Kole....6 months old

Not sure where the past 6 months have gone, but they have been absolutely amazing! I'm still in shock that my baby is already 6 months old. Kole's smile is contagious and he has the most amazing personality. I love his little giggle and how he gets so excited when he sees his big brother Kaden. Here are a few pictures I took of him for his 6 month photo shoot...the first picture was taken by Kendra

Summer moments

This summer has been filled with lots of little memoriable moments. We didn't have a chance to "go on vacation" like we had planned due to having to move, but we made the best of what we could do. We spent a lot of time with family and friends and did little trips here and there. The boys really got to enjoy one another. Kaden and Kole just love each other so much. They are always smiling together and wanting to be with each other. It's such an amazing feeling to see the love that they already have for each other. I can only hope this love and friendship continues throughout the years.

Kole and Papa

Kaden and Gary

Wheel barrel ride

Having a race against Auntie Kendra

Nana and Kole

Role Reversal!

My 3 favorite guys!

Sitting up by himself!

Kaden giving "brother" his juice

Kaden and Mommy made flip flop cookies....yummy!

Kaden, Kole, and Auntie

1st time on the swing....and he LOVED it!

1st veggie!

Borderland Park

Borderland Park

Mommy and Daddy took Kaden to Borderland park for some "special time"

Uncle Matt came home to visit....Kole got to meet him for the 1st time!

Packing, packing, and more packing! aaghhhh

The past few weeks we have been packing like crazy. We are living out of boxes and it's nuts! I swear after I move into my new house, we are NEVER moving again. It has taken up so much time and it is very stressful. Our house sold sooo fast (within the first week of being on the market) and we haven't found a new house yet. We are lucky enough that my parents said we could live with them until we find a house, but that means moving TWICE..aaagghh! A lot of our stuff is in storage and then at my mother in laws house. I feel bad for Kaden and Kole because their toys are mostly packed and they can hardly walk without boxes being in their way. I know the outcome will be worth it when we have a nice new house, but in the meantime....I feel like I'm going nuts! We will be officially moving out Sept. 30th.

My classroom

The school that I worked at for the past 4 years was closed this past summer :( Our school along with another elementary school in Taunton are being combined together at one bigger elementary school called Mulcahey Elementary School. This is going to be a big change for everyone since both schools were very small. Now, combined together the is almost triple what we are used to. We have a new principal now too. It's going to be a little crazy at first, but I am very excited to work with everyone and to meet my new students. I will miss my Walker students so much though. They were a great group of kids who I have become very close to over the past few years.

This year I am going to be working part time :) :) :) I will be working Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays. This is a great opportunity for me to make money, yet still be able to spend lots of time with my boys! My mom, sister, and mother in law will be watching the boys the days I work.

We were able to move into our classroom and set it up a few weeks ago. I was lucky enough to have my sister Kendra help and Dianne Lounsbury...she worked with me at Walker and covered my maternity leave when I was out with Kole. She is an amazing teacher and friend. I am hoping that she will be able to work the 2 days I have off. The school and kids would be lucky to have her. Dianne and Kendra came in several days to help me set up. It was a little crazy at first since I had over 65 boxes to unpack and lots and lots of furniture. With their help, my classroom looks great and I can't wait to bring my new students in there for some reading fun!

Here are some pics of my new classroom (not completely done yet)

Kaden decided he wanted to play "teacher" :)

Happy 4th of July

Kaden and Kole loved the fireworks. We watched them from the East Taunton Elementary School and we had a perfect view. Every time a firework went off, Kaden would say "That was TOTALLY AWESOME!" I loved seeing him so excited. He cried when they were all over. Kole watched the fireworks too and just kept smiling. On the 4th of July we went to Uncle Dave's house for a family cookout. Kaden was a little hesitant to go on the boat, but he finally went on. He didn't love it, but he went back on for a second ride so he couldn't have thought it was too bad. We were able to watch the fireworks from the boat in the middle of the pond. It was really amazing to be surrounded by fireworks all over the pond. The reflections of the fireworks off the water was beautiful. Every direction you turned your head, you could see fireworks going off. It was a great way to end the night.

Kaden, Kole, and Kevin enjoying the fireworks

Kole reaching to give his big brother hugs!

Our little monkey!

Kevin and his "little guys"

My boys and I waiting for the fireworks to start

A Surprise for Kaden

With the weather being so hot, we decided to buy a swimming pool for Kaden to keep at my parent's house. Kaden LOVES the water and being outside. He has taken swimming lessons twice now and he really enjoys it. He is starting to put his face in the water and he doesn't mind being splashed at all.