Mallory's First Day of School!

Mallory attended a little Montessori school in Idaho, but I really always classified it as "glorified daycare".  I mean, at 2 years old, what can you expect?

But after several months of being out of a classroom setting, we were ALL ready for Mallory to begin a structured education experience!  We found a great little Lutheran Preschool right around the corner from the house, and I registered her back in May.  We have been anticipating this for a LONG TIME!  

Mallory will be attending "Crown of Life" Preschool, and will be going to school M-W-F from 9-12.  Since she still takes such a big nap (and hopefully won't give it up anytime soon- fingers crossed, people!) I didn't want to put her in the full day that goes until 3pm.  But if she ever drops that nap, we may have to consider it!

About 2 weeks before school started, I got a packet from the school with a letter from her teacher, Mrs. Aguirre.  She wanted to call and schedule a HOME VISIT to meet Mallory!  I was beyond impressed!  We set up a day, and talked to Mallory about how her teacher was coming to meet her.  

When the day finally came, Mallory was so very excited- she introduced Mrs. Aguirre to her grandparents and showed her pictures of her daddy.  She also introduced her to many of her "friends", including Buzz Lightyear.  Mrs. Aguirre brought her all the things she needed for school and talked to her about her class.  Mallory let Mrs. Aguirre take her picture for the classroom bulletin board, but barely could stand still for Grandma when she took this picture!

Just 1 week later, we were getting ready to drive to the school for the first time!  Mrs. Aguirre brought Mallory this big red bucket to use for her work.  The school finds that the little ones do much better with a big open bucket then fumbling with a backpack and zippers.  They are responsible for retrieving things out of and putting things into their own buckets throughout the day.

Mallory started school on Wednesday, September 1st.  On Wednesdays, the classes attend Chapel and each child brings an offering.  Mallory was given a little cup and lid to hold her offering- she chose 2 shiny quarters, and put it in her bucket.  Mommy added a picture of her family (as Mrs. Aguirre had requested), Mallory's snack (pretzels and cheese), and a change of clothes.

Mallory's "Breakfast of Champions" for her first day of school.  

This child would seriously die for Dora yogurt- for real!  

(She ate every bite, by the way!)

Eating a big breakfast on her big day!

Trying to get Mallory to sit still for a picture is a skill... seriously!  

Mallory is wearing the dress her Auntie Beth sent her.  She looks so darn cute in it!  

Thank you, Auntie Beth!

Mallory carried her own bucket all the way into the school.  SUCH a big girl!

"HOORAY!!!!!!!  I'M AT SCHOOL!!!!!!!!!"

(Mallory's exact words at this moment!)

This school is small and casual, and very inviting.  We are excited to be a part of it!

They have a computer system to check your child "in" and "out".  Here is the mob of mommies on the first day.

Welcome to your classroom, Mallory!  The teacher's assistant, Mrs. Endicott welcomed her, and invited her to the table where they had COOKIE DOUGH ready for the kids to cut out cookies.  Smart teachers, right?  What a perfect way to endear the kids to them right from the start!

But seriously, that home visit was SUCH a good idea!  Mallory looked forward to seeing her teachers and the classroom she had heard so much about.  She barely noticed when I left!  It was such a blessing!

Every day, there is an agenda posted outside the classroom, so we know what the activities are for the day.  It is SO organized!

There are 11 students in Mallory's class.  7 boys and 4 girls!  

Each child had their name on a worm- here's Mallory's!

Here is Mallory when I picked her up at noon.....They played outside for 30 minutes today, and Mallory was so HOT!  She also had some water that spilled on her, so by the end of the day, she was truly a hot mess!  I didn't mind- I knew she'd sleep WELL today!

We showed Mallory her worm, and she was so excited!  She kept trying to pull it off!

So, school is off to a great start!  Here's to a fabulous year!

Fire Station Birthday Party!

Mallory and I are so fortunate to have long-time friends living right in and around San Antonio.  With Daddy gone, it is truly a joy to be able to reconnect and spend time with friends we made at our first assignment at Laughlin AFB.

One of those precious families is the DeMizio's.  They have a daughter, Callie who will soon be SIX (oh my!) and is too sweet for words, and a little boy, Trevor.  Trevor just turned 4, and for his birthday, we all got invited to the New Braunfels Fire Station!  Mallory was so excited!

The firefighters greeted all of the kiddos with their own fire helmets!  

Mallory's lasted about 2 minutes- but I managed to get a picture!  WOW!

They let the kids all pile into a real fire truck!  

Mallory wasted  no time in getting comfy in the middle seat- see her?

Here is Trevor, with his sister next to him, and Mallory climbing all over everything!  All of the kids were very excited, and the firefighters could not have been more patient and friendly!

Next, they all got to climb into the rescue boat.  Mallory sang the entire "Wonder Pets" theme song.  Who would they rescue today?

Right next door to the firehouse is a firefighter museum.  We got to go sit in some of the vintage fire engines.  Mallory was THRILLED!

All she really wanted to do was turn the handle to make the siren go off!  But we left that to the older kids, like Callie- and of course, the birthday boy himself!

Here is the sweet DeMizio family- Johnny, Jennifer, Callie and Trevor.  

We all had pizza after the fire station adventure!

And Jennifer made these adorable and HUGE cookies for the kids to take home!  Mallory was super excited to eat it after dinner!

And she sure enjoyed the WHOLE thing.... right down to the last crumb!

Thanks for inviting us to your party!  We had such a good time!

Needing some inspiration....

So, I get home from Hawaii, and hit a low note.... really low.  It was so great to see Charles, but having to say good bye again, the worries of the house, and the "I need a vacation from my vacation" syndrome all kicked into gear at once.  I reached out to my comfort zone... FOOD!

On top of that, my parents left for a week to visit my sister before school started, and I was home alone- recipe for disaster.  I ran out and bought every trigger food imaginable... Cheetos, Chocolate, Soda, and I hit the drive through at least once a day.  Thankfully, I stayed very disciplined with my gym routine, so one I snapped out of the damaging cycle two weeks later, I had actually LOST a pound!  Don't ever let anyone tell you that exercising doesn't make a difference.  IT DOES!

What helped me make the change back was this day- getting ready for the gym, and seeing my reflection in the mirror.  I thought I looked pretty good!  But no one was there to take a picture- so I did myself. It wasn't the best photography moment, but it served it's purpose.  I made this my screen-saver, so I looked at it at least 5 times a day.

Today, I got ready for church, and pulled on these white pants for the first time since I bought them 3 weeks ago.  They fit perfectly, and the tank looked great too.  Just 3 more pounds to go before I hit my next milestone- 40 pounds.  I know I can do this!

I hope this post isn't obnoxiously self-centered.  I just want to document the journey I am on, good and bad.  Thankfully, what I SEE is GOOD, and I want MORE of the same!!!!!

The cutest little popsicles on the planet!

I found these little popsicles quite by accident at Wal-Mart a couple of months ago.  They are called "Mighty-Minis" and are advertised as "slow melt for less mess".  Sign me up!  Well, when I opened the package, I was shocked at how small they were!

They are about the size of my pointer finger, and come in all different flavors.  Mallory loves them!  And I love their size.... perfect amount of sugar for a 3-year old, if you ask me!

It only takes her about 5 minutes to eat a whole popsicle, and they hardly ever drip!

I highly recommend these to all you moms out there!  They are great for dieters, too.... just enough of a treat without indulging too much!

Our slight Princess Obsession.....

With this new dress-up phase Mallory is in, we had to upgrade from the suitcase I was cramming everything into.  My mother had the perfect solution (as usual) and set up this tension rod under the clothes rod in Mallory's closet.  We hung all of her princess dresses (at least a dozen) and other tutus, skirts, etc...  Now, our little princess can select what she wants for the day all by herself.

Surprisingly, she is really good at making up her mind and only choosing one at a time.... thank goodness!

I am really lucky to have been given ALL of these costumes by friends and my sister.  I didn't pay for a single one!

And Mallory insisted on the shoes being placed underneath "just like in Mommy's closet".

Have I created a monster....?  Oh well, at least she's a cute, sparkly one!

Baking for our Daddy...

With the new diet I am on, I try to avoid putting myself in situations where I will eat badly.  So, baking has NOT been a priority for me.  But my mother has been the hero in sending Charles batches of cookies and brownies while over in Korea.  Mallory LOVES to cook, so I though Banana Muffins would be a good alternative to the tempting cookie dough, and we set off on a project for our Daddy...

Mallory loves her matching apron and hat from Nanny!

I love the sweet little cherry on top of the hat!

Mallory carefully lined all of the muffin tins with papers...

"I'm sending this box to my Daddy in Korea!"

...but this bed is just right!

The other day, I was having a lazy morning with Mallory, and decided to let her sit up on my bed to watch some TV.  She set herself all up with her blanket, friend, toys and snack.

Awesome..... but where is JD?  He usually sleeps in until 10am or later.....

I looked all over the house for him, and guess where he was- taking the opportunity to stake his claim on Mallory's bed!

He has been DYING to get in bed with Mallory, but she doesn't like the idea so much- he weighs just as much as she does, and tends to lay on TOP of her somewhere.  He was clearly thrilled with the idea of having her little bed all to himself!

So, both of my children were happily spoiled for the moment.  

Now.....where is Mommy supposed to sleep again?