Rocky 3rd Grade

Daisy 1st Grade

 Daisy and Nellie are two peas in a pod and so are their moms.  I have not been very good at taking photos of my friends because I am always focusing on the kids but Marissa has become one of my closest friends.  We work together at church with with teenagers and I try to soak up as much wisdom as I can from her.

 Fall in Eugene is incredible.  That is all that there is to say about it.  Ike and I happily spend our mornings out running through the leaves and thanking God for the beauty around us.  I can't think of any activity that makes me feel more alive than my heart beating fast as I breath crisp fall air and listen to podcasts on my foot journeys through this beautiful place.  Sometimes I get to go with friends and sometimes I just get to go with my little boy riding along.  I already know how quickly babies grow and I am trying to savor the jogging stroller days before they are gone.

 Rosy got into the fall spirit too with her leaf self-portrait.

 We now have two little readers in this house.  I feel so happy that these girls care so much about books. Whenever I see them reading I know that they will always have a safe retreat from real life.  I know they will be able to explore the human experience through stories and will find empathy and courage without even leaving the couch.

 We had a movie date with our Eugene cousins, Sailor and Ruby.  The picture isn't great but I just never want to forget how much I love hanging out at Nicole's house.  We ate tons of treats and watched Halloween Town.

 Daisy loves Ruby because she will snuggle with her.  Ike is a lot of things, but a snuggler he is not.  Whenever we want to get our hugs in we go find Ruby Bird.  If we want to get hit in the face with a tinker toy, Ike's our guy.

Daisy and Rocky both got skates from the most glorious bag of hand-me-downs you have ever seen. They wear them all day long, inside and out.  I am dreading the first broken bone but I know it is worth it because just look at how cool Daisy looks.  I mean, really.

 Also in the bag, awesome hats and mittens.  I cannot express enough how lucky we have been to have friends, cousins, and neighbors that have generously supplied my kids with their entire wardrobe as well as the majority of their belongings.  Grad school isn't the best way to fill your pocketbook but it just might be the best way to experience a community of wonderful people.