Summer Endings

This weekend marked for the Schmidt Family the end of summer.

Tomorrow officially starts FALL in our house.

Because tomorrow marks our first day of homeschooling!!  Micah will start first grade and Sammy, preschool.

We are all very excited.

But we all also loved the weekend, full of plans and fun and family time, soaking up the last summer moments  together.

Friday night, Zach and I went out on a real date to celebrate our anniversary, like a nice-restaurant-dinner and movie theater kind of date (thanks to generous gift cards!!!).          

And we loved every minute of it.  We ate a fabulous dinner at Cooper's Hawk (every single bite was delicious!), picked up yummy Starbucks drinks, and smuggled them into the movie theater in my purse.  We laughed and talked and cuddled, and I loved putting on high heels and lipstick, drinking wine, and having uninterrupted conversations.  I felt like such a grown up.

(wine and cheese tasting at the table)

Saturday morning we did a walk for the American Heart Association with my in-laws, and the weather was absolutely perfect.

Micah and I went out for a date to buy school supplies and have lunch together (at our favorite place, Noodles and Company).  He also got to spend a Target card he got for his birthday...a monumental moment for him, a test of my patience for me.

We watched my nephews for a couple of hours, and Micah truly took off on his bike, all around the neighborhood!!  Zach and I took turns riding with him.  What a fun, yet surreal, experience...to take a bike ride with my son for the first time!

(Sophia and Luke)

We also had a great time at our dear friend, Lydia's, sixth birthday party that evening.

After church Sunday, we spontaneously decided to drive out to Ikea to look for a new shelf we need in our living room, and walked out of the store (alive!) after four and a half hours.  Yes, you heard me right.  FOUR and a HALF HOURS.  with FOUR kids.  It was a little nutty.  But surprisingly, fun.  Since we didn't leave the store til way after dinnertime (and since it's our last day of summer!), we decided to splurge on dinner out (a rare treat for us).  With overtired, hungry, and antsy children, again, a little nutty, but still managed to leave there laughing.  To top off an already great weekend, we drove a little out of the way to our favorite ice cream shop, Capannari (BEST. ice cream. EVER!) and enjoyed summer-evening ice cream while our littles all slept in the van.  Super fun.

And now, we are anxiously setting up for homeschooling, printing out sheets and gathering curriculum and books, preparing for our big day tomorrow.

It has been the most wonderful of summers, and now, we launch full swing into fall.

Summer was glorious, but it is time to say goodbye.

And now, we welcome, with great joy!...FALL.

Stay tuned to hear how our homeschooling experience starts off!