Grammie and Papa John

Grammie and Papa John came to stay while Jeff was in St Louis and  I was on my annual girls trip to the beach.   Margaret and Wilson had a great time and were spoiled with lots of one on one time with the Grandparents.  They were happy to see the grandparents coming and everyone was sad to see them go!

Margaret's 4th Birthday

Margaret had a great birthday.  It seems like we celebrated for two weeks.  Here are the pictures from her "real" birthday."  We opened presents when we got home from church.

Lots of fun presents to open, favorite new ladybug book and a crown from Great Grandma.

She loved her new set of paints, I hope that in the future there will be more paint on the paper and less on the kitchen table.

Wilson's Quilt

Dianne sent Wilson a beautiful quilt that she hand pieced and quilted just for him.  He loved checking it out, it was a great tunnel and fun for playing peek-a-boo.  No doubt it will make a great cape some day!  Thank you Aunt Dianne!

Martina McRide

Sonja, Graham and Bennett were in town today to visit from Chicago.  We had so much fun and wish we could see them more often.  

Our friend Molly invited Margaret and her friend Graham to come meet and ride her horse "Martina McRide" and they had a great time.  Margaret loved every minute and wanted to help Molly do everything.  She was kind enough to let Margaret put on the saddle and all her gear, and she got to brush Martina when they were finished.  Margaret helped sweep and put all the straw into the "muck bucket" which was a but hit for some reason.  She would have ridden all day and has asked non stop about when we can go back.  I guess we need to start a "horse fund" just in case she decides this will be her thing.  Thanks Molly, we all had a great time! 

Margaret got to pet "Skip" while he was taking a nap.

There was a live show in the play room after lunch, Wilson slept through the whole thing.

We got all the children to sit down together (sort of) and tried to get a group photo.  

Margaret's 4th Birthday Camp-out

We had a great time with Margaret and our friends this weekend at her Birthday Campout.  The Holleys were kind (and brave enough) to let Margaret and four friends (plus their parents) have a camp-out by their lake.  They fished, rode the four wheelers, had a hay ride, rode in the jeep, toured the the lake in the boats, and had a campfire.  They had a great time and were worn out.  The kids all slept like logs until Lin got everyone up at 5 because there was wind and rain on the way.  Margaret likes to say there was a hurricane at her party.  

Margaret worked hard helping Nana and Luna get ready for the party.  She carried her clip board everywhere and marked things off her "list" as we went.  She made sure to feed the fish.  Wilson helped with the pumpkin and scarecrow.  

Everyone roasted their own hot dogs for dinner and we made s'mores.  Of course there was cake too! 

Almost everyone caught a fish, but they loved just riding in the boat after they figured out that fishing involved so much work (and waiting.)

Lin said we put 45 miles on the Jeep over the weekend riding around the lake and through the fields.  The campers loved every minute and begged us to hit all the big bumps. 

This looks sweet until you realize that Wilson has been trying to bite Margaret for weeks.  He was thrilled that he finally made contact, she was not.

We had such a wonderful weekend and we can't thank the Big Holleys enough for letting working so hard to make Margaret's 4th birthday so much fun for Margaret and all our friends.

These three have been friends since they were born, all on the same day.  They are growing up so fast!

Happy 1st Birthday Wilson!!!

Wilson has had a week of birthday celebrations and enjoyed it all except this party hat!

We gave Wilson another cupcake to try but he still doesn't care for them.  He was fascinated by the candle, and had lots of help eating his cake! 

We turned his car seat around so he can see where we're going instead of where we've been.

Margaret and Max volunteered to open his gifts (and play with them too!)

First Day of School/ Dance Class

Margaret started ballet lessons.  As you can see she's already loaded with natural talent.

Margaret and Wilson had their first day of school today.  She' s going back to Christ Presbyterian, and she didn't look back once she walked in the door.  I think I could have dropped her off at the curb, she was so ready to go.  Wilson went to Mother's Day Out at Judson, where Margaret went when she was his age.  He flirted with Miss Mary right away and she said he chattered all day long.  

It's Labor Day in the neighborhood...

Our neighborhood had a "close down the pool party" complete with live music and giant ice cream sundaes.  Grammie will be proud of Margaret.  You can see how many kids were crowded around the tables at fist.  Then they were going, going, gone except for Margaret.  She and her buddy Will made it on stage with the band too, so she had a great time and saw the summer out in style.