Birthdays and Back to School

Well, August, you came and went much too quickly!  August is always hectic but this year it feels like it chewed me up and spit me out.  Sorry, I know that was gross.  Both of our boys have August birthdays.  And we have back to school...for both them and me.  And there is pre-year inservice.  So, between purchasing school supplies, planning a birthday party x 2, preparing my classroom, packing backpacks, and making healthy lunches, I feel like my life passed me by. 


So, let's just tackle this in a chronological fashion....


Caleb's birthday is August 5th.  He turned two.  TWO!  When did this happen???  How did he get so big???  I literally feel like I blinked because I am still SHOCKED...take my breath away, shocked...every time I go into his room to watch him sleep (yes, I still do that) and he is taking up the whole bed.  I know he will need "real" furniture soon.  Not baby furniture.  And I know that this time is sneaking away from me and that he will never wear this size of clothes again or say "where'd it go?" this one certain way for much longer.  So, I still try to hold him like a newborn when he's REALLY sleepy and I sneak into his room in the middle of the night to watch him sleep.  But my heart overflows with joy when I sing him the "I Love You So Much" song and he calms down the same way he did when he was just a few hours old and then snuggles me tight.  Before I had kids, I didn't think I was anybody special.  But when I see how much my sweet boys love me, I know I have to be fairly amazing.  Thank you God, for the amazing gift of my children and their unfailing love.


Caleb LOVES Elmo.  Loves him.  So, I planned an Elmo birthday party.  Here are some pictures of the festivities...

I set out construction paper for the place mats and then used crayons and markers to decorate the table.  

On Etsy I found these DARLING food labels!

I made my "famous" macaroni and cheese.  :)

I tried to make the icy pops look like a package of crayons...did it work???

I had this PRECIOUS t-shirt (of course I ordered it from Etsy!) made for the birthday boy.  I think he likes it...

Love that face!

I made and decorated the cake but purchased the fondant pieces.

Me and my baby now....

and this is what we looked like 2 years ago!


In between the birthdays, we were busy swimming.  


Here is what I like: my pool!  Especially when it's a million degrees outside.  Okay, so it wasn't a million degrees outside.  But, I think it was pretty dang hot.  So, we swam.  We ate FAST  picnics outside.  And we got back in the pool.

And Carter's birthday is August 23rd.  He turned five.  What the heck!  You'd better believe I go in and watch him sleep.  I watch him sleep and I whisper sweet things in his ears.  He has such a sweet and tender heart.  He blesses our life so much.  I am thankful for him everyday.  He is SMART.  I have conversations with him that make me stop and remind myself that he just turned five.  And he is silly.  Because he just turned five.  He recently discovered Star Wars.  I think that Christmas might have a theme.  Last year, the theme was dinosaurs.  I'm afraid dinosaurs are out right now.  Light sabers are in.  We went to a local aquarium and LegoLand for his birthday.  

 I baked and decorated his cake too...

 Cute, right?  :)

 And my baby went to school...

I can't believe how FAST the past five years have gone by.  It's unbelievable...


So, there it is.  Another August under our belt.  Fall is just around the corner.  That means yummy crock pot recipes and cider and Halloween costumes.  I'll try to do a better job of posting recipes.  I really enjoy doing it.  And it makes me keep my kitchen tidy!  :)  I spotted a recipe for pumpkin mousse the other day.  I think that has some serious potential.  


Hope you come back for more!

Love,
Emmy  :)