Sarah Avery is 5!

The past couple of weeks have been pretty momentous for our little Sarah Avery.   She attended a week of Kindergarten Prep, made two new friends, turned 5, and had a petting zoo birthday party.  All of these transitions haven't been without a little stress (and sometimes weeping and gnashing of teeth) but we have tried our best to cherish the good moments and we are so incredibly proud of how amazing and brave Sarah Avery was during kindergarten prep.  Here are the pictures. 

Our elementary school does a great job of preparing the kindergartners for their first day.  This was taken at one of the playdates that the PTA organizes for the new kids to meet each other.  Sarah Avery clambered right to the top of the tower without hesitation.   Just like big sis.  

She was pretty nervous on Day 1 of K-prep but she was even more brave and walked right in with her head held high. 

And a smile on her face. 

Susannah and I took advantage of the rare Mommy/Susannah time and got a pedicure together.  

We had so much fun spending out mornings together that week.

We had Sarah Avery's 5th birthday party on the following Saturday morning.  

She wanted a petting zoo like the one she had when she turned 3 so we kept the barnyard theme going with these party favors.  

The animals didn't arrive until after the guests so we had coloring sheets and backyard toys out to keep everybody busy.  

Before we knew it, the zoo was here and all set up. 

The girls were pretty delighted.

The bunnies were a big hit.

And the goats, Hershey and Cream puff

Susannah liked the baby chicks.

SA and her friend Corinne loved playing with the mini horse.

SA loved all the animals and had so much fun with them all morning long.

The bunnies were a hit with everybody.

The girls loved brushing  the horse's tail too.

We all went out to the front yard to watch the animals be loaded back into their truck.

Fun, fun. 

Then it was cake time. 

And present time!

The girls loved watching SA open the presents they brought her.  

We had really hot weather that week, so the girls helped their Daddy keep the flowers watered. 

Having a backyard party is always great because it forces you to do the yardwork you have been putting off.

Peter had a couple of days off the following week so we headed down to the Natural History Museum to check out the dinosour exhibit.  

It had been closed for restoration the entire time we have lived here so it was really neat to finally check it out. 

The T-Rex.

I don't remember what this thing was but it looked cool.  ;)

Downstairs they had a really cool kids section with lots of hand-on exhibits that the girls loved.  

SA's party was before her actual birthday, so on her real birthday, we let her open her gifts from Grammy and Susannah.  This horse for her American Girl Doll from Grammy was a huge hit.  She named it Splotches.  

Peter and I started our next round of training on Friday so the girls stayed with their beloved Ms. Allison.   She took them to the zoo.  

And to their favorite place, her house.  They love her dog Wren and are always so happy to see her. 

And then last night we topped off the month long birthday celebration with dinner at SA's favorite restaurant.  

Nobody could wait for a proper picture to be taken before digging in.  ;) 

And now we are down to our very last week before school starts.  We are all more than ready to get back into a routine.   Sarah Avery, we love you to the moon and back and are so very proud of you.

Family Vacation

We are back in Alexandria after a fun-filled 10 day excursian to the southeast.  We spent a glorious week on the coast with Aunt Liz, Uncle Will, Uncle Hollis and all the cousins.  And then we had a few fun days with Mimi and Poppy.   Here are all the highlights:

The night before our flight was Susannah's music camp persormance at church.  She and Rose and Savannah did great!

Sarah Avery was there to support her big sis.

Susannah sang her heart out.

The next morning we had an early flight to Atlanta, then a five hour drive to Perdido Key, FL.  

It was a long day, but this view made it totally worth it.

We were so excited to spend the week with Peter's family.  We hit the Shrimp Basket for all you can eat popcorn shrimp on our second night.  

After dinner walks were our favorite part of the week.

The sky was a different watercolor painting every night and we tried to soak up every moment.

We ended up switching rooms after the first day because we wanted a balcony far from the pool noise.  It worked out great because our view was even better from our new room.  

And we had a third bedroom which was perfect because Uncle Hollis and baby Presley arrived that day.

These three had so much fun playing together all week.

We switched off nights cooking dinner.  This was our first family dinner....spaghetti was on the menu.

Carb loading for the next beach day.

The newest cousin was Baby Luke.  He was precious and made everything more fun.

We spent one day mid week at Adventure Island and Flora-Bama.  It was a nice break from the beach.  SA was my go-cart partner. 

Then it was time for the girls to try their hand at the junior carts.  

SA only made it half a lap before plowing into a wall so she called it a day.  ;)

Next stop, paddle boats.  

We saw a couple of turtles but no gators. 

After all that paddling, it was time for some AC so we bought some tokens and headed to the arcade.

Fun, Fun!

After a quick stop at Souvenir City to buy some treasures, we headed to Flora-Bama for lunch.

This iconic place sits on the Florida/Alabama line and is a beachside tradition in the area.

That night we got to celebrate Jack's four year old birthday with a paw patrol party!

We were so happy to get to celebrate with him. 

Another day, another beautiful day in front of the water. 

All the cousins minus baby Luke.

The two four year old cousins. 

Susannah and Clara Kate were so happy to spend the week together. 

Beach memories with my girls.  

This guy hung out next to our beach spot every single morning so I had to take a picture. 

Peter rented a kayak for the week and enjoyed a little fishing in between ferry rides with different children.  The girls loved it. 

Our last night we ate in to get rid of leftovers and then headed to the beach for one last walk and some photos. 

We were lucky because the sky put on its most beautiful show yet.

Couldn't love them more.  They are the perfect age for a vacation now and this week with them and their Daddy was a highlight of the year for sure. 

Family pic......we were sad that Uncle Hollis and Presley were already gone for this.  

I would never tire of these walks.  Perfection.

Obligitory last photos before we hit the road.  

It was so hard to leave but we were rested and thankful.

And we had a visit to Mimi and Poppy to look forward to.  

Mimi and Poppy had a beautiful birthday cake for Sarah Avery.

It was fun to get the birthday festivities started a little early. 

Then it was present time!

Some new clothes for her American Doll were a big hit.

And some beaituful back to school clothes for kindergarten!

We spent the next morning with my friend Leah and her new kittens.  SA was beside herself. 

We spent another day at the pool with Aunt Beth, cousins Sidney and Emma and a couple of their friends.  

More fun in the sun.  

It's a shame they are so shy.   ;)

Lunch at Charlie Josepsh's completed the day.  

And that completes our last family trip of the summer.  We have a few more weeks of summer fun, but school is just around the corner.  Thanks to all of our family for making this trip such a memorable one.  We love you all!