Sorry!

So sorry that I haven't posted in a while! We are kind of in a groove and haven't really been doing much. Brendan left yesterday for a month in Texas and the kids and I are finding our new routine. The hardest part is getting everyone ready and fed before we walk Aidan to the bus stop at 7:45. When Brendan was here he'd stay with the girls while I took Aidan but now we all have to go together. We always seem to be rushing at the last minute. I got up a full hour earlier and we were still rushing at 7:30 so it seems that the girls need to get up a few minutes earlier and Emmy is NOT a morning person!
Right now we are waiting for the movers to bring out LAST shipment of stuff. They said they'd be here at 8:30 and guess what? It's 9:30 and still no sign of them. I really hope that my entire day isn't spent waiting for them - we really need to go to the grocery store!!

Riverview Mounds Farm

On Sunday we went to Riverview Mounds Farm just south of Clarksville. They have animals to visit, things to climb on, pumpkins and a hay ride. The kids had a great time despite the heat. I can't believe that is is September 22nd and it is still 101 degrees outside! It was a little cooler this past weekend but still hot!
Aidan enjoying the tractor:

Climbing on hay bales:
You have to click on this picture and make it bigger to get the full effect:
Emmy visiting with the animals:
Emmy and Aoife dwarfed by a llama:
Aidan riding a pony - I think he's getting a little big for this!
Emmy riding the pony - she would have been happy to stay on all day!
Aoife riding. At first she thought that this was a very bad idea but quickly warmed up to it and was riding without help by the end!
Playing horseshoes:
relaxing:
On the hayride:

Cakes

So I've decided to slowly get into making cakes for events. I've set up a site and I hope to advertise by word of mouth. Here's a link to the site.

Emmy's Open House

Emmy's class had their open house on Friday. They were all sitting at their seats with their artwork in a pile in front of them when we walked in. It was so adorable and they were all so excited to see us and show us what they have been working on. This school has been the most wonderful thing for Emmy. She LOVES school and is actually learning! She and Aidan came home with the same lesson plan the other day - they were both practicing writing numbers 1-10. Hmmm...
Here's Emmy with her friend Charlee:
Aoife enjoying the open house!!!! Can't wait until next year when Aoife will be here 2 mornings a week!!
Emmy showing me her handprint:

Frozen Peas

Aoife and Emmy both love frozen peas - straight out of the freezer! It's so weird! As soon as they come out both of them are begging me for a bowlful!

Tuesday

I love that Emmy is in school 3 mornings a week but it is exhausting for her so on Tuesdays we have been staying home and taking it easy. Yesterday we spent the day playing inside and in the backyard - it's cool enough finally! - eating an early lunch and taking naps! Aidan has short days on Tuesdays so instead of him coming home at 3:40 he's home at 2:40. It makes for a nice long afternoon!
Here's Emmy playing with her fairy house and all of her fairies and princesses. She can spend the better part of an hour lining them up and playing with them - unless Aoife is around. In that case, Emmy spends her time keeping her favorite ones out of Aoife's mouth!
Eating lunch - Aoife just figured out she can dip things in hummus. She did eventually move back to her old way of eating it - with a spoon!

Butterfly Flower Cake

I sold my first cake today!! Thanks to my friend Stephanie who hired me to make a cake for a baby shower that she was hostessing this afternoon. The cake was vanilla with a lemon cream cheese filling and vanilla buttercream frosting. I decorated it with a pink silk ribbon, Gerbera daisies and royal icing butterflies! Mmmmmm!

September 2010

It's September! Finally the weather here is starting to cool off and we are starting to get into a routine. Aidan's in school everyday, Emmy's in school 3 mornings a week and Aoife comes to the gym with me and plays in the play area a few mornings a week. She's been having some separation anxiety so my workouts have been cut short but we're going to keep at it. I'm confident that she'll adjust to me being gone for 30 minutes!!
Brendan's settling in at work although he still doesn't have a job. He's hoping that something comes open soon because the unit is starting to gear up for the deployment and if there's anything worse than not having anything to do at work it's not having anything to do in Afghanistan!
I took some pictures of the kids yesterday afternoon - definitely not the best lighting but I thought it would be good to get a snapshot of where they all were in September 2010.
Aidan at 5 years 7 months:
Emmy at 3 years 3 months:
Aoife at 1 year 4 months:

Nashville Zoo

Yesterday we went to the Nashville Zoo. It was a nice zoo - not as nice as the Colorado Springs one but much better than the National Zoo in DC. There were lots of different exhibits and the design of the zoo was beautiful. Half of the zoo was in a bamboo forest and the other half was in African grasslands. They also have done a nice job making sure that there is a lot of shade to walk in. It is HOT here and the shade makes it tolerable! There is also a HUGE adventure playground and a big soft play area for the little kids.
We had a great time - the kids were awesome and seemed to really enjoy themselves. We became members for the next 2 years so I'm sure we'll be going back a lot. We spent 5 hours walking around and still didn't get to a large section of farm animals.
Red Pandas:
The kids watching the giraffes:
Looking for koi:
giraffe:
watching the flamingos - this was Emmy's favorite because they are PINK!!
Emmy with horns
Elephants

Emmy on the carouselAidan on the carousel


Aoife on the carousel - she tolerated it but jumped into my arms as soon as it was over
Emmy and Aoife playing in the soft play area
Aoife watching the Red Pandas
Aoife taking a break from the stroller
watching alligators swimAidan with horns

Cracker Barrel

Since we got here we've been going to Cracker Barrel for breakfast on Sunday mornings. We figured out that the kids are well behaved in the morning at restaurants - none of the evening crankiness! We can all have a nice meal with minimal complaining and there's nothing better than scrambled eggs and bacon!!
Waiting for our table outside:
Aoife not liking the rocking chair as much as she imagined she would!

Getting Settled In

We are slowly getting settled into our house. It's always tough finding new places for everything in the house - and then it's even harder remembering where you put it! I can remember where something was 2 houses ago but I can't find it here *sigh*. Ahh well - it'll take a few months but we'll get there!
The kids are really happy to be in a routine. Now that the weather is cooling down they can go outside and play more - they are VERY happy about that! Aoife is like the dogs - she would stay outside in the backyard all day if I let her. She's content to sit in the jeep and talk to herself - it's hysterical!
My parents came down last week to visit and were here when our household goods were delivered. It was beyond helpful and it was the first move-in that I can remember that wasn't stressful!! They also brought us Sully and Murphy back. They'd happily taken care of the dogs for the year while we were in England but I think they were happy to return them!!
Here are a few pictures of the kids playing outside - too bad we don't have a jeep that would fit all of them!!