She's on 2 Wheels

Some time back in August, Tommy took the training wheels off of Gracyn's bike. In my head she is still a baby, so I thought there was no way she was going to be able to ride. I was wrong!!! He used our tried and true method of wrapping a pool noodle under their arms and holding on to them for balance. As they get better he loosens his hold on the noodle and before long, they take off without it. 

She was riding quite well within an our and the next day she mastered starting and stopping. Now she is just one of the crew, riding like a maniac all over the neighborhood. She is daring and often makes me cringe....thankfully so far, we haven't had any major crashes!

All my loves....pretty much what a fall weekend looks like around here. I have no idea why Gracyn is wearing a gymnastics leotard and sandals. Probably not the best choice for bike riding. 

These days, she bikes daily. At least to the bus stop and back. And, she begs for Reagan's bike (it's bigger) whenever she can get away with it. We have taken many family bike rides (walk/jog) for Tommy and I. We have also loaded the bikes up and spent the evening riding around a local lake trail. Having everyone on 2 wheels has opened up a whole new phase of life and we are loving it.

Braces

Addison got Phase 1 of her braces today, to go with her expander. She will be sporting this smile for the next six months.

Life

Addison and Reagan were in a children's theater play. More on that later. It was so much fun, they learned a ton and it consumed our lives for the last several weeks!

Dressed as Storytellers and ready to hit the stage with their BFF's.

We have baby-sat this little dog a few times now. The girls LOVE Griffey. They shower him with love and affection when he is here.

Chuy's opened in Cincinnati!!!! Happy Texans!!!! It opened one month ago and we have been there 3 times....if it wasn't 30 minutes from our house we probably would have been there twice that. 

We love our Maggie Dog. Best Lab a family could ask for.

Seems they inherited my love for a good book. She is in the middle of a series called "Winnie the Horse Gentler" and I don't here a peep from her for hours at a time.

Reagan was a butterfly in the play. The animals marched in a Labor Day parade. It was freezing!

Chloe the bird and Addison the pig ready for the parade.

They built this ark for the play, which the animals followed 2 by 2. This was the ark set up in front of the show on opening weekend.

My baby is getting big! She got this ribbon last week at swimming lessons, for swimming across the pool by herself

After expressing NO interest in the past, she has suddenly decided she loves letters and words. She writes all the time.

Bracelets and more bracelets. The Rainbow Loom has been a huge hit in our house.

Gracyn just sharing a little pasta with her friend at lunch one day.

More Griffey sitting. Gracyn and I were trying to play a game, but he kept running off with the cherries.

Poor Reagan, this was not a fun day. We waited 1 1/2 hours at the ENT. Can't keep her ears well. :(

And Gracyn doesn't have the best teeth. Despite the same dental hygiene practices as her sisters (who have never had a cavity), she had 4 cavities. That is one in EACH of her bottom molars. She had to have them filled one side at a time. Not fun, but she took it like a champ.

Kentucky Horse Park

Labor Day weekend, we made a very last minute decision to head to the Kentucky Horse Park. I had recently heard about it from and friend, and I cannot believe we have lived this close for 2 1/2 years and never been there. Saturday night, around 10:30 pm, I began looking up some information about it. Sunday morning, we needed to be out the door to teach Sunday School at church by 8:15am. I told Tommy an hour before we left, let's pack bags and go from church.

It is about a 2 hour drive and there was a Marriott resort nearby. We didn't tell the girls what we were up too, but after hearing me on the phone making reservations and putting together a few clues, they had it figured out pretty quickly.

We had THE BEST two days. It was a perfect quick get-away to relax after the first 2 weeks of back-to-school craziness. There are horses everywhere. You can walk up to any pasture or stall and pet and visit with all the horses you would like. There were several shows, a horse-drawn trolley tour and trail rides.

This adorable picture, with everyone's big smiles is courtesy of the horse behind them. He was passing some serious gas. They thought it was hilarious!

We stayed until they closed on Sunday then went back to the hotel to swim and eat dinner. We were back bright and early Monday morning and stayed most of the day.

I love those times away, with no chores or responsibilities, just fun time with our family.

We will be heading back here, for sure.

Gracyn's First Day

After Labor Day, Gracyn finally headed back to pre-school. She was READY!!! She goes 3 afternoons each week with Miss. Julie and Miss Dana. They were Reagan's pre-k teachers so we already know and love them. Gracyn's class stayed almost just the same from last year. She has the sweetest friends....one of the cutest most fun bunch of kids I have ever known.

Gracyn was excited to be back and learning. She loves painting and drawing. She is crazy artistic, so it didn't surprise me the first week when she came home with a perfectly detailed family portrait she had made. She drew Tommy and I and all 3 girls with matching dresses. She did Addison's hair down, Reagan's with a head band and her's with a bow. She even had everyone's eye color right. I laughed that she mixed Gray into Tommy's brown hair and I gave her a BIG hug because she didn't add any to mine! That means Mama's hair lady is doing her job well!

Back to School

On August 22nd, Reagan and Addison headed back to school. Reagan started first grade with Mrs. Ahlers and Addison is in 3rd with Mrs. Scalfaro. They love their classes and teachers and are both having a great time. I am always sad for summer to end, and was especially so with Reagan headed into her first year of full day school. But, being back to some schedule and order has been good.

I can't believe looking at these pictures how big and grown up my girls look.

Both are above the 97th percentile and at least a few inches taller than their friends.

Gracyn wasn't going back to school until after Labor Day, but she got up and dressed and put on a little make-up to walk the girls to the bus. :)

Reagan with one of her best friends and our neighbor, Olivia.
I mentioned that she was tall.....Olivia is 6 months older than Reagan.

Part of the  morning crew waiting for the bus.

Off they go.

Daddy, Maggie and Gracyn headed back home for the day. It was a long week getting used to being away from the girls, but I had some sweet, special time with Gracyn. And, I am thrilled that this year seems to be such a good fit for everyone. 

Texas, The End!!!

Here are the last of some very random Texas pictures! Next year, I vow to get my camera out more and then blog them in a more timely manner!!!