the first day of school.

in some ways, the summer flew by.  in others, it dragged on and on.  i think the boys were ready to start school.  i know i was.  they (and the family!) needed some sort of consistent routine and they definitely required some time apart from each other.  they were pretty much getting on each others nerves at every moment.  

each boy was excited to get dressed this morning (though miles was a bit sad he didn't have a uniform) and walk into their new classrooms.  i was a bit teary-eyed.  neither one of the boys seemed sad in the least.  

it is hard to believe that ethan started kindergarten today!  i know he was ready for it and all of the learning and independence that comes with it.  miles didn't look back to the EC3 classroom of last year at all...he just marched right into pre-k and went right up to his teacher to work on spelling his name.

i think he looks so much like lance in this picture.

eager to get to work.

i am excited to hear about their first day this afternoon.

mr. miles is FOUR!

it is hard to believe, but this guy is FOUR!

just born.

first year.

second year.

third year.

fourth year.

we love you so much miles.  thank you for the smiles, the laughter and even the tears when things get rough.  even though it can be trying, it all seems to fall away when you ask me just one more time to cover you up and snuggle with you.  i am so happy that you still ask for that...i know there will be a day when you won't.  so even when i am in the midst of the dishes or just sat down to finally eat my now cold dinner, i try to remember that i am the luckiest momma out there because you still want me to tuck you in.  happy birthday, guy.  i hope your next year is the best yet.

a pirate party

miles' 3rd birthday party was an outdoor pool party that happened to take place in one of the hottest weeks we've had.  112 degrees was the high that day.  but even with the heat and bees that were overtaking the picnic area of the pool, it was a still a great party!

miles had a blast!!  the water was perfect!  and all of the food we brought with us was happily eaten at the party or taken home by guests.

thank you to everyone who helped us celebrate mr. miles turning THREE!!  and special thanks to my mom and sister...couldn't have done it without your help!

and of course the after party...it lasted until at least 11 that night.  the cousins had a blast.

future marines

that is what they will tell you their hair looks like when you ask them about their new haircuts...

i was completely surprised by the lack of hair on their heads when they came home from the barber shop saturday morning.  lance and i tend to have very different ideas on what exactly constitutes a haircut.  but it has grown on me now (24+ hours later...)  

a day of firsts

today was a day of firsts.

a first day of school for the windel boys.

they were very eager (and maybe a bit nervous) to begin school today.  


a first day of a new fitness routine for me.

i was eager (and maybe very nervous) to begin and new fitness routine.

it was a good start to our fall.

happy birthday to mr. miles

we celebrated a very happy 3rd birthday for miles today.  

we started off at the lake and had lots of swimming and sun.

we ended the day with cupcakes and family toasting his three years.

we love you so much, miles.

*we had his pirate party earlier this week and hopefully i can share pictures from that soon. it has been a busy (but good) week between party preparations and visiting with family.

a first dentist visit for miles

miles had his first visit to the dentist.  i've been a bit nervous about it.  i wasn't quite sure he'd handle it well and when he doesn't want to do something he is much more vocal than ethan in letting you know.


he did great!  he loved playing the games in the lobby.

he proudly walked back and did just what everyone asked him to do.  he even went by himself to get his xrays taken.  he got a dinosaur sticker as his prize for doing well.

no cavities and all in all his teeth looked fine.  we didn't even get a lecture about the binky, so thankfully looks like we stopped that at the right time.  his bite is a little bit crooked (i can't remember exactly what he called it) but they can put something in their mouth for about 3-6 mos. around the age of 4 and it will correct it before permanent teeth come in and it shouldn't be a big deal.  next visit will be with his big brother in november.

a first ER visit

mr. miles had his first ER visit on mother's day...not the way i wanted to end mother's day...

i am impressed we had made it that long with miles.  he tends to be the less cautious one out of the bunch.  he took a little tumble off of the power wheels truck and hit the back of his head on the driveway.


so at about 10pm on sunday night, lance and miles were hanging out in the ER waiting room.  not a great place to be on a sunday night....it was completely full (they took the last seat!) and of course wasn't moving quickly at all.

at about midnight they made it to the back and it was around that time that miles started to perk up and lance was kind of wondering why he was even there with him.  based on his behavior and how he was responding the dr gave him a clean bill of health but did still do a ct scan just as a precaution.  miles was apparently a charmer throughout this process and was smiling and chatting with everyone.  he got the all clear from his scan also and they got to head home.


other than a rough monday (due to lack of sleep and a headache) miles is back to his crazy self.  but it did take a few years off my life :)