First Day of School, First Day of School!!!

The summer is over and school is here. Ben and Katie were both excited and ready to start, it was me who was dreading the busy mornings, pick-up schedules, and having them gone most of the day. Today was their first full day and they couldn't have been more excited to leave the house. Katie couldn't sit still while eating breakfast, she barely got any food into her mouth she was so busy talking about her upcoming day. I'm sure she was a little nervous too, but she certainly seemed ready! Last week was the first time Ben mentioned going back to school and since then it couldn't come quick enough for him. He LOVES his teacher, Mrs. Cook, and hoped all summer he be in her class. When we got the class list in the mail last week he was thrilled! He also has four friends from Kindergarten in his class. I am amazed at how well they place all the students at Latin. Every class has approximately 5 kids from the previous year and every kid seems to be placed with the right teacher. I can't imagine what they must go through to figure all that out. I do know that the Kindergarten teachers decide what kids get what teacher in first grade. I think Mrs. Cathcart hit the nail on the head by putting Ben with Mrs. Cook. He is going to have a fantastic year.

Ben on his way to orientation. Notice his bag says "Palmer" ~ he wanted nothing to do with his initials or his first name. "Just put Palmer on it Mom, everyone knows that's me." You'd think he was a graduating senior with the attitude and confidence he walks around with!

Katie has Mrs. Austin this year ~ THE Kindergarten teacher to have at Latin. She is just wonderful!! The teachers at Latin not only set the tone for their classroom but also have complete control over the curriculum and material covered in class. So as you can imagine, one class to the next can be quite different. It will be interesting to compare the differences in Ben's first year and Katie's first year. Kate couldn't be happier though, Mrs. Austin classroom is right up her alley!

Kate checking out her room at orientation.

Katie and Claire talking to the fish.

Sporting her name tag.

Will and Cam still in their pjs (along with Mommy) saying goodbye.

Bye! I love that Jon is able to take the kids to school in the morning. I can't imagine trying to get all four of them fed, dressed and out of the house by 7:45. The school day doesn't start until 8:30, but kids can get there as early as 7:45 to play in their classrooms. Ben made it very clear he wanted to get to school as early as possible! It's when they do fun worksheets and get to socialize before the day begins.

It's hard to believe that it was a year ago that Ben was starting Kindergarten. Today it was Kate. My how fast they grow. My how fast time goes by.

Tick-Tock, Tick-Tock ...

Time is just ticking away. The countdown to the first day of school is on. Ben has orientation for an hour on Monday, Kate an hour or so on Tuesday then they both start a regular day on Wednesday. I can NOT believe this is our last weekend and summer is technically over. We still have lots of warm wonderful weather ahead of us, but as far as the summer freedom schedule, that's about to come to a screeching halt! And I'm really bummed about that. I've truly enjoyed this summer, we did no camps, no sports, no scheduled anything and it was great! Now it's time to get back to school and all the logistics that go along with it. Sigh. This year is also the start of a longer school day for Ben. Kindergarten at Latin goes from 8:30 -1:30, but starting in first grade the day extends until 3:10. He gets an extra recess in there, which is great, but it will really feel like he's gone all day! Not to mention the two different pick-up times everyday, that's going to be a fun one to figure out. Kate starting Kindergarten will be an adjustment for us all. She only went to preschool three days a week last year, so we are all going to be missing her. Especially William, he worships his big sister. I feel sad for him that he's losing his favorite friend for most of the day. Will also starts preschool for the first time this year. He will be attending Tuesday and Thursdays at Providence Presbyterian Preschool. I'm really excited about getting back into that program and can't wait to see all the wonderful things the new director has done. Will's first day will be after Labor Day, so we'll ease into a bit of a schedule before we have to start THREE different pick-up times on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Lucky for us, Mom has retired and is willing to help out in anyway that she can. Isn't she great!?! I really don't know what we would do without her!
Here's a little video of Will in the garage building his airplane. You might not be able to understand exactly what he's saying, it's the facial expressions that kill me! He reminds me so much of Ben at that age.



We got all the doctors visits in just in the nick of time. Will and Camryn went yesterday and Ben and Kate today. Little Miss Cam is measuring up just like the rest of them, she's 87% for height and 15% for weight ~ 32 inches tall and a whopping 26 lbs. Tall and skinny, just like her Daddy. Here is a video from earlier today. She sure does keep us all on our toes!

The Mountains With Kate

I took Kate to the mountains this weekend for some quality mother-daughter time before she heads off to Kindergarten next week. (Last year my dad, Barb and I (along with baby Camryn) took Ben to Atlanta for a baseball game and a trip to the aquarium. I really enjoyed having some one-on-one time with Ben, so we thought we'd make it a little tradition for each one of the kids. Sadly, Barb and Dad couldn't join us this summer due to the chemo that Barb's enduring at the the moment. We missed you both very much and will take a rain check for next summer. ) Kate and I started our journey early Saturday morning, picture courtesy of Ben. We headed straight up to Valle Crucis, NC for some horseback riding. When I made the reservation over the phone they told me Kate was too young to ride a horse, so we scheduled a pony ride. I was hoping once we got there they would let us both ride (since Kate is the size of a typical seven year old), but it turns out it's not the size they worry about, but the ability to follow directions and 'lead' a horse. So we stuck with the pony ride. She loved it.

Here she is on her new friend Kelly. Kelly is a miniature male horse, Kate thought it was funny that a boy had the name Kelly.

After the pony ride we stopped by Mast General Store to stock-up on some candy. Hey, is that Stonewall Kitchen I see on the shelf?? Is there anywhere they don't sell that stuff??

Once we got our fill of candy and some local mountain music we headed to Blowing Rock where we stayed at the Meadowbrook Inn. This was my first visit to Blowing Rock and I fell in love with the little town. It sort of reminds me of Bridgton, Maine where I grew up. Only much nicer and quainter ~ but what Bridgton has the potential to be.

Waiting for lunch at one of the cute sidewalk cafes. Yes, those are my sunglasses.

Feeding the ducks at the Meadowbrook Inn.

We walked over to Chitola Lake that evening after dinner.

Endless Engery Kate running up and down all the hills at Chitola.

The next morning we visited The Blowing Rock. Here she is outside the visitor center. Everything about the park was beautiful!

Kate just loved climbing around, through, over, under all the rocks and boulders. You'd never know she was born a 'city' girl!

Here she is peeking over the edge. The rock to her left is THE Blowing Rock. It's the only place on earth that it snows 'up' (at least that's what they claim). It is said that if you stand on top of that rock and toss anything out over the cliff the winds will carry it back up to you. We took their word for it. I don't stand too close to cliffs. Kate on the other hand was very interested in testing that theory.

At an overlook along the Blue Ridge Parkway headed to Grandfather Mountain. It was beyond breathtaking! We were both ooh-ing and ahh-ing the entire time.

We parked in the lower parking lot at Grandfather and decided to hike up the rest of the way. Apparently most people drive up, but really, mountains are made for hiking! It was a beautiful hike and Kate did such a great job. We hiked for 2.5 hours and she didn't complain at all. She really enjoyed being in the woods.

Here she is scaling one of the more difficult legs of the hike. Notice the ropes along the side. She wanted nothing to do with them. "I can do it Mommy!" she claimed ... and she sure did do it. I was amazed by her attitude and her abilities all day!

And here we are at the Mile High Swinging Bridge at the top of Grandfather. If you know me at all, you know I do not do well with heights. We talked about this bridge as we hiked. Kate couldn't wait to cross it. I, on the other hand, was dreading it!! I really didn't know if I would be able to make myself go across, and then back again. I still can't believe I did it. My stomach does flips just looking at this picture! When we reached the half way point, the wind picked up and that bridge really did start swinging, I thought I was in for it. I felt my body start to freeze and for a split second I could not move. Then this beautiful blue eyed girl turns around and says to me "Isn't it beautiful up here?" I didn't look around (at all) but that was enough to get me to the other side. She saw no reason to be scared. How could I let her down be letting my fear get the best of me? I wasn't about to ruin this moment for her. So we crossed, had a nice little snack and crossed back over. I don't know if I will ever do it again, but I'm glad I did do it. And I'm really glad I was with Kate when I did!!

After Grandfather Mountain we explored the caves at Linville Caverns before heading back home to Charlotte. I took lots of pictures, but had problems getting them up on blogger today. The 'caves' as Kate called them were her favorite part of the trip. We'll have to make a trip back there soon, now Ben is dying to go! We had a fantastic weekend together. I will never forget it. I look forward to many more trips like this with each one of my kids.

Back from the Beach ...

What's better than having a townhouse at the beach? Having friends who own a townhouse at the beach! Thanks to the Lincoln's for lending us their beach townhouse for four days. It was just perfect and we were able to enjoy another wonderful vacation on Pawley's Island at Litchfield Beach. Ben spent everyday boogie boarding in the warm (85 degrees) ocean water for hours on end, while Will and Kate played on the beach and Camryn kept us on our toes RUNNING back and forth, back and forth. We all had a fantastic time and have started a new family sport of boogie boarding. Jon, Ben and myself have mastered it. Hopefully next time we go we will be able to get Kate to join us. She was too afraid to go into the ocean after Will was stung by a jellyfish on the first day. It didn't stop Will, Ben or Camryn from enjoying the water, but Kate wouldn't go in past her ankles.

The oaks covered in Spanish moss will never cease to amaze me. They are always beautiful no matter how many times I see them.

Going for a walk. This picture makes me laugh, they both have the same 'grumpy' expression on their face. We just had ice cream ... why aren't they smiling??

Will and Kate on the beach at sunset. I love walking on the beach at night.

Ben in the front seat of the golf cart as we cruised around the compound. That tooth of his is finally coming in!

Beautiful Kate.

A picture of all four of them looking at the camera and smiling. Miracles do happen.

The golf cart was just as fun for the kids as the beach!

The girls.

Will practicing surfing. The boy really wants to learn but just can't understand why he can't just do it NOW.

Camry enjoyed napping on Mommy in the beach chair every morning.

Ben the boogie boarding boy! He had a blast ~ so much fun that he has abrasions on his stomach from the sand. He keeps asking when we are going back.

Camryn loved the beach. She would RUN straight for the waves, get knocked down, get a face full of salt water and get back up and do it all over again. There wasn't much sitting for Mommy and Daddy on this beach trip, but we had fun!

The water perfect!

Camryn looking for alligators. We only saw a few.

Smoke & Patch

Here are the newest Palmer family members. Smoke and Patch. Jon and I have been talking about getting Kate a new cat since Silver disappeared earlier this year. It was only a matter of time. The debate came down to getting two older cats from PetsMart that needed a home or these free kittens I heard about through a neighbor a few weeks ago. The kittens won. As much as I love the idea of giving older cats a much needed home, we were worried that the adult cats wouldn't adjust well to the dogs, Ginger (Ben's cat) or the kids. Our kids have high expectations for their animals. Cats who don't play dress-up or 'baby' would not be appreciated in this house.

Will has been asking for his own cat for a long time now. He saw the picture of 'black and white kitty' and wanted him immediately. "I name it Patch" he said. I love it. I don't know where he came up with that name, but it fits perfectly. Patch is mostly black with a few white patches and one black patch on one of his white paws. Will keeps asking if he gets to keep Patch, it's almost like it's too good to be true for him. It's very sweet. He could not be happier.

Kate our cat whisperer. She is so happy to have a baby kitten to take care of. She named him Smoke but we keep waiting for the name to change to Silver, since he looks very much like her, but Smoke has stuck so far. Of the two Smoke seems much friendlier and more outgoing. He's not afraid of the dogs, or Ginger, and will jump in your lap for nap as soon as you sit down. A perfect kitten for our animal lover. I must admit, Kate really does have a way with animals. I've never really seen anything like it. I hope she follows her dream of being a vet, she would be so good at it.

Kate got Smoke to sleep in Silver's cat bed within minutes of bringing him home. It was rather amazing and earned her the title of Cat Whisperer.

Ben is enjoying the kittens as much as their 'owners' and can't wait for Ginger to start playing with them. Ginger isn't so sure about this whole thing so it may take some time but she'll come around and eventually be happy to have some playmates in the house. Of course now that three of the kids have their own cats we will be getting another one once Camryn is old enough to realize she's the only one 'without'. "Titty" is her new favorite word. She's been saying over and over again since we brought Smoke and Patch home yesterday, I'm sure it won't be long before she puts her other favorite word in front of it: "Mine Titty" ... but she'll have to wait at least another year before she gets her own.

Mom Gets Away ...

Our Maine vacation was kicked off with a girls night away for yours truly. It was not only fabulous to see my oldest and dearest friends, but it was absolutely wonderful to enjoy dinner and breakfast with adults at a leisurely pace. Kristin, Jaim and Jess met me at the airport where I kissed my family goodbye and headed off to the coast of Maine. Mal was waiting for us at the Terrace By the Sea, soon after Lauren arrived and then Mis. (It had been three years since I last saw Missi! With her in Montana and me in North Carolina our paths rarely cross.) [From left to right: Missi, Jessica, Lauren, Kristin, Jaime, Me and Mallory.]It was about 3:oo in the afternoon and we had no agenda. Ah, it was so nice. Ogunquit is a quaint little town with great food, cute shops and wonderful ocean views. We treated ourselves to a lazy lunch, had a few drinks and relaxed. It was fabulous! That night we enjoyed a scrumptious dinner at The Front Porch, after stuffing our faces we ventured upstairs to be entertained by the colorful locals at the piano bar. Can't say I've ever been to a bar that specialized in show tunes before. Needless to say, great times were had by all!
Here are the seven of us in the spring of 1993 ~ the year we graduated from high school. As much as we all cringe when we look at this (because we KNOW we look so much better now), we are all so thankful to Mal for making us get it done. Check out the hair. I guess it was the 'in' thing to have long hair, but really did we ALL need to have the same 'do'?? So funny. I do love this picture though. We had all been through so much together by the time our senior year rolled around, most of us have known each other since elementary school ... and now some sixteen years later we've grown up, moved away but are still just as close, if not closer in some ways, then we were back then. Some of us, myself not included, are now sisters-in-law ~ how crazy is that?!?!! And all but three of us married guys we went to high school with. Strange. After our relaxing night away we decided to start saving for a big 40th birthday celebration somewhere fabulous. We have six years to save and agree on a place to vacation ~ that should gives us just enough time to come up with all sorts of crazy plans! No matter where we end up, it's bound to be loads of fun!

If you have any connections in New England you are more than well aware of the constant rain they have had there this summer. We had a few nice days, but for the most part it was cool and rainy. This picture is pretty much what it looked like the entire time we were on vacation. It would have been much more enjoyable to have some sun, but lucky for us, we had summer to come back to here in NC. At least the deary weather made for some nice beach shots!

Over the River and Through the Woods ....

Here are some highlights from our road trip to Kentucky. The drive is a long 500 miles through the mountains of North Carolina, Tennessee and Kentucky but it was beautiful. The kids were great (most of the time) thanks to 'Ma' sitting in the back keeping them busy, even reading to them while we twisted through the Great Smokey Mountains. We had so much fun visiting with my Lococo family and celebrating Mom's 60th birthday. Cory and Craig even flew in for the day to surprise Mom at her party! Big Thank Yous to Aunt Kathy and Aunt Barbie for doing all the work, cooking all the food and hosting us for the weekend. We love you and miss you all!

Tunnel through the Smokey mountains.

Playing at Great Grandma's house with Aunt Barbie, Ma and Grandma.




Three generations!

Cory and Craig about to surprise Mom.

Aunt Kathy presenting the cake to the Birthday Girl. (Will's expression cracks me up!)