The Fighter's

Grandma & our family friend Julie came and picked up the girls for a fun morning at the bouncy place and lunch. As much as I love spending time with my girls, I'm always thankful for a quick break! Daddy and I went for a walk at the park...one of my favorite things to do (especially in the fall). The girls had a blast bouncing, climbing, jumping, running, and then eating lunch out! What a fun morning!

Ava's preschool had an ice cream social tonight...and we were invited! The kids sang us a few songs including "Hermie the Wormy" (which may be the cutest song ever) and "I am a Miracle". All of the kids were absolutely adorable and did a great job (especially after only having a week and a half in school!). Ava's little smile lit us up...and she kept waving at us:-) I just can't believe she's growing so fast. Grandma and Grandpa C joined us and afterwards the girls ran around outside with other kids. Their favorite part of the playground....the "giant" hill behind the school I need to change the speed on my camera to take better motion pics, but these at least captured a glimpse of the moment. Ava is the second from the left (pink sweatshirt) in the group pic...

Ava started a ballet, jazz and tap class this week at our local Y and can't wait to go back next week. They practiced ballet today, and let me tell you...the kids were the cutest ever! Here are some shots of my little ballerina...

Doug braved the appointment today with both girls (I had a meeting for work). What a great dad. The report...she's growing great! Clean bill of health. Her stats at Two: 27 pounds, 32 inches tall (10 th % for height - our little short stuff!). She's all done with shots until kindergarten... yay ! And with the flu mist, we're all set for flu season. Here's hoping it doesn't come around! After her appointment, Doug and I traded kids and I took her to her very first "ballet" class at the Y. Ava went too. It was so cute. All these little two year olds in their own little world. Some trying to follow along...others more interested with the doorknobs in the room:-) Kate was half and half...paying attention some of the time and trying to participate, but would often stop and turn to wave ferociously at her sis who was sitting on the side watching the class (Ava has hers on Thursday). And while waving she would scream "hi sis...come dance!" ...

Ava's preschool sent home a poem today (see below) and I thought it served as a great reminder that our kids are watching our every move, and how important it is to teach them not only with words, but through our actions and attitude. This was a nice reminder to me and kind of kicked me in my toosh as I have days where I let work stress and my need to have things in order (clean house, schedule, etc.) get the best of me...which ultimately affects my attitude around the girls. Grumpy days are no good...and definitely not worth it! This little poem also reminded me of my parents and the great example they set for Rob, Pat & I as we grew up. They followed through on everything, worked hard, taught us how important our faith is, made things fun, always put others first and we always, always, always knew how very much they loved us. And I pray with all my heart that Doug and I can set the same sort of loving example for our three munchkins! ------------------------------------- When...

The girls have been obsessed with two things this weekend...umbrellas & Uncle Pat. They were playing outside on the deck with umbrellas (they are in love with Mary Poppins lately) and my dad made it "rain" which they got an absolute kick out of. Uncle Pat came for a visit and the girls couldn't be more thrilled. They are constantly running around saying..."Uncle Pat"...come play with me, come play! Here they are passing the fire truck back and forth...Kate chatting on uncle Pat's phone. The girls love their Uncle Pat. And...last but not least...Happy 33rd anniversary to my parents! We celebrated with them over at their house with a steak and shrimp dinner. Here's to 33 + more!!

Today was a rainy day, so to spice things up a bit, we added bubbles to the tub in Doug and my room, turned the jets on, which made really BIG bubbles...and let Kate & Ava "swim" and play in the bubbles. Made a bit of a mess (bubbles everywhere!), but I didn't really care...they had fun and their giggles were priceless!

So Ava had her first "homework" assignment and I am a nerd and had to take a picture because it was her first ever! We had to fill out four boxes on a "news flash" that highlighted her favorite things. Her favorite things currently include The Little Mermaid, princesses, trains and Thomas the train, Mommy, Daddy & Kate, bacon, macaroni & cheese, pepperoni pizza...and she saw some apples and grapes and decided we should cut those out and add them too. She wrote her name in Blue because it is her favorite color, and was so proud to take her homework in her book bag to school. Ava had another successful day...absolutely loves school...hops right out of the car and marches in like an old pro. I hope her enthusiasm for school lasts through college!

We are gearing up for my favorite season here in Fighter land! Fall is my absolute favorite time of year!!! This past week the girls and I ripped out our summer flowers and planted some mums. Our summer flowers had about had it after our week long trip to the beach, and were looking pretty sad...so it was time to make the flip over to fall time flowers. Here are a few shots. I'll be getting some more "fall" stuff out in the coming week. Yay! Not to mention the weather has been fantastic!

Ava's first day of preschool was today and she did great! Her and Kate woke up this morning, came downstairs to my office...and I said to her..."it's your first day of school!" Ava proceeded to squeal and was SO excited to get dressed and carry her bag. When we got there she walked right in, said hi to her teacher, found her cubby all by herself and hung her stuff up like an old pro. She even let me take a few pics. After I took pics she said "bye mom!", gave me a hug, then proceeded to sit down at a table and start playing with magnets. :-) The only teary eyed part (and on my part, not Ava's) was when we were leaving...Kate got teary eyed and said "where's sissy?" She started crying a bit saying "sissy"...but then I took her to our favorite park where we walked and played on the playground. I think it may take her some getting used to not having her big sis around 3 days a week, but it will be fun to have some one on one time wit...

Kate loves to dance. Whenever she hears music she starts twirling around and singing. It's hilarious. She also insists on wearing her ballerina outfits when dancing. Here are a few of my favorite shots...I especially like the Buckeye/princess combo!

So we had another Katelyn adventure tonight! I made lasagna for dinner and while I cleaned up, Doug gave the girls a bath (it's getting hard for me to bend over the side of the tub these days:-)). Sounded like they were having fun, and then after about 15 minutes I heard Doug yell..."Kim...I need some help up here." I went upstairs to find Ava out of the tub, Doug shaking his head pointing towards the tub and Kate sitting in the tub with #2. Kate went poo in the bathtub and was sitting there, looking up at me with big brown eyes...so innocently. Doug had clean up duty in the girls bathroom and I took the girls down to our tub to re-bathe them. Thank God for bleach! (for the tub...not the girls:-)). We just had to laugh. I told Doug that I think Katelyn pulls something new about every four days. It never gets boring with her around! She definitely keeps things interesting, and keeps us laughing!! We love her so much...poo adventures and all. Other than that we ha...

So I was on a walk with the girls this morning and started thinking about how in the next month or so, it will change from being "Ava & Kate" to "Ava, Kate and Baby". The days of just "Ava & Kate" are slowly coming to an end. I know when this baby comes, as with the girls, it will be hard to imagine what life was like without them. It's amazing how these little bundles come into your life, rock your world a bit, and then suck your heart in like nothing else on this planet. It is so true...nothing can explain how amazing the love you have for your children. So in the spirit of Ava and Kate adventure, we jam-packed our day today. First we went out and checked our veggie garden. This is my first year ever growing veggies, and I'm pregnant, so slacking a bit in the gardening department (making up excuses?). I think I got them in the ground a bit too late. The plants look as healthy as could be but so far...no tomatoes...just pumpkins...and cuc...