First Day of School!

First of all...I realize that the picture of Jackson is sideways, but I don't know how to change it, so if anyone knows, let me know!!
Today was Jackson's first day of Kindergarten! The past couple of days, he's been very excited about going. Since the meet the teacher night, he's been very impressed with the lockers and computers in the classroom. Today, as we walked to school, I told him that I remembered my first day of kindergarten. Then he said, "I remember my first day of kindergarten too--today!!" He laughed and he was in good spirits.
When we walked up to the school, we saw his friend Will, who will be joining him in kindergarten, so we snapped them together.
When he got into the classroom, he put his backpack in his locker (who he shares with Jensen, who we thought was a boy, but ends up being a girl!!) and they were to sit at their table and draw a picture of anything that they wanted to. The classroom was so quiet. I couldn't believe it! No one was talking to one another---I'm sure that will change when they all get to know each other.
Last night, we reviewed where everything was in his backpack...lunch, snack, water bottle. They eat lunch at 10:30!! Can you believe that? So, we have to send a water bottle and snack every day.
It was a fun morning and if you think about it, say a little prayer for him. He said he might be a little scared today....that's what he told me last night. I told him it was okay to be scared and that a lot of other kids were feeling the same way. Say a little prayer for me too......tomorrow, we cannot walk them to the classroom. They have to walk in the school by themselves. MUSHY MOM MOMENT ALERT.....I just cannot believe how time has flown by and how big he is. Not in size, but in character and independence. He is a great little boy and has made our lives so much more fuller. I am just so humbled and privleged to be his mom :)

Random thought from Jackson......

The scene: Lunchtime today

Jackson: After lunch, will you measure my toungue?

Me: OKaayyy, suuurree???


Who knows?

Where the Wild Things Are.....

My parents were visiting last weekend for my birthday and we drove to Glen Rose to a drive-thru safari. It was great!
You must stay in your cars, but you can have the windows rolled down and you can see that the animals are well trained and have no problem sticking their heads in your car and drooling all over the place! The boys thought that was the best.
Halfway thru, you can get out of your car on top of this hill and eat, roam around, and visit the petting zoo. Drew loved brushing these goats and they loved him too! Everytime he would stop brushing them and walk away, they would follow him.
WE saw giraffes, zebras, rams, and all other sorts of 4 legged creatures. We had a great day and the boys really got into feeding all of the animals and Drew even named all the deer "his boys." Everytime he would see some, he would say, "There's my boys!"

San Antonio Sizzle........

OK...It is HOT here in Texas!! We went to San Antonio last weekend and took the boys to Sea World. Mistake #1--going to Sea World on a Saturday. Mistake #2--going to Sea World in August. We learned our lesson and will take note the next time we go. Despite those mistakes, we had a great time. On Friday, we got to the riverwalk and ate dinner next to the river. Then, we took the boys on the boat ride tour thru the canal. Jackson hung on every word that the tour guide told us....it was like he was 20 years old or something. Drew waved at the people on the bank and asked when it was going to be over.
Here are the boys faces the first time that Shamu jumped out of the water. Jackson was in silent awe with a big smile on his face. Drew spontaneously started clapping and laughing. It was so fun to see the joy on their faces. They loved all the shows and Jason and I were impressed with the quality of the entertainment. We loved it too! Now, here is one of the Shamus. There are 4 of them, so you never really know which one is the real Shamu. Jackson kept asking me which one was Shamu. We were a little confused on that.

I think Jackson is going to be a roller coaster nut....Drew, not so much. Here they are waiting in line for the Texas Splashdown which is like a log ride. Drew wanted me to cover his eyes the whole time and his little heart was beating so fast. Jackson couldn't get enough! He wanted to go again and again. He even went on some other roller coasters that Drew couldn't go on. He missed the cutoff for this big one, The Steel Eel, just by one inch....so he's hoping next year he'll be tall enough.
School starts in a few weeks so we're just trying to enjoy the last bit of summer that we have left. Jackson is very excited about Kindergarten and both the boys have their backpacks and lunchboxes picked out. Very important stuff for a 3 and 5 year old!!

Tennis, Anyone?

Jackson has had tennis camp all week. He took lessons last summer and fall and he really enjoys it. The coach makes it really fun for the kids and they do a lot of games while working on skills. Jackson was especially proud because two days in a row, he won the game "King of the Castle." This is a game the kids play at the net and practice their volleys.
Today was the last day and it was game day. The boys and the girls had a race to see who could run down the court balancing their ball on the racket. Check out the concentration on Jackson's face--he takes competition seriously! The girls won though....they took their time and it payed off.
Jackson is running like crazy in the game "Adios Amigos"...don't ask me why they call it that. They have to run around the court and the coach tries to hit them with the ball. The kids love it.
Check out what Drew does while Jackson is sweating on the court. He watches ants. He learned the first day that there was a large ant population near the tennis courts and that if you dropped any food, they would come. So today, he brought a snack for his "pets" and he watched how they carried the crumbs on their backs. When he's not tending to his pets, he's begging to go and retrieve balls that the kids have hit. He can hardly wait until he can take lessons when he turns 4.
Finally, the kids have like 1 minute to run around the court and pick up all the balls and Jackson figured out how to get the most balls in one trip. He had a great week at camp and can't wait to do it again in the fall.