Makeover Madness!

G.G. treated SF and MA to Libby Lu do's Friday evening. Fun! Fun!

Off to Second Grade!

my sweet second grader!

walkin' to class

giving a hug to Ava!

The door to my room opened right as I rolled out of bed this morning. It was Sara Frances. She was jumping up and down with excitement! I hope her love of learning will follow her for a long time. She loves everything about school which makes it a little easier for me to send her. I hope she's having a great day. I know she'll be grumpy when I pick her up but luckily she'll have the weekend to get rested up for the full week ahead. Meri Alan will begin preschool after Labor Day and will get to go to Joyner kindergarten next year.

Meet Your Teacher

Mrs. McGraw, SF and Ms. Ann
SF and Mary Carson

Sara Frances is getting very excited about school starting now. She's been hesitant to say that she's ready but after tonight, she is! I get a little sad thinking about this being her last year at Joyner. It's such a loving, nurturing place. We're so blessed to be a part of the Joyner family. Sara Frances loves her new teacher, Mrs. McGraw, already. We look forward to a wonderful 2nd grade year. In other Sara Frances news, she lost a tooth and began her ballet/jazz combo yesterday. This is turning out to be an eventful week as Meri Alan "Miss Jazzy Pants" begins her jazz/tumbling class tomorrow. Looks like we're about to be in full swing around here. I pray that everyone has a great "back to school" day on Friday!

new pics of Sunshine!

Meri Alan's favorite books

The picture turned out dark but I'm posting it any way. When we got in from playing with Sunshine I told Meri Alan to go get ready for her nap. As usual when I got up there she had a story picked out for me to read to her. I could have guessed which one- Fancy Nancy Bonjour Butterfly. I think we all have it memorized by now. It is a cute story. In the picture are her other favorite books-Wemberly's Ice Cream Star and 2 Curious George treasuries.

beef tips over rice

Thought I'd share an easy recipe that we enjoy. This recipe is in the Calvary cookbook and my friend, Leigh Ann, brought it to my attention. We had it a couple of nights ago and I thought I'd post it.

Beef Tips Over Rice

2 lbs. chopped beef (stew meat)
1 can French Onion soup
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
salt and pepper to taste

*Mix ingredients in crock pot and cook on high for 4 hours (or low for 8 hrs). Serve over rice.

My girls like to eat applesauce as a side item with this. Leigh Ann dissolves 2 tablespoons of flour into some water and adds about 15 minutes before it's done. I keep forgetting to try this but I bet it makes it even better. She's a great cook!

It's a boy!

Just thought I'd update everyone on our vet visit today. Sunshine is a healthy baby boy!! I guess it's about time we had a boy around here. Sara Frances and I took "him" to the vet this morning after we dropped Meri Alan off at GO. That was the beginning of her special day before school starts. G.G. picked Meri Alan up and took care of her this afternoon. Sara Frances chose to eat lunch at Weezies which hit the spot for me. I think that continues to be my favorite lunch. I still order the club panini. The one time I tried something else, it just wasn't the same. We then went for Sara Frances' much needed back to school haircut. Her hair has gotten soo heavy and she has refused to agree to a shorter do. Well I overrode her today and got it cut short. She likes it too because she thinks she looks like "Emily" American Girl Doll now. Whatever she thinks is fine by me. I'm hoping it will be easier to manage and be cooler. She has been wanting to get her nails done so I took her to do that which she totally loved. We finished up with a cookie at the mall food court and a new dinosaur Webkinz. That was a special day for her!! It was special for me to spend time just her! I'll be posting new pics of our little boy kitty soon. We're happy he's healthy and eating more every day. He'll get shots in a couple of weeks when he gets a little bigger.