Let it Go

Ad loves Elsa and so whenever she gets to choose the dress she wears to church she always has to have the one that looks the closest to Elsa's.  This morning she went as far as needing to help put makeup on.

She loves Elsa and the Let it Go Song.

First Day of School and Soccer

Ad had her first day of  school today, that's what the daycare calls it, and she absolutely loved it!  I was expecting some sort of break down when dropping her off.  She walked right into her classroom turned around and said, Okay bye Mom, Love you!  No idea why I was feeling like she should have had any other reaction, probably because it was much harder on me than it was on her.  My co-workers had to continue to remind me it was a great thing that she didn't react in a negative manner.  It's just so sad to see her growing up so fast. 

That night we had a little fun on the trampoline, since it was such a hard day on mommy.

 

Fall and back to school time are always my favorite time of year, mostly because it reminds me of my athletic days when back to school signified the start of 9 months of soccer.  I wanted to ensure this love was instilled in Ad too, so we practiced her soccer in the kitchen this evening.   Love her!

Burkes at the Beach

We ended our week of vacation with the Burke's at Shawnie's beach house.  
Jake and Ad were ready to get out to the beach right after lunch!

The walk to the beach was much more fun with cousins and grandparents.

The kids loved playing in the sand in front of Papa Dougie.

 

Ad had a great time playing in the ocean with her daddy. 

Once the kids were all wet and tired Jake and Oley worked on building a "swimming pool". 

Ad had a great time just getting dirty. 

We had a great time out on the beach with the Burkes!  Can't wait to do it again. 

Sunday morning we saw them off, cleaned up, and headed back home to get ready for the week. 

Ad had a great time but was so happy to be home!

Orientation

Oley and I have debated for quite awhile whether or not we should enroll Ad in a daycare or continue to have our neighbor watch her during the days.  After a lot of thought we have decided to put her in the daycare at the hospital - it has been voted the best in Tacoma for years.  There is always a long wait list and so we had been on the list for a few months and we finally were able to get her in.   Today we got to go and meet her new teachers and see the facility.  Her teacher asked "has she been in daycare before, she acts like she has been doing this forever"  Nope - that's just our super duper social little girl!  Which is why we felt that she needed something more than what she was currently getting.  She loved it!  She was so excited to play with all the kids.  The daycare is extremely structured with early childhood developers as lead teachers in each of the classrooms.  We are excited for what this will bring!   While we were there we stopped at my office - Ad loves to go to mom's work!

Naturally she needed some new clothes right - so we spent our evening shopping!

Splash Parks

Doug and Shelbie took all the kids to the zoo and then we met them at the splash park.  If there is one thing that is great about Tacoma it is that there are splash parks all over the town.  Ad typically loves these parks, but she has been feeling a little under the weather so she wasn't as in love as usual.  Her cousins all loved it!  Especially Sam. 

Everyone was worn out from being in the sun all day so we met up with Shawnie and Leimomi for dinner and called it a great day!

Fish Bowl Bowling

When the Bass Pro Shop opened here last year Oley and I had always talked of going bowling at their bowling alley.  Since his family was here we thought it would be a great thing for us to go and do after work.  Ad wasn't sure about the whole idea of bowling at first but once she got a hang of it we had to remind her it wasn't her turn. 

 Sam and Ad loved to wait for all the balls to come back.

 Ad Loves her Grandma!

Chambers Bay

Sunday after church we made a quick trip to Chambers Bay to walk on the beach.  What Oley and I didn't realize was that the path down to the beach was still blocked off due to the U.S. Open.  A kind gentlemen told us it was fine to go down there just to beware of all the loose screws that were still in the grass from all the tents.  Shelbie took the plunge and jumped over the fence so we all followed.  It was a lot of fun despite it being super windy. 

 There were tons of little crabs in the rocks and Jake asked Roarke to pick one up.  Roarke was hesitant and so we all laughed when Oley went down and picked one out of the rocks for Jake to touch. 

Love spending the day with the family and having a good laugh!

Bike Rides, Horse Races and Birthdays

Oley's family came to visit and we are so excited!  We made sure that we packed full every day that they are here with plans. The first day Oley and I took off and did a quick bike while they slept in.

Once we got home we loaded the families up into the cars so we could enjoy an afternoon at the horse races!

Ad and I left a little early to go get dad's birthday present and some groceries.  She was exhausted.

Shawnie and Leimomi came over to celebrate Oley's birthday.  The woman at Costco asked if Oley was a paleontologist with the dinosaur cake and book Ad picked out for him - haha!