I labeled the album "apple picking," not realizing that I already had an album by that name, and that the pictures would be combined. I literally lost my breath when I saw these pictures as I was flipping through the album...



Same orchard, same little girl. Can you believe how little and sweet she was? Can you believe how quickly 3 years goes by?



I miss this little pumpkin. All the more reason to go give my slightly bigger pumpkin some extra snuggles tonight - I'll be missing her, too, before much longer.

Everyone tells you they grow up too fast. Oh, it hurts my heart!

Apple Picking

It is like a switch flipped around here, and all of a sudden it is fall. The nights and mornings are chilly, pumpkins and mums are displayed at all the stores, and the leaves on the trees are just barely showing a hint of color. As much as we've enjoyed our summer, I say bring on fall!!!

We had the nicest Labor Day weekend, complete with finishing house projects, back-to-school shopping, playing in the yard, and lots of time with great friends. I told Steve last night I think this may be the best 3-day weekend I can remember.

Yesterday we celebrated out extra day together and the beginning of fall with a trip to a local apple orchard. It was a perfect fall morning! The kids had a blast feeding goats, eating cider doughnuts (one of the great culinary pleasures of the season), taking a hayride, and of course picking apples.

Happy fall, everyone! Hope your long weekend was as nice as our was!

Beach Day!

We drove down to the Cape (that's Cape Cod for those of you out-of-towners) to visit some of our friends who spend their summer there. The kids were thrilled to be back on the beach!

It was a mini preschool reunion!

We live only about an hour from the Cape, and I'm embarrassed to say this was our first visit in the three years we've lived in Massachusetts. Whenever our friends vacation on the Cape, Caroline always asks if they had to ride 2 planes like we did. I feel like I've kept this dirty little secret from them. :)