A Victorian Tea Party

We wanted to make sure Maddie's 9th birthday was a little extra special. It would be her last birthday right before saying good-bye to all her friends and moving across the country. She wanted a fancy tea party birthday, and since our house was in the process of being packed up and filled with boxes, we thought it would be nice to have the party somewhere else.

 

We decided on the Tea Room in Port Gamble, and it was so much fun. The girls got to dress up in fancy dresses and hats, learn some proper tea time etiquette, and then have their very own grown-up tea party. The little tea sandwiches and finger foods were a hit, and the birthday cake was beautiful. It was a wonderful way to celebrate Maddie's birthday, and also a nice way to spend time with some dear friends before our big move.    

Pumpkin Time!

Nothing says fall quite like an assortment of pumpkins!


Big pumpkins...


Little pumpkins...

We all enjoyed pumpkin painting this year!


And then we got to cap it off trick-or-treating!

The girls dressed in matching Wyoming cheerleader outfits courtesy of Pa and Grammy. A few of our Pacific Northwest friends and neighbors even recognized them as Wyoming uniforms, and I got to be proud of my alma mater. Go Cowboys! 

The only downside was leaving Jay at home. His knee surgery was just a few days before Halloween and he wasn't in prime walking condition yet. Not to worry though, the girls took good care of him and shared lots of their Halloween candy!

Soccer Season!!!

We signed Kate up for the fall soccer season in Washington. She loved every minute of it! Two days a week wasn't nearly enough for her, she was wishing for every day to be a soccer day. And it was thrilling to watch her play! She is a little natural out there. Not necessarily because she knows all the ball handling or strategy yet, but because she is just an out-n-out go getter! There is no shyness or diminutive stuff where this little girl is concerned. She is right out there in the middle of the action the entire time. She knows how to be aggressive, she's not afraid to go after the ball, she can score goals. It's awesome to just watch her go for it, and have so much fun while she's doing it.  

Working on some ball handling


Out having fun!

Always going after the ball


Scoring drive...


She shoots...


She scores!!!


Go Green Hornets!!!

A Celebration Fit for the First Day of School!

At our house, we love school! And the first day of the new school year is cause for celebration! All of us, old and young alike look forward to it with loads of anticipation and excitement. For me, part of the joy is remembering back to my own school years and how much I loved practically everything about it: the new school supplies, new teachers, new lessons, and especially new books to read. Now the girls have the opportunity to experience these same things, and it's so fun to realize they are getting just as much joy from it as I used to.  

Everybody ready to head to the bus stop

Big smiles for the first day!

First Day of Third Grade

Good ol' Bus #59

After the girls got back home we all sat down to a delicious little meal. We even broke out the fancy glasses, bought some flowers, and made up place cards. And we enjoyed hearing the complete rundown of the first day back at school. This year it was a little poignant, knowing that this would be the last few months at their school in Washington before we moved. But the extra time we took to celebrate the day made it feel all the more special.  

Enjoying some of our favorite fancy brunch food

Here's to another great year!

Cheese!!!

Nothing better than big, girl grins, especially when one of them is a cute gappy one!

Kate's Happy 6th!

MAKE A WISH...

 

...AND BLOW OUT THE CANDLE!

What happens when you're lucky enough to spend your birthday with all of your family and friends in Wyoming? You get extra spoiled with two parties instead of just one, complete with two cakes and the whole shebang!



My sweet Kate turned six this summer! Six!!! I can hardly believe it. The little girl we used to call "summer baby," when she was born, is now an official school-ager! Oh, how I wish I could make time slow down and squeeze out every last drop of little girl goodness that surrounds me. My delightful little girls are growing up much too fast for my liking. I'm grateful for my front row seat in watching all this growing up that is taking place at lightning speed before my very eyes!



We had a lot of fun celebrating this little girl's special day: yummy cake and brownies, some fun presents, and best of all, time with our wonderful Wyoming family, who we don't get to see nearly enough!

I hope you have an incredible year being six, my dear, sweet, little girl!
Lucky me, I get to be there to see you through all of it!

Broncos Stadium... Entering the Land of Tebow

During our trip to Denver this summer we ventured to Broncos Stadium. We had never been there before so it was all new to us. Truth be told, we're not big followers of the NFL, and this was back before the giant Tebow craze that swept the country this football season, so it was more like a tour for some uninitiated newbies. On the plus side, this meant we were more apt to be impressed by everything. 

Part of the tour included the
Colorado Sports Hall of Fame.
The girls had fun dressing up in all
the sports related regala.

The giant skis were cute...


...especially on Ellie!


Maddie as a rough'n tough hockey player


Kate checking out the sweet box seats.
If I could watch a game from here,
I'm sure it would be much more enjoyable!
The view + the comfort = unbelievable!


The girls were fascinated by the logo in the seats, particularly the horse's eye seat. Maddie said that's where she would like to sit. As for me, I'd much prefer those sweet box seats we saw earlier on the tour!
GO BRONCOS!!

A Trip to the Zoo...Don't Mind If We Do

 This past summer I went to the Denver Zoo for the first time. We were invited by some dear friends who were visiting family in Wyoming just like we were, and my mom got to come along too which made it even more fun. It was a hot, sticky day, but we sure enjoyed ourselves, and saw a lot of neat animals. 

Slap on some SPF and a sunhat, and fun can be had even on the hottest day!


Kate and Ellie are my elephant lovers. Ellie loved checking out the pretty pachyderms with Grammy!

It's so much fun when a carousel has a whole menagerie to choose from!


Kate had to ride on the elephant of course


Ellie was excited to be such a big girl, riding just like her sisters