i believe you can fly...

a little r. kelly, anyone?  i can't help but think of that song whenever i think of ava's new school mascot.  with the move to another town, that also meant another school and district for ava.  she [and i] were sad to leave schell and all her friends, but she was also really excited for this new adventure!

the first day started with a special breakfast of donuts, of course!

she was nervous & excited as we pulled up to her new school for the first time.

i was so overwhelmed after meeting the staff and learning that ava's first day would be with a substitute, but girlfriend took it all in stride.  she came home and happily reported that she made 4 new friends, but couldn't remember their names :) 

another first at the new school is riding the public school bus!  she's always went to a daycare after school, but we are trying after school care at her elementary school this year [a big thanks to sarah who agreed to keep her over school holidays/breaks so that we could do this!].  school doesn't open until 7:30, so she's riding the bus.  she seems to really like it --- and has only missed it once [can you guess who was responsible for her that morning? cough-JUSTIN-cough.]

the new school has been an adjustment the past 6 weeks, but she is slowly but surely getting the hang of it.  new teacher, all new friends, and first ever grades has given us a few bumps, but i know she is going to do great here. 

our little eagle!

first day of school...

i know i say this every year, but how in the world to we have a second grader?  it's just not possible!  at any rate, ava was excited for her first day of school!

i thought her first day of schoold outfit was presh.  she looked like such a girl --- a huge treat since she much prefers t-shirts and tennis shoes over skirts & curls.  she even requested that i paint her nails :)

here's to an awesome 2nd grade year!

meet the [2nd grade] teacher...

ava was so excited for meet the teacher!  we went together just her and i, and i got a few pictures before we headed to the school. 

she ended up in mrs. lacascio's class, and we loved her from the start!

second grade is going to be a growing year for our little miss. big changes up ahead!

ava turns 7...

i'm not sure exactly how it happened, but one morning i woke up and ava was 7!  seriously.  time.stop.now.

 i took the day off of work so we could spend her birthday together.  she woke up and said she couldn't wait to see what her "special birthday breakfast" was. um, what? she proceeded to tell me that every year she has a special birthday breakfast. um, okay, sister. so donuts it was! ha! we went shopping and had lunch, and then came home to get ready for her little birthday party.  we kept it really simple this year with a family-only gathering because we were leaving for destin the next week, and wanted to keep it small. 

the birthday girl.  she woke up and said she couldn't wait to see what her "special birthday breakfast" was.  um, what?  she proceeded to tell me that every year she has a special birthday breakfast. um, okay, sister.  so donuts it was! ha!

she got some great presents.  favorite this year was hands down the ben 10 ds game from her aunt sarah, uncle brad, and preston.  she was super excited because we had told her that it was sold out everywhere, and that she shouldn't be disappointed when she opened her presents and didn't get it.  priceless :)

then it was time to sing happy birthday and make a little wish...



and of course, eat some cupcakes!

no emerson gathering would be complete without the mandatory family photos.  this first photo definitely captures what really goes on behind the lens, followed by the picture that would normally be posted.  gotta love reality :)

happy 7th birthday, ava!

family fun on the fourth...

we headed to the in-laws on the fourth of july for some swimming, football, and a cookout. 

preston was ready to go!

his obsession with "gobbles" has continued, and this time he sported these gigantic blue ones.  priceless!

even though he took a time out from swimming to play football, he insisted on wearing his puddle jumper and goggles.  silly boy!



i'm pretty sure ava's only time to get out of the pool was to scarf down a hot dog.  she is a little fish :)

preston was insistent that he could swim all by himself.  little stinker :)

it was hot, so i think everyone was grateful for the pool fun!

this picture of brad and preston cracks me up! like father, like son...

these two pictures are absolutely precious!

one more from our day....the effects of wearing goggles for too long!

it was a great day :)

that's a wrap...

we have come to the end of ava's first grade year.  yesterday we celebrated at school with her end-of-year class party. 

ava's teacher this year, mrs. adams, was amazing.  she made school so fun and enjoyable for ava!  we are definitely sad to be leaving her behind!

ava and a few of her buddies...

today was a half day, and i made her pose for a few photos so i could do a comparison for the first and last day of school this year!

i can tell she's taller, and her face looks so much older!  i cannot believe i have a second grader!

ava,

we are so proud of all you have accomplished this year!  you love reading, and i think its pretty fantastic!  you are such a kind, bright, funny girl, and we think you are pretty awesome. 

xoxo,

mom

a slice of summer...

summer is so close.  we spent a good amount of time outside this past weekend hanging out in the back yard. we lathered on sunscreen and let the kids dump water on our legs and splash in the pool.  a little sneak peek of our weekend ---



a little slice of summer.

building relationships + kindness = ava...

ava was awarded citizen of the month for her 1st grade class for possessing april's character trait "building relationships + kindness". 

on friday, april 27th we attended a special breakfast for the citizens who were chosen, and each child received a certificate and a "coyote" bandanna.  the bandanna can be worn for the entire month of may to symbolize that she was given the award.  she was so excited!

yay ava!  so proud of our girl!  its hard to believe 1st grade is coming to and end!



a visit with peter cottontail...

we stuck with tradition this year, and woke up easter morning with brad, sarah, and preston to see what the easter bunny brought!

the lighting was pretty fantastic, and the kids got to work on finding eggs.  preston was more interested in what was inside the eggs.  he's find one, open it, and proceed to eat whatever it was :)  ava, on the other hand, was just wanting to get every egg outside!

we were able to get a photo of each family and the kiddos together :)

preston also wanted in our picture :)

after some relaxing and naps, the rest of the crew arrived for easter linner :)  too funny, all but one kiddo was in sear sucker -- NOT planned.  apparently, sear sucker really is an easter staple :)

** the shot of preston cracks me up.  clearly, he was over me taking his picture :)

as usual, it was a great day spent with friends and family!

easter weekend photo shoot...

we got fancied up on saturday afternoon and headed to the ranch for a little photo shoot.  sarah and i were a little bummed when we realized that we only got one photo of the kids from the shoot back in november, so we made sure we did theirs first this time!

a few months ago, sarah got some adorable sear sucker shorts for preston to wear on easter.  i was out shopping at the outlets a few weeks before easter and spotted a sear sucker dress for ava.  it was perfect.  this is the first time we have done matchy-matchy with p & a, and i must admit, i think it was pretty stinking adorable.  we really do have some good looking kids!

*the two photos above CRACK me up.  first, all smiles, then ava's face in the second photo is priceless.  i can hear her "reeallllyyyy" just from that look. ha!

*quite possibly my favorite from the day!

Sarah was able to capture some fun shots of our little family yet again! we manage to look like we kind of like each other in these photos [but i promise there are some bitchy images of yours truly in some of the outtakes!]

and here are a few from sarah, brad and preston.  i'm sure she will be posting more on her blog.