Santa!

It was an awesome time with the kids- though the Legos marathon lasted a total of over 5 hours- Ben is in Legos bliss. Sophia was most excited by her new dolls, doll clthes, and bed. We went to Crown Center downtown to check out the Gingerbread display - we were so inspired last year that we are make our own house as a new family traditon. (The "roof" didn't make it, so it looks more like an adobe structure, but they had fun;)

Count Down

It's been so busy these past weeks- Ben lost his first tooth and turned six years old. He has been all about Legos, especially with his new ones. Sophia had her first Christmas concert and is all bout taking care of her babies. Now all we need is good snowfall and we'll be ready!

Happy Halloween!

It finally arrived and the kids were thrilled to be Little Red & Mummy Boy. Ben ran his first 1K in this weekend's Halloween Fun Run, too.
Have I mentioned that I LOVE autumn yet?!

<

Sweetness

Sophia was playing hide-n-seek and while I was looking for her, she actually fell asleep in my bed. This girl has not taken a nap since she turned three so it was an unexpected and a sweet reminder that our sassy girl is still our little girl.

MP Ball

This one is for you Mom...

Boy Joy

What could better than Star Wars day at the zoo and pumpkin guts? For this boy, not much. :)

Falling for Fall

With the weather changing, we are wearing jackets for the crisp mornings but getting to go barefoot in the late afternoon. The kids have enkjoyed several trips to farms with their friends. We found our first red maples this week on a "leaf walk"- so we are hoping this autumn's colors are amazzing. Bring on the leaf piles!!

Lawrence, Kansas

Just four days ago we were still having 100+ days, so yesterday, when the highs were like 75, we jumped at the chance for a morning day trip to the college town of Lawrence, Kansas. We had heard great things about their Natural History Museum (Dinsosaur exhibit & Bug World, need I say more??!:)It turns out they also have many beautiful parks/playgrounds, a main street loaded with shops and restuarants, and streets lined with restored Victorian and bungalow homes...awesome trip.
PS; The last pic is of Ben holding a yellow & black caterpillar we found in a park's garden- our first one of its kind.

Ms. Stephanie

We got a new desk for the kids to do "homework", craft, eat, etc. just before Steph's visit. This was our visit to the Kansas City Zoo - we even got to ride the new Skyway over Africa. Great memories!

Another First

Sophie was off to her first day at Pre-K this morning...I think this picture actually captures her level of excitement. Amped!:)

Bangs

Yes, return if the homegrown haircut. I haven't had to do this since Ben's long stretch (2-3ish) when he was unable to go to salons. Politely asked not to return, really. So. Sophia is growing her hair out, and her bangs were almost covering her eyes. I decided to save myself a trip and trim them at home. Luis couldn't even watch. No joke, some of Ben's first trims looked Jim Carrey-esque (think Dumb and Dumber:O...Anyway, I was pretty proud of the normal looking results.

First Day

Well, it finally happened...Ben is officially a Kindergartener. He was beyond excited. Us, too. I even held it together, despite his sweet goodbye.:) Mrs. Marsh is sure to have her hands full!

Green Lantern & Discovery Center

We finally made it over to Topeka to visit the new Discovery Center. Amazing place for the kids- Ben built a bird house and painted. Sophia loved the auto mechanic shop (much to her dad's delight;)
Thanks to Drew and Demme for the new costumes- fun indoors during these sweltering summer days.

Savannah Fun

Swimming and fishing were definately highlights of our trip to Savannah. Ben caught his first fish (Egwin) which was too small to eat (his goal) but still exciting. Both he and Sophia loved swimming in the pool everyday- Ben practicing his kicking and floating while Sophia just wanted to jump from the side of the pool over and over and over... We are already missing Nama & Papa, and all of our family- THANK YOU!!:)