What a Big, Big, Day!!!

Jackson pulled his own tooth out - the first one he's lost!! He was so very excited on Tuesday when he discovered it was loose. He worked on it Wednesday when he got home from school, and managed to twist it out just before we went trick-or-treating. Look at that grin!

Pumpkin Patch

I accompanied Jackson and his kindergarten class to a Pumpkin Patch in Turon, KS. It was nicely done - there were lots of activities for the kids. the above picture is Sammie, Cody, Jackson, Caleb, and Gavin. Gavin is a handful!! Cody is the boy Jackson plays with the most.

Mrs. Whistler is the aide in his class. The girl on the far right is Taylor, our neighbor. She's a sweet girl.

Most of the class. I think there were two missing from this picture.

There was a race track for tricycles, a big slide, a petting zoo, a maze made out of feed (not nearly as impressive as the corn maze we went to at Buhler), and a scarecrow stuffing station. Jackson was disappointed we didn't get to try the pumpkin cannon - mounted on a fire engine. It was guaranteed to shoot the pumpkins at least 1/4 of a mile (probably not the best idea with 118 kindergartners running around!) These farmers sure had some creative ways to make money from their farm! We did take a hayride out to the pumpkin patch also.

Jackson loves his kindergarten teacher and really enjoys his class. I volunteer every Tuesday morning and try to go along on field trips. I think his teacher is a bit overwhelmed at this point - there are 24 kids in the class - one in a wheelchair, one autistic boy, and one girl who still wears diapers, plus lots of other BUSY little people. It's been fun for me to spend time at the kids' schools and get to know the teachers and other parents.

Aubrey just told me she had a terrific day. What an answer to prayer! I think it's the first "terrific" day since the move. I know there are LOTS of bumps left in the road, but maybe we're finally approaching something like a normal life again. Moving stinks, in case you didn't realize that. Luke asked me the other day how many days you have to live in a house before it feels like home. Of course there are lot of positive things that have happened over the past two months. Maybe the best thing I've noticed is how much better my kids are at playing with each other. It has definitely made us draw closer as a family. We all depended on friends a lot in Syracuse, and suddenly we realize our best friends are family! Anyway, a terrific day for my preteen girl is something to celebrate.

and the dining room.......

And the dining room is finished as well. The pictures are a little hard to tell color on, but it looks great! The first picture is before (white walls) and the others are after pictures. Hopefully you could tell anyway....

Aubrey's room

Finally, I finished the painting in Aubrey's room. I think I did my own step aerobics class at home this morning - each letter required getting off the stool and getting back up. It was fun though, and she'll be excited when she gets home from school. Here's a few pictures:

First Day of School!

After kindergarten is over. Their theme is "Leaping" into kindergarten - thus the frog hat. He rides the skateboard bus as you can tell by his nametag. He had a super day. He was so excited when he got off the bus - he just ran as fast as he could to hug me and tell me all about it!

Jackson in his classroom. Note the slumped shoulders - I think he was a little nervous at this point!

First day of KINDERGARTEN!!!

Aubrey getting a comforting hug from Dad. She is pretty apprehensive.

Luke's "cool" pose

4008 Old Salem

Kitchen

Family room

Aubrey's room - the Coke wallpaper will be the first to go!

Backyard

Front view