little may starts kindergarten

I guess you could say Emmie was ready for kindergarten. How did I feel about this? Sad, like I was going to miss her. She is fun to be around. She's always played so well with Finn too. She often takes his hand to go play with her. Surely... I don't think she misses us. Her new ritual is to ask, "When is lunch? Is it lunch time yet?" all morning long. Once we eat lunch that means it is time to go to school...

Here she is on her very first day of kindergarten.

She was so excited to go!

new outfit {homemade}

new backpack {which we all agree is so Emmie}

new shoes {she really wanted leopard ones}

new teacher {Miss Larkin}

Her teacher is great. So far the most exciting daily things are snack and recess! Also top of the list were school pictures! She couldn't wait! And then she couldn't wait to get them back! Parent teacher conferences (which she could not say right since she didn't remember what they were called) were on that list too.

Miss(Emmie always says Mrs.)Larkin told us that Emmie is silly. But appropriately at the right times. Hmm. She is silly, I'm going to try to notice the appropriately.

a picnic in the orchard

I've always wanted an orchard. Nothing huge. Just something managable with some different fruit trees to harvest. A place to play. Maybe a beautiful place to take pictures... then I realized I have just that. Yes, two trees {an apple and a pear}. But this place is all of that. {Minimally, yet it is}. I actually read it in a book recently about a lady calling her couple or fruit trees the orchard. That is what I'm calling mine now.

Hayley and Anna were off to school, Emmie had to wait a couple of days for her class to start. So we dined on a blanket with homemade lunchables {since that is what the other girls took in thier lunch} in our orchard!

little cracker face.. love it

schools in

Annalese on first day of the second grade.

I hope that she will always stay a little girl. The school years count by so quickly.

Happenings on the first day:

-stung by a wasp on the playground AAH!

-everyone asked her how her mom made her hair into a flower to match the flower on her dress?

(I never intentionally thought of it as a flower, but this is what I do...take a section of hair, twist until it twists around itself and bobby pin)

Hayley ready for the fourth grade! She is officially one the "big kids." Remember when you were little how scary the big kids were {a.k.a. 4th and 5th graders.} I hope she doesn't scare anyone.

She was pretty excited about the new back pack and the sparkly pink belt!

A boy in her class told her she looked different.

hayley: Cause of my bangs?

boy: No, because of that hair on your forehead.

hayley: Yeah, those are called bangs.

She looks really cute with bangs. Mr. Floyd is her teacher and her friends Abby and Gracie are in her class. Annalese's teacher is Mrs. Wallace. Her friends Natalie and Ava are in her class.

summer days

cruising around

Ollie Bean in the bumbo

backyard plus swimsuits

I think my girls wore swimsuits all summer.

learning how to sit up

7 months old

happy campers
We stayed overnight in our perfect little huckleberry spot.

at the farm

Ben really wants a John Deere tractor. My secret mission in life is to buy him his very own! I calculated and based on graduating from college and saving I should be able to get him one when I am about 60!

Finn likes throwing rocks for Sasha to fetch. It makes him giggle and it keeps the dog from getting too close to him!

The girls did 4-H.
So they practiced leading the calves around with a halter on. Hayley's got away from her and she started chasing it. Ben was next, swearing and saying, "its gonna get in the pit!" ... this calf is called Mischief.

little bean playing in the grass