This week at school, the First Graders had a "Family Project".  They had to decorate a pumpkin like a character from a book.  The entire first grade hallway is lined with their pumpkins and books.  On Friday, all of the students in the school will vote, with change, on their favorite.  Then, all of the money is being donated to Helping Hands.  Eli first said he wanted to do Spiderman. I convinced him that that wasn't really very creative, and there would probably be others that did it too (and there were).  He has been doing great at reading the Fly Guy books with little to no help, so we settled on that one.  The instructions said there could be absolutely no carving or puncture marks.  However, I resorted to using some staples because the E6000 glue and hot glue were either not drying quick enough, or it was pulling the acrylic paint off the pumpkin.  In the end he was happy with our choice and we got lots of compliments when we carried it in and set it up at school.

Weekend Fun

We've had a great weekend so far.  Eli participated in the Ultimate Fitness Challenge at school on Friday.  It was a ten part obstacle course to promote fitness and it also served as a school fundraiser.  Zoe and her best friend Sarah Jane even got to participate in between classes.

Johnny's dad came on Friday and spent the night.  We went to dinner at Arboleda's and made a stop at Wal-Mart to pick up a VCR, then he got to see some of Eli's soccer game on Saturday.  Eli played goalie the second half and made several stops.  He had one that was really good.  The ball came flying at him and he caught it mid-air against his chest.  Parents on both sides were cheering for him :-)

After soccer, we went to a birthday party for his friend Reagan at Little Hart's Pony Parties in Lucas, TX.  They rode horses, had their faces painted, rode in a horse drawn carriage, played on a playground, hit a pinata, and petted a couple of goats.  

The sweet birthday girl, Reagan.

RPA Fall Children's Festival

Zoe and I went to the RPA Fall Children's Festival last Friday and had a great time.  There was breakfast, crafts and playing with friends.  I am so fortunate to be a part of such a fabulous group of women that will hopefully be lifelong friends.  Eli and Zoe have also made some great friends through the group.

 Zoe and her BFF Sarah Jane.  

 Zoe and her buddy Harrison.

Group shot with most of the kids :-)

Catch Up Time

Wow, I cannot believe it has been over a year since I have added an entry!  I guess life has gotten in the way of my blogging :-)  I have never been good at keeping any kind of a diary or journal, though I always have good intentions.  There have been so many things happen since my last update.  There's no possible way I can mention them all,  so I'll try to hit some of the highlights and add some pictures at the end.
  
* Eli "graduated" from Kindergarten and is thriving in First Grade.  
* Zoe is enjoying another year of Mother's Day Out, officially called Preschool  this year at our church, Lakepointe.  
* This past summer, Eli was in my group at VBS and made the decision on June 28th to accept Christ as his personal Lord and Savior.  We met with our Children's pastor two days before leaving for vacation.  He was baptized a little later on September 16th. 
* Johnny and I started volunteering in the nursery every other Sunday at church, which quenches his desire for a third child :-) 
* Eli's confidence in swimming improved so much this summer, he is like a fish.  He finally conquered the diving board and hasn't looked back.
* Zoe was a little more cautious this summer in the water, which is kind of a good thing.  She kind of scared me with her dare devil ways last summer. 
* We spent 9 glorious days in Hawaii for a vacation/wedding.  Johnny's best friend from childhood got married and we decided to make it an extended trip.  We are already planning for the next one.  
* Zoe is finally potty trained, which I was beginning to think would never happen.  She even wakes up from most naps and most mornings with a dry pull-up, though I'm not ready to do away with those quite yet.
* Eli had his first very small cavity, which we had filled just after school started.  While we were there and he was under the gas and shots, she also pulled a tooth that was not even a little bit loose.  His adult tooth was coming in behind and needed somewhere to go.
* Eli is playing soccer again this fall, with Johnny as one of his coaches.  He has really come a long way since he started 2 years ago.  He is very athletic and has a true understanding and love for the game.
* Zoe started gymnastics in September and loves it.  She is such a great listener and tries her best at all of the new skills she is learning.  
* I am serving as President again this year for the Rockwall Preschool Association (RPA)
* I am also serving again this year as the Homeroom Volunteer Coordinator in Eli's classroom, as well as serving on the PTA Board as Student Directory Chair.  Needless to say, I will be spending a lot of time at Grace Hartman Elementary this year, and will love every minute of it. 
* Johnny's practice is chugging right along.  He just got a new website and is taking on a couple of areas that coincide with consumer bankruptcy to help his business grow even more.
* Johnny is serving as President of the Rockwall Breakfast Rotary club this year.

My little graduate!

 Kindergarten graduation

 Petting zoo day at MDO

 This girl loves animals

 Pumpkin Patch day at MDO

 Eli has loved art class.  This is at the school's annual art show.

 The aftermath of the kindergarten Teddy Bear Sleepover 

 Dolphin Encounter in Hawaii, notice there's not one of Zoe :-)

 Watching the waves

 After swimming in the freezing cold waterfall

 4th of July at Justin's rooftop park at his apartment

 Swimming at the Disney lagoons

 Dolphins!!

 All dressed up for Justin and Rose's wedding

 Johnny giving his Best Man's speech

 First day of First Grade

 Zoe was so happy to pick Eli up from school.  She missed him all day.

 

First day of Preschool

Being baptized by our fabulous Children's Pastor, Trent Worsham

We love these girls!

 Family photo after Eli's baptism

Lunch at Allure with the cousins after baptism

Another family photo

 Pastor Trent