First Day of School

Lauren began her first day of FIRST GRADE last Monday! We are so proud of her. She loves to go to school and was so excited the night before, she could hardly sleep! I had flashbacks to my own first days of school growing up. It is funny how exciting it is to begin a new school year. Even in college, the first day of classes was always exciting and fun. (That would of course fade very quickly, once the loads of homework and studying for exams began!) I am amazed at how quickly Lauren's kindergarten year passed by and I am sure first grade will be no different. The old cliche really is true...they do grow up too fast! Gracie looks so much like Lauren did as a baby and looking at her always takes me back to that first year after Lauren was born. Now she will be 7 years old in a few months! Lauren is the sweetest little girl. She is loving and kind-hearted. She loves her baby sister with all of her heart and always tries to make her brother laugh whenever he is sad. One of the things that I love most about her is her beautiful heart. She cares for others in the purest, most innocent way. It is pretty amazing to see her untainted view of the world. I thank God every day for the gift that she is to us. I took this picture of her on her first day, just before she went into her classroom. She is standing in the first grade hallway and her excitement was just bubbling over. It will be another great memory for me and Aaron!

A Great Vacation

It has been a while since my last post and so I thought I'd give a quick update on all that we have been doing. Given the emotional heaviness of the last few weeks, Aaron and I were very excited to be taking our family on an end of the summer vacation. We had a wonderful time spending a week at my family's beach house in Seacrest Beach, Florida. Seacrest is located on the panhandle of Florida, between Panama City Beach and Destin. It is just a few miles from some more well-known beaches, such as Seaside and Rosemary Beach. It provides a heavenly retreat for us whenever we have the opportunity to visit. My parents have gone to great lengths to provide a vacation spot where we can all go and still feel at home. It is so refreshing to be there and yet still be surrounded by the familiar things of home. There are family photos throughout the house, toys for the kids, our family's favorite movies to watch and old beach chairs that my parents used to sit in and watch my sisters and I play on the beach. I walk through the house and I feel the warmth of my parents love for their children and grandchildren. It provides us all with exactly what we need...relaxation!

Lauren and Jake have fun posing for the camera!

Lauren waits for a ride on the golf cart!

Lauren loves to be knocked over by the waves while she searches for shells!

Gracie and Aaron dry off after a morning swim!

There's nobody cooler than Jake!