Her First day of School!

 Someone tell me I am dreaming! I feel as though I just gave birth to my sweet baby girl yet she just had her very first day of school. I want time to FREEZE! 
Nora started Preschool on Thursday. She is going to St. James and her teacher is Mrs. Nicholson.
Nora was really excited all week prior to the first day. The first day was more of an introduction. Parents were able to stay and observe. My mom was able to watch the kids on Nora's first day, so TJ and I were able to take Nora and stay with her the whole hour. She seemed to enjoy herself.
TJ told her to bring an apple for the teacher which she proudly handed Mrs. Nicholson as soon as she confirmed it was in fact, Mrs. Nicholson that was opening the door to meet her and the other little ones. -
Nora- "What's your name"
Mrs. N- "Mrs. Nicholson, you must be Nora"
Nora- "Oh, Hi Mrs. Nicholson, I'm Nora-here you go" (gives apple to her and takes off into the classroom)
Nora sat really nicely in the circle/played with all the various toys/and met some really sweet kids. Of course she hugged like three kids and kissed a little girl right on the mouth before leaving.
I think she will do well. I just hope she follows directions. :)

 So proud to be going to school!

 Picture outside of school

 Circle time right before they began a prayer. The girl Nora is sitting next to is the the one she kissed. I hope they become friends or that is just going to be weird.

Later that evening, Nora was playing dress up while we were downstairs eating and talking to my sister who stopped over. She proudly came downstairs with my make-up on. I have to teach her that concealer is not the same as lip gloss. :) TJ almost puked. LOL 

10 MONTHS OLD!!!

 My little guy is already 10 MONTHS OLD! WHAT???? This is crazy, just crazy! I simply cannot fathom the notion that he will be 1 in less then 2 months at this point. He is changing and learning new skills every day. He is a very happy guy and BUSY! I cannot nurse him for a complete feeding unless we are in his room away from any and all distractions and even that is distracting to him at times. He is almost walking on his own. He still holds on to stationary objects or pushes various toys around the house, but I swear he is close to taking steps on his own.
He will only eat finger foods at this point. He totally snubs his nose at baby food or pureed foods. He LOVES meat and potatoes. I find this quite funny for some reason.
I find it very amusing to see what he is going to "get into next" I typically just let him discover then correct him if it's something that isn't safe/good for him. For example, I was brushing my teeth the other day with him in the bathroom and he lifted the seat and stuck his hand in the toilet bowl before I could stop him. GROSS!  However, he really loves flushing the toilet and I don't mind that.
He is starting to play more with Nora. They share snacks (which is adorable), play peek-a-boo (both crack up), and now he will even crawl on top of her as though wrestling. He will punish her in no time at all. :) 

 He had quite enough of the photo shoot in this picture and was sure to let me know. Definitely not as tolerant with photos as his sister was. :)

 He loves being outside and doesn't mind his stroller. We took a stroll last weekend and saw a few elk. Yes, Elk-in the suburbs of Chicago.

classy-that's all I have to say about this.

I love you my sweet, sweet boy. You are smart, hysterical, and a snuggle bug. I could without the biting you so kindly do to me when you are hungry, but I love you to the moon and back Tedders.

This WILL NOT BE EASY...

 Well, this is it. Almost 10 months to the day, today is the last week day before I go back to work. (holding back tears). First and foremost, I am truly grateful I was able to stay home for 10 months. None the less, leaving my children with someone else for the day is really painful for me. I know they are in good hands, but I simply LOVE being with them and I am going to miss them more then I could describe. Today was a beautiful day and we had fun playing inside and out, shopping for some fall clothes for Teddy boy, getting lunch at Panera, and taking naps together.

 Teddy fell asleep for his afternoon nap and I read to Nora as we usually do prior to her nap. Instead of leaving while she napped, I took a nap with her. I honestly don't nap often because I use the time to get things done, but napping with her today meant much more than all the other "stuff".

When I was rocking Teddy for his nap, he continued to stop nursing, look right up at me and smile. I love when he does this. I feel likes it's a "oh, thanks mom". But in addition to his smiles, he would look at the door and shout "DAAA". I think he was shouting for Nora. She came running in and he reached his arms out to hug her! It was so stinkin' cute I started to tear up while they were hugging. As I was hugging both of them, I said..."Oh my gosh, you two are so sweet, I love you so much, I am going to miss you so much when I go back to work I could cry" Nora then said, "Oh, it's okay mom, it'll be okay"
What? Seriously? Get a grip Katie. I cannot have my 3 year old telling me things are going to be okay. However, during this conversation all I could think of was a foreshadowing of the future. Nora will be wanting to soar, and I will be holding her tight not wanting to let go, while she tells me "it will be okay".  TJ won't let that happen, but I know that's what I will want to do. :)

This is a sweatshirt I bought for Teddy today and Nora decided to try it on. It fits her. Hmmm?

First Dentist Apt.

 Nora had her very first Dentist Appointment yesterday! She did AWESOME! I thought she would be a bit intimidated by the unfamiliar surroundings, big chair, strange person, and tools scrapping her teeth. But, she did great!

 Ready for the teeth cleaning.

No need to floss-the spaces between her teeth give plenty of room. :)

Off to Buffalo!

 This past weekend we went to Buffalo! The drive used to take us 9 hours and now takes 10 +. Shockingly, we drove straight through. The kids did really well, but it is a long trip. I think flying is in our future from now on. Grandma got the kids these adorable outfits. They look so stinkin' cute.

 We took Nora and Teddy to visit Great Gram. She was very happy to see them. She especially enjoyed playing with Nora's hair.

 Nora was so sweet. She remembers Gram and has only met her a handful of times. However, she sat and talked with her, answered her questions, gave her hugs and kisses, and sang her a few songs.

 This is the grand finale to the ABC's I believe.

 And, this is Teddy laughing and Nora's grand finale.

 Four Generations.

Relaxing on a wonderful hammock. If only I could relax on one of these every day. :)

Fun with friends/Fun with siblings

 We have had such a nice summer and spent a great deal of time in this hot hot weather with friends. Every year we are lucky enough to join our friends at their lake house with other families and play, eat, and swim. The girls are ready for the lake!

 This was Teddy's first trip to the Fish Lake and he joined his buddy Ben. Ben is 5 days older then Teddy.

 TJ and I breed giant babies. But, they are happy babies. :)I think Teddy and Ben are going to have a lot of fun in the summers ahead!

 Teddy tried out the little slide in our backyard-of course, he loved it and wasn't afraid to take risks. Nora was right there to help him out. However, judging from the picture, I think he will determine when and where he needs help.

 Recently, we enjoyed a bbq at our friend's house with a few others families from Wisconsin and Pittsburgh. Here are all the kiddos just having fun.

 Just a picture I have to post because he is so darn cute!

 Ahhh...the minivan. Well, it certainly allows plenty of room for long car trips.

Just a rainy day playing inside picture. Turns out, Teddy thinks forts are really fun too. And Nora loves having a partner in crime!