Last night, many good friends and family surprised me and gathered to celebrate my birthday. My friend Missy flew in from Chicago and Katie, Timmy and BJ drove in from Wisconsin. It meant a lot to have everyone there to celebrate. Thank you very much to everyone that came and helped make this birthday very memorable. 
It was so beautiful outside Friday night that we decided to take advantage of the weather and hang out at one of our favorite places to go, Minnehaha Falls. The kids love playing on the playground and watching the waterfall. It is such a great place to be outside and relax after the week. Stella even shared a lick of her cone with Charlie- what a great sister! Charlie did have his own ice cream but always wants to try everyone elses!
This past week, we've had a lot of fun getting together with many friends and family. Madeline and Henry visited last weekend and the girls had fun playing dress up and playing with Madeline's makeup, which Stella thought was pretty cool. Thursday night we went to Aunt Betty's birthday party and the kids had fun goofing around with Cousin Sofia. On Saturday, the kids had fun playing with our other friend Madeline's toys and dress up clothes. Tonight we had fun at Hayden's fifth birthday party. Stella had so much fun with all the kids and loved seeing Hayden.
Stella had a really important day today. She had her first day of school. She started 4year old preschool which she'll attend three days a week all day. This morning's drop off was very emotional for me- I wasn't prepared to be so sad. She was totally fine with me leaving her and she seemed so grown up all of a sudden. I was so worried to leave her with practical strangers. Who would fix her hair after nap and help her wipe her butt? What happened to my little baby girl? Wasn't it just yesterday that she was causing me such misery inside my uterus? Time goes by so fast, I'm just completely blown away. When I picked her up tonight, she came running towards me and couldn't wait to tell me all about her day and her new friends. She was most proud that she drank chocolate milk and didn't throw up (which she normally does)! What an achievement on a first day of school! I'm so proud of her.
Charlie turned two years old today. It's so hard to believe how fast time goes by. I can't get over how lucky and blessed I am to have such great kids. Charlie is so funny and always trying to get everyone to laugh. He's communicating better and finally starting to grow some hair. We had a fun day and tonight the Bartsh family celebrated with us. Charlie had fun playing with Stella and his cousin Sofia, eating cake and opening presents. 
This Labor day weekend was very busy. Grandma Joy, Grandpa Mike and Auntie Katie visited us to celebrate Charlie's 2nd birthday. We went to the State fair on Saturday and had a great time. The kids loved the rides and the corn dogs. It was great to watch them have such a fun time. The next day we went to the beach. Charlie and Stella love digging in sand. We had a little party and sang to Charlie and had birthday cupcakes. It was fun to watch Charlie be the center of attention for once. The kids had so much fun.
