New life!

Every Spring for the past few years, a bird of some kind (it varies from year to year) decides to build a nest on one of our bedroom window sills. Always the same window (we have two) and always the same end of the sill. Why this particular spot is so popular is beyond me--it's not nearly a big enough space to actually build a nest! We've watched momma birds very carefully intertwine twigs, leaves, blades of grass, etc. over the course of a week or two, only to have their new home roll off of the ledge and land on our front porch, a result of even the weakest breeze. This usually happens three or four times before the nest decides to stay put; what the bird does differently at this point, I don't know. And why she doesn't learn after the first time and take up residence somewhere else is a mystery to me, too! Nevertheless, once she is sure that the nest is secure, she sits......and sits.....and sits......and after a few weeks, we see the fruits of her labor! There are usually one or two eggs--and more often than not, one of them tends to roll out of the nest onto our porch before it has a chance to hatch. :( This year, though, our momma dove (who only laid one egg), rarely left the nest and hovered over her new offspring until it was able to fly on its own. I kept forgetting to snap a picture of the eggs, but I did get a few of the baby bird with it's mom! Oh, and everyday when we'd get home from school/work, the boys raced upstairs to tap on the window and say "Hi" to "Mommy Bird." Tyler was actually the first to notice that the egg had hatched, which he was, of course, very proud of! ;)

You can see the baby's head peaking out from behind Mom on the right side.

What was left of the egg after it hatched.

Columbia Daze Weekend

Every year, we join our SLU Band friends in Columbia, IL for the hands-down BEST parade we've ever been to. Never in my life have I been to a parade that begins with 18 firetrucks/ambulances. Seriously! And enough candy to last our kids for a year; and if you stick around afterward, you could easily fill a plastic bag with what the kids DIDN'T pick up! Dave's sister and her girls, Taylor and Brenna, have come with us a couple of times and it's so much fun. After the parade, we drove over to the Community Park for great food, music, and carnival rides. The kids had a blast!

Connor and Brenna enjoying an ice cream treat at Mama Carol's house (last night).

We started today with Tyler's soccer game.

Then, after lunch and naps, we headed to Columbia, found a shady spot close to the street, and waited for the parade to start.

Here they come!

Connor LOVES firetrucks!

Taylor and Taylor are ready to fill their bags with candy; Brenna and Connor are sporting some of the beads that they caught.

They threw money to us!

Me and my sis-in-law

The kids had a great time on the ferris wheel!

What a fun day!

Awww........

Less than 10 minutes into the drive home...

Group photo before Deb and the girls return to Aurora.

First Day of School

Today was Tyler's first day of Kindergarten--a day that he has been excited about for a long time. He's never been shy and has never had issues adjusting to a new environment or people. That being said, I still wasn't prepared for him to insist on riding the bus on his first day. I asked him three times this morning if he was sure that he didn't want me to drive him to school. His response every time was, "No, Mom. I want to ride the bus; it'll be fun!" So, I drove him to the bus stop, and though he did hold back a little when he saw all of the "big kids" standing together, he walked right toward the doors of the bus when it arrived, never turning back to look at me. He plopped down in the second row, spotted me through the window, and very excitedly waved to me as the bus pulled away from the stop--with the cheesiest grin on his face that I think I've ever seen. :)

Oh, and since I felt kind of "left out" not being able to drive him to school, I decided to follow the bus and capture a few more moments from Tyler's very first day.

My handsome little man

Our neighbors, Marcus and Ebony, greeted Tyler with smiles and hugs at the bus stop.

His ship has come in! :)

Made it to school!

Saying "Good Morning" to Miss Skidis was #1 on his agenda.

Tyler and Mikey, one of his new friends.

Tyler made this picture for Miss Skidis on his last day of preschool. His class was asked to draw what they're looking forward to the most in Kindergarten.

Beth and I with our big boys!

Waiting at the door with the other "car riders" after school.

As a special treat, I took Tyler out to his daycare after school to visit his teacher & friends, since it was an early dismissal day at school.

Tyler and his best buds from preschool: John, Lucas, and Landon.

Then, we met Daddy at Noodles for lunch!

Followed by a yummy ice cream treat at Ben & Jerry's!

Afterward, we headed back to preschool to catch up with a few more of Tyler's teachers. He adores Miss Kaelyn and has always had fun clowning around with Mrs. Jennifer and Miss Alicia.

This is what Miss Skidis handed out to each of her students today. I thought it was cute and worth sharing. :)

Last Day of Preschool

This morning, we dropped Tyler off at daycare for the last time. What a bittersweet feeling it was. :(

Tyler and his buddy, Landon

After we drop Tyler off, we have to walk past his classroom window to get to the parking lot. He has stood at that window faithfully EVERY morning for the past year waiting to wave to us as we walk by; and we always stop together to blow him a kiss and give him the thumbs-up sign (our way of telling him to have a great day).

Goodbye MBCC and Kindergarten Open House

Tyler only has a couple of days of preschool left, then it's off to Kindergarten. When we picked him up today, it happened that he was one of only four kids in his class waiting to be picked up. And the other three were "his girls"--Hannah, Allison, and Emma. He's talked about them constantly for the past year and really enjoys hanging out with them. I decided to snap a few pictures of them since my camera was conveniently in the car. :)

This is the sign that Tyler and his classmates made.

One of the last times that Tyler will be drawing and coloring with his girls

All of the kids really love Ms. Mary, the Center Director.

Tonight, we met Dave's parents and my mom at Tyler's new school for Kindergarten Open House. Tyler thought it would be a good idea to show Connor that he's able to fit in his locker. This led to Connor stepping into the locker next to Tyler and both boys yelling, "Lock the door! Lock the door!"

Tyler and one of his new friends, Mikey.

Papa Dave, Mama Carol, Mama Jeanie, with their new Kindergartener.

We ended our evening with a trip to Tropical Sno--my favorite!

Our Little Book Worm

Every night after we finish reading and tuck Connor in, we put all of his books on his nightstand......and when we check on him a couple of hours later on our way to bed, this is typically what we find.

A Ride in Papa's Truck and Tyler's First Sleepover

Dave's dad had to drive the camper back to the storage facility in Columbia, and he knows how much Connor LOVES riding in his truck, so he offered to take him along. Doesn't he look like there's no where else he'd rather be? :)

Tyler was so excited about his very first sleepover--he's staying at his friend, Lucas', house and I'm sure that they had a great time today. We dropped him off this afternoon and hung out with Lucas' parents for awhile. They're such nice people and have been trying to work out a night for Tyler to come over for weeks now. Since it's been difficult finding a Friday or Saturday night that worked for both of us, Lucas' mom suggested a Sunday night. Since the boys go to daycare together, it'll work out perfectly. AND Tyler will get to sleep in tomorrow. :)