first day of preschool

nora marie,

today you start preschool.  wow.  you are so ready for this adventure.  i look at you and think, "how did my little baby girl grow up so fast?!" as i'm sure every mom thinks :) you seem so old, yet so young at the same time.  

7:30am you jumped out of bed, got dressed and put your backpack on, ready to go!  i told you that we still had over an hour before we needed to leave, and you replied with, "let's go! i dont wanna be late!" me either, baby girl.  me either :)  

needless to say, i had plenty of time to snap a few pictures of you before you went inside.  

once we walked in, you walked in like you owned that preschool.  then woah- put the breaks on...  the first time a teacher talked to you, our shy little nora came out.  see, this is what i mean by you seem so old, yet so young at the same time.  you quickly warmed up though and were very excited to play with all the toys, paint teddy bears, & sing songs with your teacher.  you were very excited for the story the first day of preschool that your teacher read.  you listened so well and did an excellent job of sitting on the rug.  promise me you'll always do that, okay?! :) 

i just know that you will make some great friends, learn all sorts of new things, and explore a whole new world without me there every minute of your day.  we are so excited for you and all that you will encounter this year!  when your dad and i were driving you to school this morning, we thought "we will be driving or walking her to school every tuesday morning til she's 18!' this is just the beginning of a great big world of learning, trying new things, and exploring.  we are so proud of you, nora! 

we love you to pieces, big girl!

xoxo,

mama & daddy

nora turns 3!

nora marie,

it's taken me awhile to get this written partly because i am in denial that you're growing up!  also partly because being a working mom, it's hard to keep it all going!  our days are so busy and fun that we just crash at the end of the night!  

well, here we are... your birthday!  you look forward to this day ALL year and start talking about your next birthday just a few days later.  you are so proud that you learned to hold up three fingers and tell me (and everyone you meet) that you are three (or "free!" as you say it)

you just continue to amaze us as you get older.  you are so incredibly smart, curious, in a constant state of wonder, sassy & determined. whatever you have your mind set to, you will accomplish in some way shape or form.  there is nothing holding you back (except me.  mostly me.).  your dad and i are constantly in awe of the things you say you will do and then accomplish.  sometimes it's difficult to see your point or view because you are still working on remembering to use your words when you get frustrated.  but i know this is developmental and since you have such a strong vocabulary i know you'll get there soon!  

your favorite things to do are puzzles, play with your doctor kid, play in your kitchen, read books, ride your bike, draw with chalk, make forts or "caves" as you call them.  

you love your bunny & blankies something fierce.  99.9% of time time you love your sister and are always (mostly) looking out for her.  some of it is coming from the bossy-big-sister and some if it is coming from love :) 

you love to go to the park and try all the things the big kids can do.  determined little girl you are :) 

you hate getting your face washed, the vacuum, going to bed & being told no.  

interview with nora: 8/27/06

how old are you: three years old (with the fingers)

what is your favorite food? noodles (i can say "noodles" now!)

...favorite toy? blocks and squares & triangles (magnaformers)

...favorite color? pink

...favorite animal? flamingos!

...favorite book? flora and the flamingo

what do you want to be when you grow up? a flamingo

what do you like to do for fun? play and go to my friends house and to go target with mommy

some of the funny things you say:

"i totally love you.  i absolutely love you." ~ july 3, 2016

"totally, yeah" ~ june 2016

"well probably we can just go to the park." (with your hand up and a diva-look on your face) ~ summer 2016

"oh no, evy! i am super nora and i'm here to save you!" 

there are so many more but if i don't write them down, then i don't remember! 

at your 3 year well visit you weighed 30lbs and are 37" tall.  you got a flu shot and HATED it!  to say getting shots is not your thing would be quite the understatement :) 

we had your grandparents & uncles and a few friends over to celebrate your birthday, and shockingly, you chose a flamingo theme birthday party.  

in the morning we went to the rainforest cafe for lunch and then came home and got ready to "flamingle" :) 

nora, your dad and i love you so very much.  we are so proud of you and all that you have learned in this short life so far.  

xoxo

mama & daddy

end of summer

well ladies, the time has come... time to say goodbye to lazy, pj-wearing, coffee-drinking mornings and hello to the hustle and bustle of the school year.  while i am super sad to send off our summer, i am looking forward to all the routine and structure the school year brings us.  it will be hard juggling all the craziness of working, preschool, gymnastics & day to day activities but i know we can do it!  

7am swinging & learning to pump

early morning walks in pj's

lazy mornings

(i promise we got dressed this summer... just hung in our pj's a lot!)

we had such a fantastic summer, as evident by all the pictures!!! i know these are days that you won't necessarily remember, so it's important for me to write about them.  i probably won't remember all the details in a few years either!  :) making memories is something that is really important to me.  i have so many wonderful, rich memories as a child that i hope you have one day, too.  although some of our days were loooooooooong, it is so true that the days are long and the years are short.  i blinked and we're back to school already!  it feels like we just got out!!

i know that miss kathy is looking forward to seeing how much you two have grown and nora you are SO excited for preschool to start!  you are more than ready to be learning and playing with other kiddos.  you thrive on routine & structure, so i know preschool will be a great place for you!  whenever you do something that a "big girl" can do you say to me, "NOW i'm ready for preschool!" with a giant smile all over your face! it is truly amazing to watch you grow into an independent little threenager (this name SO lives up to it's namesake!) (PS--how are you almost THREE?!?!?!)

here are some pictures from the end of our summer.  while we didn't quite cross off all our bucket list items, we sure did make the most of each and every day!  a good balance between lazy & busy! 

dancing.  always dancing. everywhere we go.  

hangin with grandma & papa 

flamingo "face" paint!

celebrating gracie kate's first birthday!

pool dates with friends!

ice cream.  always ice cream.  

rainy days with k & ty

sink baths!

final summer date night 

i hope you two read these posts one day and have fond memories of the summers we spend together.  i know i always will!  here's to another school year & countdown til next summer!!

love you little bugs!
xoxo,

mommy 

beach vacay

nora & evelyn,

this summer we decided to stick to the midwest for our beach vacation instead of driving 16+ hours with 2 kids under 3 to the south.  just wasn't going to happen.  it wouldn't be easy.  vacationing with kids is not as relaxing as it used to be, but it makes things SO much more fun! 

we headed to covert, michigan which is just south of south haven, about 2.5 hours away.  grandma & papa rented the coolest, oldest house in palisades park country club and were gracious enough to let us join them for the trip!  uncle kyle joined us for a few days, too.  there really is nothing better than spending a week with those you love.  we are forever grateful for grandma and papa for giving us this week of family, food, love & beach!

i took waaaaay too many pictures of our week, so i'll try and keep these to a minimum! 

saturday:

we headed out early in hopes you two would nap along the way. HA.  as soon as we got there, we headed for the beach (shocking!)

then explored the beach house, soda bar for ice cream & wooded neighborhood.

sunday:

it stormed & poured rain for most of the day, but we were able to get in some beach time in the afternoon.

monday: 

the boys golfed in the morning and the girls went for a long walk.  we all joined at the beach for the rest of the day.  and more ice cream at night.

tuesday:

another beach day! kyle's last day, too :( in the evening we headed to south haven to see the lighthouse & mooooore ice cream.  really, this vacation was all about the beach and ice cream. 

wednesday:

we headed to saugatuck to meet up with aunt brandy, uncle josh & baby clive!! our vacations overlapped so it was mandatory we met up with one of our favorite families in michigan!

thursday:

we were all ready for a break from the beach, so we went blueberry picking!  this may have been one of the highlights from the trip (aside from adding to nora's ice cream addiction).  it was hot and the blueberries were perfect for picking (and eating!) right off the bush!  we came home and grandma made a delicious blueberry crisp.  daddy & i were able to escape and go watch the sunset that night.  is there really anything better than watching a summer sunset on the beach?! i think not.

hanging with evs in the shade while the rest pick blueberries! 

friday: 

we attempted a beach trip early in the morning, but the biting flies were SO bad we had to pack up immediately and head back to the house.  fortunately, papa decided we should check out the south haven beaches.  those were SO much better and we were able to spend all afternoon at the beach.  after late naps, we headed for our last night of ice cream and sunset walks.

finally on the last day she falls asleep at the beach!

"hmm whatcha got in there, nora?!"

last ice cream of the week

saturday:

we woke up to a huge storm, so it was time to pack the car and head home.  we ended our final day of vacation with a family dinner at armands and a popcorn/movie night with the big girl.  sorry evy--you can join us for movie nights when you're a bit older ;)

it was a fabulous vacation, one we'll never forget.  i love having time off with my family, especially when daddy is able to be home from work.  summer is my favorite time of year and family vacations like these are just one of the many reasons why!! i know you girls won't remember this week, but i hope the pictures speak volume and you love looking back at them! 

xoxo,

mama & daddy