Happy 4th Birthday Maclain

On November 25th, Maclain turned 4 years old! How can it be?!?

Where do I begin with this one??  Maclain is one-of-a-kind, that's for sure!  She can go from one emotion to the other in about a millisecond.  She is a thinker, and likes to think she knows best. :)  She has a big heart and an even bigger personality.  She loves to be a momma to Miller and I catch her saying the sweetest things to her.  She loves to be a helper, especially in the kitchen.  She can cook and bake with the best of 'em.  She can throw some major fits too, but the good thing about her is that when it's over, it's over.  It doesn't ruin her day.  She can entertain herself really well, and loves to play dress-up and babies! Maclain is really enjoying preschool and her teacher tells me she behaves well and is a really good listener.  She wants to be as independent as she can be, but is good about knowing her limits and will ask for help when she knows she needs it.  Life is definitely a bit spunkier with this one around, that's for sure!

Happy 2nd Birthday Miller

On October 4th, Miller turned 2 years old.  I can hardly believe our baby is 2!

Time just seems to keep passing so fast with this one!  She made the transition to a toddler bed just before Christmas and is loving it...

She is definitely our happy, laid-back one and for that we are thankful! Miller likes to go with the flow and has a very sweet personality.  She loves to give hugs and is quite a friendly little thing.  She plays well with her brother and sister, but can stick up for herself when needed. :)  She talks and sings all the time and sleeps wonderfully. Don't get me wrong, she can have her moments, but overall she is a pretty happy gal!  We love you Miller Lee!

Random Fall Fun

First Time Skating!

Rare Mommy-Maclain date to Bruster's

First pigtails!

Enjoying the park on a cool, Fall day

Sisters that slide together... :)

Movie Night!

Visiting the train at the library

Donuts!

Me and my sweet Maddox!

Hard at work in the sandbox...

Visiting a farm with Maddox's Kindergarten class

Bike riding

"CHEESE!!"

Maclain loved riding a pony at a birthday party

Halloween 2015

Halloween was a lot of fun this year!  I have to say, I really missed our tradition of getting together with the Evers' and trick-or-treating with them, but I think we made the best of our first Halloween in Charlotte.  We went to our church's Trunk or Treat and it was a lot of fun!  We all dressed up this year and our life group participated in the trunk contest and actually won first place!

On Halloween night, we got together with some of the families on our street and made our rounds to the houses in our neighborhood.  The girls and I didn't last too long, but Daniel and Maddox hung in there a bit longer. :)

Earlier in the month, I took the girls to a MOPS playdate at the pumpkin patch.  They LOVED it and we actually ended up going back with the whole family a couple of weekends later...

Grandfather Mountain

Way back in October, we picked a random Saturday and decided to make a day trip over to Grandfather Mountain State Park.  We got there around mid-morning and spent the first part of the day checking out their animal exhibits, eating lunch, and exploring. 

After lunch and a bit of exploring the scenery, we headed up the mountain to the mile-high swinging bridge. This was our main reason for making the drive over (and seeing the gorgeous leaves this time of year!) and the view did not disappoint.  It was still a bit foggy, so it wasn't as clear as usual, but since it was our first time there we didn't know the difference anyway. :)

After leaving the state park, we drove for a little while on the Blue Ridge Parkway and got to stop and check out one of the bridges that the company Daniel worked for in Tallahassee designed.

Because of the fog, the pictures really don't do the scenery justice.  The leaves were actually at their peak that particular weekend and all of the colors were so pretty!  I am so glad we made this trip... 5 hours in the car was tough on the kids at times, but they are still talking about "Grandpa Mountain" (as Maddox calls it).  Hoping we can go back next Fall!

Matthews Alive

Several weeks ago we got to go to "Matthews Alive", a fun parade and carnival in downtown Matthews.  The kids liked seeing all of the bands and floats in the parade, and they enjoyed choosing a ride at the carnival.  After almost a year of living here, we are starting to see familiar faces around town, which is always comforting.  We look forward to participating in many more fun, local events like this one!

Preschool for Maclain

After taking a hiatus from preschool since the move, it was finally Maclain's turn to go back to school in September.  She is going 3 mornings a week and is really enjoying her days there.  We adore her teacher and she seems to have such a sweet little crew in her class.  Maclain especially loves the days they get to go to music class.  She is already learning so much and we look forward to a great year!

Kindergarten

Maddox started kindergarten back at the end of August and I am happy to report that things have gone very smoothly so far.  He has the sweetest little class and we love his sweet teacher, Mrs. Granger.  I have been able to go volunteer a few times so far this year, and I am loving getting to know all of the kiddos in his class.

I take him to school in the mornings, but we decided to let him ride the bus home in the afternoons since Miller still naps during that time.  I was nervous about it at first, but he absolutely loves it.  The bus stops basically right in front of our house, so I just stand in the yard and wait for him.

We are so grateful to have had such a great start to the school year!  I can't believe it's already October!

Miscellaneous Summer Fun

In between our trips and company, we have managed to have some fun "normal" days.  We found a place that sells playground equipment and a couple of days a week they open it up in the mornings for free play.  We really enjoyed playing on all of the swing sets and equipment!

We have had friends over to play and have enjoyed digging in the dirt!

We have also done our fair share of swimming over the last few months!  Maddox and Maclain have both learned to swim without floaties this summer, which has been amazing!  There were times I thought we would never get there, but it finally happened.  Maclain especially is a little fish, and she is great at swimming underwater.  Maddox is more cautious and prefers to keep his head above water while he swims, but is also capable of swimming underwater and has been trying it more lately.  We are so proud of them!