This is only the beginning.....

Over the last week or so, Owen has discovered the Barbie House. He loves it!!!! He likes to open and close the doors and push the button on the toilet which makes a flushing sound. :)

Tonight while Owen was playing in the Barbie house, Kaitlyn presented him with an extra little treat - a nice pink bow :) I guess this is only the beginning for a little boy who has two older sisters!

I thought it was kind of cute, but Mike was appalled! :)

And Savannah is trying here to fit into Kate's pajamas! She wants to be big like Kate so badly!!!

Oh Savannah!

This week has been interesting for Savannie. She started real pre-school on Monday:) I was worried about her adjusting because last year she only went to school 3 days a week and "school" was really just playtime with friends. Now she's being expected to listen and participate and be on a schedule.

While Tuesday was kind of a rough day for her, the rest of the week she's done awesome! And she totally loves her teacher! She has come home singing songs and today she was telling me how to build a fire with sticks and then if I want to put it out to smother it with a blanket. Pretty funny.

Tonight, we all sat down to play Uno and we were amazed by her! She was calling out the numbers as she laid down the cards! She knew some of her numbers by sight already but she was telling us them all correctly!! :) She said she learned them at school! Go Savannah!

Also, when Mike came home from work today he was pestering Kate to come take off his stinky socks and she was refusing. Savannah walked right up to him and took a big whiff!!! Eeeewww!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She's so weird!

First Day of School

Today is the day!! Kate and Savannah's first day of school. Kaitlyn is entering 4th grade (ahhhh....) and Savannah is starting Pre-School. They both met their teachers last week and were looking forward to getting started!

Having a hard time getting up!

Savannah is still not quite awake :)

Kate's ready for her day!

Now she's smiling!

Unfortunately for Mommy, Owen started running a pretty high fever Saturday afternoon and hasn't been sleeping well. I dropped Savannah off at 7:50, Kate off at 8:05, and then was in the Dr. Office at 8:20 am! What a change! Summer is officially over!!! :( Turns out Owen has a virus and is also cutting 3 new teeth. Yikes! Hopefully it will pass quickly so he and I can get into our new routine - which I am hoping includes a good nights sleep!

Messy Baby and Cute Girls :)

I chose the wrong day to feed Owen baked ziti for lunch! We had to go to Savannah's Meet the Teacher and this mess caused us to run about 10 mins late!!! :)

On Wednesday evening Uncle Ken stopped by to bring the kids shirts that he bought for them in Maine and last night they decided to wear them to bed. Looking good girls!!!

Thanks so much Uncle Ken!!!

Another Day at the Zoo

To celebrate the end of summer and because Mike went back to work on Monday, I decided that the kids and I would make the trip back to Tampa to the zoo one more time before school started. We haven't been since March so even I was excited :) And this is the first time I have attempted the two hour drive each way and the zoo with all three kids alone.

First thing the kids wanted to do was ride the carousel. Mike makes fun of me because I love them so much....my motto is, "They are fun for everyone!" Indeed they were. We all rode!

Owen liked it fine at first, but as soon as his little guy started moving, he was clawing at my dress. I didn't get a picture of Kate because she rode a huge dragon on the other side of the carousel.

Next up was the Tiger kid coaster. Savannah has ridden it before, but as I would find out several time during our outing, she was still too little to ride without an adult and Owen was just to little to ride. So Kate rode alone. Savannah pouted.

That's her in the front!

To cheer Savannah up, I suggested that we feed the goats next and she was all for it.

This little guy was in the time out box :)

Goats just love her! Kate spent time giving them a brush. Even Owen petted one and giggled.


Then we rode a ride Savannah could actually ride, and played in the playground for a bit so Owen could stretch his legs.

I promised the girls they could do the Pony Trek because I knew Savannah couldn't ride the camels without an adult. And they love horses!!!

After lunch, we were off again. The girls wanted to see the manatees and the alligators. On the way, Kate discovered a log fume and was desperate to go! Of course I cringed because once again Savannah isn't tall enough and I can't take her because of Owen. But we found a great alternative - she laid on her belly in the splash zone and got more wet than Kate did!!!

That's my girl Kate all alone on the ride!

One of the last things we did was feed the giraffes. I wasn't able to go up with them because Owen was zonked out in the stroller and strollers are not allowed up the ramp. So I took this picture from afar. Kate did a great job taking Savannah up to feed them. She's such a good big sister :)

It was a great day at the zoo with my kids! There were several times we wished Daddy was there with us, but we managed to do it without incident :)

It Was Time.... :(

We all knew this day would come.....today was the day.

When Owen woke up from his nap today, I knew it was time. His hair is just too wild! So he got his first hair cut. :)

Here is the before shot:

Whoa! That's a lot of hair!

He sat really well while I wet down his hair and trimmed.

Here is the after shot:

It was kind of sad and I know a lot of people will be sad (sorry Nana!!!) but it was just time. He looks more like a little boy now :)

And there it is....his little pile of curls....I am not sure if I should be sad or proud that he's growing up!

Now We're Getting Somewhere

Owen received this cool walking/riding toy from Papa O and Nana on his birthday and last night he took it for a spin!

We are on our way to having a walking Owen!!!

An Obsession

Lately, Owen has been obsessed with the dishwasher. Any time we open it, he comes flying in to the kitchen. He likes to pull the bottom rack out and push it back in. He also likes to pull out the silverware and throw it about.

Today he tried a new thing! He climbed right up on the door and turned to look at me. He's so cute!

Kate's Kidney Biopsy

On Tuesday Kaitlyn went into the hospital for another kidney biopsy. Kaitlyn has some genetic issues with her kidney and is followed by a nephrologist. She had a biopsy three years ago and everything turned out normal but because she is still having some unresolved issues, he wanted to repeat the biopsy and double check to make sure everything is still ok.

Kate was such a tropper! The actual procedure is only about 15 mins but we were there from 7:30 am until 6:00 pm. And she basically had to lay flat on her back the entire time!!! She did great getting her IV and didn't complain a bit.

Because she wasn't able to eat anything for breakfast by the time her lunch came at 1:00 she was starving!!! I haven't seen her eat that much in a long time! :)

We go back for our follow up in a couple of weeks. Hopefully we'll get nothing but good news :)

Need a Mow?

Traditionally summers at our house are pretty lazy. You've got teachers and students here so we all enjoy the downtime summers bring. Well, this summer Mike let the mowing go a little too long. He actually didn't decide to cut it until he almost stepped on a snake :)

So we left Daddy to mow and we all went for a nice walk to Grandma's house to swim. It was actually not as hard as I thought it would be with all three and we got in some good exercise before our swim :)

Quote of the Day

Yesterday and today Mike has school workshops all day so I have been taking care of the kids. Whenever I am alone with them all for an entire day I do my very best to get out of the house. It really helps to break up the day.

This morning I suggested that we get a yummy Dunkin Donuts breakfast and head to the park for a breakfast picnic and play before it got too hot.

On our way there I was telling the girls that I don't want them to go back to school because I will miss them during the day. I was asking them who was going to keep me company while they were in school. Kate of course said, "Well, you'll have Owen and then we'll be home in the afternoon." But Savannah had the quote of the day. She said, "You can stay with Owen and all our stuffed animals! Except not Elmo because he's mean!" I laughed and asked why she thought Elmo was mean. She said, "Well, he pooped on me last night while I was sleeping." Thanks Savannah - good tip! Gotta love that imagination :)

I love this picture of Owen. I gave up trying to fit in all the appointments into my calendar and gave it to him. He looks like he's thoughtfully contemplating my schedule this month! :) Thanks Owey :)