The day has come!

Oliver took Emma and Simon to school today on the Big Dummy. Last week he got a pair of handlebars for them, and last night wrapped them in tape for ease of holding on, and decided it was time to try it out. Pretty chilly this morning, about 55 degrees, but they were all loving it!

Securing their backpacks in the side bags:

Loaded up and ready to roll:

And they're off!

Time for an update!

Max at the Lincoln Children's Zoo, a few weeks ago.





Wow, three weeks since the last entry? I'm slacking! It's been a busy month - wrapping up summer fun and getting ready for school. This year, Emma is in 2nd grade (and has the teacher that I had my practicum (basically pre-student teaching) with when I was at UNL, so that's fun), Simon is in 1st grade (LOVES his teacher - she's very, very nice) and Max is in his first year of preschool. He loves going to school like Emma and Simon, and is bummed on Tuesdays and Thursdays when he doesn't get to go. It's so strange to run errands with just Gus and Sam. I sure get a lot more done! :)


First day of school:




The weekend before school started, Oly and I took Emma, Simon, and Max to Fun Plex (amusement park in Omaha) for the afternoon. We started a bit of a tradition last year, with taking the school-aged kids to a water park for the day, before school starts every year. They love it, and it's great for Oly and I to have some time with the older kids.




Oliver got a fun new bike. It's got a platform on the back for extra riders - kind of like a tandem, but the extra rider just sits there. He took the older kids for a spin last night and I even got a turn. There are add-ons available, like handlebars for the extra rider, and one person even constructed enclosed seats for his two kids and took them everywhere. I think Oly is hoping to have a similar set-up and be responsible for getting Emma and Simon to school sometimes, via bicycle. All three of them are overly excited about that prospect. It's pretty cool, I must admit. Very 'green' of us, eh? The school they go to is a little over 3 miles away, so not too bad of a trek. Drop-off at the school is crazy in the mornings though, so I won't be sad to miss out on that. :)


Just a quick spin down the street with Max:

The safe way to ride (you can tell he went quite a bit faster with Simon):

And here are a few cute photos, no real story to accompany them.

Gus, having a little too much fun with his lunch:

Some new shots of Sam, he's 4 months old now!

Gus is so photogenic. Here he is being cute on our front porch:

Simon, practicing some sweet moves:

Sunday was a fun day!

I was going to take a photo or two of Sam and Grissom, but a few other boys wanted to be in the photo... :) Max is holding a pillow, because, as usual, he was naked.

Max *loves* to climb the tree in our front yard.

We went to a park and the Lincoln Children's Museum before taking Emma to a birthday party downtown.

Oly and Simon playing Frisbee (even though Oly looks like he's just got some sweet dance moves), Gus and Max in the middle.

Emma is a pro at tying knots in blades of grass:

She is also a pro at posing like a beauty queen. :)

Oly's attempt at getting me in the photo sometimes:

Getting the kids settled.

At the LCM:

Emma's graceful dismount from the 'underground tunnels':

Emma, Max, and Oliver:

Emma was walking across the bridge and Gus decided a faster route would be to go under her:

Max in the space shuttle:

Simon watching Max on the space shuttle survelliance:

Thomas the Train, always a favorite:

Simon and Max in the space shuttle:

Oly and Simon having giggles over their Han Solo impersonations:

A Few From July

Simon and the building he constructed in Architecture Camp.


Emma and Kate on their date! We went to see Kit Kittridge, the American Girl movie.

Movies are just better with snacks! Emma and her American Girl, Elizabeth.

Grissom, enjoying (as much as one can while on a leash) the park.

Gus the climber.

Max, about to embark on a grand adventure!

Gus, always ready for a cute photo op.

Simon, one of the best big brothers of all time, and Gus.

Max, too busy to give Mom a real smile.

Emma and Simon, enjoying summer break. It's better than any amusement park... and free!

Cuteness

Max and Grissom are good buddies, but the past few days have found Max really interested in Grissom and he's been spending a lot of time harassing him. I'm pretty sure that has something to do with Max playing with my aunt's dog (which is a cockapoo, much smaller than ours) this past weekend. Anyway, here are a few cute photos I had to share.