Wednesday night was Back to School Night for Emmie and Ellie. They were super excited to go and drop off their school supplies, see their friends, and of course visit with their teachers...new and old!
Emmie has the same teacher from last year and so this night was a breeze for her. Her teacher's bday was on Monday so all my kids made her a card and we got her a gift card and socks. So Emmie's teacher told the kids at Christmas last year that she really loved socks. So Emmie was insistent that we buy her some socks for her bday...and of course she picked the most outrageous pair in the store. I love it!
Ellie didn't really know her 1st grade teacher so she was a little nervous. We found out ahead of time that Ellie's teacher loves owls so Ellie colored her a picture of an owl which her teacher just loved! We were also able to find out who is in the girls classes and Ellie was thrilled to find a few of her good friends from last year were in her class this year. Emmie pretty much already knew the kids who were going to be in her class.
We also took our annual bench picture with Evelyn. These girls have been together since preschool and I love our annual picture!
We are so excited about another great school year!
Today Amy and I took the kids to Pearl Fryar's Topiary Garden in Bishopville. (I highly encourage you to click on the link to read all about it...it's fascinating!) So if you go there are brochures in the mailbox on the right side of the driveway. We didn't see them until we were leaving but they have lots of information about the different things you see in the garden and it's really interesting!
The fishbone tree is considered his signature piece.
Emmie and Ellie's art teacher, Mrs. Henson, did a lesson on Pearl Fryar last year and then sent home a flyer about the garden. The kids have been wanting to go for so long and even though it was 9000 degrees with 200% humidity today we had a great time! I love that she instilled a love for ALL kinds of art in our kids...she really was the best art teacher and one of those people who is so genuinely loving! We are so sad that she's not back this year but she'll be selling her beautiful creations and teaching some workshops so follow her page on Facebook!
Emmie's topiary garden! (I should get mom of the year or something for actually knowing where this was!)
All the sculptures and fountains were also created by Pearl Fryar using scrap metal. This was one of my favorites!
Peace, Love, and Goodwill carved into the grass.
Pearl Fryar hand placed every stone in the concrete.
Funny story...there was a man out cutting the grass and weed eating. I didn't think it was Pearl Fryar but the kids were just dying to ask so we sent Emmie to find out. He wasn't Pearl Fryar but he informed them that Pearl Fryar was at Waffle House. It took everything we had to talk those kiddos out of going to Waffle House to meet him! We figured the guy deserved to eat his waffles in peace!
If you're interested in going the garden is about 40 minutes from NE Columbia and the address is 145 Broad Acres Road, Bishopville, SC, 29010. There is no fee but donations are accepted (there is a mailbox on the right side of the driveway you can put your donations in).
Ruthie has been getting braver and braver with her swimming and she's been improving by leaps and bounds over the last few weeks. (If you missed the blog post about the girls' swimming accomplishments this summer you can find it here.)Today she wanted to go off the diving board without a noodle. I told her she had to have a noodle. So she jumped in and "accidentally" dropped her noodle when she jumped in. Then instead of grabbing the noodle she simply swam to the side. So then I let her jump in without the noodle. She did SO well!
A few weeks ago we went to Summerville to spend a few days with GiGi and Papa. We were busy busy while we were there but had SO much fun!
We spent one day at the beach. The weather was great and the kids had so much fun playing in the sand and the ocean. We took a picnic and ate at the playground so they loved that as well!
The next day we went to the playground under the Mt. Pleasant bridge for a bit and then we went and rode the Water Taxi over to downtown Charleston. The kids LOVED the boat ride!
We ate lunch in Charleston and then we had about 45 minutes before the taxi came back to pick us up so we let the kids play in the fountain. They had the BEST time.
On our ride back across the harbor one of the taxi stops was at the Yorktown. The kids loved getting to see the Yorktown and some other boats and a submarine close up.
While we were there I also got to shop at the outlets and use some gift cards I'd been saving up and I went and had dinner with my friend Susan one evening. We ate at Xaio Bao Biscuit. I wasn't sure there would be much that I would like but we got a few different plates and it was all SO good! I highly recommend trying it out!
All the kids have really enjoyed the pool this summer and their swimming has improved so much! Emmie, Ellie, and Ruthie did swim team. Ellie and Ruthie were on mini team and this was Ruthie's first year. I told her that if she worked hard at her swim lessons in May she could be on swim team and she did such a great job during her swim lessons and was so excited that she got to be on swim team like the big girls! Ellie was thrilled that at the last meet of the season she got to swim up on the 7/8 medley relay! The kids loved all their coaches and once they got past the first 2 weeks (which were soooo cold) they looked forward to swim team every single day!
Ellie getting ready to swim!
Ruthie ready to swim. She was too small for a team suit so she's Team Minnie.
As one of the very youngest on the team, Ruthie had the coaches wrapped around her little finger!
**Warning: Coach Stacy tends to come out during swim meets. My kids will never wonder if someone's cheering for them lol!**
Normally at the pool Ruthie wears a float but a few weeks ago she took it off and hasn't put it back on! Since then she has learned to go get toys off the bottom of the 3ft, take a breath while she's swimming (she can go about halfway across the shallow end without having to stop on the wall), and she is using her arms so much more when she swims. I just can't get over the fact that she's only 3 1/2 and swimming like a champ!
This summer Ellie has gained so much confidence. At the beginning of the summer she preferred to swim with a noodle if she was somewhere she couldn't touch but she's been working hard on treading water (so she can take the Y swim test) and now she is so much more comfortable in deep water. She also learned to breathe to the side and can now swim a lap of the pool without stopping.
Emmie had another great summer. Her freestyle improved so much and she's been working hard on her other strokes. She came in last in almost every race she swam this summer but she gave 110% at almost every single practice. I was so proud of her for always doing what she was asked and never cutting corners even when other kids were. She may not be fast but she's dependable!
Emmie's freestyle at the beginning of the summer and at the end of the summer.
JP has also enjoyed the pool. He gets his puddle jumper on, kicks his feet up, and floats around like he has his own personal lazy river! He also tagged along to every swim meet (2 a week) and every practice without complaint. Fortunately for JP we a lot of swim meets that weren't very hot and humid so it wasn't nearly as miserable as most summers. He was always excited to cheer on his sisters and would yell "GOOOOO!" every time they were racing! (I think he might get that from me!)
I wear a size 24mo shirt and 12-18mo shorts. I wear a size 5/6 shoe and a size 5 diaper.
I sleep from 8pm-7:40am (I'm pretty punctual with my wake up time!). I take about a 2-3 hour nap after lunch.
This month I'm loving cheerios with milk (and I do pretty well getting it all into my mouth), sweet potatoes, palmetto cheese and crackers, doughnuts, and ranch dressing with a side of carrots. Mommy is excited she finally found a vegetable I will eat.
I love to wear a hat.
I have a job. My job is to get the paper every day and bring it inside. I LOVE my job. When I see the paper I say "da-da" and run go get it! Someone has to look out for my daddy!
In the last week or so I've really started talking a lot more. One of my new words is "mess". So appropriate!
I have started playing more with my sisters as a group. Perhaps I won't be scared of them forever!
Anytime I get a bump I want some "I-th" for my head. (Ice) I prefer to use our boo bunny. It makes things all better!
I have FINALLY started being happy in the nursery at church. The last 3 weeks I've been so happy! Mrs. Beth and the nursery workers are SO glad!
Since I've started talking I've been much happier.
This month I went to GiGi and PaPa's. I had so much fun and I went on my first boat ride!
I have a really funny personality and I love to do silly things.
My favorite books this month are Huggy Kissy, Brown Bear, and my truck book. I do still love Clifford too!
This month I went to Hilton Head and we stayed in a hotel. I did SO well sleeping in the hotel room with everyone else.
Sometimes I just like to yell really loud. It's fun!
I love anything that has to do with water. I love the pool, ocean, splash pad, bathtub. It's all wonderful and I get so excited when it's time to play!
Whenever I see anyone cry I want to hug them.
I love to be one of the guys. I get really excited when Mommy picks out a polo shirt for me to wear because that's what Daddy always wears. I love to help Daddy, PaPa, and Grandaddy too!
