Hadley's First Day of Preschool

For the last 4.5 years, Hadley has attended a home daycare, but today she started preschool! Hadley took her teal blanket and Pinky bear to comfort her, but Hadley's teachers said that she was outgoing and confident today...which made my mama heart so happy. Hadley will start Kindergarten at my school in July 2020!

Hadley rode to school in Tal's truck:

When Hadley arrived at school, she signed her name:

Throughout the school day, Hadley's teachers sent me the following pictures:

"My name is Hadley and I like to share."

Sensory Table

Hadley matched uppercase and lowercase letters:

Legos

Savannah's First Day of 5th Grade

Today Savannah started 5th grade...her last year in elementary school! Her teachers are Mrs. Clayton and Mrs. Bendel. Savannah is ready to work hard and learn a lot this year!

 Kindergarten

2014 

1st Grade

2015

2nd Grade

2016

3rd Grade

2017

4th Grade

2018

5th Grade

2019

Stuffies on the Stairs

Stuffies on the stairs. This is one of those sweet moments that I'll miss when my girls are grown and gone:

Goodbyes

Today was bittersweet. Hadley starts preschool on Monday, so today our family said goodbye to Hadley's babysitter Hiroko, whom we affectionately refer to as "Dodo."

Our family is so grateful for Hiroko's daughter-in-law Yu who took care of Hadley (pictured below at 4 months old) the first year, and for Hiroko who has taken care of Hadley the last three years.

Hadley will miss Hiroko and her friends Wyatt (left) and Logan (right)...as well as Hiroko's Japanese home cooking. Thanks to Hiroko, Hadley has an international food palate and loves Hiroko's rice, brown noodles, sushi, and spring rolls!

Hadley also adores Hiroko's dog Momo, who sleeps with Hadley and on her teal blanket during naptime every day.

As a goodbye gift, Hiroko gave Hadley a stuffed little Momo that barks when Hadley squeezes her tummy. One chapter ended today, but another one begins on Monday...

NC Lighthouses Tour

Over the last year, the girls and I have visited all seven NC lighthouses! We've enjoyed discovering these beautiful landmarks as we've explored the coast of NC.

Cape Lookout Lighthouse

August 2018

Old Baldy Lighthouse

August 2018

Oak Island Lighthouse

August 2018

 Ocracoke Lighthouse

July 2019

 Cape Hatteras Lighthouse

July 2019

Bodie Island Lighthouse

July 2019

Currituck Beach Lighthouse

July 2019

Outer Banks 2019: Part 11 (Collage of Memories)

During our summer vacation to the Outer Banks, the girls and I and Grandma Judy enjoyed visiting four NC lighthouses, climbing the sand dunes at Jockey's Ridge State Park, visiting the Wright Brothers Memorial, playing on the beach, and seeing the wild horses in Corolla, NC.

Our family will miss Grandma Judy when she leaves on Thursday, but the girls and I will treasure our vacation memories and look forward to seeing Grandma again when we take our annual road trip to Illinois in October.

Outer Banks 2019: Part 10 (Currituck Beach Lighthouse)

On July 19, the girls and I and Grandma Judy visited the Currituck Beach Lighthouse in Corolla, NC. The lighthouse is known for its red brick exterior. Unlike the other 6 NC lighthouses, the Currituck Beach Lighthouse was located in a wooded and shaded setting.

The Currituck Beach Lighthouse was the last stop on our NC lighthouse tour. Over the last year, the girls and I have visited all 7 lighthouses along the coast of NC!

Outer Banks 2019: Part 9 (Duck Donuts)

After the wild horse tour on July 19, the four of us stopped at Duck Donuts in Duck, NC. Duck Donuts specializes in warm, customizable cake donuts. We shared a half-dozen donuts that included some cinnamon and sugar donuts (our favorite!), as well as a maple frosted donut topped with bacon, a chocolate glazed donut, and an orange creamsicle donut. Yum!

Outer Banks 2019: Part 8 (Wild Horses)

On July 19, the girls and I and Grandma Judy drove 40 minutes to the town of Corolla and went on the Wild Horse Adventure Tour. During our two-hour tour, we rode in an open-air Hummer to the northernmost Outer Banks where wild horses have roamed for hundreds of years.

We drove on the beach to Carova, an area that consists of a few neighborhoods and is only accessible by four-wheel drive vehicles. Carova is isolated and did not have any stores or restaurants...just sandy roads and some houses.

99 wild horses still roam around Carova, and we enjoyed seeing 10-15 horses grazing in the roads, in open areas, and in backyards during our tour.

Surprisingly, there were a lot of 4x4 vehicles on the beach:

Outer Banks 2019: Part 7 (Wright Brothers Memorial)

On July 18, the girls and I and Grandma Judy visited the Wright Brothers Memorial, which was located about 5 minutes from our hotel. Here's a silly picture of Savannah and Hadley wrestling in our hotel room:

We got free admission to the Wright Brothers Memorial...thanks to Grandma Judy's national park pass! At the memorial, the four of us talked about how Wilbur and Orville Wright impacted history by inventing the airplane. We saw where the Wright Brothers lived and worked on their airplane, as well as where they made their first successful airplane flights in Kitty Hawk. The Wright Brothers tested their airplane in Kitty Hawk, NC because it was sandy, windy, and isolated.