August 2010 Highlights

Olivia's 1st day of school at Bright Horizons And Mommy's first day back at Stellar with Sena
Purple Poser
Andrew's 1st Haircut

Our beautiful Sena family

15 months old!

Big girl in a big girl seat

Liv ♥s Josh & Kelly!

Date Night at the Glenn

Shish Kabobs

15 month appointment

Good-bye

Dearest Summer Break,

I bid you a fond farewell. You have been so good to me and brought me many beautiful days of warm sunshine, outings with friends and endless hours playing with my babies. I will miss lazy mornings sleeping in, impromptu trips to the pool and priceless moments with my sweet Liv and baby Bubby.

But, tomorrow enter reality. I will head back to work, Liv to preschool and Andrew to daycare. So for now, bring on the fall days of school, football, pumpkin patches and Halloween. Please know in our hearts we will miss you and we anxiously anticipate your return next June.

Until then...
Heather ♥

And just like that...

...it's the last day of summer vacation.

Stellar Girls

Quite a few of the Stellar ladies met up at the Tavern Exchange in Westminster for a little Wendy Woo music and a drink to end off the summer. It was such fun to spend time with work friends outside of school. Thanks, ladies! Here's too a great 10-11 school year!

(Me with my Nenny, who actually works at Thornton now - BOO!, and my Fitzie)

Monkey!

I knew we nicknamed her Monkey for a reason! Yikes!

Back to School Picnic

Liv with her preschool teachers, Miss Denny & Miss Lorinda. Olivia's new school, Bright Horizons, had a picnic at Cherrywood Park for kiddos to meet their teachers and their classmates. There were also quite a few college and teacher friends of mine who send their kiddos to BH. It is comforting to know how pleased these families are with Liv's new school. And the Bubs had fun too. Here on the playground showing off his walking skills and getting steadier on his feet! Stay tuned... preschool starts on Monday!

♥ loves ♥

At 4 years old, my Liv loves...
:: all things Princess, preferably the Disney variety
:: Snow White, current fave
:: The Hunchback of Notre Dame, really any Disney movie will do
:: jewelry - earrings, necklaces, bracelets, anklets and wearing as many pieces as possible
:: convertibles, a red one with the top down so her hair can blow in the wind
:: water - a bathtub or a sink, a baby pool or the big swimming pool, sprinklers, fountains, creeks, a rain shower, the hose in the backyard; she's not picky and doesn't even mind being wet in her clothes!
:: singing and acting, usually a scene from one of those Disney movies
:: dreaming about going to Disneyland and meeting Jasmine
:: bubby, hands down her favorite person in this world (well, besides her daddy, of course!)

At 14 months old, my Bubby boy loves...
:: eating and he's not picky, any morsel will do
:: milk from a bottle, just can't get him on board with the sippy cup
:: making a mess - toys and books and shoes and food, anything is good for throwing on the floor or clearing off a shelf
:: climbing the stairs as he giggles with glee
:: playing chase, again, the giggles erupt as he tries to "run" away
:: crawling on all fours, just not quite walking yet; a few steps here and there, but he'd rather crawl. plus, he's faster that way for above mentioned chase!
:: balls - football, baseball, basketball, bouncy ball; any ball is good for throwing
:: olivia, without a doubt his favorite person in this world (well, besides his mama, of course!)

♥ And at 32 years old, more than anything in this world, I love these two darling children! ♥

Andrew's Flower Headband...

Oh, the joys of having a big sister - they like to dress you up in girly stuff! Nothing like sporting a Hurley shirt AND a flower headband. I'm sure Liv will subject Andrew to many more frilly, flowery, pink accessories!

Bear Creek with Papa & Gigi

"Nobody can do for little children what grandparents do.
Grandparents sort of sprinkle stardust over the lives of children." ~Alex Haley

Congratulations, Jamie & Julia

The perfect excuse to spend a glorious Colorado day with dear friends...

celebrating Jamie & Julia's engagement! ♥

James & the Giant Peach

Olivia, Andrew and I attended the Northglenn Youth Theater's performance of James and the Giant Peach. Our dear friend, Spencer Spotts, was the centipede. As far as we are concerned, he stole the show!
Pictured here are two of his biggest fans: Colin Spotts & Olivia Stephens!

Best Friends.

Life is really all about relationships. And, even at the young age of 4, my sweet Liv is acutely aware of the important people in her life, her "best friends." Without question, her best friends are Cameron and Caroline and they are such sweet friends! (Andrew, of course, takes the prize as her best friend and brother, but he's not quite as much fun to play with... yet!)

And, I think their Mommies are pretty fabulous, too! ♥
Thank you to Cameron, Sara, Caroline and Amber for a delightful day at the pool.

Happy Birthday, Josh!

An evening with family filled with laughs and conversation and yummy food at Claim Jumper. Happy early Birthday, Josh! We loved celebrating with you!

Back to School Shopping

Big changes are in store for Olivia. On August 16th, she will start preschool! To prepare for the beginning of school, I took her shopping to purchase the items on her school supply list. We had a fun Mommy-Daughter shopping date at the new Wal-Mart for supplies like markers, glue, kleenex and, of course, a Princess backpack. Just the first of many Back to School shopping trips to come. My baby is such a big girl!

The Dentist.

A big day for Olivia. First visit to the dentist. We received differing opinions about when to schedule a first dentist appointment, but we settled on 4 years old. Olivia was a fabulous patient! She smiled and giggled and loved getting her teeth cleaned with cherry toothpaste. Amber, her hygienist, was kind and gentle and immediately put Liv at ease. Her favorite part was "Mr. Thirsty" who sucked up all the water in her mouth. She was a little afraid of the dentist, but she sat on my lap and allowed him to count and check her teeth.

In the end, great news... 20 healthy pearly whites and NO cavities!

Mommy and Daddy are so proud of you, Liv!

a little bit of this. and a little bit of that.

bed head. farmer's market.splashing. wading. playing. eating. sharing.100(!) piece puzzle. goggles. miss kendra. painting. proud.

Hello August.

It's August, people!

I was inspired by Marta Writes to blog my must-dos. A list of things that I am hoping to squeeze into summer, actually into the next two weeks. August signals back to work. And, the 16th is approaching all too quickly. Before I know it, I will no longer be a summer-SAHM and I will re-enter my life as a working mama. It is bittersweet... but, that might be another post, perfect for the eve of August 15th. So, on to my must-dos...

:: complete organizing and deep cleaning my house. 1st floor almost complete.
:: bachelorette. so you think you can dance. design star. oh, my favorite summer television.
:: read to kill a mockingbird for book club. (i technically have until the 25th, but let's face it, i'm not the best reader during the school year.)
:: james and the giant peach. the kids' first play and starring our friend, spencer spotts.
:: fun in the sun at the pool with our best buddies.
:: try a decorating project, like the fun suggested by our little band of brothers.
:: girls' night out at the tavern.
:: liv's first trip to the dentist.
:: surviving daddy's trip to san diego without us. single mommy for four days - yikes!
:: picnics in the park.
:: sleeping in. napping. staying up too late.
:: soak up every smile and giggle and moment with my precious babies.

Aren't they adorable? I mean, seriously, they are so deliciously cute
that I could eat them up for dinner! ♥