Big times.

KING OF THE SCHOOL.

That's right, Josh is in the "BIGGEST BOY" class at his school.

I was talking school up to Josh before his first day, and was telling him he will be attending "Pre-K" this year. He stop me and said, "No, Mommy, it's called PRE-KINDERGARTEN." This milestone is far to important to waste on abbreviations. I found him a new lunch box with all his favorite super heroes on it and he was more than ready to get the year started.

With the start of PRE-KINDERGARTEN also came the start of The Rattler's soccer season. Josh is doing much better this season and spends the entire game chasing after the ball. Now, that is not to say his foot ever actually comes in CONTACT with the ball, but at least he is out there trying!

Murphy and Jackson are having a big time in this new delightful weather we are enjoying. Here they are having their daily "stare down" in the back yard. It's a funny ritual to watch. They stare at each other like statues for a good 3-5 minutes until one of them eventually pounces and then all "you know what" breaks loose as they wrestle each other.

Just a preview for life with siblings in the house? Let's hope the children can be more civilized.

Fall is officially here when the pumpkins make their appearance at the Arboretum! We were happy to spend a wonderfully beautiful morning at the gardens celebrating Maggie's birthday and were pleasantly surprised to see the pumpkin patch set up! Fall really snuck up on us this year, but we are happy to welcome it with open arms.

Because we have the CUTEST kids in the city (and because we were in the right place at the right time), we were asked to be in a news story for our local ABC channel about the start of the annual pumpkin festival at the Arboretum. The camera man was sure to capture the prince and princess in their pumpkin carriage. Look at Katie, she's a natural posing for her shot. Another memory that will be featured in their rehearsal dinner slide show in 20 years. Thanks, ABC!

Although they only aired about 2.4 seconds of our kids, Josh made the news! You can see him in the bottom right corner of the screen showing off his pumpkin. He asked to watch the clip no fewer than 30 times. Thank goodness for the DVR, best invention EVER!!

This is old news, but Aunt Betsy got married!!! Look at what a beautiful bride she is! The wedding was in June, but I just now got my hands on some pictures to share of the big day on the beach.

Josh was honored to serve as Betsy's helper by carrying her train down the aisle. I am happy to report he did not rip the dress nor expose the bride in any way by playing parachute. It was very difficult to explain to Josh what kind of train he would be carrying. When I first told him his role in the ceremony, he was very interested to see what kind of train Aunt Betsy had. Was it a Thomas train or a Chuggington train?? Was it an engine or a caboose?

A fashion expert, he is not.

I'm cool with that.

I was honored to serve as a bridesmaid and Chris read scripture during the ceremony. I love this picture, despite my crazy wind-blown hair, it's one of my favorite family pictures. I mean, could Josh look anymore like a little Irish surfer boy?

(Is that such a thing???)

Congratulations Betsy and Rance! We are so happy for you and grateful to be part of your special day.