Max...

Just some cuteness I want to save in the blog!

First day of sophomore year!

Madison was SUPER tired this morning, and wasn't too happy about the first day of school.  She ended up coming home sick with a fever!  So, while it wasn't the best first day ever, she at least made it.  And you'd never know she wasn't feeling well in these pictures!

Friends...

Madison has had a few outings with friends this past week, and as always, has loved every minute of it!

Chick-fil-A...

Nathan has learned so much in the two weeks he's been at Chick-fil-A!  He's done everything from taking the trash out, to front counter, making drinks, outside order taking, window, and helping with closing tasks!  He's doing great, and seems to be really loving it.  His first paycheck was only for two days, so he's looking forward to that first real paycheck!

Madison snapped these pictures from the backseat.  He likes when we come visit him at work!

And a friend sent me this picture when she went through the driveway and got Nathan!

So grown up.

First day of school!

First day of school last year, and this year!  We were in such a hurry, that I totally forgot to have him hold up 10 fingers for sophomore year.  Growing up so fast.

Driving himself to school for the first time ever, while mom has some serious mixed feelings about this!

Praying for a great year!  Cherishing these last three years before he graduates, because I know it'll come faster than I want.

SUMMER recap...

Well, the dreaded day has come....summer is over and school is here.  Madison doesn't start her classes until August 21st, so she still has a bit of time.  But this summer was one to remember for sure!

We started our summer off with our yearly beach trip to Pensacola.  And while it was so much fun and wonderful, we got chased out early because of tornadoes and flooding (that was a trip we'll never forget)!

Nathan went on a mission trip in Houston that was pretty life changing.  He helped put on a VBS with underprivileged kids and worked a couple of different food drives.  He came back from the trip a changed kid and was baptized, which was an incredibly happy moment!  He was able to see Chance several times this summer and had many sleepovers with him.  Nathan had two birthday celebrations.  One with Thorne and Matias where they went to Top Golf, Panda, to see the new Spiderman movie, swimming and a sleepover.  And another with Chance where they went to Top Golf, Panda, Nickelrama, swimming and a sleepover!  He had several fun youth events, including putt-putt at the building, disc golf, Little Elm beach, Main Event, movie night, game day, seeing Haunted Mansion, swim party, and the summer blowout at the water park!  He went to the lake with friends, turned 16, got his license, got his first car, and started his first job at Chick-fil-A!  It's been QUITE the summer for this guy, and he's definitely not happy about it ending.  It was a pretty amazing summer for him with a ton of fun and a lot of change!

Madison has had a little less exciting of a summer than Nathan.  She went to Broken Bow twice with friends, had lots of time with friends (shopping, eating out, etc.), saw Spiderman and Barbie (both not movies she wanted to see), and started working morning crew at Chick-fil-A and made some new friends!  She recently ended up quitting Chick-fil-A because of a big misunderstanding and being blindsided with a demotion.  We think they must be trying to get rid of the employees making more money, because she's the hardest worker ever and is loved by everyone at that location!  She was pretty upset, but is now taking the opportunity to look for something different.  She was really starting to think about moving on, so this may have been a blessing in disguise.  Her best friend is also about to leave for college, so it's been a pretty emotional summer for her.

I've been struggling with finding a job all summer long, and it's been a bit stressful.  Michael has stayed pretty stable though, so that's good!  Lots of emotion and change this summer, which is sometimes a little hard for me.  But I'm blessed for all the good things that have happened, and pray for the months ahead of us!  And now onto this school year...praying it's wonderful for both kids!

Chick-fil-A!

Madison and I went and visited Nathan at Chick-fil-A today, and he was doing a great job!  I'm surprised he didn't mind us being there, given that it's only his 4th day on the job.  Plus we were stalking him just a tad.  But he was happy to see us, and ran over to take our order when he saw us come through the door.  Madison snapped these pics, so it was much better than MOM doing it!  So proud of my boy!

End-of-summer blowout...

Nathan had an end-of-summer blowout celebration/devo tonight, and had a great time.  First they had dinner and a devo together with another congregation.  And then they headed up to a water park in Denton for a private party!  He was really excited that Kyle, the youth intern, made a surprise visit!  He had a lot of fun, and it will never get old seeing him happy with his church friends!

Bday party...

Nathan was invited to Thorne's birthday party at the lake today.  It was a HOT day, but he had a good time.  Such a great group of friends...almost all of them are cross country and track, so they have a lot in common!

New employee...

Tonight was Nathan's first day of work at Chick-fil-A (a different location than Madison)!  Both kids are in the chicken family now!  He was a little nervous, but said it was a good night.  He made some ice cream cones, took orders with help, took out the trash, etc.  He didn't give us a ton of info, but he said, "There is a LOT to learn, but it was good."  Yay!

Chick-fil-A fun!

Madison has been having a lot of fun working with the morning crew (she's been opening most days at 5:30)!  She's been featured a lot on social media with the re-opening - they were closed down for two weeks for remodeling.  She was excited to get some pics with the Chick-fil-A cow!