August update

August has proven to be a bit easier than July was.  First off Grandma Barbara is in a rehab facility and slowly becoming stronger.  She will be going home in early September.  She may need oxygen permanently but that is far better than what we thought.  I have been talking to her every day and her spirits are high which is helping a lot.

We went to two fairs this month.  First to the county fair as a family and then to the state fair with Katlyn.  Sophia was picked as a cheerleader for the pig races both times.  She had a blast.

We also celebrated six years as a family at Dutch Wonderland.  It was a wonderful two day trip.  Sophia loved the rides, water park and shows.  Our hotel had a pool so we spent time in there too.

We switched Sophia's and Aiden's room.  Sophia loves her new bedroom.

Sophia is now into cake decorating.  We made a fish cake and had a blast.

We continued to garden and harvested some wonderful vegetables.

The end of the summer meant back to school.  She started her first day of kindergarten on August 27.  It is hard to get back into the morning routine.  As we were leaving for school she picked up glasses.  She thought they were hers.  They were actually mine.  I typically leave mine in the car and use them only for driving at night.  After walking her to school I came home and found her glasses on the microwave.  I thought she had forgotten them.  I brought them to school.  She came home wearing glasses, however, the eye glass case still had glasses in it.  It was then that I realized she had put mine on.  (YES- I am slow on the uptake)  She had not realized it all day!!!

July update

We had an excited start to our July.  We had a storm which knocked out power for five days.  We ended up losing all the food in the refrigerator but other than that made it through without any scars.  We found ways to keep cool, both physically and emotionally.  It is through these tests we become stronger!

We celebrated Grandma Beadle's 90th birthday on July 1st.  The party planned had to be revised due to lack of power in the days leading up to the party..  Fortunately Bev and Skip got power back the night before and the family got together to celebrate.

Sophia "raised" butterflies from caterpillars.  It was a great science activity.  Once all came out of their cocoon Sophia released them in her butterfly garden.  I am sure we will be doing this again.

We took a trip to see Grandma in Conn.  Sophia loves these trips almost as much as I do.  She gets spoiled by Grandma and has a blast with her cousins.  Stephanie and Hollie planned a horse party for Sophia.  It was complete with outfits, photo shoots, piñata and crafts.   They also put on a little dance show for us.   We were also fortunate to visit Aunt Philly and Aunt Rosemary.  We spent an afternoon catching up.  

We went to the zoo.  Sophia rode a giraffe.  

We had another interesting event at end of the month.   We had bats that decided to use our attic as a home.   We called in the professionals and hopefully the bats will be out of our attic and any entry points closed off.

The end of the month ended on a real low.  Grandma Barb was rushed to the hospital after the cruise she took with Linda.  She has pneumonia and is on a ventilator.  We got the call on Sunday afternoon and immediately drove up.  Sophia was packed in five minutes and did a great job.  Sophia and Steve hung out at the hotel while I visited my mother.  Steve and Sophia headed back yesterday.  I will likely head home tonight.  Mom is stable but still on the respirator.  We are hoping that the antibiotics will clear the infection and she will be back to normal.  It has been a scary time... still scary.

July 1st picture

We took Sophia's yearly July 1st picture.  I am amazed to see how much she has grown as each year passes.   July 1st was our referral day.  It was the first time we saw Sophia in a picture.  I can't believe it has been six years!!  It is a day I will never forget.

June update

Where does the time go?  Sophia finished her first year in school on June 7th.  She had a great kindergarten year.  She met a lot of great friends and learned a lot.   She is looking forward to 1st grade.

We picked blueberries and raspberries.

 We got together with five of the six families we traveled to China with six years ago.  The kids had a blast playing together for the weekend while the adults enjoyed catching up.  It is amazing to see how big the kids are getting.  Aiden even joined in on the fun.  

 Our yearly "red couch" photo shoot.