DG Reunion

When I started WSU in 1997 I went through sorority rush and ended up pledging Delta Gamma. On bid day I was thrust into a group of over 30 other girls and told they were my "sisters".....kind of a strange moment, but over time it really became true. Throughout my four years there our pledge class dwindled as girls moved onto different schools, decided the sorority life wasn't for them, etc. but there was a core group of us that ended up graduating together and moving on to real life. I can honestly say, a lot of what is made fun of sororities is true- anytime you put over 60 girls in one house to live together you are bound to have some drama, but I can also say that I made some of the best friendships during those four years and that they have grown and matured in the nearly 10 years since we left Pullman.

This past weekend 10 of my "core" girls got together for a little girls' weekend and mini reunion. We planned a trip down to Pullman for the Coug football game and had a great time reminiscing about our "DG days" and fun times together. The weekend was complete with a night out on Friday in Spokane, a tour of the DG house (and snooping to see what the girls are like now), beers at the Coug, football and tailgating and of course LOTS of laughs. It ended up being quite a quick weekend and we missed the girls that weren't able to join us, but I'm so thankful for the time we had together and the new memories made and I'm already looking forward to our next girls' weekend!

Escaping

When we had Dylan it took me over a year (14 months to be exact) before I left him overnight....and it was tough. I'm not sure what's different this time around but I have to admit I was really looking forward to our first night away from both kiddos a couple of weekends back. Granted, we weren't going to a very exotic location- a hotel in Moses Lake isn't exactly luxurious- but nevertheless it was a night off, an excuse to get dolled up with my handsome husband and meet up with some great friends to celebrate a beautiful couple at an amazing place. (In this case I'm not talking about Moses Lake, I'm talking about The Cave B Winery in Quincy, WA.)

We continued the weekend with a quick stop in Colfax to see the kids and eat lunch then headed off to Pullman for the Cougs first home game (and quite possibly only win) of the season. Nothing beats a sunny, warm fall Saturday in Pullman and the experience was complete with a trip to the Bookie, beers, tailgating, flip cup challenge and an early take-off from the game to head to the bar- Valhalla this time....even though Kev is definitely a Coug man. Thankfully my incredible in-laws have no problem driving the 15 minutes from Colfax to pick up 8 adults that had consumed a few too many beverages.
It is my new mission to find one of these cute Coug gnomes as seen on the back of an airstream trailer.

Obviously, I was having a great time! So many good laughs!
As always, I was happy to get back to my 2 precious babies.....but the weekend "off" did this mama some good!

Growing Up

D started Pre-K before Labor Day and is back into the swing of school. I can't believe how grown up he is getting! Last year I was so nervous taking him to school and leaving him with strangers, but this being his 2nd year at St. Mary's there was no apprehension on his part or mine. He loves school and his little friends, especially his best buddy Gabe. I can't believe next year will be KINDERGARTEN???!!

I seriously cannot resist his smile. He's going to get so many ladies with those dimples. I swear we will be in for it.

And little Grace is now 3 months old (as of last Thursday). She's just an absolute doll these days. While it's a bit sad how quickly she's growing up, I honestly have to say I'm glad to be out of the newborn stage and into infancy. She's so alert now and is constantly cooing and making sounds. She loves her playmat and toys on her bouncy chair but mostly she just loves it if anyone will sit and chat with her. She's been going to bed between 7 and 8 PM, waking to feed around 5 AM and then goes back to sleep. On Dylan's pre-school mornings I have to wake her up to get us out the door on time. We are having so much fun with her, it's hard to imagine what life was like before her!

Grace has the funniest hairline. Kevin says she looks like George Costanza (from Seinfeld). Poor girl- hopefully she'll grow some more soon!

I love watching these two siblings bond and their relationship grow. Grace LOVES her brother and watches his every move. Here he is showing her his Lego creation. She's just starting to laugh now so Dylan thinks it's pretty cool to make her giggle.