Settling

So I am settling into the school routine now, and the weather is getting cooler which means..... FALL! I am getting excited for fall and all the festive activities, so in honor of fall I changed the background to fall themed! YAY!

Changing it

So I am NOT going to leave my background like this, but in the process of changing it I ran into difficulties and now I have to wait for the hubby to get some time to fix it! Don't worry, the blinding white will not be around much longer!

First Day of School

This week Turner had his first day of school! It was emotional for me, being that I have been with him ever day since he was born and now he is big enough to go to school! Needless to say he LOVES LOVES LOVES it! By the second day he was running through the door with out looking back. He has so much fun and adores his teachers. He will be going 3 days a week for 2.5 hours at a time. There is only 11 kids in his class and he is already talking about his new friends! Ryan and I are so excited about this new step! He is such an amazing boy!

Leaving the house!

Getting in the car!

Outside school with Daddy!

Posing behind the sign after school!!

Team Spirit!

Ryan and I were both born and raised in Maryland, which means we were raised as huge Orioles, Ravens, and Maryland Basketball fans! Then Ryan went to Penn State main all four years so you have to add Nittany Lion fans to that list too! Needless to say we are raising our kids the right way as hugs sports fans! Last year our christmas card was us in PSU jerseys, then earlier this summer I put up a link to our O's pictures at Turner's first game, and now is the time for the most exciting... RAVENS!!! Ryan and I went to opening game thanks to my mom and Priscilla! We had an amazing time and we were all four decked out in Ravens gear! Here are some cute photos of Reese in her Raves outfit! (my mother does not approve... she said there is too many athletic genes in her blood to be a cheerleader... we think she is adorable and we may be dragging grandma to cheerleading competitions in the future ;) )

Outer Banks, NC

Our little family had its first official family vacation this year. We planned a trip to Duck, NC which is in the Outer Banks with some friends of ours. This is the first trip that we have taken without one of our families. We went with our next door neighbors, Marge, Dave and their 19 month old son Ryan and also my good college friends Rachel and Matt. We rented a huge house called Moby Duck about a quarter mile from the beach. The house was amazing. It had its own private pool, hot tub, pool table, amazing kitchen and a ton of bed rooms with master bathrooms each with a whirlpool tub! We want to live there forever!

It was so nice to be able to have some fun with our little family. The first day on the beach both kids were a little hesitant. Reese much more so than Turner though. By the end of the first day on the beach though both kids were running in the little waves and playing in the sand. Thank you to Grammy and Pop for the new buckets and stuff! It was really neat to be able to experience the beach from Turner and Reese's perspective. I know I have mentioned that I love having kids because it gives me the opportunity to see everything in a new light through their eyes! It is so neat to see their eyes get big at the magnitude of the ocean and beach. It was fun to look at sand as a blank palate there to be made into the most amazing of structures. It is truly special to be able to take a step back and get a new look at the world that I take so for granted!

The pool is always a hit with my kiddos. They loved swimming, and will both hop right in with their tubes on. Turner got so brave he was jumping off the side of the pool with his tube on. The both loved it. They loved that Uncle Matt and Aunt Rachel would play for hours with them in the water. We all had a great time every afternoon playing in the pool and then afterward chilling in the hot tub! I think my whole little family wants a hot tub at home now! Maybe we can convince Marge and Dave to pitch in and we can put one in between the houses ;)

The one down side to the trip was that we had to come home a day early because Hanna hit the day we were supposed to leave. Other than that though there was not a cloud in the sky the whole time we were there and the temp was 86 degrees F and beautiful! We were so lucky with the weather!

Other fun things that we did at the beach was getting to see the Wildlife museum, Corolla Lighthouse, play on the playground, take walks, a little shopping, having lunch out with our friends, big "family" dinners with everyone around the big table, flying kites, and fun times with the adults after the kids went to sleep! Here are some fun pictures from our trip:

Not so sure about the sand

My Favorites on the Beach

Enough with the camera Mom!

More water


And MORE water!


Baby Feet in the sand!


Contemplating life!


Sadie swimming


Jump!


SPLASH!


Up for air


Mommy kisses


Hello camera!


Water belongs in the pool Reese!


Hot Tub time!


More Mommy Kisses!


Love my baby girl!


Daddy snuggles!


Kiddos


Sibling LOVE!


Daddy kisses!


Family 2008


Mommy time


Mommy and Reese


Mommy and Turner


Family Footprints


Just hours before Hanna hit!
Goodbye Duck!

Long time...

I can't believe that it has been so long since I had a quality post. What have we been up to... hmmmm..... good question. After Turner's birthday we threw him a party that ended up being larger than I had anticipated. He has sooo much fun. A lot of his friends came and he was completely spoiled. The theme was Buzz Lightyear (yes he is obsessed!!). He also loves Diego and reccieved a lot of Diego things from his friends. He had so much fun that he is already talking about his next party (that he thinks he is planning... we have no plans ;) ), it is going to be a Woody party... nice!

We have had kind of a bummer of a summer. At first our breaks all needed to be replaced in the Element, then a neighborhood kid that did not idenify himself crashed into the van and his handlebar went through the taillight (200 dollars to fix... we are waiting for that one), our dryer broke (luckily our neighbor replaced the fuse and it worked again... with 2 kids not having a dryer would be tough) and then last week our air conditioning unit started sparking like fire workes. We were able to do repairs on all of them, but we know next year we are going to have to replace the air conditioner along with the front porch and sewer line. The front of our house and the neighbors house all share one porch with a railing that goes in between. THeir side is beginning to split, and so we have to replace it. While doing that we are going to be proactive in replacing the original sewer line. Oh the joys of being home owners.

I have begun to feel really down recently. I need to get back to the gym and I am going to do that tomorrow and I know that will help. I have always felt all this pressure to do something more with my life. Ever since I was little I have felt like I am not doing enough and that I am always looking to the next things. I do not know why this is. I wish I did. I guess it is one of those big character flaws that I have. I know so many people who are happy with being a stay at home mother or a working mom. I have no opinion on one being better than the other. I am supportive of both sides. I feel like I would want to go to work and not be at home most of the time, but I know I could never leave my kids with anyone (our parents all work). I know I do work by being a mom and I do have the twins 3 days a week and that is work too. I just feel stuck sometimes and I know that sounds awful, and believe me I wish it would change... I am sure this is just a stage, and I will move past it. I just wish that being with my children made me feel complete being that I only have limited amount of time with them. I don't know.

In big upcomoing news, we are going to the Outer Banks with friends in 2 weeks! I am excited. It is our first family vacation together away from MD and extended family! It should be a lot of fun. I am looking forward to playing on the beach with the kids and having some time with my family and good friends!

Even bigger than vacation is the week after we get back Turner starts Preschool! I am so excited for him. He talks about it all the time. He got a letter from his teacher and a new lunch box (for an occasional lunch bunch). I also made him his new school bag! We have been all looking forward to it and I know that he is going to love it! He is going three days a week for half the day! I will definitely keep you all posted on his first day and how it is going!

Reese is 20 months and doing really well. She is talking in sentences (finally!!) and she has a very large personality. She is definitely my daughter!! We are having a really fun time! This fall Turner is going to do Rebounders (grandmda's got it for him for his bday) and I am going to be spending some quality girl time!! I am really looking forward to it!

Ryan and I have been obsessed with the Olympics! Go Phelps! It is amazing what he has accomplished! It is a great thing for the USA and even more so for us Baltimorians!! :)

That is really all that is going on right now! I hope everyone is enjoying their summer!

Being a slacker

I know I am being a complete blogging slacker. Summer is being fun and full of adventures chasing the kiddos! I promise this week I will put up a real blog with pics!