First Day of School

My beautiful baby is in school. She started Kindergarten on September 4th and so I am a few weeks late posting this but that is no surprise. She is doing great. She did great the first day and came home saying they told them a lot of rules but she had fun and was excited about school. We only got pictures with a few of the kids we know at her school and missed the little boy we carpool with because Elsie was being contrary. 

I actually did great too. Because there where so many other moms there I was distracted enough from my own sadness that I did not cry and my eyes stayed dry for the whole day!! Which I think it is amazing. 

Elsie loves school and talks about reading books and comes home singing songs to help her to learn to write her numbers. Also there is a days of the week song and I am sure there will be many more! Her favorite time is recess where she plays chase a lot! 

Fishing

We went fishing! Elsie has been asking to go fishing for over a year probably. She saw some people catch a fish in the river near our house and since then she was hooked on the idea. Will found a place that had all the gear you needed, stocked fish ponds and they would clean and flay the fish for you for a fee. So off we headed over an hour drive away and we made it. Elsie loved it. At first we did not have much luck and it seemed like these well stocked fish all new not to go for the bate (a little piece of leather on the end of a hook). But then I caught one small one. A while later we saw that some people where throwing in fish food by their hooks and confusing the fish into grabbing the bate. It worked. We got some quarters and bought some food and caught 3 more all with Elsie's help. Will was the lucky one to get to take the fish off the hook but he did a great job of it. So over all is was a awesome morning event and Elsie is excited to try again soon. Plus we brought them home and ate them that night and they were pretty good...yummy to Will and Elsie.

Baking with fresh fruit

Yum! I have been making lots of fun stuff and canning too. But for now here is a shot of the peach tart I made for Elsie, Will and his mom, brother and me of course.

Charity's book

Will's sister Charity finished her novel and had it published this summer. It came out at the end of July. She had a few readings in Utah so we got to hang out and see her a bit when we got home. The name of the novel is "Ten Girls to Watch". I am currently reading the published version as I have only read one of the earlier drafts and am so excited to finish it. Will really like it and my sister Chrissy did too so I am hoping for a great ending. You might be able to find it in your local library (it was in Chrissy's library in MA) or at book stores or on line here.

Saying Goodbye

Well it was sad but our trip had to come to an end at some point. So we said goodbye and headed home to get ready for school.

Pillow cases and bags

Chrissy had bought fabric to make a pillow case for Elsie and Nathan last summer and never made them so we set about making three (one for Own too) this summer! It was a lot of fun and we both learned a few things. We had a lot of scraps left and a little more time so we made each kids small bag too! It was a lot of fun and good to see Chrissy improve her seamstress skills! Oh and the kids love them.

Blueberry Pie

Before we left Boston we made a blueberry pie from the fresh blueberries we picked in Vermont at Teddy's house! Elsie helped a little. We tried a new piecrust recipe and it went well but we had to substitute a few things. I have since made the crust with no substitutions and it was amazing!! So thanks to Pinterest which is where we found the recipe! Here is a link to the recipe which you can freeze and use later (and it still tastes great). 

The Ocean

When we are in Boston we love to go to the beach! It is a big production but it is so much fun!! We get messy and sandy and wet but it is worth it. So we went yet again. This time going to Rhode Island to a beach there. It was warmer then the Boston beaches and just as close by car since my sister lives inland a bit. The water did have some odd red seaweed in it which was annoying, but as you can see we had a blast!

A Walk on the Beach

We went for a walk on Wollaston Beach with Daddy before he went home. This is the beach in Quincy where we used to walk every night before we moved and had Elsie in Kansas. It was hot but fun just the same. You can barely make out the Boston skyline in the background of a one of the shots! It was great.

Fresh Vegetables

Elsie is a good eater she even eats her vegetables! So she loved eating fresh picked vegetables from Papa and Grammy's garden. And they loved giving them to her! She ate peas, beans , tomatoes (for the first time), cucumbers, squash and zucchini, the last two were both cooked but she still ate them! I wish we could have a big garden too but it is just not going to happen any time soon! So we go to the farmers market every weekend and enjoy the fruits of someone else's labors!!

Three sisters

We wish we were four but here we are. It is coming to a hard time in the year for us with the fourth anniversary of my sister Maude's death fast approaching. I am not sure if I have ever blogged about it even though it has been such a big part of our lives. It is just a really hard part of our lives too! We love her and miss her and pray for her and those she left behind. 

The playground

While in Vermont one of the things we got to do with Abby and Ray was go to the playground. Here are some fun shots of the kids all at the playground enjoying the time together. Elsie refused to get in the pictures and tried to hide when she was in it. But the other kids let me take their photos.

Family

We love our family and we miss them when we are far away. Also the rental house had grass growing on the roof, check it out below. Yes they did it on purpose!