Nothing Gold Can Stay

We arrived home from Nona's just in time to enjoy a few more days of summer shenanigans before school started.

We picked all the nectarines from our tree and made freezer jam and four different types of nectarine ice cream. These nectarines are small and rather ugly but they taste so good! The girls enjoyed being able to grab a snack any time they walked outside.

Thankfully we got in some cousin time for Vaughn's birthday before school pressed the fast-forward button on life.

We also met Lillian's first grade teacher, Mrs. Cowen. 

And then Lillian was off to school.

 For the first week of school or so Freya wasn't all that sad about Lillian's absence because it meant she got more time with Eddie.

Two weeks after Lillian went back to school, Freya started preschool.  She goes Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM and every other Wednesday 9:00 AM -11:30 AM. She likes her teacher, Mrs. Sharla, and she always has fun stories to tell me when I pick her up.  When I asked her how her first day of school went she said, "Everyone was bad except for me."  "Well, did anyone have to go to Time Out?" I asked. "Yeah. Everyone except for me," she replied.  The things this kid says crack me up!

 Even though we were sad to leave Nona's it was exciting to start school, see our friends and family, and play with all our pets we missed while we were away. Our old pony Beauty, who died in January, was the model children's pony, patient and kind until you put more than one child on her back. Then she would turn in to a wild bucking bronco and airmail kids left and right.  Lillian and Freya were thrilled when they discovered Gigi didn't mind riding double, triple, or even quadruple.

For Papa's birthday we went and had teppanyaki for dinner and I am pretty sure it is the girls' new favorite thing.  They were pretty amazed! Now Freya wants to be a fancy chef!

 We also got in some much needed Dad time and tried to make up for the weeks we were all apart.

 One Saturday the girls sold popsicles and ice cream bars in their ice cream truck.   They were proud of the $10 the earned and they learned that fudge pops are where the money is at.

We escaped the heat with friends one afternoon by heading up to Madera Canyon. Even Eddie enjoyed the outing.

During the school year we are extremely busy and both girls already miss our carefree summer days where we could just hang out together.  We decided to have a girls night out Friday after school one weekend. I let them plan the entire evening.  They decided we should get our nails done,

put on facial masks,

eat McDonald's Happy Meals, drink Italian Sodas, and watch Singing in the Rain.  It was a fabulous night. I hope we can do it more often!

And finally, the moment you all have been waiting for, the Eddie update. I get so many questions about this little guy and how we are all adjusting to his presence.  I have had outside cats before but they haven't lasted very long here in the desert. Eddie is my first true pet cat and I have to say I think cats get a bad rap for nothing! He isn't at all like the articles I have read about cats or what people have told me cats are like. He is sweet and fun and comes when he is called. He is up for adventure, has no problem riding in the car, and he misses us when we are gone.

When he hears Lillian and Freya get up in the morning he is right there with Oliver ready to greet them.

He sits with me at night on his softie as happy as can be and loves me so much he has decided I am not allowed to sleep at night.  If it has been too long since I pet him he will come lick me, rub on me, purr as loud as he can, knead me with his little white kitty feet, and demand some love.  It is so cute and so annoying.  If I lock him out of our room he becomes even more annoying because he sits and cries and howls to be let back in. It is pretty pitiful. At least if he is bugging me in my bed I can just squish him under my arm until he goes back to sleep.

 He loves to lay in the sink and is obsessed with our electric toothbrushes. As soon as he hears them turn on he runs as fast as he can from wherever he is in the house, jumps in the sink, and stares at us with creepy yellow cat eyes.

He LOVES Oliver, probably a little too much. I am not convinced his feelings are reciprocated.  He snuggles Oliver to death.  The only time I hear Oliver get frustrated with Eddie is when Eddie starts to pounce on him while he is under the covers at night.  The Oliver sized lump in our bed is just too much for Eddie to handle and he can't help but stalk it and attack it every five seconds until I make him stop.

My favorite Eddie experience thus far though is his gradual love for Josh. When we first brought him home he wasn't thrilled with Josh's presence. When Josh was home he wouldn't lay by me on the bed or on the couch but instead would lay at my feet. He didn't seek out attention from Josh or come when Josh called him.  That all changed after Josh picked him up from the vet after he got neutered.  I think in his little kitty brain Eddie decided Josh was his savior from the evil vet because he couldn't get enough of Josh that night and Josh couldn't get rid of him. It was hilarious!  Now Eddie loves Josh and doesn't mind spending time with him.

August was fun but it was an adjustment. We had to adjust to being home and adjust to new schedules. I find myself missing our long lazy summer evenings when we didn't have homework to do and there was no such thing as bedtime just party time as Josh says. These two little girls make life so much fun. I can't wait for the next school break so we can all party together some more!