First Day of School

Madeline started school as soon as we returned from our trip. She is very excited to be in the fourth grade and to be the "top dog on campus" (at least until the new school is done). This year she is in the church parish center instead of a mobile unit. In January she will be moving to our new school building.

Washington, D.C.

Travis had a conference in Washington, D.C. this August so Madeline and I tagged along to see the sights. We had a great time touring the city. Much of our days were spent walking from sight to sight. We became pretty good at getting around on the Metro system. We took so many pictures but here are some highlights from the trip.




We took in all the memorials, Supreme Court Building and arranged for tours of the White House and the Capitol.







We spent one day visiting Mt. Vernon. It is a beautiful estate and to think that one of our greatest men lived and walked the same grounds we were on was humbling.



We visited Arlington Cemetary and watched the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers.




There is a beautiful memorial at the Pentagon for the victims of September 11. For each victim they have constructed a bench with a reflection pool underneath. Madeline placed a flower in the pool of the two children that were killed.






The Holocaust Museum was quite an experience. Madeline and I had the opportunity to visit with a Holocaust survivor. She was from Poland and was thirteen when the Holocaust began.




Madeline liked seeing the ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz in the American History Smithsonian.



One afternoon we went to Georgetown and while there decided to stop by Georgetown Cupcakes. This is the cupcake store that is featured on TLC's show D.C. Cupcakes. We waited in a 30 minute line, but as Madeline said "the cupcake was worth it!"




We ate at a local restaurant known as "Martin's Tavern" in Georgetown. This was the restaurant that John F. Kennedy proposed to Jackie. We had to sit in the "Proposal Booth."

Family Pictures

We updated our family pictures this year with a local photographer in Abilene. He did a wonderful job with the kids and we had a lot of fun. I thought out pictures turned out pretty good! Here are a few.

Softball

Madeline once again played D-team softball this year. She mostly played centerfield and some 2nd base. She played games twice a week until the beginning of July. She enjoys playing with her friends.

Braces

Last June Madeline had to get braces. We actually had a professional tell us her mouth was too small!!! She was very glad to get them removed at the beginning of this June. She celebrated the event with a Laffy Taffy party with her friends.

Bible School

Both Kyler and Madeline participated in "High Seas Expedition" Bible School. Each day they had fun with games, snacks, crafts, Bible stories and singing. On Sunday they performed some very cute songs for church. We were afraid Kyler might get stage fright at the program, but he did a great job singing all the songs and doing the actions.

Dance Recital

Madeline completed her 6th year of dance. At the recital she performed a ballet dance with her group and then a duet. Her duet was to Beauty and the Beast. She was happy to get a trophy following the recital.