Back to School 2016

Back to School was hard but it was made a little easier by the fact that we had an amazing summer and that the kids were so so so excited. Cora had her first day today and she was a pro. She had a great morning and can't wait to go back. Roger and I had breakfast together before I went for a pedicure and a long phone chat with an AZ friend. Not a bad morning. :) 

God has truly blessed us with great schools and I love our verse for the year:

"I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world" John 16:33.

Check out Love Babble on Etsy for signs, cards, invitations and all sorts of other cute printables. My friend Kara is amazing! :)

Rowan's 8th Birthday: Epcot

Our big 8 year old chose Epcot to celebrate his birthday.

The birthday boy got to dictate the agenda for the day. First up was the newly opened Soarin' ride. It did not disappoint and was worth every second of the 50 minute wait.

We also hit up the new Frozen ride which had a wait time of 75 minutes. Thankfully we had fast passes for that one. 

We stopped for a quick lunch before hitting the Test Track and Journey into Imagination. The boys rode Mission Space (Cruz's first time!) and Coco and I rode Finding Nemo.

We met up to take the monorail from Epcot over to the Contemporary Hotel near Magic Kingdom. The monorail goes right through this hotel so the boys were so excited.

Also in the hotel is Chef Mickey's restaurant.

The birthday boy got the royal treatment including a birthday card for all the characters to sign and a special cupcake.

Hard to see but all the characters signed his card and Mickey Mouse wrote a special birthday message just for Rowan.

Both boys did some shopping with birthday money that they brought along. These days are so sweet. I know I am going to look back and miss them so much. The kids are at wonderful ages and our family time is just so fun. 

We did part of the day Friday at Magic Kingdom so here are a few photos from there. 

Hands up from Cruz!!!

Rowan actually said his favorite part of the whole weekend was the fact that Cruz is finally 44 inches tall and can ride Space Mountain. Cruz loved his first ride on it! 

Riding Dumbo in her Dumbo top.

Our goal is to do EVERYTHING that each park has to offer so we checked another item off the list with Mickey's Philharmagic Show. I don't know why we didn't do it sooner! It was so neat.

Off to rest up for our big first day of school tomorrow! So thankful for this sweet summertime. 

Summer Wrap Up

All three kids had their Back to School Night tonight.

Cruz was thrilled to have his own desk this year!

Rowan was thrilled to hear about all the computer/ipad work he'll be doing this year.

Love that these sweet brothers were so excited that their classrooms are close together! 

Coco was so excited to have her turn. She loved her classroom, her teacher and most importantly, the playground.

Some other things we've been up to as we finish up our summer fun:

The rainy weather has been perfect for riding their new bikes (birthday gifts for both).

This little lady is excited for her birthday... she's hoping for a bike too. ;)

Rainy day bowling.

Cupcakes from Heavenly Cupcakes

We went golfing one drizzly day.

Then this happened... so we got a raincheck.

We went back to finish the next day.. and we were almost as wet from the sweat as we were from the rain.

We've had the best summer. We had the perfect combination of travel, rest and fun activities. We're finishing off the summer with a Disney weekend and are ready for school on Monday! I'm so thankful for this time with my babies. They really are the best kids in the world.