Flying through September!

It's September 19th -- WHY NOT WRITE A BLOG POST?!

First of all, let me express how glad I am that we're more than halfway through September. August felt like it was 65 days long this year, and I've mentioned before how August is a tough month for me (sorry, Aunt Shannon -- it's just SO HOT!). Even though September isn't really any cooler, I'm filled with hope that fall-ish weather IS actually coming.

I also need to quickly recap, for myself, that I didn't post a single thing on the blog the month of May, June, or August. Now I'm going to remind myself that that's okay, because we moved our family of six from California to Mississippi this summer, and things I want to do may have to wait a little while due to readjustment and settling in.

Speaking of readjustment and settling in, I feel like I don't have a single update to share, although I know LOTS has changed as we've reintegrated into Gulf coast life. Our homeschool group started August 27th; we meet Tuesdays here, instead of Fridays like we did in California. Sydney started the afternoon language arts program associated with our homeschool group (4th - 6th graders), so that's been a (good) change. We've had to adapt our daily schedule the rest of the week to accommodate the work required for that, but all is well as long as Ruthie continues to nap from 1-3 p.m. each day (LORD HELP US ALL WHEN SHE GIVES THAT UP).

We went on a little family vacation last week (Tuesday through Friday) to Gulf Shores, Alabama. More on that later, although I hardly took any pictures because we were too busy having fun and eating ice cream for dinner.

The kids continue to play outside despite the oppressive heat and humidity. Sydney's favorite pastime is catching frogs and carrying them around in her pocket (I wish I was kidding about the pocket):

Ruthie is having the time of her life, as this is the neighborhood where SHE finally has a friend that she can run the roads with. She's often sweaty, dirty, and thirsty, but also very happy:

Lorelei and Ford are still finding their footing here. They're a little more shy than the other two, but lately our backyard has become a gathering place for lots of kids, so they're doing fine, but miss their California friends. They DID start gymnastics this week; we go Tuesdays after we finish with our school group, and Sydney, Ruthie, and I watch. Ruthie will join them the MINUTE she turns four.

This took longer than expected, because I'm out of practice -- off to get ready for the day before everyone emerges from bed! Happy Thursday!