College Application

This picture is the exact moment Sarah submitted her first college application!  It was a long one, and she's been working on it for the past few weeks to get it just right and in for early acceptance.  She did such an amazing job on it, and we are so excited for her!

First Day of School Treat

One of my favorite traditions is the first day of school treat...because while we eat them, Bryan and I get to hear all about their first day!

Jackson:
It was pretty boring but also fun!
We did no work really.
Apparently I was on the wrong class at the beginning, but after a minute, I realized what class I was supposed to be in!
My teacher is nice!
All of my teachers are the chill type.
It was sad because we didn’t do science at all, but that’s already my favorite class.
My lunch was good
The recess area looks nicer this year.
Mrs. Knotts, (his kindergarten teacher, now his science teacher), gave me a hug!
Mrs. Scott yells—not to be mean, just so people can hear her.
You need to look at my agenda, and read everything, but not writing, because it’s not important.
We have a spelling test on Friday, and apparently there are 2 surprise words that you can’t prepare for.
It was definitely weird being back at school!

Sarah:
It was good.
I feel pretty confident about Economics .  Mr. Beene is super cool and curves the test.
I love my Biology teacher, and she said “we’re not doing anything because today is weird.”
My Algebra teacher is crazy, and I knew he was an odd bird, but I didn’t know he was that crazy.  But I love him!  And the class seems so easy!
It was pretty uneventful.
I missed Diamond like crazy!

First Day Then and Now

Sarah's first day of kindergarten.

 Sarah's first day of 12th grade.

I can't believe she's already in her senior year of high school!  I have absolutely loved having a front row seat to all of it though.  I'm so proud of the person she's become.

First Day of School!

Today was the kids' first day of school!  It's also the first time they've left for school in 5 months!

It's Sarah's first day of 12th grade!

I don't know how it's her senior year!

She's already had a scholarship interview, she's starting to apply to colleges, and she wants to be a journalist.

And it's this guy's first day of 5th grade!

I can't believe he's as old as he is either!

He wants to be an anesthesiologist--just like his Dad!--when he grows up!

 These two are my heart, and I pray that have a great first day and a wonderful year!

Last First Day

This was Sarah on her first day ever of marching band!  She was nervous, and all she knew of marching band were the stories that Bryan and I shared with her from our time in it.  And she was wearing a Texas A&M hat.

This was Sarah this morning as she was leaving (at 6:15!) for her last first day of marching band.  She was excited to have her first day as drum major, and now, she has countless marching band memories of her own,  And she was wearing her new UT hat!

First Day of School Treat

One of our favorite first day of school traditions is getting a treat when the kids get home!  They love it because they get to eat dessert before dinner, and I love it because I get to hear all about their first day!  Sarah had band practice yesterday evening, so we had to get our treat to go, but we got it nonetheless!

Jackson:
The whole squad is there--all my friends!
My teacher is so nice!
I got the best chair is class--the rocking chair!
Math class was so easy!
Lunch was good!  I loved your note!  Me and Beckett had the same thing--only his didn't have mayo.  We get to sit wherever we want at lunch!
At recess, the monkey bars were hot, and the swings were full.  Nothing compared to gaga ball though...I scraped my knee and almost broke my hand playing it!
Intermediate school is so easy to make friends!

Sarah:
My day was fine.  It literally felt like we had a long weekend, and then we were back!
I really like my pre-cal teacher!  I sat in the front row in there, because I'm a nerd, but then on the board it said to arrange yourself by birthdays.  We already have pre-cal homework.
I really like AP English, but then when she was talking about it, I got stressed out.  I pulled out my phone in English, and I asked, 'how has my mom already texted me?!' and everyone said, 'mine too!'
My AP US history teacher is loud.
I was really excited to get back into journalism, and Mrs. Short brought up that I won state like 7 times!
I have a bunch on friends in physics!

I already can't wait to hear how their second day of school goes!

First Day of School

It's the first day of school!  And somehow, it's our babies first day of 11th grade and 4th grade!  Today was also the first day I didn't drive Sarah to school or walk Jackson into school!  My Mama heart could barely take it!

  

I can't believe she's starting 11th grade today!

That's halfway through with high school!

 

Jackson's now at the intermediate school!  That's big time!

This morning, he kept saying, "I'm so excited to go to school!  I don't think I'll be excited to go to school again until I'm in college!"

They're so cute!  Jackson told Sissy this morning that she looked pretty!

I already can't wait to see this this afternoon!

Then and Now

This is us 4 years ago.

And this is us now.

If only our babies would stop growing.

Happy Birthday, Jackson!

9 years ago today, our baby boy, Jackson was born.  He was 7 pounds 6 ounces of perfection, and he changed our lives and our hearts forever.  And even though he’s 9 today, he’ll always be our baby.

Braces

One of my Mom Rules is that when you get a shot, you get an ice cream cone.  So, when you get braces, I figured you should get a whole container of ice as well as all the fixins for an ice cream sundae!

Library Day

 Yesterday was our first trip to the library this summer!

We've been coming to this library and taking pictures on this bench every winter and summer break for the past 5 years.

They used to be so little!

This is one of my favorite pictures of all time!  The way he's looking at her...heart melting.

First Day of School

Somehow, summer is over, and my babies are headed back to school.

And what's even harder to believe...this baby is headed to 10th grade!

I swear, it was just yesterday that her Daddy and I were walking her to kindergarten, and her princess backpack was as big as she was!  And now, she's a quarter of the way done with high school!

This baby is off to 3rd grade today!  That's the last grade of elementary school!  I just can't believe it!

He's so big!  And I don't know how to make it stop!

I know they're going to have a great first day and a great year!

And even though it's only been an hour since I dropped them off, I already miss them so much and can't wait to hug them and kiss them and hear all about their day!

They're my very favorite!

Back to School Breakfast

Yesterday, we had our traditional Back to School Breakfast!

While we were eating, we talked about school obviously getting ready to start and how we can't believe they're going in to 3rd grade and 10th grade!

Getting Ready for School

This morning, I registered this cutie for 3rd grade, and Sarah for 10th grade (while she was at marching band practice).  While I was at Sarah's school, I was given information on her first PSAT and second AP test.  When I got home, Bryan and I talked about how we can't believe how quickly our babies are growing up!

Last Day of School

Today was the kids' last day of school!

This was our baby on her first day of 9th grade...or should I say high school?!

And this is our baby on her last day of 9th grade!

Sarah loved high school!  Although stressful and long and hard, she fell in love with marching band, just like we knew she would!  She also loved journalism, and just like everything she does, she excelled at it!  We loved reading the articles she wrote for the school newspaper, and we can't wait to continue to watch her shine in that arena!  She's number 2 in her class, and she's so stinkin' smart and driven, we have not doubt she'll remain there!

This is our baby on his first day of 2nd grade!

And this is our teenager on his last day of 2nd grade!

I just can't believe how much he's changed!

He did so great in 2nd grade!  He got all "A's" and one "B" on his report card, and the "B" was an 88.  He loves to read, and he's reading 105 words per minute!  He also loves math, and he's so good at it!  At the end of 2nd grade, you can apply to be on Safety Patrol in 3rd grade.  Along with the application you have to fill out, the teachers who know you have to vote on whether or not you would be a good candidate for this program.  Jackson was selected for it, and we are just so proud of him!  

I always love taking these pictures on the first and last day of the year.

One, because I love pictures.  And, two, because it's crazy to see how much they've grown and changed.

We are so proud of our babies!

We know they're going to continue to let their lights shine in 10th grade and 3rd grade...

...but until then, I'm going to eat them up all summer long!

When they got out of school today, I took them out for a treat, a tradition we started when Sarah was in 1st grade.  That seems like just yesterday.  But today, on the last day of her first year of high school, I'm reminded of how quickly time moves and how grateful I am for these little traditions.