One year later....

A whole birthday has passed since I last posted pictures. Most of my recent pictures are on my phone. I should do something about that.

This is Maggie. She came to live with us when my childhood babysitter moved to town and didn't have room for her 3 labs. She is 10 years old and the sweetest, smelliest dog you ever met. She loves to get in the mud holes every chance she gets. I much prefer it when she swims in the neighbors pond!

These are our other dogs, Polly and Beau. They lead a rough life. Since we've moved to the country we of course had to adopt some barn cats. Our barn cats are actually very friendly, yet fierce hunters. They are on the prowl, so I didn't get their picture.

This is an old one. When we moved there were no teaching positions open in the district of my choice. I passed on applying for one this spring, choosing instead to challenge myself by staying home a bit longer. I am not a good stay-at-home mother. I wish it was something I relished, but I tend to find it extremely monotonous and frustrating. That said, I do like having our own routines and having the chance to do things working families can't....like going to the children's museum on a Wednesday morning. Someday I hope we all look back and are happy that I made the choice to stay home while they were little. It is flying by in the blink of an eye.

Natalie is playing with a trowel of some sort. She is constantly getting into a bag of tools or chewing on a screw. Somehow we have avoided any remodeling related injuries.

 Cookie time!

Madeleine and Baby Greyson. She loves him!

This is after her first dance recital. She took ballet and tap this year. During the summer she is trying out jazz. She told me she also wants to take tumbling and cheer. I told her she gets to choose two, to which she told me I was mean. We also are doing soccer in the spring and fall, and I think that is enough for a 5-year old! She is extremely bashful, but when she gets on stage for a dance performance she nails it. She is equally aggressive on the soccer field. Her private coach (Stephen), trained her well on defense and she takes it very seriously. Maybe she has an alter ego like Beyonce...Maddie Fierce.

Last day of Preschool

Charlie waving goodbye to Stephen and Madeleine on her last day. Almost every morning, no matter the weather, we went out on the step to wave goodbye to Dad.

Stephen put a fire pit in the back yard soon after we moved in. The kids love it and are enjoying a nice cool drink on the deck watching him build one.

Madeleine was a bit sober during her graduation. I didn't realize they were wearing gowns and hats, so I didn't think to prep her for it. She was mad that they covered her dress and headband. Always the diva!