Last Day of School

Only a few short months ago, Haley was just shy of 3 years and it was her very first day of school.

Then somehow, the months flew by and she was 3 1/2 and it was her last day.

She has loved going to school.  Granted, it's only a program for 2 year olds and it was three days a week for a few hours, but she got to be around kids her age, play, sing, dance, and learn.  She had such a wonderful teacher and great friends. 

Every morning Haley would wake up and say "It's time for school!".   She was always ready to go get her backpack and get in the car to see her all her friends.  When we would get to the playground, she would run off and play without looking back.  When I would pick her up, she would sometimes tell me about her day, mostly what she didn't eat at snack time (it was usually cheese).  After we got home, most days she would put on her teacher glasses and play school with all her animals.  She sings the "Good Morning" song and teaches them all sorts of things. 

 

Haley didn't always have the patience to sit and do art, but everything she did I have a picture of. 

I can't believe how fast the year went by, but it makes me so happy that Haley has enjoyed going to school. 

For now, it is time to enjoy our summer vacation before it starts all over again next year.

Tampa Vacation

Last week we took our big family vacation in Tampa.  We were extra excited because Zach's parents were able to join us.

The drive was about 7 1/2 hours, so we thought the best thing to do was leave around 5am and then the girls would just go back to sleep in the car.  Wrong!  They stayed up and chatted and laughed for an hour and a half.  Then we stopped for breakfast.  Once we got back on the road again, Emily was getting upset and then proceeded to get sick, twice.  So we had to get her changed and the car seat somewhat cleaned up.  We were off to a rough start.  Eventually we made it and the real fun began!

After picking up Grandma and Grandpa Hinten, we were off to the Florida Aquarium.  The girls loved seeing all the fish and different kinds of sea life.  Haley was a fan of the sharks.

Day 2 was Busch Gardens.  There is a section of the park just for the little ones that was Sesame Street themed.  I'm pretty sure we could have spent the entire day there.  Emily got to ride on her first ride.

Haley went on her first "big girl" roller coaster.  Zach taught her to put her hands in the air.  She loved it so much she went on it twice!  No fears for my big girl.

Then the girls got to meet Elmo and Big Bird.  Haley wasn't too sure and Emily loved it.  She wanted to stand next to Elmo the whole time and gave Big Bird a high five as we were leaving.

We ended up making it just in time to the show that all the characters are in.  Both girls were dancing to the music the whole time.

Day 3 was our pirate cruise.  It was really neat and all about the kids.  The girls got little wooden pistols and pirate hats when we got on board.

Then they were able to trade in their pistols for water guns and there was a huge water fight on the ship.  I think Grandpa really enjoyed that :) 

There was also a treasure hunt and a story.  But towards the end, both girls weren't feeling too good.  I think they do as well on the water as their Mommy (not so good).  Overall, it was a fun experience.

In between all our fun adventures, the girls got some great time with their grandparents. 

In the evenings, Grandma would read bedtime stories.

And they had so much fun feeding the ducks and turtles. 

It was such an amazing vacation and I was a little sad to have to come home.  But we made so many wonderful memories on our trip!

Key West

As it starts to soak in to my brain that we are moving in a few months, I find myself looking back at our three years here in Key West. 

When Zach first told me that he got orders here, I was in a sort of denial about it.  I didn't want to talk about it because if you didn't talk about it, it wasn't really going to happen.  It was a hard adjustment on so many different levels.  We went from big city to small island.  I went from working to not working.  We went from having a great support system to no support system.  To say that it was an eye opener is an understatement.

When we first got here, I was so lost.  I had no idea how to meet people and people weren't exactly coming up to you and saying hi.  It was terrible.  I broke down so many times.  I think it helped when we got pregnant with Emily (not that that was why we got pregnant) because it was a way to keep my mind busy and off of how lonely I was.  Then somehow, that first year flew by.  Haley and I had made a few good friends and we were doing things.

Our second year here was a little better.  Emily was born, we took a few trips, made a few more friends, and kept a little busier.  Then we were halfway through our tour here and on the downhill slide.

Our third year has gone by in a blur.  It helped that Haley was in school and that we had things to do on a regular basis.  We've had to say goodbye to some friends this past year, which has been hard, but that is part of the military life. 

Saying goodbye. 

Now that we have about three months before we leave, it's starting to hit me that we are going to have to say goodbye.  Don't get me wrong, I am thrilled to be leaving and heading back to Texas, but I hate that we are leaving such good friends and a place where we have grown so much. 

Key West will be the place where I grew.  I got here and had no clue.  But I knew I had to put on my big girl panties and tough it out, somehow.  Over the past three years, I've learned to slow down a little bit and not always be in a rush.  I've learned to be a stay at home mom.  I've learned that I kind of like being a stay at home mom.  I've even learned to cook a little better (not that I was a bad cook before)!  I don't feel like I lost the old me now.  I feel like I've found a part of me that was in there the whole time. 

After we leave, I doubt we will ever come back here again.  I really hope that we will see our Key West friends again.  We will look back and smile at all the wonderful memories we made here.  I will not miss the drive from Key West to Miami, but I am looking forward to making it one last time.