Snippets of September

September FLEW by at our house...as I'm sure it did with many others. It was a good month of adjusting and settling in to our new home in Texas. Summer definitely doesn't end with August around these parts, so we had fun (and are still) dragging summer out as long as we can!

Brian started school.

We will have a few more of these babies over the next couple years!

And this is Thad showing off his backpack so that I could show it to his east coast "house school" friends that LOVE super heroes more than anything!

We spent Labor Day checking out the neighborhood kiddie pool.

Remember that baseball stuff Thad gave Dad for his bday? 

Dad is the best teacher around and they had a blast (even though it was scorching hot)!

The boys love this trick (adapted from Uncle Merit) -- Cutest "burritos" around!

I couldn't get them to look at each other for a picture, but isn't there just so much brotherly love in those eyes!? 

Best buds!

Speaking of best buds....

These boys probably watch a little too much TV, but they are certainly super cute while doing it!

Can you tell Wes wants to be just like big brother? 

Cutest.

They love having a yard to play in!

I love those silly faces!

We had a nice swim day when it was snowy in the mountains and cold in Utah. I think I can handle that!

Thad kept asking to make a fort, so one Monday I told him we would do it on Friday. Each day he would clarify how many sleeps were left until the big day and, sure enough, the night finally arrived!

Dad was the master mind behind it all and we enjoyed a night watching the show "Epic."

As you can see, even Wes enjoyed it!! I'm sure there will be lots of forts over the years.

This is a fun game Thad and I made up:

Not the domino match up part, but parking the cars everywhere.

We have played it several times since and we love it because it looks so different every time!

So, we finally got a mini van (the beauty in the middle)!

We bought it over the summer and Brian even made a trip to Boise because Birtley helped us to get a smokin' deal on it.

Needless to say, we fit in perfectly in the suburbs of Round Rock and this is a common site when we meet for play dates with friends in the ward.

These boys and their dad:

There is always something hilarious going on when these three are together!

This is just one example -- Dad and Wes knocking on Thad's head...silly boys!

And then, there is Wes -- Please enjoy all these snippets of this funny, awesome, crazy 20 month old-

This boy goes CRAZY over "Baby Signing Time" and brought them over to make sure I knew he wanted to watch!

And then after he brought the movies over, he tripped on the rug and caught himself with his nose and upper lip. It was a sad day with blood and crying and me not sure what to do. :(
I don't know what I will do when these boys need stitches or casts --  I'm sure the Lord will help me out when that happens, because I will be a crazy mess otherwise!

Thad's First Soccer Game

We have entered the world of sports and....we love it! Well, I shouldn't get ahead of myself, we have had one game of I'm sure hundreds that we will attend over the years, but I have to say we really enjoyed it! It was so fun to see Thad in a "competitive" situation and cheer him on. We signed him up through the YMCA and he will have eight games with just a twenty minute practice before each game every Saturday. The kids actually did pretty well considering most of them had ZERO experience, and the extreme heat.

He was all smiles before the game and I couldn't get enough of him in his soccer gear!

Our boy getting in on the action!

 The girl in the pink socks is our "franchise" player and made 80% of our goals...yahoo! That means a lot of  Ws for the Wolves over the next 7 weeks!

The game could have been a little more enjoyable if this wasn't happening...

I shouldn't complain too much because it was H.O.T. and the boy just wanted to play soccer.

He probably cried 90% of the time. Still love him.

Luckily toward the end of the game Thad dribbled the ball halfway down the field and kicked that ball right in! He was PUMPED and it gave him some extra energy to finish out the game for the kids on his team that wouldn't play or made their way to the shade 100 yards away.

Brian and I were so happy he scored as he had mentioned his desire to do so almost every time we talked about soccer. Over the summer he saw Kache and Caden both score and, of course, he wants to be just like those awesome cousins of his!

The game came to an end and I think just about everyone was ready... 

Especially this boy... 

We don't know what the score was, but the Wolves (Thad's team) definitely won, and even though the kids could care less, we felt proud that our little man was on the winning team. :)

Oh Thad, how fun it was to cheer our little hearts out for you!

We will always be cheering for you whether it's on or off the field.

Yay for another step into the "big kid" phase!

And So It Begins...

Thad started Pre-K today, and to say he was excited is an understatement! We have talked about preschool for a long time now, and he would have gone last year in Connecticut if it would have been a little easier on the wallet. He has known his letters, numbers, colors, shapes and several other basics for quite some time now and I am no teacher, so he has really been in need of some good direction for progression in his learning. This will in turn give me direction on how I can assist him in his scholastic endeavors.

We met Thad's teacher yesterday and then today was the big day! He was so excited to pack his lunch and wear his new backpack.

He was a great sport and we were able to get several wonderful pictures of our eldest on his very first day of school.

And we couldn't miss out on an opportunity for a photo shoot with our TWO school boys that we officially have at our house!

 Twins?

I think so. 

And is this shot not the cutest thing you ever did see?

I probably looked at this picture 100 times today because I love it so much.

Our Mr. Thad is growing up, but it is just so wonderful.

He is falling perfectly into step with being the oldest, the big brother, and the big helper.

School is just the next step in the wonderful direction this boy is headed.

8:45 a.m. FINALLY rolled around and we were able to head over to the school! --For more photos, of course!

 And although it does looks like Wes is not the least bit interested in these pictures, he insisted on being in them.

 So please, take note, Wes was present on this big day. ;-) 

His darling monkey themed classroom!

(He's sitting in a real little school chair and everything!)

Thad and Ms. Amanda 

 As you can see, this is the face of one happy little guy!

We are so proud of our little man and know he will excel in these surroundings. He is always soaking up as much as he can and this will be no exception.

No tears were shed today by Thad or me. This was an exciting day that both of us were ready for. I am so grateful for a boy that accepts new and challenging things with open arms. 

I am also grateful he is the one that enters our family into the big world of SCHOOL! I hope and pray that each of our children will be as ready as this kid is when their time comes. How lucky our kids are to have such a great example for a big brother. He will show them ropes and I'm sure he will set the bar very high.

Happy first day of school, Mr. Thad -- Here's to many more!