a field trip with mck

daddy stayed home so i could go on mck's first grade field trip to inner space caverns.  it was fun, but so sad to see how incredibly independent she was!  she really wanted me to come . . . but didn't want much to do with me on the tour.  she just liked knowing i was there.  she hung with her little girls friends and giggled and laughed.  then it was to the wooden playscape for a picnic and LOTS of playtime!  i had to drag her away!  what a fun treat to hang with my girl!

100 days of school

mck is posing with her "100 days" project. it had to be a 3-d representation of 100 items. she did an animal cracker zoo! she had lots of fun grouping the animals together while i hot glued them . . . probably because she ate every broken one she came across! it turned out pretty cute!

written by mck!

for her latest project mck wrote a book . . . after reading a non-fiction book about fire she had to create her own book about fire. she wrote a short story about freddie who went camping and needed to build a fire to stay warm. she wrote the story all on her own (with encouragement for ken!) and drew all the adorable pictures. the girl is a rock star when it comes to projects. she'll sit down, work for several hours and knock it out! the book is just adorable!

our zoo veterinarian!

yes. that is mck with a lion and a dr. kit . . . ready to head off to school for a day of pretending to be "dr. mckenzie bailey, head zoo veterinarian".

and yes, this is the same 6 year old who doesn't like any of the animals that we have . . . except for maybe the chickens because they leave her alone! couldn't believe that's what she picked for career day. (on a side note, i did get several comments that "i have to pick a REAL job. so i can't say i want to be a fairy . . . but that's what i really want to be." love that girl!)

our little start student

mck was the star of the week . . . her poster was complete with purple, glitter, and a big giant "m"! could it be any more "her"? she put words that describe her all around the "m" and couldn't wait to share it with her class! gotta love this girl!

halloween sleepover

this may be our new halloween tradition! the girls had been asking for a halloween party . . . i kept putting it off because they wanted to invite a few too many people . . . so, rather last minute, we decided a halloween sleepover with a few friends! the girls ALL got along, had a great time, and even got a little sleep! we ate jack-o-lantern pizza, had color changing drinks (some of the girls really thought it was magic!), decorated cookies and cupcakes, played hide and seek, made masks, painted pumpkins and fingernails . . . and then had pumpkin face pancakes in the morning! what a fun party it was!

mck"s first book report

mck finished her first book report on a chapter book she read with her reading group . . . a book report sandwich! so cute. she had lots of fun making it . . . and was so proud to be finished a few days early (only because i made her!). it is so awesome to see her falling in love with books!

aunt sarah drove from nac to see the girls and have lunch with them at school. it's become an annual tradition. they were so excited to see their cool, young aunt stroll into school! thanks aunt sarah!

the g'town pep rally!

ken and mck got to walk out on the field at the g'town homecoming pep rally! they were so excited! we hung around to watch some of the rally and the girls were mesmerized as they announced the homecoming nominees . . . and saw the real cheerleaders do their thing. what a cool night!

our little cheerleaders

ken and mck are giving cheer a try this fall! we joined a little late so we had so catching up to do, but they are having lots of fun learning all the cheers. ken catches on really quickly to the words . . . and mck just looks like a cheerleader. it's really kind of cute to see them busting out with cheers all the time . . . in the backseat, at the dinner table, while outside playing! this is a fun change for them!

first day of school 2011

reality hit at 6:15 this morning when i had to get the girls up and ready for their first day of first and third grade. summer is officially over.
ken and mck looked adorable in their coordinating (not matching - their choice!) outfits. so grown up! daddy had to miss out on the first day chaos because of a dr. appt. in houston, so we had to snap extra pictures for him. the girls were good sports even though it was so early. they wanted to make sure daddy saw how cute they looked!
we had special sprinkle donuts then loaded up to take the girls to school and walk them to their classes. they knew just where to go and just what to do. they were happy to have us there, but didn't need me. i sure do hate this growing up stuff . . . but it is awesome to see my two beautiful confident kiddos strolling into their classrooms.
in the evening we celebrated with a dinner of mac and cheese and hot dogs (their choice) and special cupcakes that the little kids and i made. it was a perfect start to a great school year!

mck's mommy date

"mom and i went swimming and had fun together. i jumped off the diving board a lot of times. it was 12 feet deep! i jumped in and got diving worms and rings! i got candy at the pool on our break! we went to starbucks and went to the bookstore too. then went back home. it was very very fun on my mommy date!"

camp crestview 2011

we returned home from houston just in time for the girls to head to camp! they were so excited. it is the most amazing day camp . . . full of fun, bible studies, singing, and more fun! both the girls had a wonderful week and made some new friends too! it was so wonderful to see ken being so protective of mck when they headed to camp each day! they were excited to be doing something without the rest of us! i sure missed them each day!

mck's field trip

mck got to spend the day at the farm . . . and i got to go along too! :) it was a beautiful day and a great little farm . . . and so much fun to see mck with her friends. i thought she would be really clingy but i think her friends wanted to hold my hand more than she did! they saw a cow being milked, took a hayride, saw all sorts of animals, found fairies in the forest, and got up-close to the longhorns! :) what a wonderful experience for the kids! mck was so happy i got to go along . . . so was i.

mck's special day with a friend

mck got her special birthday day with her friend g. they had a sleepover and watched barbie and chatted and giggle until pretty late! :) they woke up super early and played american girl dolls for a LONG time! :) it is so nice that they get along so well! :) then it was off to bulid-a-bear for the real fun! :) we ate lunch at chick-fil-a, rode the merry-go-round, and stuffed new friends! :) mck made a cute flowered bunny . . . named daisy! they had a great time making their animals . . . but maybe had more fun riding the escalator! :) (i think my kids may need to get out more . . . it was cute how much fun they had!) :)
(both girls have said what perfect birthdays they have had! the best part is we did the least amount this year . . . simple family parties, out to dinner, and a special day with a friend! it is great that it doesn't take much to make them happy!)

earth day!

the girls and i took a trip to the local recycling plant on earth day with our girl scout troop! they got to see how everything is sorted, decorate reusable bags, tour the facility, and play on a brand new garbage truck! :) it was a great afternoon. . . and a great motivator for us to start recycling! already we have gone from two full trash cans and a pile of trash . . . to one trash can and 2 bins of recyclable materials! :) YAY! :)