Welcoming Fall with Open Arms!

Goodbye Summer!  Hello Fall!  I'm not sad to see summer and it's 90+ degree temps go with it!  Overall, we had a pretty mild summer.  But the fall weather is good for my soul.  I have had our house decorated for fall for a few weeks now, mums are in place on the porch and I'm ready for some hot apple cider, hoodies and football!  Summer is full of Marshall Madness but fall feels a little slower, much cozier and a bit lazier.  I'm all for it.  I have to admit, the girls look extra cute in jeans and hoodies too!

Tenley ended her summer with her 3rd birthday!  I can't even wrap my head around how she can be three.  She's full of life, smiles and laughter.  She cracks us up most of the time and leaves us wondering how she comes up with some of the things she says!  She's becoming more independent - likes to do things on her own, does well using her imagination and playing, but she is also a social butterfly and doesn't know a stranger!

Paisley is 9 months old now and is trying to crawl!  I'm savoring every last moment of her being immobile! She's the happiest baby and is so content most of the time!  What a joy she is to us!  Her big sister loves her and often holds her hand while they are in the car together.

This fall we're looking forward to visiting a pumpkin patch, ND games, hot cider, campfires in our yard and lots of time outside with the girls!

Today also weighs heavy on my heart as the leaves start to fall off the trees and the seasons change.  Today marks ten years in Heaven for Nick.  Ten years!  I remember when going 24 hours without talking to him was miserable.  If only I could have known what I know now.  But instead of mourning our loss today, I am rejoicing that he has lived ten years in Heaven with our Savior!  What an amazing promise to know that I will see him again!  Our Heavenly reunion with Nick and Brad will be amazing and filled with lots of laughter I'm sure!!

Couch to 5K

While we're on the topic of Summer from my last post, here's another thing that has been going on this summer.  I decided to start training for a 5k.  Along with my best friend Kayla, Mike and a few more friends.  We formed a team and signed up for The Color Run.  It's a fun 5k that is happening in South Bend on October 5th.  I'm very nervous, but I'm just finishing my 5th week of training.  I have an excellent running partner who is constantly motivating and encouraging me.  While I don't think running is something I'll ever really enjoy, I have really felt better since doing it.  Most of the time I don't dread it as much as I used to.  I run every other day.  Tonight is my first big run (although they have all felt big).  The whole point of Couch to 5k is doing running intervals.  We started out running for one minute, walking for 90 seconds.  Repeating until you've been doing it for 30 minutes.  Week by week your running increases and your walking decreases.  Tonight I will run 2 miles in 20 minutes - no walking.  I don't feel very prepared for this one, but the great thing about this program is that I can always repeat a day or week when needed.  

I'm proud of myself for making it this far.  When I first started running for a minute was tiring!  Let alone 20.  But I'm excited to see how long I can go tonight and know how much I need to improve.  We're running this race for Brad.  He was the only person who could convince me to do things I didn't think I could ever do.  Somehow I think running a 5k would be on his list of things he could get me to do.  So here I am.  Say a prayer for me tonight! 

Summer

Summer is almost over and I have yet to update on all the fun things we have done!  We have spent lots of time by in or around the water!  Whether that be by our own little kiddie pool in the backyard, at a friends pool, on the lake, or at the splash pad!  Tenley is a little fish and we just love watching her be so brave and try new things!  Here's some pictures of some fun we had on the lake on the 4th.

We were also able to get some fun family pictures that day!

Tenley has been spending some Sunday afternoons with Lindsey and Brent.  She just loves the two of them and always looks forward to her time with them.  On one of their adventures they took her on her first convertible ride!  She's riding in style now!

Biker babe!

Tenley received a bike for Christmas last year and we hadn't gotten it out until the other day when I came home with a helmet for her!  Great Grandma and Grandpa Mast surprised her with a bike for their house the other day too!  So we got that bike out the other day and let her try and ride it!  I didn't have her trusty helmet with me, but believe me she will usually be wearing that!  Here's a video of her!  She did such a great job!

And here's a picture of her on her bike at home!  We'll be taking family bike rides before you know it!

Sleepover

Tenley had her first sleepover this week.  She was so excited!  Our babysitter, Miss Iva, had been asking if we thought she would spend the night some evening.  I really wasn't sure, and to be honest I kept putting off the question hoping that maybe she wouldn't ask again!  I wasn't quite ready for Tenley to grow up that fast! But like all things do, the question came around again.  Another little girl that Miss Iva watches who is a couple years older than Tenley was spending the night and asked if Tenley could too.  I decided there was no harm in trying.  If I had to go get her in the middle of the night that would be okay.  So I packed her Dora backpack with her favorite pajamas and blanket.  I let her pick out a stuffed animal to take along.  The whole way to Iva's she sang from the backseat "Going to a sleepover!  Going to a sleepover!" I looked at Mike and said "Do you think she really knows what sleepover is?"  He laughed and agreed probably not.  But she was so excited to be spending extra time with Mady.  She ran in to Iva's and started playing right away.  As Mike and I lingered by the door watching her I was a little overcome with how quickly she has grown up.  2 seems way too young for a sleepover, but she still is such a little lady at times.

All ready to go!

She had a great time!  I went to bed around 11 that night after feeding Paisley, and I kept looking at the clock wondering if I would get a call from Iva.  The call never came!  In the morning I went to drop off Paisley on my way to work and when I walked in Tenley immediately said "No, no I'm not ready to go!" So I knew she was having fun!  Iva said that she did so well and she slept in a big bed with Mady and they didn't have any problems!  I could tell that evening though that she was very tired.  She went to bed early and slept late.

Updates

Since one set of the girls great grandparents are still in Florida (come home already!!) I thought I needed to update with a few pictures! We are loving the summer weather with lots of time playing in water and running around outside. Tenley would live outside if we let her! Paisley is growing so much! She is such a sweet and content baby!

Tenley's cousin Lindsey and boyfriend Brent took her to get ice cream last week!

It got really hot, she couldn't help but climb in!

This sweetie and her cheeks are just so kissable!

Posing after a birthday party!

Paisley

Here's Paisley at just about 4 months smiling and laughing.  We thought our Florida loving great grandparents might enjoy this!