The rest of August in a Nutshell

At the beach with Grandma




Hurricane Bill moved up the Eastern Seaboard, so we picked up breakfast, headed to the beach, and watched the waves come in.





Lavallette, NJ-where my friend Karen's parent's have a home on the water. This is the Jersey Shore, and a way of life for many here.





Our garden went crazy-cucumbers, tomatoes, watermelon, okra, strawberries, and herbs.

Swim lessons at the YMCA

While I was away this summer

B had about 3 weeks to work on the kitchen without little ones demanding his time. Chris came up to help and not only installed the cabinets, but in their spare time, helped the elementary school install the preschool playground. Thanks Chris! We appreciate your help. You even made it onto the PTO slide show.

The Before


The contents of my kitchen

Chris probably wondering what he's gotten into

The first cabinet





Looks great!
Now for the hard part; figuring out where everything should go. And notice, I still have no counter tops.



You'll have to hold tight for now on the end result. We're still not 100% done. You'll be amazed, I promise. Stay tuned.

Busy-that's where I've been

Life hasn't slowed down one bit since I returned from our summer trips. As you know, Lise' started PreK, and she loves it. She goes 5 days a week in the afternoon, and she's already looking forward to all day next year.

There are 8 kids in her class, and only one is a boy. They all live to be the Line Leader. Lise' goes to gym on Fridays, and she came home telling me all about it. "Mommy, my teacher's name is Mr. Wolfe, but don't worry, he's not really a wolf." I happen to know that Mr. Wolfe is marrying the music teacher this coming year, so I can't wait for that reaction.

My least favorite thing about school is the introduction of words and phrases that I know my kids didn't learn from me. The first one was "Missed me, missed me, now you have to kiss me." The second was, "Look at my butt" followed by a giggle. I know it's only the beginning, but it's still the loss of innocence.

She's learning a lot of great things too, so I can't complain. Each and everyday she comes home with some sort of paint on her clothes, so I know she's having fun. The most noticable change is the sounding out of words to determine the letter it begins with.

Overall, it's been a great first school experience. Did I mention I'm the class mom too? My first responsibility is the Halloween party this coming Friday. I'll let you know how I do. I have to be creative because it's NJ law that all food in school must be healty. In other words, no sugar. How can you have a party without cupcakes or cookies? For now, I'm planning on bringing apple chips. If you have any suggestions, send them my way.

Hi Ho, Hi Ho, Off to School We Go

Today was Lise's first day of Preschool at Atlantic Highlands Elementary School, and she had a GREAT time.

Believe it or not, but AH is smaller than the town we lived in Utah. Thanks to the playgroups and town activities, we are fully immersed in our community. It's a rare day when we don't run into at least one person we know just walking through town, and that has made it all the easier to send Lise' to "big school."

Yesterday was Meet the Teacher Day. We were invited into the classroom, and the kids sang songs, read a book and did a small craft. Her classroom consists of stations such as blocks, art, books, dress up/playtime and games & puzzles. Then once a day they will visit other areas of the school that will be a regular part of their curriculum when they advance into the upper grades. Those include gym, media/library, technology (computers), art and music.







For weeks leading up to school, I explained to Lise' that the teachers may call her Anna Swindell, and that she would need to politely correct them. I know all you teacher friends are thinking we asked for this problem, and we're aware of it, but in my defense, there was a line on the registration form that asked if your child went by something other than their legal name. I can't help it if the administration chose to ignore it. That being said, everything referring to Lise' read "Anna Lise" (at least we were 1/2 way there). I did mention it nicely to the aide and the teacher, and I figured it would work itself out over time. When I picked Lise' up today, I asked her what they called her. She said everything with her name still said Anna Lise', but she told the teacher, "My name is Anna Lise' Swindell,but my mommy calls me Lise'." How cute is she. I'm so proud she opened her mouth.




Lise' will go to school 5 days a week from 12:15pm -2:45pm. Who knows what Abri and I will get into.



It's late, and it's a school night. I must go to bed.

Company Picnic

This company picnic this year was held at park grounds in northwest New Jersey where the mountains start. Lucky for us, it was a beautiful day, and the girls had a ball.

Swimming


Popsicles

Climbing Rocks

Riding Horses. This was a first for both of them. Lise' wanted nothing to do with it, but we put her on anyway, and she had warmed up to the idea by the end. Abri loved it. Now, Lise' is asking to ride a big horse.





Bounce House-notice the view




Bumper Boats-although we're not in this picture.


Cotton Candy

& Clams-one of Lise's favorites