First Day of School!

After much anticipation,
the first day of school was today for both girls.
There were no tears from any of us,
so hopefully we are off to a great year of kindergarten and preschool!

 This sweet dress has now been worn by all three granddaughters 

on their first day of preschool

Lexi is very excited about her locker at UP.
She and several friends decorated them at "Meet the Teacher" last week,
so she was all set for the big day of kinder.

There are no buses in the Park Cities since everyone lives very close to the school,
so all the families walk/drive over and bring the children to their classrooms on the first day.
What a great tradition and wonderful way to see them off.
At pick up time, she told me that she missed me a lot,
but that she had a great day.
She was excited to tell me all about the library, the gymnasium,
how she did the monkey bars at recess, which friends she saw in the cafeteria,
and the projects she worked on in Miss Smith's classroom.
It is a long day, starting at 8:00 am and going until 2:30,
so I'm sure the new schedule will take a bit of time to adjust to.
Sure seems impossible that our first baby is now off to elementary school.

As for Ryleigh, she is in the 2s class at Lexi's school from last year,
which means she's very familiar with the building and many of the faces.
She was all smiles and busy playing with Mr. Potato-head
and some classmates/her teacher Miss Clarissa when I picked her up.
She seemed very excited to finally be going to "real preschool"
and was so proud to show me her first art project.
Here's hoping that both girls have a truly wonderful year!

And, to ensure that there would be no tears from the mommies,

my girlfriend Keely invited a group of us over to her house for a 

"Boo Hoo or Woo Hoo" mimosa party. 

What a cute concept and great way to fill the void on the very first day back. 

I chose a smiley face to represent my mood.

Vic and I were certainly a bit sad about this milestone arriving for our family,

but ultimately, we are excited for our big girls and all the places they'll go!

(The nine child-free hours each week are also pretty great, not gonna lie)

On the road again

We spent another day in Sparta -
visiting Lake Mohawk and the boardwalk,
feeding the ducks,
taking charge of Grandpa Tom's garden,
and delighting in the bees and honey his next door neighbor breeds.

Rounded out the weekend spending time with Nanny and Grandpa Mike,
my cousin, her parents and her kiddos.
Lexi and Tiffany are just a few months apart in age, and they were instant peas in a pod.
They explored all over my parents yard, played hide n seek around the neighborhood,
went on a scavenger hunt and caught a toad.
The whole family enjoyed lunch at the Boardwalk Club.

From there, we spent a whirlwind 24 hours in Connecticut.
My girls were running on fumes by this point - with many missed naps for Ryleigh
and many 10 pm bedtimes for both girls…
but seeing a lot of familiar faces was such a nice summer treat for us.
Fairfield is at its finest this time of year,
and we so enjoyed not only the perfect weather but also the wonderful company.
We also stopped by our old home and visited briefly with our former neighbors…
it was a welcome relief to see that for the most part,
105 Deer Park Road looked exactly the same as when we left it.

 The girls had a great time spending the night at Ella (and Henry's house).

Ella and Lexi were fast friends once again after just a few minutes. 

And of course I was thrilled to catch up with her mom and even join her

for one of Julie's exercise classes the following morning. 

 Then, we spent a few hours at the Wellen's new home.

The three older sisters have been playing together since they could walk, 

and it was great to get the blonde, the redhead and the brunette 

together again - this time with all the younger siblings included also.

 Then we traveled over to Westport to enjoy the evening with this crew.

My how they've grown.

They ran their energy out, and then some. 

It's wonderful to see Ryleigh, Paige and Quinn in the fold with their "bigs". 

Finally, it was time for the ride home to NJ.

Both girls fell fast asleep the minute we got into the car.

We arrived at Aunt Wendy's just in time for Lexi to get sick 

from car sickness/exhaustion. She made it about five feet from the bathroom,

so that was a "lovely" way to end our day. 

Just keeping it real :)

 Thank you to the dear friends who took us in and entertained us!!!

Favorite Party Pics

Grandpa Mike's neighbors treated him to a photographer at his big party. 

This meant that the family could just enjoy the evening.

What a special gift.

Here are some of our favorites. 

 A successful surprise

 Dad with two high school friends

(one of which he served in the Army with)

 4 of the 5 siblings - plus spouses

 These girls had so much fun - 

and kept the dance floor hopping until 10 pm

 The original 4

 My how we've grown 

Sweet family members who drove in from South Carolina

 The wonderful neighbors who hired the photographer

 The whole gang

A sweet moment with his only grandson

Summer Road Trip - first stop…Sparta

We just returned from a wonderful ten day visit back in the Northeast.
Couldn't have asked for more beautiful summer weather.
But it was the company that really made our trip special.
First up was a surprise 70th birthday party for Grandpa Mike!
The night was a big success, and I think every one of us had a great time celebrating.
My father is rarely speechless, but upon seeing high school friends, an army buddy,
former neighbors, friends from his political years
and loved ones who traveled from far and wide,
that's exactly what he was.
We danced, we sang, we visited, and at the end of the evening,
we shared a 45 page memory book that every guest had contributed to.
It is now his most prized possession.
Still waiting on pictures taken by a photographer,
but here are a few I snapped at the end of the party.

 Matt brought sand home from Normandy Beach and 

gave it to my dad this evening