"CAMERON CRAZIES"

The following weekend was my turn to have a dream come true. Live and in person I got to witness the "Cameron Crazies" I can't believe it has taken me this long but it was well worth the wait. It was absolutely awesome sitting in Cameron Indoor Stadium for a home game. Several of visits in my life have been down to Duke but never for an actual game or a personal hug from the DUKE BLUE DEVIL himself. In my mind this picture is priceless and I get a smile from cheek to cheek just thinking about the moment...then again all the moments during my 24hrs. down there.

I left the kids with Skylar and met my Dad down in Durham. He was there on business and scored us the tickets. Even just a Daddy daughter day would get me excited but then you go and add Duke to the equation and it was just bliss. We had a great time walking through campus, buying stuff at the bookstore, going down memory lane in the Duke Basketball Museum, experiencing the game, people watching and meeting several of the other teams players as they were at our hotel, chatting, jogging through the gardens and I can't forget the GAME!!!!!!

Thanks Dad for an amazing time and for making another dream come true. You can fully appreciate and comprehend the craziness till you see the "crazies" in person!!!!!

GO DUKE!

While Sky was busy we girls were busy

My sports addicted husband planned a crazy but dream come true trip for himself up to South Bend for the Utah, Notre Dame football game on Nov. 13th. His Dad and best friend both flew in to join him for the game and Skylar was willing to drive 12 hours to get there. Instead of being left home the girls and I caught a ride up to Charlottesville to hang out with the "Briarwood hood!" Sky had an absolute blast despite some rain and a Utah loss while we had an absolute blast with friends who we had been dearly missing.

First on the agenda was Kylee heading back to Baker-Butler Elementary to surprise her good friends Lydia and Lara for lunch. It was so precious watching them back together again.

The Medders took great care of us the first night and the kids moved from one activity to the next. Kylee was so excited to have a sleepover with Lara. I don't think I even really saw Kylee for about 24hrs straight. The following night we crashed at the Budge household where Lexi couldn't wait to be with Chloe and celebrate her birthday. These two were darling as they attempted their first sleepover which basically was a long cuddle and book reading...better luck next time. Alexis has always been so proud of her friendship with Chloe. "Chloe is my friend!" Kylee was in non stop movement mode the entire weekend soaking up as much friend time as possible and even made it over to Lydia's to celebrate her birthday with her.

Thanks friends for a great weekend get away and for friendships that can pick up where we left off. You know our door is always open for you too.

Halloween Season

Thank goodness holidays are never just one day long! Celebrating normally goes on for an entire month. I love this time of year as one holiday just follows another making life extra fun and exciting in my eyes and of course the kiddos. Halloween Season began with the girls sporting their Halloween Target attire while making Skylar's birthday cake. (You all know you've bought it one time or another and "yes" these are outfits purchased the year before on mega sale:)
The girls anxiously awaited the "TRUNK or TREAT" as they had been eyeing their pink pumpkins for weeks and Lexi told us over and over how she wanted to fill her pumpkin to the top with candy.
They both were fairies this night as Lexi was dying to dress like her sister and we didn't have her Belle costume yet. Kylee was nice enough to go along for the evening as she specifically told us she didn't want to be the same thing as her sister this year.
Everyone did a great job with their trunks and I am always impressed with each ward we have been a part of. One family even had automatic horses to ride which both girls got a kick out of. One of Kylee's highlights was Rob and Miranda's trunk when a HAND came out and grabbed her as she got her candy. Alexis quickly moved forward at this point and Kylee insisted on going back later. They even climbed in and tried themselves. They would have stayed in that trunk forever especially when their favorite babysitter, Riley joined them.Alexis was "BEAUTIFUL BELLE" at her preschool Halloween party and for Halloween. She was ecstatic when it came in the mail from her cousin Saylor and immediately put it on. It was worn every day that week. She thinks belle has the prettiest dress of all the princesses because it is silky and to her twirls the most. It was absolutely adorable watching her pick the front up so she wouldn't trip on it and listening to her request glitter and make-up every time the girls got dressed in their costumes.
We had a great time together at her Preschool party. This was my first time getting to hang out in her class and we ate it up together. Many of the girls in her class dressed up as different princesses and she took it upon herself to name each one for me and was thankful there were no duplicates. With a little coaching she was willing to let me turn her into a Mummy and insisted on bringing home a roll of toilet paper to do it again. The Halloween treats were darling and Lexi had a blast handing out the treat bags she helped me make for each classmate. She kept asking when it was time to pass them out.

For the first time ever we finally took the time to trace the new intricate patterns on the pumpkins for carving and thankfully Skylar got into it as it is just not my thing. I will say they turned out pretty cool and we loved finally having a front porch to display them on. I love how Kylee gets so into everything we do and despite the gooey insides this year she dug in. I can't help but say...this girl is just so dang cute!
Kylee was into the vampire teeth this year and when she finally got a pair she had a blast with them and couldn't wait to take them into class to show them off.
My little fairy and princess made Halloween a blast and I loved getting them all ready. We still have candy left and I'm wondering when I will finally stop hearing can I have another piece of candy!!!!

FIRSTS...

This season has been full of a ton of firsts and now that most of it has passed I can say that we are adjusting well. We lucked out with 2 extra weeks of Summer. I was frantically getting paperwork turned into the school as I assumed it started around the end of August and was shocked when I heard them say, "We will see you on Sept. 1st for meet your teacher night" I quickly thought, shouldn't that be before school starts and then noticed that the first day wasn't until after Labor Day. Kylee was absolutely thrilled to discover she had even more time. She was so nervous to start at a new place and I wasn't even allowed to mention the word school the entire month of August. I could barely get her to say 2 words to the principal when we met her. I am happy to say that she is enjoying school and feels totally comfortable there. She is working so hard at making friends and impresses us all the time with how mature she acts about school situations. She goes with a smile and comes home with a smile and that is more than a mom could ask for at this point.
On the same day Alexis started pre-school. She is going on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. I would have been a wreck but my parents were still in town and held me together that day. However, it all came out by Thursday as both of my girls were gone again. Lexi pretty much flew right in as she has been excited to have her own experiences but is now struggling a little bit. She looked so grown up with her lunch box in hand and sitting with her little class. One of her favorite things to do is share what she has made in pre-school with Ky when she gets off the bus. My favorite part of the day is the hug I receive when I pick her up.
Grandma and Grandpa were here for Labor Day weekend and Kylee was surprised with something she has been begging for for a long time. Ky got her FIRST American Girl Doll and is in heaven. (the beauty is that she has no idea it came from a garage sale)

Just a few days later Kylee lost her FIRST front tooth. It is just crazy how different they look once one of these teeth come out. The tooth fairy almost forgot to come and redeemed herself with a five dollar bill!!!!

The girls also started their FIRST dance class this fall. Kylee was a little skeptical but once she realized she knew most of the girls in her class from church she was ready to go. She is willing to give ballet a try in order to have TAP which she enjoys the most. Alexis on the other hand has been all smiles from the minute I mentioned she was going to take dance and insisted on having a tutu. She is just eating this experience up and looks absolutely darling. My favorite part is probably the outfits.

I also had the chance of taking Alexis on her FIRST field trip. Despite getting lost on our way and Lexi having 2 different melt downs in front of the class we had a great time together. I love getting to spend one on one time with the girls and enjoyed seeing how happy she was at each event. Her favorite was the hay ride. I'm trying to get her to make friends but her best friend is definitely her big sister and she even made sure we took a pumpkin home to her so she wouldn't feel left out.

Just a few weeks later Alexis and I joined Kylee on her FIRST field trip of the season to the Zoo. It is always a good feeling to see how excited she is when I arrive at things and I hope that will last forever. I'm sure this is wishful thinking...time will tell.

Beach Beach and more BEACH!

We love the beach, our visitors love the beach and the beach is only 30min away....so that means, WE GO TO THE BEACH and enjoy it every time!

Between moving here at the end of July and the middle of September we probably visited the Beach almost every weekend. We have packing our gear up down to a Science and have learned what time we have to make it to the parking lot by for free parking. Some of our first purchases when we got here were beach chairs, beach umbrella and boogie boards. This all came before the lawn mower or any house necessities.

A definite highlight is probably the dolphin sitings almost every time we go. It is just amazing to watch as they swim by in groups and often appear to be putting on their own little show.

Our adventures to the beach are always more fun with others as you can see:

Our good friends the Borgs came down to visit only a few weeks after arriving here but those few weeks felt like an eternity in our children's eyes and we even had to make a count down chain in anticipation. The kids were in heaven and had an absolute blast together at the beach. All day wasn't enough as we continually said, "5 more minutes and then we have to pack up" I was able to sit back and just watch most of the day. :) Kylee is always more adventurous in the ocean when she has others to do it with and now after several trips she has it down. This trip was the beginning of boogie boarding as the 3 older girls lived on these tiny surf boards. The size never bothered them but I knew Ky was ready for a real boogie board and so were her thighs after the sand burn they had received from this day of non-stop fun.After a few more visits she has graduated to this and can't wait to do it with her friends.


Alexis gives it a quick attempt at times but can't stand any salt water getting in her eyes. Her favorite thing is to be held in the ocean as we jump over the waves for her. She often puts her head down on our shoulders and just rests. Occasionally she gets hit by what she calls a "Slapper" (a wave that breaks and manages to splash her) and loves it when we get plenty of "Rollers." She is our snack aholic and is often found under the umbrella munching away or playing in the sand singing to herself.

Building sand castles and catching any sea creature possible is always an adventure. Lexi has followed in her sisters footsteps and has no fear of them. She enjoys taking care of the crabs and collecting jellies.

The fabulous Budge family came down from Charlottesville for a quick trip which we packed full with the beach. Alexis and her best friend Chloe picked up right where they had left off. Chloe was Lexi's first real friend and we miss her dearly. These 2 are so cute together. I was longing for a friend to chat with and Erin is always there for me so we pretty much talked each others ears off for 24 hrs. Kylee loves that when people come to visit it means she gets to have a sleepover and was just thrilled to have Nia spend the night in her room...don't get me wrong the beach was a blast too as it always is. What can I say...FRIENDS are the BEST and right now we are missing them all dearly.

Ryan and his girlfriend Leisa visited for a week and the girls had a blast being their shadow. We had a great time at the beach, Bush Gardens and up at the boardwalk.

Kylee had been begging for weeks to try out the group bikes up at the boardwalk and we told her we would when uncle ry ry came to visit....and we did. Skylar was our crazy driver and Ryan was our conservative back seat driver with Leisa and I apparently along for the ride according to the guys as the chain came off on our side for maybe a minute but to them it equaled the entire trip. The girls enjoyed laughing and Lex was a trooper as we drugged her up to go and took her with a fever and still made it for the fireworks on the beach. We stopped on our bike ride for some great shots on the turtles.We enjoyed a fun Labor Day weekend with my parents and sadly didn't take one picture but as always had a blast at the beach and enjoyed going to the Aquarium for our first time.

Skylar's Mom came out for her first visit the beginning of October and was here to enjoy the Neptune's Festival with us which included an amazing sand sculpting contest up at the beach. This was just incredible and none of us had seen anything like it. Getting soaking wet in the rain didn't stop us.

All in all the BEACH has always been a big part of our lives and now just became even BIGGER! and as you can see...VISITORS ARE ALWAYS WELCOME!

After only 1 year...but VA beach is calling!

We knew our time in Charlottesville would be short but we never knew we would make such life long friendships in such a short period of time. Thank goodness we are only 3 hours away and many of them have already come to visit. We had so many great friends living in the same neighborhood making it convenient to just hangout and play all the time. Kylee was at the point that she didn't even knock when she went 2 doors down. These great ladies wondered what they could do to help and my response was, "Let's go shopping and out for ice cream!" I was in dire need of a girls night out. Yeah and Yeah they helped in many other ways too.Can I stuff you all in a box and take you with me. I am ready to move on to new places but not without ya. Thanks for teaching me sooooo much and being such wonderful examples.

We managed to get the place packed while fitting in as many last minute playdates, swim lessons and get togethers as possible. Kylee pretty much lived at our neighbors house our last few days there and when told it was time to finally come home was found here under the bathroom sink hiding for a long time as we really couldn't find them. I still can't believe they fit under the bathroom sink and didn't eventually come out from pure pain or sweat. The things she will do to stay with friends! I can't blame her.

Well, we promised the kids they could play in the moving truck and PLAY they did. Their creative minds came up with all sorts of ideas. We even had a picnic lunch inside the truck. They were at it from the morning Sky arrived with it till bedtime. At one point I wondered why all the girls were hiding from me and then saw the ramp to the truck covered in small little seeds they had collected. When I asked, what they were doing there my innocent (yeah right) little Kylee said, "We are setting a trap, the ramp is supposed to be slippery so you or dad will fall and be a little hurt so we won't be able to leave." I never knew a sentence could be so horrible and sweet at the same time. We woke up the next morning to a car that had been attacked with darling signs and sweet going away presents from our friends. With many tears passed we finally finished loading up and were on our way with promises made that they all had to come and visit. Skylar had the girls in the truck, Ted drove the Jeep and I was alone in the minivan allowing me to reflect and get ready for our next journey.We arrived to this and this helping my hurting heart but no things can replace true friendships. The girls had a blast exploring the house and we love its location. YES it has a guest room! For the next long while we will be renting since you all know how hard it is for me to make decisions and I have so much over the next couple of years to figure out...this area is huge. I do feel like we found a great neighborhood and good schools. Kylee made sure we made it up to the beach within our first 24 hrs. I mean really who needs to unpack. Priorities are Priorities. This is Sky and Ky pointing at our first of many dolphin sitings.
Skylar has worked so hard and we are extremely thankful he has hit the end of his training. He was blessed with some amazing teachers at Penn State and UVA where he met wonderful doctors and has always been apart of a team with people he respects. We are thankful for his training but also the amazing connections it provided as we have now learned that even in medicine your world is more open based on who you know. WOW, Skylar has a JOB...a real one!

Being in a new area not knowing anybody and it being in the middle of the summer with no scheduled events going on as Skylar headed off to his new job was a little overwhelming. However, me and the girls pulled out crafts and activities that I had stored up over the year that we hadn't had time to do while we counted down the days between each visitor. We also filled our time unpacking, shopping craigslist, over analyzing which TV sky should get, baking at our new kitchen island with the girls (a vision that has come true) and trying to keep cool. We quickly learned of open swim at the stake pres. pool where we began to meet some people in our ward.

Numerous baths have been taken in Mom and Dad's tub which has JETS providing endless bubbles...an absolute dream come true to these little girls! They also love the gigantic mirror around it which they dance and sing in front of all the time.

We also had a great morning of finger painting with pudding which quickly turned into ice skating along the kitchen floor and finished with Mom caring them up to the shower.With the move I have sure enjoyed watching these two cling to each other. Pretty neat to know that where ever you go your family comes along with ya. There relationship has grown so much and they truly love being with each other. Alexis is normally more excited to show or tell Kylee something than me.