The Beach Part 2

A few more beach pictures =)

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Until next year...

The Beach Part 1

Since school started right after we got home from vacation, I am just now getting around to posting about our beach trip. We had such a great time! (I must warn you...get ready for picture overload.)

The trip down was a little crazy. We got stuck in traffic before Mobile and we were basically in a stand still until after the tunnel. What usually takes us about 11 hours took us 16 hours. You can imagine the craziness in the car with 2 boys who never napped. Luke finally fell asleep right before we got to our condo. Bless his heart. The good news is Luke went potty at each stop. The bad news is he hasn't done it since. :) Guess we will work on that now that big brother is in school.

Ben pretty much talks about the beach all year long. He loves it. This year Luke was able to really enjoy it too. He was a little intimidated by the ocean, but he loved the sand and pool time. Towards the end of the trip, he warmed up to the waves and the ocean.

The boys spent lots of time building sandcastles and catching fish in their net.

Lots of playing in the pool with daddy.

And a little bit of cuddling with mommy.

Of course we had to visit our favorite restaurant, Captain Anderson's. Ben loves to watch all of the boats and loves this awesome scuba diver.

We visited Pier Park and rode on some of the Miracle Strip rides.  Ben really wanted to ride the Tilt-A-Whirl so Aunt Bee Bee rode with them.  He did not like all the spinning, but he survived. Luke on the other hand rode it with hands up. =)

Todd and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary. We had a lunch date at a cute little place in Seaside. It was the perfect way to celebrate!

Overall, we had a wonderful vacation! Family beach pics will be on the next post. :)

First Day of Kindergarten

We've been saving this post for a few days since most of the schools in the area started back today. 

Ben's school kicked off last Monday for 1st - 12th grades and Tuesday for K3, K4 and K5. 

This mommy is thankful that his school wears uniforms. No battles over what to wear!

Walking to Mrs. Johnson's class (following closely to his buddy, Noble). 

Checking out his seat...

...choosing a game to play

... and watching to see what the other kids were doing. 

After pick-up we went to Chick-Fil-A to celebrate the First Day of School. 

Luke just celebrated being little and cute. 

Friday night the school hosted a Back to School Splash Bash. The football players and cheerleaders were in charge of helping the kids with the water slides, while the parents were able to visit with each other. It was great to see so many familiar faces - friends I attended Arkansas Baptist with, now there with their own kids, and other friends we have from the area. 

Ben had a blast on the water slides. 

Luke wasn't able to get enough speed to slide down the slip-n-slide, so Todd just 

grabbed him and threw him on!

Mister Fearless running down the slip-n-slide. 

Another pic with our new buddy, Noble. 

Sunday morning we were back in Conway for church, and Ben was so glad to see his friends there. It's so hard to believe all these sweet little boys and girls that we have watched with Ben are all officially in school. 

Here's to a great first year of school!

Benjamin's School

Since the first day I held my red-headed baby boy in my arms, I have prayed over him time and time again. One of the things I prayed for was the school where he would go. Over the last year I prayed harder because I knew time was drawing near. He would start kindergarten this year! 

I prayed that God would show us the right school for Ben. I prayed that he would give us a peace so that we would know it was the right place. Deep down I really wanted Ben to go to Arkansas Baptist in Little Rock, the school that I went to from the first day of pre-k through the last day of my senior year. 

I knew it was a long shot because of finances and distance, but I also knew that God could do anything to change those circumstances. 

I love that school. 

I love it because not only did it teach me academics, but it taught me character, discipline and independence. 

I found life long friends there that I love dearly and have the most incredible memories with. 

Most of all, it taught me the Bible. 

I am so grateful for all of the scripture that I have memorized because of that school. I wanted all of these things for Ben, but I knew that God would put him where He wanted him whether it was AB or not.

Todd and I have always thought our boys would go to public school just because financially private school seemed impossible.  The public school where we were zoned was a great school, but for some reason I never felt a peace about sending Ben there. There was another school in town that I thought might be good for Ben, but God quickly closed that door. 

The kindergarten classes were full before we had a chance to register Ben. We could have taken a gamble and moved into that zone to try and get him in, but there was no guarantee that he could go there. 

We couldn't imagine our little boy being bused to another school across town. So I started to pray harder! 

One afternoon, Todd called and told me he registered Ben at AB. He found a pastor's discount and said that we would be able to swing it. 

What?? Is this really happening? I couldn't believe it!! 

God is so good. After Ben's kindergarten testing and interview at AB, I felt this overwhelming peace wrap around me as we left the building. It was God's way of showing me that we had made the right choice. This was the place for my Benjamin.

God did not stop there. He continued to amaze me. 

He provided us with the perfect house to live in right down the street from Ben's school. He gave my husband the willingness to commute to/from work in order to allow us to raise Ben and Luke in my hometown near my family. 

He gave Ben a teacher that has known me since the day I was born and is my mom's best friend. He also put a life long friend's little boy in Ben's class. 

Isn't God amazing?!

Just when I thought it was impossible, God showed me that nothing is impossible for Him. He worked everything out in his perfect timing. I am so grateful that He is in control. I am amazed at his goodness every single day. 

I have hope that He will always take care of Benjamin. He has his best interest at heart. He always seems to do more than I could ever ask or imagine. I give him all the glory! 

I'm sure kindergarten will have its ups and downs for my energetic, fun loving, strong willed, confident and vibrant little boy, but I can rest assured he is where he is supposed to be. This will be a wonderful year!!