Memorial Day 2013

Andrew took a few days off and coupled it with Memorial Day so that we had 5 days with Daddy!!! We took off to my parent's mountain house to enjoy some hiking and relaxing. On Friday, we took the children to the original Mast General Store and the Annex in Valle Crucis. This was very exciting to Ceilidh due to her obsession with Little House on The Prairie and very exciting to Graeme b/c of all the candy the store offers! wink Graeme very specifically told us he wanted to watch the sunset on top of a mountain, so we drove to Macrae meadows on Grandfather Mountain, and did just that. It really was beautiful. On Saturday, we ate an amazing breakfast at Dan'l Boone Inn, and then went hiking on the Blue Ridge Parkway. We saw one of the most incredible random waterfalls I have ever seen. Sunday, my parents came up for a day to see the children. We played on the community playground, drove up Beech Mountain, and enjoyed a yummy mexican dinner before they headed back home. It was sad to see Monday come, but we eased our sadness about leaving by eating lunch at the new Five Guys (!!!) in Boone. I have LOTS more fun stories, but I will leave you with the fun pictures! wink

Big happenings...

Ugh... My last post was a Spring update, and I am already posting a catch up blog. We have had quite a few big events take place recently. First and foremost, my newest niece and my brother's sixth child was born safely into one happy family! Welcome to the world Arabella Marie Smoak! She is a sweet little thing with chubby cheeks that make you want to squeeze them. I can't wait to meet her hopefully soon.

Secondly, Andrew and I celebrated 8 years of marriage on May 21st. I have written letters, spoken words, posted posts on the blog and FB over the years; but nothing will adequately convey my thankfulness to the Lord for the husband Andrew has chosen to be. Relationships are never easy 100% of the time, but it has never felt like 'work.' I never tire of 'making it work!' I love you, Andrew.

Thirdly, we are the parents of a first grader!!!! Ceilidh has completed her first year of school. I can't believe it. She was an amazing student the whole year. She LOVED her lessons, and very rarely complained about doing school. I really enjoyed being apart of this learning experience with her. Ceilidh is a voracious reader, loved math, and really enjoyed learning about different cultures from around the world. I can't wait to see what next year has in store!

And lastly, my first grader will be turning SIX tomorrow. To celebrate, we went to the mountains for a few days. More about that later.....

Spring 2013 update

Clearly, I have been slack in keeping up with the blog recently. It has been really busy around here. We have been trying to stay diligent with school lessons, working over time with the studio's Spring production of 'Cinderella,' training to be a Kindermusik teacher, oh and normal family and household duties. It has been a long few months, but hopefully we are easing into a slower summer!

Andrew has been telling Graeme, he would take him fishing as soon as the Dogwoods bloomed. Well, our dogwoods are BEAUTIFUL; so Graeme finally got his wish! This was everyone's very first time at the 'fishin hole!' They stayed out for 25 - 30 minutes and sadly didn't catch anything. Graeme is now convinced there are no fish in the lake! HA We will have to wait a few weeks before going again, b/c they are treating our lakes right now. Hopefully they will have more luck next time!

And, Ceilidh made her big debut as a mouse in 'Cinderella' last weekend. She performed beautifully, and seemed to really love it! Though it can be hard to go from my own children, to more children at the studio some days; I really love my 'outside the home' job! I have missed dancing. It has been wonderful to be back this year. I am a little biased, but I had the cutest mouse on stage! wink

Graeme had just sat through 2 hours of 'Cinderella!' I will excuse his scowl. HA