Best Weekend Ever

This weekend was completely packed, but oh-so-fun. On Friday night, I met Lauren in the city for a movie, dinner, and sleepover. Then I met up with Marra and her best friend Erika for a morning of shopping and a lovely lunch. Then Chris brought the girls into the city and we attended a princess-themed birthday party for some friends from Hampton Court. Then we dropped the girls at the monthly babysitting that Broadway Pres offers and Chris & I had a lovely date in the city. Sunday morning brought one of the cutest traditions Rye offers. All the elementary kids are eligible to sign up with a partner and paint Halloween-themed windows in the town square. Liv & Delilah were partners, of course, and were thrilled when they made it into the local paper!!

Apple Picking and a Haunted House

We went on our annual apple picking trip at Wilkens Farm and added a visit the next day to Lasdon Park. Lads Park has an annual Halloween Train show, and an Area 51-themed haunted house that is just scary enough for the girls. Add in a hay maze and hills to roll down and our girls are happy campers! And this first shot is the end of the weekend, with Delilah as she prefers to sleep: surrounded by as many stufties as possible!

And We're Off!

School has officially started for everyone. Delilah is now a 1st grader at Midland Elementary and Noelle is in pre-school full time at the Rye Presbyterian Nursery School...conveniently located in Mommy's church! :) The night before school started, we went to Delilah's school for our annual night-before-school prayer. Grammy Di and Papa H were with us, making it extra special. We had just finished saying our prayer when we heard screeching and a loud thump in the middle of the road. Much to our surprise and horror, a deer had been hit while trying to cross the road! Delilah wanted to run and help it, but we managed to hold her back. Not our normal prayer evening, but Grammy Di managed to do some quick thinking and distracted the girls quite nicely. We dealt with a lot of hazards in Manhattan, but a roaming deer wasn't one of them!!!

Delilah was very excited to start school. She had a fancy dress picked out for weeks, but the night before she changed her mind and went with a simple skirt and her Sofia the First shirt...she said, "It's just more 'me'." :) Poor little Noelle didn't start for a few more days and was sad to be left behind.

Although excited, Delilah was a little nervous about not knowing anybody. But when I picked her up, she was bear-hugging a sweet girl like they had known each other their whole lives. Her name is Liv and they just may be friends forever. The second day of school, Liv's mom call me to invite Delilah to Liv's bday party that Saturday. She apologized for the late notice, but Liv had begged, saying, "I know I just met her, Mom, but it just won't be the same without Delilah!!!"

Finally, it was Noelle's turn to start. She has two different classes: a small morning one, and a larger afternoon class. She loves all four of her teachers and has started making some friends of her own. The best part of my day is the 45-minute lunch we get to have together every day. Such a big girl!!!

And we close with this precious picture of Noelle at the end of her first day of school...she was wiped!

So happy the girls are transitioning so well. We've definitely had a few rough moments of missing our friends back in NYC, but for the most part, they are thriving. Chris and I couldn't be more proud of them!!!