First Day

All that worrying last weekend was for nothing. The school year is officially underway and there were no tears or tantrums on Tuesday morning. Phew!

We woke up early and excited on Tuesday, but kept the morning routine as close to normal as possible. Milk on the couch while watching Max and Ruby, oatmeal for breakfast, and then back upstairs to get dressed. We were all ready and eager and decided to leave the house far too early just to play it safe. Which leads to me breaking I Used to be a Teacher so I Should Know Better, Rule #1: Showing up to school way too early. BUT in all fairness, Mrs. Wolff did suggest we try to come a little earlier before most of the other kids and parents arrived. We thought this might help Bridget in case of a repeat of Friday night's meltdown. She probably meant more like 5 minutes earlier, not 20. Either way it worked. Bridget was thrilled to get to school and we were able to say goodbye to her without so much as a tear shed-me included!

A cup of milk is a morning must have. Always has been, always will be for this one!

I just can't get over this. She is so big!

Peeking in the classroom

Ross and I enjoyed our morning together and even though I was encouraged to call the school at anytime to get a report on how she was doing, I resisted. I went with the no news is good news theory. Before I knew it, I was breaking I Used to be a Teacher so I Should Know Better Rule #2: Picking your kid up way too early. I wanted to go inside to pick her on the very first day, so I had to go earlier than the usual dismissal time so that we didn't interfere with the car line dismissal. And believe me, I know that school car lines are serious business. I did not want to be that lady who was weaving her way in and out of cars with a toddler in one hand and a baby on my hip while the other moms in their cars cursed me behind their tinted windows. Oh no. So, I showed up way too early to pick her up to avoid that scene. She was so happy to see me and the quick report I got from Mrs. Wolff made me so proud! Bridget was happy, helpful and considerate-just to name a few of the compliments!

I asked her a million questions about her day, but got very limited information. It was good though, no doubt about that! She zonked out on the way home and I had to wake her up at 3:00. Day 2 went just as wonderfully and we are so excited to have a little girl in school! I love packing her lunches, picking out her school clothes, asking her how she wants to wear her hair that day, watching her walk down the hallway with her little backpack on her shoulders and her lunch box clutched in her hand, seeing her wave to teachers and new friends...it's all so fun!

Just Ross and I on a trip to Pulbix. He snagged the front seat for the first time ever!

We celebrated this week her first ever trip to Build A Bear! Meet Bearlina...

As fabulous as this week was, there was also a damper on it. Harley has hurt her back (again) and this time it seems to be much more serious. We're trying to be hopeful and optimistic that she will recover from this, but at the same time we have to be realistic that she may not. Many of you have emailed and texted us about her and we're grateful for your concerns and thoughts. Say an extra prayer for her! The good news is that today is the first day that we've noticed some real improvement, so we are on the hopeful train today!

Ready or Not, We're Going to School

Preschool begins for Bridget on Tuesday morning and we kicked it off last Friday with Open House. We've been talking about preschool since January when we first registered her and it's been nothing but happy and exciting talk ever since. She seemed to have it all figured out. Mommy would walk her to the door every morning and then leave, but come back after lunch. She would do things like play on the playground, play dress-up, sing and dance, paint and have so much fun! She got it. She was ready. Or so I thought...

Friday night was a rude awakening for us. We spent the day so giddy about going to school later that night. She practiced her crisscross applesauce legs, she picked out her pretty flamingo dress to wear, she told me she wanted chicken nuggets and Diet Coke for our dinner out with her friend Sammy...(we don't really let her drink Diet Coke-she just thinks she does. I'll save that story for another time!) I was so happy for her and couldn't wait to watch her run into the classroom and do her thing.

When we got there she hesitantly walked down the long hallway to Mrs. Wolff's classroom. She peeked her head in the door, stopped dead in her tracks and turned on the side of Bridget that we like to see the very least. The stubborn, yelling, loud crying, feet stomping, determined to get her own way side. Yes, this side does exist and I'm not going to deny it. But the truth is, this is such a small part of her amazing little personality.

I couldn't believe it. I was sad for her, I was sad for us and I was so disappointed that this was the first impression she was making. There were a lot of adults in the room and I'm guessing that is what scared her at first. I found myself wanted to be that parent and yell out, "She's never been to school before," "She's so sweet, really," "She was so excited about coming tonight, I don't know what's wrong." But the teacher side of me told me to just play cool and save the excuses! We did get her into the classroom where she did eventually begin to play happily with the other boys and girls. The staff was wonderful and kind and Mrs. Wolff gave us some great words of advice for how to handle this on Tuesday morning for the real deal.

Turns out I forgot to bring my camera that night, but that's okay...the pictures wouldn't have been pretty!

When we left and got in the car we asked her why she cried and she said, "I was scared." I asked her if she wanted to go back in a few days and she said yes. I asked if she was going to cry next time and she said no. A small part of me is hoping that maybe the worst of it is over. Maybe she now knows what to expect and that there really is nothing to be scared of. Maybe...

Tomorrow we will relax at home doing nothing but her most favorite things. We will get to school bright and early Tuesday morning and be prepared for the worst, but hoping for the best. Since Friday night I have had a lump in my throat, knots in my stomach and a big pool of tears in my eyes just waiting to gush out as we walk away from her on Tuesday morning.

And no matter what happens on Tuesday morning, the mommy part of me wants you to know that she is so sweet, she has never been to school or anything like it before, and she really has been so excited about it for so long. We love you Bridget!

Brand new shiny things for the big day!

Check out our very first school project! We had to decorate this paper with all of the people and things that are most special to Bridget. Mrs. Wolff will laminate it and they'll use it everyday as a placemat for snack and lunchtime.

Fall is Peeking Around the Corner

Although the first official day of fall is still over a month away, I think we would all agree that it' s about this time of year when if feels like summer is wrapping up. It's Back-To-School Time. But for the first time in forever, I am NOT going back to school this year. HOORAY! It has all felt more real this week than ever that I'm not returning to work. My teacher friends all started back this week and I can't help but be so grateful that I get to stay at home with the kids. I've heard people say that staying at home with your kids is the hardest job in the world. I would have to disagree. It can be challenging, of course, but for me being a working mom was beyond tough. There was never enough time for everything. I would try to leave work as early as I could to get home to Bridget, only to feel guilty that I wasn't working late and bringing piles of work home like so many of my co-workers did. Then once at home it was a crammed afternoon of getting dinner ready, keeping up with the house and trying to spend the quality time with Bridget that I had missed out on all day. Last year it was twice as tough being pregnant. Talk about being tired...being a 1st grade teacher all day, mommy to a toddler and being pregnant! Whew-nearly impossible!

So I think the point I was trying to make was that I'm THRILLED to be at home with the kids and the fact that summer is ending is not all that sad for me anymore. It's been a long and hot one and we're all so ready for all the fun things that fall will bring to the Johnston home...The first day of preschool...digging out all my fall decorations that I love so much...Gator football Saturdays....cooler weather (hopefully sooner than later!)...Bridget's 3rd birthday....starting Bridget in soccer...Halloween...Thanksgiving...Christmas-and so many more little things in between! The best part of it all is that this year we're doing it with not just one, but two babies!

We definitely had a lot of fun this summer though. Plenty of pool and play dates mixed in with some big milestones for the kids. Since Bridget starts preschool next Tuesday this is our last full week at home without any obligations or places we have to be. We're spending it just as we have all summer...waking up slowly and lazily and just seeing where the day takes us!

Here's to enjoying the last days of summer...

The potty sticker chart worked so well, we tried it again for bedtime. Ever since moving Bridget to her big girl bed last fall, we've had to lay with her at bedtime until she fell asleep. We were often asked to "Play with my hair", "Scratch my face", "Rub my arm". Enough was enough. She earned a sticker for each night she fell asleep on her own. In usual Bridget fashion, she resisted big time at first, but in the end she got it. And now Todd and I can finally enjoy some time together in the evenings again!

Oh-and the reward for completing this chart was supposed to be a Snow White doll. When we got to The Disney Store though, it was the prince that she wanted, so it was the prince that we brought home!

We call this the "Bozo Hair Look" and it's what happens when she pull her pigtails out. Wonder how many times I'll pick her up from school looking like this?

So happy, so sweet, so cute, so chubby:)

Ross gets two baby food meals a day now and he loves them both!

Pool and popsicle afternoons

See you next year, Summer!

Sitting Up? Check.

Ross is officially a sitter-upper and he is loving his new view of the world! Check out some of his favorite places to sit up...

In his glider. I'll give you one guess as to who is to his right making him laugh!

On the play mat

Outside

Outside again

Getting a kiss from Bridgie

Pretending to drink a beer (Sam Adams Summer Ale, in case you were wondering.)

Making a very funny face!

And this one might be my favorite. That's his hat from the day we was born which is funny enough, but the best part of this picture is his impression of Bridget!

He's been very busy this week, as you can see. He is still scooching around a bit, but mostly going backwards and sideways. I think we've still got a little time before he's going to take off and crawl!

Just What Every Family Needs

Their very own bounce house, of course! A teacher friend of mine posted on Facebook that she was giving away this bounce house that her kids had outgrown. My friend, Courtney, actually saw it first and called me with the scoop..."It doesn't look that big!" "Bridget would love it!" "You could use it for birthday parties"-just a few of Courtney's convincing statements!

Fast forward a couple more weeks and here we are having our very own bounce house fun! And Courtney was right. It isn't too big, Bridget definitely loves it (Ross will too someday!), we will for sure have this set up for birthday parties (Bridget's 3rd birthday party is just around the corner!) and it really was very easy to set up and put away.

If we weren't already the coolest house in the neighborhood, we are now!

Todd is such a good dad to set this up in the blazing August heat!

The look on her face as the bounce got bigger and bigger and bigger!

It took just a few minutes to blow it up

Hesitating at first...

Jumping away!

Ross is not ready for bounce house fun just yet, but he did enjoy these balloons we snagged from a birthday party on Saturday!

6 Months Already?!

I'm jumping the gun a little bit with this post, but we have a busy weekend ahead of us. Ross will be 6 months on Sunday! Halfway to being one!

6 months is full of smiles and belly laughs and all sorts of attempts at trying to be a baby on the move! Our baby boy who loves to be held is finally giving us a break now and then. This past week he has spent more time than ever happily playing on the floor with toys. Rolling is a cinch for him now and he is even scooching around just a bit. He hasn't quite gotten up on all fours yet, but he is very, very close. He can pull his shoulders up and then he tries so hard to lift the bottom half of this body.

He started out on his back in the middle of his play mat. Just minutes later, here's how I found him!

Lifting his upper body and trying to MOVE!

We are practicing sitting up too, because once he can do that I know it will be whole new world for him. Being able to plop him down wherever we are will be so nice! He can do it very well with just a little support and can do it all on his own for a few seconds. Bridget sat up and crawled within days of each other when she was 8 months old, so I'm not sure how soon Ross will really do all this, but it certainly seems like it may be sooner than later!

Bridget and Harley are still the best forms of entertainment for him. Anything Bridget does makes him laugh or smile. The other day Bridget was eating pretzels and he just couldn't stop smiling at her! And like all pesky little brothers, he just can't keep his hands off of her toys...And like all bossy big sisters, she never wastes any time letting him know who is boss. "That mine Rossy Boy!" she says.

Gnawing on Bridget's favorite dwarf, Dopey.

Reading The Berenstain Bears together.

Fill 'er up lady!

Speaking of "Rossy Boy", I think that may be official name before long. Bridget almost always calls him that and so do we. I wonder how old he'll be before he starts begging us to stop calling him that! I'm going to savor these next few months while he is still all baby. There can never be too much toe-tickling, belly-blowing and cheek-pinching. I know all too well how quickly time is going to fly. Don't grow up too fast Rossy Boy!

Little Lady

Hmmm...where does a little girl even begin??

Her little hands always go for the lip gloss. Probably because she can open this one all by herself.

She's practically a pro at applying it now.

She needs a little help opening this one. "Pleeeeease," she says.

Ta-da!

Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice...That's What Little Girls are Made of!