2011-2012 School Year Starts NOW

DID NOT WANT TO SEND MY GIRLS BACK!  Never do!  But I did, and to say they love it would be an understatement.  We always do our research and request the best teachers…..  Me being SO very involved in the schools (Much to the schools disapproval) I always manage to get the teacher I requested!

So these were the girls last year!  I thought they looked grown up then…. 

(These dang years are passing too quickly)

And this is the girls this year!  Uggggg.  Why are they so pretty…..

 

Aubrey started first grade as one of the 3 best readers from the previous school year and Autumn started school ready to catch up from a checked out teacher from her last semester…..

Autumn is in 4th grade and has 2 teachers that she swaps with at mid-day.  She loves that. 

Annsley starts school about 2 weeks after the girls and was excited to get Ms. Lori after Aubrey had her.  This is her last year in preschool and she’s really looking forward to “Real” school next year!

Annsley’s a ham…  She will stand there and let me take pictures and I love it.

And then she will be finished and get this look on her face like maybe she’s questioning my sanity…

So far this year has been the best ever!  It just keeps getting better and better for the girls. 

Autumn has exceeded every goal she set for herself and has really amazed us.  She has done fantastic this year!  Most importantly, she’s not struggling to understand her school work this year.  (Owe that to great teachers) She is over the bullying that went on and on last year and now onto wondering why kids try so hard to be popular.  She see’s this everyday and feels it is a lesson on why it’s important to impress only God and not fit in because God created her to stand out!   She impresses me everyday with her wisdom and maturity on this!  (And crazy enough, she’s popular because of this!)

Aubrey continues to be a top student and reader in her class.  It’s unusual for her to come home with a paper that has anything less that a 100 grade and a chapter book from the library.  She’s loving reading, GT and P.E.  She has the best principal I have ever known of and the most creative P.E teacher.  Her classroom teacher is shy and quite but is amazing and really expects and demands a lot of Aubrey!  (That’s a good thing!)

 

Annsley also got some smarts.  Her teacher tells me quite a bit how advanced Annsley is vs. the other kids.  (I blame this on Autumn for playing school with her everyday!) Annsley can write her entire name, add, subtract and can divide just about anything in her head.  Apparently she is the best with scissors and the most creative!  Annsley still gets caught up in wanting to do just like her best friend Olivia but I think that’s ok for now.  They will be in different classes next year and I’m looking forward to seeing Annsley have to make decisions on her own and not just do what Olivia does.

Vacation 2011

So, after a long absence again…  I decided I wanted to blog!  I ‘m not sure where this came from or how long it will last so for now… I blog!

I have so much I need to blog but I’ll go back as far as my memory will take me.  Late summer.  I think the last blog post I did was how great our summer had started!  A bunch of nothing or time really well wasted!  Because of the great summer, I wanted it to end with a bang!  So the very last summer day and weekend we left town for a mini vacation!

I’m not sure Joshua and I have ever just planned, packed and went on a vacation for no reason before.  Usually they involve a goat show, family reunion or something other than just a vacation but this was/had no other plans than for the girls!

After doing some online looking, we decided on Grapevine.  We liked it because there was so much to do in a relatively small area!

This is the girls the morning we left! It was their first morning to get up early and they weren’t enjoying it just yet!  Maybe a little…

Then our hotel!  We spent an entire day just at the hotel, walking around and eating at every restaurant there!  So good!

The view from our balcony!

The next day we spent at bass pro shop, shopping at the mall and the aquarium.

The next day we got up early and swam, went to breakfast and got ready to head home!  Love spending time with my family when all we have to do is have fun!

Heart Attack will soon Follow

My Aubrey, My Lover of Panda bears, cartoons, books and cuddling has a new love to add to her list.  Horse Cutting!  Gasp!

She’s told me she wanted to trade in all her Panda stuff for horse stuff. Gasp!

Then Joshua called a friend of his and set up riding lessons from 2 cutters.  (BIG GASP!  I knew what was in the future at this point.)

So unwillingly Joshua and I took Aubrey to her very first lesson.  She did amazing and I left with my heart a little older than before.

And oddly enough she rides a horse named Panda….

Second, third and forth lesson no difference (for my heart).  She was improving and a ‘Natural’.  Crap!

Then, the day came when Mr. Jimmy don said, Aubrey, Lets do some cutting.  After they picked me off the ground, I watched my baby cut for the first time.

Google “The sport of horse cutting” if your un aware.  (It has nothing to do with actually cutting a horse… nothing… no horses are harmed or hurt in anyway)   They have a mechanical horse that goes back and forth on a line by a remote.  It’s a good way for horses to practice and kids to learn.  So they did!  Aubrey had the biggest smile on her face and that’s all she talked about for days!

Then… After a few more lessons, she got to cut alone.  I was ready:

(Aubrey and the horse are to follow the cow (Blue Flag)

You can see how fast they are going by Aubrey’s hat….

Huge Smile!