Labor Day Weekend

We had so much fun this weekend! We spent time at Cass Lake with my folks. The weather was beautiful -- it's been a VERY long time since we have had such a wonderful and relaxing time at the lake. Peter cried really hard when we had to leave. (We were crying on the inside too!)

Here are some photos of a few our adventures...


Peter's first bon-fire and S'mores!


Let's have S'more!


Peter discovered he's not a big fan of sticky fingers...


Grandpa, Daddy & Peter


Getting some water...


and making our own lake!


Striking a pose for Mom!


Building sand castles!


Peter's first time rolling down a hill!


Thank goodness Daddy was willing to participate!

(I think my camera is going bad because some of these pics are a bit blurry...)

Hope you all had as great of a weekend as we did. Goodbye summer...Welcome to Fall!

First Day of Preschool...My heart goes "pitter, patter"

Well it has officially come -- Peter's first day of preschool! He is a Little Saint in the 4 year old program at Sacred Heart. He will be going Monday, Wednesday & Friday mornings from 8:15 to 11:15am. Getting laid off has been a blessing in disguise for me as it has allowed me to spend extra time preparing Peter for this big day and it will give me time to spend with him in the afternoons.

He was a bit apprehensive this morning when he entered the classroom. But after a few minutes he warmed up to the situation and "Grandma Mary" (the older gal that assists in the classroom) began playing with him. We know many of Peter's classmates and their parents so that is comforting to us.

Here are the pictures I took! After I'm done with this post it will almost be time to pick him up! I can't to hear all about it...

Good news...and...bad news.

Good news first:
Ben and I had a BLAST in Vegas! We didn't realize how much we truly needed to get away and be by ourselves. It was so great for our marriage! Here are just a few things we did: saw the show 'Blue Man Group', went to Madame Toussaod's Wax Museam, went on a gondola ride, saw the Lions at MGM Grand, went to an aquarium at Mandalay Bay, ate at Jimmy Buffets Margaritaville....oh and so much more! We stayed at the Bellagio, which is absolutely amazing. We definitely recommend it! Also, I have an aunt and uncle that live in Vegas so we had a big dinner at their house one night! They were so hospitable. Thanks, Michele!
Here are a few photos...

Here we are on the plane...


This is us in the Bellagio Conservatory--The decor was great--Watering Cans--we decorated our wedding reception with watering cans so we couldn't resist a photo!


Eating at Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville


Fountains at Bellagio


And of course--the famous Las Vegas sign!


Ok, so now I have to move on to the bad news:
We flew in on Thursday morning. I went back to work on Friday. I got there at 7:30am (my usual time). And there's no easy way to say this and I will spare you all the details, but I was laid off from my job. So I am unemployed. There were 17 of us that day...but it just kind of stunk to be riding the high from our trip and then come home to that. I already filed for unemployment and will be getting "paid" real soon. I will do some freelance work from home to make up the difference. (Anyone need anything designed??) Peter is going to pre-school at Sacred Heart this year. He starts on September 2nd. He will do that Monday, Wednesday & Friday mornings. I will pick him up and have him all afternoon. Then on Tuesdays & Thursdays we will send him to daycare. We are going to talk to his daycare this morning about changing Peter from full-time to part-time. So that should help the finances too. Please keep us in your prayers as we deal with this transition.

Well, Peter is awake and he needs to get ready for the day! Stay tuned for more...