The BUS!

I hope she as excited to ride the bus at the age of 15 as she is when she is 5! I do not have a problem getting Lily out the door on the days when she gets to ride the bus. The other days....well, we have a bit more of a problem! Our pick up and drop off spot is about 5 minutes from our house. It was pretty fun droping her off and picking her up last week. She looks like such a big girl when she climbs those steps and (hopefully) says, "Good morning, Anna!"

Henry VanDyk, Sr. - Grandpa

June 5, 1928 - August 20, 2009

Henry Van Dyk, Sr.

"I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing." II Timothy 4:7-8

We will miss you, Grandpa.

First day of Kindergarten!

Lily bounded out of bed this morning at 6:45 and said, "Mom, today I am a kindergartener!" It was amazing that she got up without poking, proding and threatening from me as she hasn't gotten up before 8 AM all summer! She was definitely ready and excited about the adventures that today was going to hold for her. I was also very excited for her because I knew we had done all we could to prepare her, and her experience last year in preschool was tremendous. They fully prepared her for what was to come. Last year, I was much more hesitant about sending her to school, but I did not have a doubt or reservation this year. I did shed a few tears with her last night. She let me pray for her rather than with her, and that experience was very touching. Here she is with her back pack and ready to go!

She picked out this Tinkerbell backpack and lunch pail after I nixed the Miley Cyrus backpack.

Grace, of course, had to get in on the action, and this picture is just oh so sweet! Grace spent the day at "Nana school" because I was working today.

Lily's sitting at her desk and ready for her friends to come so she can play. She told me last night she was looking forward to recess the most. In that respect, she's her Father's daughter. I was more academic that that! (Yeah, right! ;)

She is standing here in front of her classroom door. She RAN to the classroom this morning.

Above, she is pictured with her teacher, Mrs. Bons. Lily was very excited to be in Mrs. Bons' classroom.

This afternoon I asked her what she wanted me to pack in her lunch for tomorrow. She informed me that she's not supposed to go to school tomorrow! I guess the convo about "all day, every day" was lost on her this summer. She already fell asleep in the car on the way home today, so we'll see what tomorrow brings!

Doughnut Day!

I should have blogged about this little ritual a long time ago as it's been going on for about 2 years. On Fridays, our hoof trimmer, Tony, comes to give our cows pedicures, and he brings doughnuts for everyone. It's a happy time when the bells jingle on the door, and daddy brings the pink box to the girls' level for them to pick out their weekly doughnut. Even the cat had to get in on the action this week.

Grace just eats the frosting off her doughnut and leaves the cake part. Lily will gobble up the whole thing. I quit eating doughnuts, which makes me sad! They are so good!

More from the beach

I was having trouble with Blogger yesterday and didn't get all the pictures uploaded that I wanted to share, so here are a few more. Lily will write on anything that I allow her to, so she was having a great time writing in the sand. My prediction is that she'll be reading by Christmas. Watch out Kindergarten, here she comes!

Lily and Dustin really had fun running and playing in the waves. Lily didn't want to leave the beach, and Dustin said to her, "Lily, I know! The last day of vacation always has to be the funnest, huh?!" That was a great observation.

Kindergarten starts a week from Monday, and Lily is ready. She received a letter from her teacher yesterday, and that got her more excited. I think it will be different not having her around every day, but she is definitely ready for the challenge that Kindergarten will bring. And, for two days a week, I won't be far away from her. I've accepted a job at school working in the office, and I am very excited about that! Grace will be well cared for by my mom and our favorite day care lady, Margy.

Last getaway of the summer....

We have officially entered into school preparation mode here at the Bakker household. Of course, with that, comes a ritual that most families enjoy: the last official getaway of the summer. Ignoring the impending structure and schedule that comes with kids returning to school, we enjoy a few last idyllic days together. Our favorite RV spot, Paso Robles, is a mere 2 hours away, and that was the destination of choice. My folks, my sister and her family and some old family friends joined us for "5 sleeps!" (as Lily puts it) last week. My parents just bought a new motorhome, so we were happy to accompany them on their maiden voyage. After a few days of good eating, the Ravine Waterpark, and an afternoon of wine tasting, my folks and the daddies took off, leaving Dori and there for 2 days with just the kids. We took advantage of it and let the kids stay up late, didn't cook, and spent an afternoon at Avila Beach.

It took Grace a bit to "warm up" to the beach scene, but once she did, she dove in full force. (Warm up is in quotation marks....the Central Coast is not known for its warm weather, but that day was pretty nice.)

There are tide pools close by, and the boys found many crabs to occupy their insatiable curiousity for all things slimy and creepy crawly.

Lily tried boogie boarding for the first time. The waves at Avila are not threatening, and she really had fun, as you can see by the picture.