First week of school

Well, we officially survived the first week of school! I was a little worried Tuesday morning when he said that he was tired and he didn't want to go. This was his first time to have to go consecutive days since he went MWF last year. I went ahead and made him get ready and eat his breakfast. He seemed a little better after that so we went ahead and loaded up. Once we were on our way, I could tell he was excited to go and thankfully that was the only morning he was a little hesitant.

He seems to love his new class and teacher. I think one of the highlights of the week for him was getting to check out a book from the library.

sweet boy so proud of his book- we had to read a different story almost everyday

It's been so good for all of us to get back into the school routine. The twins and I managed to stay busy while Zane was at school. Tuesday we visited a local MOPS group for the first time and we all had a good time. Wednesday morning we went to the park for a twins' play date with the mothers of multiples group I joined recently- NOWAMOM. Thursday we just came back to the house so I could get a few things done.

my sweet boys eating a snack at the park(Jude is on the left)

Jude loves lining things up. The boys had found these cards getting into a cabinet they shouldn't be getting into.

Jude in action

Cole wanting to get in on the action

sweet boys entertaining themselves

By Friday, we were all exhausted and had a much needed PJ day. The twins had a bit of a cold and Zane was saying he didn't feel well either so we had a low key day. Thankfully everyone seemed better yesterday and today. Tonight before bed, I remembered that Zane needed to practice writing his name for school. His teacher had sent home a page for him to practice on and if he brings it back he will get a special treat. I will have to make sure and not wait until the last minute next time. The twins decided they needed to color too and they actually sat at the table for a good while coloring and playing with the crayons (instead of eating them like they usually do!).

I must do better about getting up a little earlier this week- last week was a bit of shock to the system. I am so thankful for a great week and weekend with my guys.

Luke helping

my hard worker

I am not sure if Jude enjoyed coloring or lining the crayons up more :)

Cole definitely enjoyed playing with the crayons over actually coloring

He did color a little bit.

one more of Jude- he was definitely into coloring!

Pigs and Peaches

We went to the annual Kennesaw Pigs and Peaches festival yesterday. We went last year with the Speers and the kids loved it so we decided we had to go again. Unfortunately we didn't coordinate as well with the Speers this year so we only got to see them for a few minutes.

Luke dropped me off with the boys so he could go park. We walked over to the baseball field where they had a helicopter giving people rides. This proved to be a hit again, just like last year. The boys enjoyed watching it take off and land. Zane was so excited that he could feel the wind generated by the helicopter blowing on him.

the twins liked it but were also a little frightened by it...

Zane without a doubt, loved it!

 Once Luke met up with us we headed toward the kid area. The first stop was to get tickets then on to the bungee trampoline jump. Zane loved this again as much as he did last year and was able to go a lot higher.

love his expression mid-jump

he was really high up!

We got the twins out of the stroller and tried to get them to go in the bounce houses, but they just weren't interested. Cole actually went in, but would stay half in and half out. Zane of course, loved all of the bounce houses and the big slide, too. The twins were really entertained when Zane took a turn on the bucking sheep. You can hear them laughing on the video.

making his way up the big slide

While Zane played on all the different things, the twins enjoyed eating their kettle corn and watching the animals at the petting zoo.

I thought the twins might want to go in and pet the animals but when I asked them, Jude was saying no and waving his hand no, while Cole was saying "stinky animals."

Zane looking at the petting zoo and the ponies

After Zane had done most everything(I am still surprised that he didn't mention wanting to do the two water slides they had- next year we'll have to dress the boys in their swimsuits to be prepared), Luke grabbed some of the BBQ for us to go for lunch. I should have gotten a picture of him trying to carry the 6 to go boxes he was given. The twins were done- in their defense, it was hot and they have been battling a cold. I think that is why they were just content to sit in the stroller most of the time. Hopefully, next year they will be more active participants in the festivities.

We all enjoyed our yummy barbecue lunch once we got home- Zane really put it away! The boys then enjoyed some homemade cookies for dessert. After lunch, the boys had the best time playing in the playroom. We were thankful that the twins' moods improved dramatically and they even took 3+ hours naps- we successfully tired them out, I guess.

Cole eating his cookie

Jude and his cheesy/ chocolaty grin

Zane's first day of Pre-K

Zane was so ready to go back to school. Most of his friends had been in school for a couple of weeks and he was really needing more social interaction. He went to bed so excited and woke up ready to start the day. Luke went in a little late so he could see Zane since he usually leaves before the boys wake up. Zane enjoyed spending a little special time with his daddy, of course.

This boy sure loves his daddy!

2 of my handsome fellas

a father-son chat

Zane was also so excited to wear his new school shirt today. You see by the time he started school in January this last school year, they were out of shirts his size. They gave him one but it was so big it made a good night shirt so he was never able to wear it to school.

After Luke left for work, Zane went upstairs to do his morning routine. I made him some of his favorite muffins for breakfast along with turkey sausage. Before I knew it, it was time for all the boys to come downstairs and eat breakfast. The time flew by and soon we were out front taking the 1st day of school pictures. My neighbor Meredith was sweet to take a couple of me with my big boy. I had done the same for her a couple of weeks ago on Jackson's 1st day.

my big boy and me

love his expression here

had to copy this idea from pinterest :)

He was so excited the whole way there and when it was his turn to get out of the car in the car line, he had the biggest smile on his face. Having never been one to suffer from separation anxiety, he got out and never looked back. I was proud of myself because I did not get emotional at all- just like that, it seemed like a normal part of the routine again.

After I dropped him off, I took the twins into the foyer for "Tissues and Tea." The church does this for the parents the first day of the school year. They had some food and drinks set out. I visited with an associate pastor of the church who was quite interested in the twins since he has twin 21 year old sons. The twins enjoyed the food especially. After a few minutes, we headed home. Once we got home, the boys wanted to play outside so I thought I should try and start raking some of these leaves. The twins had fun playing in the leaves.

my sweet helpers Cole and Jude raking

We ended up going to the playground for a while, then we came home and the boys entertained themselves while I vacuumed. Before long, it was time to pick up Zane from school. He was excited to see us and reported that he had a fun day at school. He was particularly excited about the fact that he got to check out a book from the library.

Zane, we are so proud of you! You are growing up so fast- we cannot believe that you will be 5 soon. We hope that you continue to love school and can't wait to watch you learn and grow this year. We love you so very much!

Last week of summer

Wow, we had a busy, but fun last week of summer! We started out the week with our first outing to Acworth Beach. Now ordinarily, this is not the kind of outing I would do by myself. However, my fellow twin mom friend Fran had invited us and I felt it was a good opportunity to get to know them better. Her twins Jack and Owen are about 4 months older than Jude and Cole. We have met up with them on a few other occasions and the boys play well together. She was bringing her teenage niece with her so we had a little extra help. All in all, it went better than I expected- Zane loved swimming in the water and the twins were perfectly content to play right at the water's edge. Lunchtime did not go great (I must get them each their own lunchbox I have decided) and it was a huge hassle loading everything up(even though Fran graciously kept an eye on all the boys so I could do so) and changing everyone's clothes to get in the car and go home. There was sand everywhere and once we got home, everyone needed a bath. It took the boys a while to settle down, but thankfully we all got naps that afternoon!

Cole and Jude eating a snack

Even though I brought our own toys, they of course enjoyed playing with the toys our friends brought.

I'm frustrated that I didn't get any other pic of Zane-that's his little head in the middle of the picture.

On Tuesday, I decided we needed a day to recover and Zane absolutely loves having a PJ day. Luke was leaving on a trip later that day so he decided to go in to work late so he could see the boys. Once they were up, he said his goodbyes and I loaded the boys up to go get a special treat for breakfast- Wendy's.

Zane enjoyed his breakfast sandwich.

Jude loved the sausage...I love his cheesy grin :)

And Cole, he loved his breakfast potatoes, or "fries" as he kept saying

The rest of the day we managed to be fairly lazy, with the exception of a quick trip to Publix for a few essentials and free sprinkled cookies of course. The boys had fun playing together and thankfully everyone took good naps again. Here are some random pics of my silly boys playing...

Jude

Cool Cole

Zane's zany bed hair

Before bedtime, Luke has started telling the boys to go get a book and read. This usually follows the nighttime wrestle session with Daddy when he is in town. I told them to go get a book right before bed, and they followed suit.

my sweet readers

On Wednesday, Ms. Thelma came and watched the boys so I could take my last swimming lesson from Morgan. After my lesson, I got ready and then Zane and I ran to Target to finish school supply shopping. It was fun to spend a little one on one time with my pre-k student. We picked up Chick-fil-a for a special lunch treat.

Later that day we were able to meet up with Zoe, Henry and Emma at the basketball park for a little bit. After the Speers left, we went to the firetruck playground to play. I actually let the twins walk instead of using the stroller and they did surprisingly well and walked the whole time.

Jude

Thursday morning, Ms. Thelma came back to the house and watched the twins while Zane and I went to the Meet and Greet at his school, Summit Baptist Christian Academy. Zane kept saying that he might be shy...I explained to him that he is not shy(anyone who knows him knows this), but that he was probably feeling nervous and that was normal. We went into the worship center for an informational meeting and then got to go to his new classroom and meet his new teacher Ms. Janel. The kids were encouraged to explore the room while the parents sat and filled out paperwork. Zane was excited to get his new school bag and a new school t-shirt just his size.

I wanted to get a picture of him with his teacher. At first he didn't want to until Ms. Janel said that if he took the picture, he could have the car he had been playing with the whole time. He got a huge smile on his face and just like that, he was ready for the picture. He was so excited about his new-to-him "transformer" car. On our way out, we stopped by his class from last year and he was so excited to see Ms. Colleen. He eagerly agreed to have his picture taken with her and she didn't have to give him anything!

Zane and Ms. Janel

Zane and Ms. Colleen

On Friday, I planned for a low key day at home after such a busy week. We went to the playground for a while and thankfully we got to see our friends the Pitts in the afternoon. Eventhough we had been busy, we hadn't been able to see much of our friends the last couple of weeks so the boys were excited to see them.

Cole upset over his broken stick

the twins enjoying Meredith's leftover ice

Saturday, the Speers were kind enough to let us come hang out while our front door was being worked on all morning. All of the kids had not played together in a while and they had such a great time. Thanks Erik and Zoe for letting us come hang...we love you guys and your sweet kiddos!

Jude taking a picture

Cole and Emma looking out the window

love this of all the kids watching Coco- the Speers' "visitation pet"