Our New JAG: First week of school and Labor Day weekend!

Joaquin started school a couple weeks ago! He's in Pre-K which I totally expected to be a few days a week but nope, we found a program that's Monday-Friday in a real full time elementary school! Here's a pro mom tip for ya...Have you heard of Head Start? Do you know about the pre-school programs that are all day but you have to qualify by low income or different requirements? Turns out some districts have to keep their classes full in order to keep receiving funding even if you don't qualify. The district I live in doesn't do this but Fort Worth does and that's just 20 minutes away! I called Fort Worth ISD and spoke directly to the early childhood office and they said yes, this was indeed true. I had to wait until a certain deadline passed for all those who qualified to register first and if there were still openings, anyone could get in! Did I mention it's free?! There were still openings so we did it. Joaquin is a full time school student! I was so nervous because I didn't expect him to leave me full time until next year for kindergarten and I didn't know if he would be sad our what it would be like. Turns out he is the bravest, most mature little kid and has been loving it! His teacher already said he is one of her leaders and I already saw him being line leader for their class last week. Now my only hope is that he can always be a good kid throughout his school career but this is just pre-k and I know that's not reality. It's possible though so I will keep encouraging his leadership skills the best I can! At home behavior is another story but if he is behaving at school and loving it, I can handle his issues at home! I'm just so happy he is loving it so far.

First day!

I've also been having a great experience with KJ, my two year old, at home by herself. I feel like I am getting to know her personality even more now that we have one on one time. I'm hearing her talk more and even have conversations with me. I feel like we're bonding and while I was worried how much she'd miss her brother, she is seeming to enjoy this time with her mommy. We only have a few months together until she gets a baby sibling so I'm soaking it up!

I've also started water aerobics three days a week. This is the best thing I've ever done while pregnant! I end up in quite a bit of back pain and even some leg pain while pregnant but since starting my class, my pain has greatly reduced! I don't know if the water aerobics is causing this but it's the only real lifestyle change I've made. My real back pain doesn't kick in until the third trimester so we will see if water aerobics helps keep it at bay. In fact, I'm starting my third trimester today!

Took this last week some time and I already feel bigger!

Labor Day Weekend: Earlier this year Jesus took a nice long week off work around Labor Day and we were planning an exciting family trip to Hawaii or New York or somewhere cool! Then we got pregnant and decided Jesus could save some of those days off to be with new baby when he or she is born and we could save that money to pay our high deductible insurance and buy things for the baby so we cancelled our plans. Turns out even though I have two kids, I have purged a lot from moving so much so we still have quite a bit to buy for the baby this time around. Our back up plan was a long weekend to San Antonio to stay in a hotel on the famous river walk. Local, cheaper, less days off work and still a family vacation! And then there was a devastating hurricane. While San Antonio wasn't affected much, the day we were supposed to leave was the day everyone went into a gas frenzy and started saying there was no gas around Texas because some of the oil refineries in Houston had to close. Now whether or not there really was a gas shortage didn't change the fact that stations around our home and around San Antonio had run out. Stations that hadn't run out had jacked up their prices. We didn't want to risk dealing with that on a road trip, not being from here and knowing what the weekend would hold, so we cancelled our plans again. Then my lucky husband found a deal for a night at the Great Wolf Lodge for only $169. If you've ever tried to book there, you know that if you see it for under $200, you should take it!

They have several Great Wolf Lodges throughout the country but this one is here just 45 minutes away from us. It's a great waterpark/hotel with tons of kids activities and the perfect family spot for little ones. Super convenient and fun!

No fear in the wave pool for these 2!

I love a hotel breakfast buffet and I love biscuits and gravy

Turning my little girl into a Princess!

In addition to our night at the Great Wolf lodge, we took it easy throughout the long weekend exploring Dallas and Fort Worth while enjoying some time off from our daily responsibilities at home/work/school. It was a lovely long weekend with just enough activities to keep it exciting but not too much to keep us exhausted. We've all fallen back into our routines today.