september 28th - back to school night

Our first official back-to-school night and we were amazed at the entirely separate life Alex leads while he is at school. His teacher is fantastic and the curriculum for his class seems great...especially since hs only has 15 kids in his class. We saw all of his artwork and he even left us a note/picture. Even if there was another Alex, we could have pucked out his art. Everything had red, blue, and green. His self-portrait made our hearts melt. 

september 27th - say cheese

Random morning picture session on our front porch because Gemma felt she was dressed up nicely. She took some photos with her own camera too because she insists on capturing moments. Alex's daily picture requests are getting more complicated. 

september 26th - afternoon surprise

Daddy came home today to Spiderman watching TV on our couch. It was absolutely AMAZING...no pun intended. Gemma was a big helper getting pieces cut for the baby's closet...she even wore safety glasses. 

september 25th - monday morning cartoons

september 24th - back to parenting

We picked the kids up at Beeps and Grandpa's this morning and they had quite the spread going down. Alex had his entire car collection out. Gemma was half naked. Grandparents. 

Uncle Frank and Aunt Amy came over for football Sunday. Alex was super pumped to see the end of the game, which the Eagles won with 1 second left after they hit an unbelievable 61 yard field goal. So exciting we almost threw up all the football snacks Mommy made.  Alex jumped out of his seat for a two-handed high five. 

september 23rd - date night

Daddy got to take Gemma to dance class today so Mommy could watch Alex at soccer. Gemma was amazing. The only girl that introduced herself to the class and didn't miss one move. Even doing things before the teacher. So good she got to have a treat with Daddy at the coffee shop. Alex scored 4 goals and was even playing 1 on 4 for a bit because the rest of his team was pickin' daisies. He was pumped. 

The kids went to Beeps and Grandpa's so Mommy and Daddy could finally go out and celebrate our 10th anniversary. We finally made it to the new Elements. Awesome culinary experience. Lots of wine. Even some for Mommy until a sign in the bathroom made her feel like a degenerate. 

september 22nd - friday feels good

september 21st - today, everyone's jewish

Alex got a lesson in taking advantage of unfamiliar holidays of different faiths.  He and Beeps both had off because of the failures of the public school system so they did some educational yard work. He probably was wishing he went to school.  They did a beautiful job and he was excited to show Daddy when he got home from work. 

september 20th - raising the bar

Daddy has been leaving Alex pictures in his lunchbox so he gets a special treat during the day. Started it so he knows we are thinking about them, however, he is now making increasingly more complex requests. This is one of the more simplistic. 

september 19th - tomfoolery

Mommy had to go to Alex's school for a meeting as a result of her new "lead parent" responsibilities. Daddy dropped off the kids and on the way out Gemma spotted Mommy's car. Needless to say she and Daddy had to pull a prank on Mommy.  She kept it a secret...even after being interrogated. Strong-willed. 

september 18th - praying for a brother

Today was purple day for Alex and he dressed up in his "button shirt."  Very successful as it seems he picked up a lady friend today at school. 

september 17th - farming

Now fall can begin since we made it to the farm to pick apples. Alex and Gemma couldn't wait to dig into some of the tasty looking fruits of labor. Aunt Amy and cousins came to help pick. We had lots of fun and made every apple dessert we could think of when we got home. Gemma was an especially good helper. 

Daddy and Alex went to Palmer Square this afternoon to check out the Jazz Festival. Alex even got a free hat once Daddy drank critical mass of beer. Difficult task but it was for the kids. 

september 16th - happy birthday kyle

We had to dodge a couple separate torrential storms that came and went but Kyle's 5th birthday was a success. All the kids had a blast and we were super thankful that we got to leave at the end of the night. All the sports equipment outside got less use than expected...toy room got more. 

september 15th - a decade...just like that

Mommy and Daddy have been married for 10 years today...and we look exactly the same;). Same level of energy, patience, and slightly more humor. Alex and Gemma helped mommy make some cool pictures and decorate Daddy's tool room, which has recently become the drum room. Gemma is an animal behind the tubs and really gets into it...as evidenced by the faces she makes while she beats on them!!!

We put the kids to bed early and ate some luke warm chinese to celebrate. Sounds like a mickey mouse celebration, but we finally found a legitimate chinese place. The year long search has ended. Score one for the old couple. Called for a nice champagne to wash it down. Mommy drank half. Baby did not kick tonight. Success. #start'emyoung #holyshitwearehavinganotherone

september 14th - new gear

Soccer practice tonight for Alex and he was sporting his new jersey that Grandpa got for him in Ireland. 

september 13th - super farmer alex

It is yellow day at Alex's school today. They have had a color themed day all week and he is already spelling words (red, orange, yellow). They even sing songs that his teacher posts for us to watch. He has given us a warning that he does not have a purple shirt for when they get to that part of the rainbow. "Don't worry we have time, purple isn't for a while. It's further down the rainbow."  His class went to the school garden today, picked vegetables, and made apple juice. 

september 12th - super buddies

september 11th - home of the brave

Today was Alex's first 'real' school experience. He had a couple days with Mommy and Daddy walking him to his classroom. This morning, he got dropped off at the front door and he made his own way to the cafeteria to hang out with the rest of the school until each class was called to walk to their individual classrooms. He was really brave and smiley 😊. 

september 10th - we are on repeats

The fact that we have lived in Princeton for a year has now really hit us. We went to our 2nd annual Montgomery Fun Fest today at Princeton Airport. Took advantage of VIP parking from Uncle Mike to make a swift getaway after lunch.

Daddy got attacked by ninjas.  

september 9th - gooooaaalllll

Gemma had her first day at her new dance school and Alex had his first soccer game. They are at the same time so it was a girls vs boys morning. Alex was awesome today and did. Not. Stop. Running. He scored a bunch of goals and he LOVED it. Beeps came to watch (and bring water that daddy forgot) and cheer him on. We had the Dreby clan over for dinner and s'mores. Lots of fun playing. Alex and Kyle were all about sports. Gemma and Lila were all about playing family and baby dolls. Sienna was all about smiles and getting the adults to give her anything she wanted. 

september 8th - day two

The first week of school is in the books...just like that. It is probably good it was a short week because Alex fell asleep before making it to the dinner table.  Daddy took Alex today and things were a little quieter. He is ready to do things himself on Monday. The whole class got Community Park tshirts for class trips and spirit days. Alex was very excited about it. He was, again, so excited about the picture Daddy drew and put in his lunchbox....the first thing he immediately pulled out of his backpack before we even started walking home. 

september 7th - alex's big day

It is unbelievable how quickly these last 5'ish years have gone. Seems like only yesterday Alex was learning to walk and referring to himself in the third person. We are very proud of the sweet little boy he has become and we are all excited for him to start school...especially Alex. He was all smiles today. Only Mommy cried her eyes out. The whole family got to take him to school and gather with all the other parents and kids in the cafeteria. We walked Alex to his classroom to see his cubby, daddy met his teacher, and went over the morning routine.  He was awesome and had a great first day. Gemma said, "alice will do great."  He even got to have his first day of soccer tonight and gramps and grandmum were in Princeton for dinner.  Alex was very excited to come home and show us the picture he found in his lunchbox😁

Daddy had an afternoon full of meeting get cancelled, so he and Gemma had a special lunch date. We went to Witherspoon Grill for a daddy-daughter afternoon and stroll around the farmers' market. 

september 6th - one more day

Alex is making big moves today. First, he had lunch with Daddy at the BMS office...got his own security badge which he didn't want to give back. Next, he went to his school for a tour and opportunity to meet his new teacher, Miss Sampson. He had a great day and is very excited to start school tomorrow. His teacher sent him a letter in the mail with specific instructions to open the night before school. It was very sweet and he got to put magic confetti under his pillow. Daddy drew a special picture to sneak in Alex's lunchbox. 

september 5th - gemma returns

Today was Gemma's first day back at pre-school to kick off the fall. Her teachers were very excited to see her back from vacation. Gemma obviously has high hopes for the year since she posed for pictures wearing a crown. Alex has a couple days home with Mommy and Daddy before his first day so he got to go to lunch. He chose the grill because he really wanted "a good cheeseburger."  He also got to go shopping and bake pumpkin cookies with Mommy. 

september 4th - the town is alive

An awesome day for a walk around Princeton. Gemma was asking when we would find a climbing thing to play on the whole time, but they eventually found ways to occupy themselves.

september 3rd - back in princeton

We are home and loving the decision to get on the road and wake up in our own beds this morning. Being on the road at 3am this morning would have been rough. Beeps invited us over for dinner so we didn't have to cook. We said, "as long as you're not making hamburgers and hot dogs!!!"  Gemma has been loving getting reacquainted with her toys and baby dolls.  The kids loved dinner, some amazing storytelling, ice cream brownies, and Trolls (again). 

september 2nd - last meal

It is limbo day when everyone basically paces around and mentally prepares to wake up early and get on the road. Today especially sucked because a storm was coming...so we got the hell outta there. We had a quick window of sun so we let the kids jump in the pool. By the time we got down there it was raining, but they didn't care. We dried off and were on the move northbound. The kids were AMAZING. Only one stop for gas, pee, and snacks north of the chesapeake bay bridge.  Daddy regretted the gigantic coffee because of a pee that came on near Dover that was on board until Princeton. Potential UTI, but amazing demonstration of bladder control. We ordered a pizza at conte's from the road and the kids held on until we got to Walnut Lane. Note to self, don't try to run after getting out of a car you have been sitting in for 4 hours. Daddy ran through the rain to go in for pizza and came close to a faceplant...which could have easily turned into faceplant accompanied by peed pants. 

september 1st - family day

Another crap overcast morning so we headed into town to stroll the boardwalk and visit the kids' favorite toy shop. Gemma got a sticker book and Alex got some Batman spy gear to keep them busy during the afternoon rain. We did a family lunch to get out of the house, which was just what we needed.  Alex devoured a big boy burger and Gemma ate an entire order of fish and chips. Impressed. The two of them agreed and ordered dessert to share (peanut butter pie). Gemma got it up her nose again. 

august 31st - morning sophistication

All the kids this morning had cereal and eggo waffles. Gemma requested avocado toast with over easy eggs (and her ipad so she could watch the news). She ate the entire thing and was ready to hit the beach. Weather was a bit spotty but we made the best of it. 

august 30th - mmmm...donuts

Made our annual visit to Duck Donuts this morning for some delicious gourmet sugar to kick off the day. Gemma specifically requested 'raspberry' and, thankfully, they had a raspberry drizzle. Most of it went on her face and she even managed to get some in her nose. She gave it two thumbs up. Daddy had a maple bacon donut. It was like eating an ihop...without the sticky floors. A delight. 

We got in another solid beach day and took some pictures on the beach. The kids have all been amazing together and having a blast. 

august 29th - indoor fun

A rainy morning created an environment for puzzle work and Alex got to put in the very last piece, which we had to search for on the caroet. Garrett was like a work horse once we got him addicted. We went out to hit the pool when we got a window of sunshine and he powered through. Alex was a very proud big cousin driving Luke around the pool...gave him a break from all the girls.