First Day of School 2011

Holy Moly! I can't believe how quickly this summer flew by. It was definitely a very eventful summer with the move and all. Broc and Brady both started school in mid August. Broc is in the 3rd grade and Brady started Kindergarten. Kindergarten is full day, 5 days a week, so Brady and Broc both have the same schedule. Broc's teacher is Ms. Sheibel and Brady's teacher is Ms. Newton. We had the chance to meet them both the evening before the first day of school. We liked both teachers very much and are looking forward to a great school year.

Their school is brand new this year. It is absolutely beautiful! They boys are excited about the huge gym, music room, art room and multiple computer labs and library. We have been really impressed with the school system in South Carolina so far. Broc was really excited that he gets to ride the bus this year. He has never ridden the bus before, so to him this is soooo cool! Brady was pretty excited too. He was nervous, but Broc offered to walk him to class every morning until he got the hang of things.

The boys have been off to a great start with school and are both doing great. Their teachers are wonderful, the principle has been great and the school nurse is amazing. We are so grateful for the opportunity the boys have been given to go to such a fantastic school.

Both boys did great their first day. They were both a little but nervous, but mostly excited to meet new friends. They didn't shed a tear... I on the other hand wasn't so lucky! It was sad for Jesse and I to have both of our boys at school all day long. It is a little strange not having kids at home during the day anymore, but I am glad that they are enjoying school and learning so much.

The Big 2 - 8

I recently celebrated my 28th Birthday. The boys told me the night before that I could not go in their room because they were making a "Surprise" for me. The next morning Brady came in my room, woke me up and told me that there was a lizard in the house. Since this really had happened the week before... I believed him. I jumped out of bed to find homemade signs all over the kitchen and living room. They boys had spent a long time making them the night before. What a sweet surprise.

That afternoon we headed to downtown Charleston to get some lunch. We ate at an awesome place called "The Buccaneer". They have great food and really fun things to look at. They have old pirate things on display dating back to the 1500's. We took a few pictures while we were eating, the first one is Jesse's favorite. Brady's face is hilarious!





I had a wonderful birthday and spent it with my three favorite people. Keeping my fingers crossed for another wonderful year.

Must be missin' Idaho...

This past summer the boys came into the office dressed like this...


I am thinking that they were missing Idaho, missing Grandpa Jeff, Missing the ranch... and missing the horses! All I know is they are the cutest cowboys I have ever seen.

Visit from Grandma

This past July my Mom came to visit. I wish I would have taken more pictures with my camera. Good thing I can always count on my Mom to take a TON of pictures. She always told me that one day I would thank her for torturing us with her little photo shoots... It's true. I love looking through her photos and it seems like I always forget my camera. Thankfully she sent us a whole bunch of photos from her trip, I just don't have many pictures on my computer, so this post only has one photo, which was taken with my cell phone and isn't the best quality. Sorry!

My Mom was supposed to come to the beach house with us, but she had Typhoid fever. What's that you ask... who in the word still gets Typhoid fever? My Mom does! In June, she and my Dad went on vacation to Peru. Apparently my Mother had a lapse in judgement because she decided to go cliff jumping into a lake full of parana. You know, because their tour director told her they were docile. Just in case you need a little refresher, this is what a pirana looks like.

I don't think docile and parana should go in the same sentence. Their are a couple of rules you follow when you go to Peru... 1) DO NOT DRINK THE WATER, and 2) DON'T SWIM WITH PARANA. She already got bit by a fish before, you would have thought she would have learned. At any rate, my Mom decided that it looked fun to swing off of a rope swing into the parana infested water, once she got swinging she started to have second thoughts, but there was not turning back. She screamed the entire way down. Needless to say her mouth was wide open as she plunged into the water. She broke both rules in a matter of seconds. She didn't get bit by a parana, but she did come out of the experience with Typhoid fever. I won't go into detail, I will just tell you that she was incredibly sick. She was hospitalized and never made it to the beach house.

We were able to change her plane tickets so she could still come visit us during the summer. We had an absolute ball while she was here. It was very hard to say goodbye when it was time for her to fly back to Idaho. Both of the boys cried, as did Jesse and I. I think having her here this summer was the boys favorite memory. They had so much fun swimming, going to the aquarium, walking to Target, touring downtown, going on carriage rides and just hanging out at home. Thanks for coming Mom. We love you so much!!

We can't wait for my Mom and Dad to come for Thanksgiving.

Afternoon on Sullivans Island

Having the ocean so near to home has truly been one of our favorite things about living in South Carolina. It is wonderful to be able to throw a couple of sandwiches and a few drinks in the cooler and be to the beach in 5 minutes. Broc and Brady love the beach. They love digging in the sand and playing in the ocean. This particular trip to the beach, we found over 20 sand dollars. The sand dollars were still living, we found them in the sand just off of the shore line. The boys also brought home a couple of star fish. We had a ball just relaxing in the sun and enjoying our day together.

Pictures of our new house

I finally took a few pictures of our new house. I have had people asking me for months, "when are you going to post pictures of your new place?" We are absolutely loving our new house and all that Charleston has to offer. I have to say, we are really enjoying the climate this time of year. It is finally starting to cool off a bit and we don't have to worry about snow falling any time soon! It has been absolutely gorgeous here this past week.

Here are a few pictures of our new house. I am not very good at photographing rooms, but you will get the general idea...

FRONT VIEW


BACK YARD



ENTRY


FORMAL DINING ROOM
(As you can see...we still have to buy a table)


LIVING ROOM


KITCHEN



SCREENED PORCH
(My favorite room in the house. We spend a lot of time out here together.)


LAUNDRY ROOM


MASTER SUITE
I am not adding any pictures of our bedroom because I still have not bought a comforter set for our new bed. But, here is a view of what we wake up to every morning. I absolutely love the view from our room. It is the best view in the whole house!

We have really enjoyed having a larger bathroom. We have never had a jetted tub before and having two separate sinks has been a huge plus! We also have a large walk-in closet in the bathroom. That is REALLY nice!


OFFICE
(This is where we spend 90% of our time)



BROC'S ROOM
(Broc and Brady's room adjoin with a "Jack-n-Jill" bathroom)


BRADY'S ROOM


GUEST BEDROOM
(This room also has it's own bathroom. Someone PLEASE come visit us and put this room to use!)


Well, there you have it. They aren't the best pictures, but I am sure you get the gist. Hope you have a fabulous week!

Whoot-Whew!!

A few weeks ago I had to take a picture of Jesse so that his picture could be added to our work website. I know I have a bias opinion seeing as how I am married to the man, but.... IS IT JUST ME, OR IS HE SERIOUSLY GOOD LOOKING?????? Boy oh boy am I grateful for this man! Jesse is the best husband and Dad. I truly could not ask for anything more. I am so blessed to have him by my side forever.