- end of summer fun -

Kids are going back to school, fall decorations are being displayed in the stores, people are already planning for the holidays...yup, summer has just about packed all of her bags and is saying her goodbyes. I will hold on for as long as I can...I refuse to make this goodbye an easy one! I even planned a last minute girl's trip this weekend for Lisa (my good friend), my mom, and myself (and the kiddos of course) to squeeze a little more fun out of summer! But soon, we will have nothing left but memories of this summer...all in all, great memories, with just a few bumps along the way. We had some rough times financially this summer that we weren't expecting to have to navigate our way through, but we persevered...although at times, not very gracefully. And we also made some wonderful family memories! This might have been one of my favorite summers ever!

On a seperate note, we have definitely hit our terrible two's around here! As one of my absolutely favorite blogger friends called it, this is undoubtedly a "beautiful, ugly stage" we are at with Ellie. On one hand, it is amazing to see her learn and develop every day. Her language skills constantly blow us away, and it's so much fun to watch her little personality blossom. But there is also the flip side. The tantrums, the frustrations, the constant use of the word "no". She tests my patience and gets me laughing hysterically all within five minutes. It definitely is beautiful and ugly all at once, but such an important phase for all of us. She is learning boundaries, and we are learning to set those boundaries. And when this stage is over, we will look back at it all with smiles on our faces, and joy in our hearts...hopefully! Ha ha ha!