"you'll shoot your eye out!"

So Daniel just couldn't resist. He had to have it..NOW!!!!!!

No, he couldn't wait for the kids' birthdays that are coming up in a few short weeks, just go ahead and spoil the kids already and throw gifts at them for no good reason... They loved it and now HB is obsessed with another 'shooter'. Emmaline is a good shot and likes it too. She likes to shoot the pig and cans. Hayes has a hard time cocking it, and Georgia really doesn't care about it. She has this thing against noise or things that might make noise. She did shoot it but her enthusiasm isn't there.
Nevertheless, it was really fun, but I know that Daniel had the most fun. Then he brought his bow and arrows out. That was an even bigger hit for Hayes to watch. He just couldn't get enough. Now he is practicing on the girls' Brave bow.

1st grade for the 1st time!!

Emmaline has made it to the first grade! She was so ready to start school back and when Georgia and Hayes started before her; she was jealous.
Her day finally came for us to find out who would be her teacher. We were happy to learn that Ms. Christine Vincent would be her 1st grade teacher. She was Georgia's teacher last year and we love her, and it immediately made us all feel more comfortable that we knew her. After Family Night at the school we were all so excited for the first day. I love her school, which is our church, and love their chapel, teachers, classrooms and everything they offer. I asked Emmaline a few questions before school and she replied.. "I love to write and color because my teacher says I do it really well, but I don't like math as much (or staying outside too long because I get really sweaty)." Emmaline says she wants to be a teacher when she grows up!
Emmaline only had 11 kids in her class and her closest girl friend is in it. She also gets to see her Kindergarten teachers at lunch daily, which she loves!
This year as a 'big kid' the 1st graders get to have Pizza Fridays at lunch, play on the big field playground, are expected to tuck in shirts and wear belts and get to do Spanish, library and computer class weekly. She is ready to take it on!
For her extracurricular activities this year she is choosing to play soccer again with the same team, the Unicorns, and she wants to do Girl Scouts. She will be a Daisy and in her school troop with some of her favorite friends. I think it will be a good learning experience for her and help her to gain confidence. We really want to keep her at 2 extracurriculars but we may let her do a gymnastics class with Georgia and Hayes. So we are hoping and praying for a successful, fun and productive 1st grade year for Emmaline. I know she will learn so much and have fun in the process!

Dolphin hunting

After a 3 minute discussion on an early Saturday morning, Daniel and I decided to use one of my many winning silent auction bids and take the family to the island for a dolphin watching tour. I have been wanting to go for a while and had other must-dos on my list while we were in South Padre. We dressed, loaded the kids up and hit the road within 15 minutes. A feat, I tell you! They were really excited about going on a boat and going 'dolphin hunting'! We invited Granddad to meet us there and the kids wanted to get a spot on the top deck! It was not crowded and the kids could move around freely. Hayes was wild as usual and was trying to climb up the rails. It took a little while but we did see some dolphins. The kids loved just being on the boat but seeing the dolphins and being the 1st to find them was the name of the game! The highlight was the last set of dolphins we saw..it was a baby and it's mom. It was a fun morning and not too hot. Sidney liked the wind blowing on her and was happy as usual. After an hour and a half we headed to the marina and left the island for lunch. We ate at Pirate's Landing on the bay. It was good and fun for the kids. There Sidney sat in a highchair for the 1st time. She did pretty good, though she got tired of it before the whole meal was through. She did eat her Puffs and look around for a long time! After lunch we walked over to the lighthouse. Georgia talks about the lighthouse every time we pass by it, so I was excited to finally get to walk up close to it and see it. The kids were pretty worn out by then, but we stayed long enough to see that little part of Port Isabel has come cute shops, live music and fun things to do. I can't wait to go back!

Sidney Rose is 6 months!!

*Sidney has just started sleeping in her crib, which is in Georgia's room. And she is finally sleeping through the night pretty regularly.
*She goes to sleep around 8:30 and wakes up anywhere from 6-7. She also cat naps in the morning and evening, and a good long nap in the afternoon, sometimes 3 hours!
*Sidney started making this loud noise, mainly to get your attention, and she just keeps going until you give her a paci or pick her up or whatever. It's like she's yelling.
*Sidney has started eating solids..she has tried sweet potatoes, squash, pears, oatmeal and some bananas. I usually feed her 1 meal a day sometime in the late afternoon of about 3 oz. She does well in the high chair and likes to eat Puffs, Cheerios (we have to feed her those) and rice rusks (she can get in her mouth by herself). She drinks water out of a sippy and can do it herself ok. She still mainly nurses and is very efficient.
*She has no teeth but is teething pretty good. She doesn't drool too much though.
*Sidney finally found her feet and loves grabbing and playing with her toes.
*Sidney loves swimming in the pool and taking baths. She doesn't really splash yet, but loves to kick her legs. It makes her really sleepy which is great.
*She can sit up unassisted for short periods. I am trying to get her some practice each day and spend more time on the floor. She rolls around and goes both directions easily. She is starting the backward scoot/crawl and gets stuck under things. She can get up on all fours and rocks. It's only a matter of time til she's on the move!
*Sidney wears size 3 diapers and is mainly in 6-12 month clothes.
*She is still so happy, smiley, sweet and cuddly. She loves people watching and is usually ok with other people holding her. She grabs my face with her little hands and tries to give kisses or just slobber on me. It's so sweet!
*Sidney is 19.14 lbs. in the 96th% and 27 in. in the 88th%. She is growing wonderfully!!
*Her little rolls are all tan and she is white in her creases which is super cute! Her hair is also growing in nicely on the top and is really blonde!

Sidney Rose, what an angel you are and we don't take a second with you for granted! Thank you for keeping us smiling and laughing and in love. I can't wait to see you grow and change and move past more milestones! Always loving you my baby!

Summer Visitors..

We had some fun visitors this summer. The Paynes were first! There was smores, swimming, snacking, movies, picnicking in the playroom and lots of love! Thanks for visiting us!
The other Listis and Dechiros visited us around the end of our summer..it was lots of fun for the kids to spend time with their cousin Sam. He is super cute and loved our swingset I think most of all!The kids love spending time and getting special attention from Uncle Carlo, Aunt Lynn, Uncle Tony and Aunt Brandi. We had amazing food, celebrated Granddad Sams birthday and swam all day long. Daniel was so proud to grill his whole pig and Lynn made a peach cobbler that was so good with our homemade vanilla icecream! What a fun weekend playing games until the early morning hours. Can't wait to make that a annual family affair!!The kids got to catch lightening bugs and stay up late! Thank ya'll to coming and staying at our home and making it feel so full and fun!! You are welcome anytime!! We love you!