First Day of School

Oh my goodness I can't believe it has been over a month since the kids have started school. Even crazier is that Gray started 4th grade...yes, that's right 4th grade. Abby started 2nd grade this year. It was hard to get pictures of the kids because it was like a monsoon outside.

It's August...Where did June & July go?

To say we have been busy this summer is a HUGE understatement. I like being busy, but I also like sleeping in & being able to wear my "jammies" all day.
The summer isn't official until Abby's friend has her schools out party. Let's here it for 30 crazy kids with water balloons!!

Swimming Lessons for the girls & Scout camp for Gray



Gray was thrilled to use power tools to make his boat for the Recycle Regatta.


Derek went to the US Open in New York. Sorry there are no pictures because no cameras are allowed. Just know that it was the coolest thing he has ever done. Aside from marrying me & the birth of our 3 children.
Nothing screams summer like "Camping Out" on the floor.

Grandma & Grandpa came & we stopped at Lambeau Field on our way up to Michigan.

Gray spent his birthday in Michigan & was lucky enough to get presents from people he didn't even know.
The girls were even lucky enough to get presents on Grayson's birthday. Lets hear it for Aunt Mary
While in Michigan we were able to stay with Derek's Aunt at her new Lake House. It was so great!!We also got to milk Michigan's biggest cow!!
I'm exhausted just remembering June, I will have to blog about July...later...much later.

Martha Stewart eat your heart out!!

Today is Abby's birthday & she wanted to take cupcakes to school for her birthday treat. Her school doesn't have the NO homemade goodies rule, so I decided to make cupcakes. Butterfly cupcakes to be exact.
I saw them in a cupcake cookbook & thought I could totally make those. Well it turns out I can make those, but I'm not real sure I will be making them again anytime soon. The butterflies took FOREVER & once they were done & I had to place them on the cupcake. Talk about scarey, I had spent hours on these butterflies & now I had to pick them up & put them on the cupcake without breaking them. And don't even get me started on the antenna! Well with Derek's help (I love my husband) we were able to finish the cupcakes. FYI-Real men do make cupcakes!! Now the only problem was transporting them to the school & then getting them distributed to the class without breaking them. I drove to school like I had a new born baby in the car & was happy when I arrived & the butterflies were all still in tact. Lindsey helped me with the doors to the school & we made it to the office, were we have to wait for Abby to come pick them up & take them to class. Her school has a pretty strict policy about parents walking the halls of the elementary. So, I can only pray that my butterflies made it safely to her classroom & that there were no accidents on the way there. As for now I have my fingers crossed & am waiting to hear if the cupcakes arrived safely.

Exciting Day

Friday was an exciting day, Abby was able to get her cast off. Yeah!!! No more plastic bags in the shower, no more plastic bags around her arm at the beach & hopeful plenty of time in the sand box & the swimming pool this summer. I think I was more excited to get her cast off than Abby was. Having cast really didn't slow her down to much. She is so ticklish, she was laughing the whole time the doctor was sawing her cast off.


If you have a keen eye, you will notice her cast changed color. The piece that goes between your thumb & pointy finger broke off a few weeks ago, so we had to go back to the doctor. Instead of putting a new cast on, they just wrapped a few new blue layers (Abby chose blue)around the existing cast & in between her fingers. Poor thing her cast was so thick, it looked like a big club. She could have used it as a weapon.

Our New Friend

We have a new friend here in Gurnee, his name is Simon. He loves cantaloupe, strawberries, Doritos & nuts.

Bye Bye Big Round Mounds

Derek & I had been talking about updating our front yard. We were tired of the big, round bushes in front of our porch & we thought we needed to add a little color. Well when Derek makes a decision it does not take long for that plan to go into action. Last Wednesday he worked from home & watched Lindsey while I had a fun filled day with my friends. When I left that morning our front yard looked like this...When I got home that afternoon our front yard looked like this... Bye Bye big round mounds...Hello cute little bushes with color.

What the kiddo's have been up to

Since a lot of you don't get to see my kiddo's on a regular basis, I thought I would show you what they have been up to these days. Grayson is very much into reading, pokemon anything, he is over Baukugen & now loves these little men you can trade called Crazy Bones, and his new passion is drawing. Whenever we go to the bookmobile or he goes to the library at school, he is always checking out how to draw books. Here are a few examples.
He was really proud of this picture. This was a page in a book he was reading that he wanted to try & draw. I love that he put his name & age, makes it easier for me when I put it in his keep folder. As you can see he also wants to make it clear that he did not trace this!!
Abby is doing really well with having her cast on. She misses gym & being able to run around at recess. She is such an outside girl, she loves to climb trees, ride her bike, & play with her friends. Since she can't do any of those fun outside things with her cast she has found inside things to do. She loves to play & collect Littlest Pet Shops, listen to her ipod & sing Karaoke!
Lindsey is my shadow during the day & Abby's shadow after school. Lindsey loves to play with Abby & her friends, & they are very good & including her in most things. Lindsey loves a TV show called Hi-5 & watches that every morning (I cannot stand to be in the same room as that show), she also loves to play Littlest Pet shops, sing karoake, play go fish, snorkel in the bathtub & play Barbies. This girl loves her Barbies!! Her new thing is to play American Idol. Please meet...Randy, Kara, Paula & Simon.