Sean has a new truck. A big blue truck with big tires. He likes to go off roading in it. Today, he decided to take us with him. Turns out, I do NOT like off roading... not one little bit. Neither did the girls. It was heinous, really. Lesson learned.

That being said, when we stopped to have some lunch we enjoyed the serene atmosphere, the quiet (it was SO flippin' quiet!) and some lunch... before we headed back down the heinous mountainside.

Posted by Rebecca at 11:38 PM | Permalink

We love taking the girls to our local beach park. Lots to do: big grassy area to run, have dinner and play games on; a playground to get our wiggles out on; a stage to perform on; and a beach to get sandy on. Tonight we brought the camera with us:

Posted by Rebecca at 11:05 PM | Permalink

... and Dillen is in SECOND GRADE!!

It truly seems like time is flying by...

This year is going to be an awesome year. I was incredibly relieved to find out that Roxy has Mrs. Emert for Kindergarten (the same teacher Dillen had for Kindergarten). And Dillen is in a great class with her best friend, Meg.

On the first day of school for Roxy, last Tuesday (Dillen's first day was Monday), Roxy surprised me (slightly). Not only did she take off like a lightning bolt to her classroom door, she easily took her backpack off and found a place for it on a peg and then started to head into the classroom without even saying "goodbye." I had to stop her for a hug - even then, she was sort of mentally half-way into the classroom. She was READY! The day is a full day for Kindergarteners, as well, but this seemed to have no effect on her. When I picked her up at 2:43, she seemed to own the school. Dillen had a great day, too. She loves her teacher and fell right back into place on her old stomping grounds. The whole week went great... and fast. I can't believe it is already the second week of school.

Dillen's First Day:

Roxy's First Day:

I'm hanging onto this one a while longer:

Posted by Rebecca at 10:45 PM | Permalink

Dillen's Brownie troop hosted a sleepover at Sea World a couple of weeks ago and it was AMAZING!! We arrived around 5:30PM and we were greeted by some very cheerful Sea World staff who took our bags, gave us bright green t-shirts and then began our own private, VIP tour of the park. Fortunately, Roxy was invited to join in the fun, as well. Dillen's Brownie troop is full of awesome little girls and moms which made the sleepover even more enjoyable. We were fed dinner; taken on a few behind-the-scene tours; given educational lectures; given VIP seating for the Shamu and fireworks show; and then taken to the Shark Encounter where we were to unroll our sleeping bags and sleep on the top levels of the tunnel. Sleeping under sharks was truly incredible. I don't think I slept more then 20 minutes. All of us were probably asleep by around 1AM (I still can't believe Dillen and Roxy lasted that lon g) and we were awoken by the Sea World staff by 6:30AM then next morning so we could pack up, tour another exhibit and then be given breakfast before the park re-opened to the public.

I have to say, even with no sleep, I would redo this experience at least once per month. It was incredible.

Sean and Piper met us at the front entrance at the park opening and we spent about 4 hours playing at the park as a family. This also was awesome because it was Piper's first time enjoying Sea World. Needless to say, she loved it. :)

Posted by Rebecca at 10:19 PM | Permalink