PGA Tour Christmas Party!

Today was the annual PGA Tour Family Party at TPC Sawgrass! Every year seems to get bigger and better and this year was definitely no exception! We arrived and there were about 80 mini (real) Christmas trees staked in the yard. Each child got a bag filled with tinsel and ornaments and got to decorate their very own tree and then take it home with them! They are absolutely precious and Matt planted them in our backyard right by their swingset so now we get to look at them all the time. The girls LOVED it. They also had a sledding hill brought in complete with real snow! UNREAL! Sledding in Florida when it's 65 degrees is my idea of a good time!
Santa was there, of course...although I didn't get a picture of it! The Tour took professional pictures so I'll add it whenever I get them! The food was just as yummy as it always is and the girls were most impressed that Santa gave every kid a HUGE chocolate Santa about 6 inches tall. They were such happy girls today! We've had a big couple of days around here! I love Christmastime so much and we are so grateful that Matt works at such an amazing place!!!!

Christmas Program at Christ Church Preschool

Okay, okay....I know. I've been MIA for a month and a half. I don't even have time to go into all that we've done between October 25th and now...I will do a hodge-podge post one of these days and just cram everything in! I'm sorry! Life with these two has been amazing lately...but SO busy. And they've stopped napping so I don't have much time to myself anymore! NO excuses....but I'll try and be better about posting what we're up to.
Today was the Christmas program at the girl's preschool and none of what I'm going to post on here will do any sort of justice to just how adorable it was! They did a great job and loved it and I just sat there like a total boob with the biggest smile on my face for the entire show. I may have even cried at one point....they are just growing up so fast and are so much fun these days and I'm feeling overwhelmed at how blessed we really are! Life is GOOD!
Here are some videos from the morning...I hope they give you a good idea at how precious it was!

Amazing Grace Corn Maze and Pumpkin Patch

I found out about a month ago about an amazing corn maze/pumpkin patch/fall festival type thing that I couldn't wait to take the girls to! There really aren't a ton of things around here that give you a real sense of what fall IS...it's still 80 and sunny here, our trees are still green and you could go swimming if you wanted to. The mornings and evenings are starting to get chilly and the girls were thrilled that I let them wear vests to school the other day (it was SO hot when I picked them up that their vests were stuffed into their bookbags!). This particular place is an hour away and Matt and I both agree that as long as they are doing it, we will make it an annual thing. It was definitely worth the drive. There was SO much to do and it was way out in the country and there were actually some different color leaves to see! We heard that it gets really crowded so we were the first people there. No. Really. The first people there. The girls took their first hayride, had rubber duck races, went on a cow train and got to pet animals. They each picked out some little baby pumpkins and we let them paint them when they got home. (Then they just wanted to paint on the yard bags!)! They had a blast. It was such a perfect fall day. We all had so much fun and it finally felt a little bit like fall! Can't wait to go back next year!!! The girls are SO excited that Friday is Halloween! Big week ahead....

St. Augustine!

The girls and I decided to head to St. Augustine this morning! Actually, the girls planned the whole thing out and I was just the chauffeur! The weather could NOT be any better...75 and not one cloud in the whole sky. Just amazing! I think I overdressed the girls because I was actually excited to finally get into some of their fall clothes when it felt chilly this morning! They were hot by the time we left!
We started the morning at the playground and carousel. It takes only 30 minutes from our front door to get there. The girls were in heaven and met a bunch of new friends and they all just ran and ran and ran around. It was too cute. From there we headed to Castillo de San Marcos, the oldest masonry fort in the U.S.  The girls were mostly just impressed with all of the cannons that they have displayed and the fact that it was used defend St. Augustine against pirates at one time! We didn't take a tour...we just walked around. I got a brochure so that I could read up on it with them later. From there we walked across the street to the Pirate Museum! They'd been before but they liked it even better this time. You can pretend to light the cannons inside and they make a super loud BOOM...a little too loud for the girls but it's still pretty neat! They filled out everything on their treasure maps so they got Skull and Cross Bone tattoos from the guy working there at the end (I was thrilled). They also got to reach into the treasure chest and get some "pirates booty" and they just thought it was the best. Finally, we finished our morning with slices of pizza from Al's (one of their favorite spots) and a piece of fudge at Kilwins! What a morning!!!!! We are so lucky to live so, so close to such a fun and interesting city! Can't wait to go back again soon!!!

Magic Kingdom!

Matt asked me about a month or so ago what I would like for my birthday this year. I honestly don't "need" anything...and something I've been wanting since last January when we went with Laurie, Nathan and Cooper was to go back to Disney World with the girls. So that's what I said, and he made it happen!!! We just did a super quick trip but it was one of the best weekends ever. So many laughs and amazing memories. I know it's so cheesy to call it the happiest place on earth, but isn't that just so perfect?!? It was just amazing and the girls had the most magical time and so did we!!! We left the house after we woke up on Saturday morning and were on the teacups before 1:00. (It's really only a two and a half hour trip...but we stopped and checked in at the hotel and had to pick up our tickets so that took a while!)! The girls still LOVE the teacups but the Goofy Barnstormer roller coaster (which wasn't there when I was little) seems to have taken over their #1 spot. It is so fun. It's officially for little kids, but it's actually a real roller coaster with big drops and big turns and they laughed so hard that Reagan had tears in her eyes when she finished because she laughed so hard. How awesome is that to sit next to?!?! The best ever.  They did the Peter Pan ride, It's a Small World (also a huge favorite), Dumbo, Pirates of the Caribbean, Alladin's Magic Carpet ride, Buzz Lightyear (the Toy Story ride) and so many more...The only "thumbs down" was the Haunted Mansion.  Someone told us that it wasn't scary at all and I didn't really remember it from when I was younger so we tried it. The girls were NOT impressed. They said "That was cool but way too creepy for us!!"! It was a little too scary!!! Just trust me that besides that one little blip, Disney was amazing in every way and that we were all completely exhausted after day one! We left the park about 5 and went swimming in the hotel pool and then just ordered room service. I thought that they might fall asleep before their food even came, but they rallied and even though they hadn't had a nap all day, they stayed up to have Mickey Mouse brownies in bed.  Ha! So much fun. This morning they were up by 6:30 (WHAT???!!!!) and got dressed and strapped themselves in their strollers because they were READY to go. We got to Disney in time to watch Mickey open the park and we were able to ride 6 rides in the first hour and half! The crowds weren't bad at all...it was almost chilly this morning and there wasn't a cloud in the entire sky all day. I swear, God must have a special place in his heart for Disney World!!!! We left the park around 2 and got home around 4:30..just in time for Matt to catch the Browns beat the Titans in the last minute of the game! Yay!
I could go on and on and on about how awesome the weekend was...but I wouldn't do it justice. I hope everyone can have a chance at some point in their lives to experience Disney through the eyes of little children. Magical is the only word that seems to fit perfectly! The girls are already planning their next trip and what they want to do first. I know I can't wait...(just wish GiGi and Grandpa still lived there!!!!)!

Big Girl BIKES!

We were going to wait for Santa...but the girl's knees were banging against their tricycles and they really, really, really love riding their bikes. So we took the girls to Target and let them pick out their first big girl bikes (with training wheels, of course!)! Our fashion diva, Riley of course picked a Disney Princess bike as she loves all things princesses and anything girly. Her bike has all of the princesses all over it and is pink and has streamers and she is in love with it. Reagan chose a Lightning McQueen bike from the movie CARS.  Ha! Classic. She loves it and says she's "blazing fast" on it. They are amazing on these things and are so proud of themselves.  I took them to the park with their bikes the other day and they rode all around this bike path before we played on the playground. They were so fast that I had to run really fast to catch up to them. Then this past weekend we took our first ever family bike ride. Matt and I couldn't get over the fact that the girls are old enough to be riding alongside of us on a bike ride. I don't think I've even been ON my bike since they were born! They rode all the way around our neighborhood which is about a mile and a half. They were tired at the end but had a ball and we were just amazed at what big girls we have!!!! Wahhh...they are growing up too fast!!! SLOW DOWN, TIME!!!
(Adding a picture in here from last week...Riley picked out the girl's outfits complete with their headbands and then asked me to go outside so that I could take their pictures and "send it to everyone" HA! We're in so much trouble!)!

SOCCER!! (for real this time!)

The girl's had their first soccer practice and game today! We signed them up for this wonderful program called I-9 Sports. It's designed to be easy on the parents and to encourage FUN above all else...no pressure, no stress and exactly what we're looking for in starting the girls out for their first organized sport! They practice for 30 minutes on Saturday mornings and then play 3 v 3 right after the practice. Matt is one of the assistant coaches and their two BEST friends, Nathan and Colin (both from their class at school) are on their team. Their coach is Coach Carlos and I honestly can't begin to tell you how amazing he was with all of the kids. They ALL listened to him, had fun and he was so patient. It was the perfect introduction! The girls had an absolute blast and it was so fun to watch them! Reagan really liked it and Riley absolutely LOVED every single thing about it! We were actually pretty impressed with them and their soccer skills and can't wait for next Saturday!

Surfer girl

We went to the beach last night after dinner with friends. They have a surfboard and Mr. David took Reagan out on it and she is officially HOOKED. She went over and over and over and over...never fell off and even attempted to stand up a few times. Riley was content with just playing on the boogie board on land (I don't blame her...much more my speed). We were so proud of Reagan for trying something new (and kind of scary!) and she just fell in love with it! She's asked numerous times today when she can go surfing again! Too fun!

Our first Pedicures!!!!

The heat has been BRUTAL the past few days...like over 100 and heat advisories and just downright HOT. The only thing you can really do is stay in the air conditioning or be in the water! And on Friday afternoon, the girls were so hot that they didn't even want to go swimming! So I took them to get some ice cream and right next door to the ice cream place is one of those walk-in nail salons. They watched through the windows and were fascinated so we decided to go in. In the back of the salon they had two Hello Kitty chairs and so....how could I resist?!?! They charge $10 for a little kid's pedicure and it was probably one of the cutest things I've ever seen. I think I laughed for 30 minutes straight. They loved it more than you could ever, ever possibly know. It was hilarious. They even gave them mini massages and put hot towels on their legs. They both acted so relaxed...it was seriously a trip. I let them choose their own colors and so Reagan chose blue and Riley chose purple sparkles. Ha! Now I know who uses those colors...I've always wondered! It was such an awesome spontaneous afternoon with my girls and we had so much fun. I can't wait to do it again sometime...their toes sure do look a lot better than when I do them!!!!!

Our ALS Ice Bucket Challenge

You may or may not have heard of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge that has been going on for the past few weeks or so. It was started to raise awareness and funds for an absolutely HORRIBLE disease...ALS. Last year the foundation raised around $19 million dollars and as a result of this challenge that's spread like wildfire on social media (like facebook, twitter and instagram) they've doubled that amount in a month! Here is a link to an article about the challenge...

http://www.ibtimes.com/how-much-money-has-als-ice-bucket-challenge-made-1665848


So...these days you can't get on Facebook without seeing the entire thing filled up with different Ice Bucket Challenges. I've watched some really funny ones. George H.W. Bush's made me laugh and some of my friend's were hilarious. Cooper and Laurie did it and Laurie's bucket was HUGE!!!  My favorite was Mitt Romney so far! Here's a link to that one too... (there is an ad at the beginning but you can just click SKIP AD).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUlFY3OhCQw

Anyway....the purpose is that once you've been nominated to complete the challenge you have 24 hours to do so and to nominate others to do the same.  I think you're given the option of completing it or donating money...but so far most every single person I've talked to (including us) has chosen to do the challenge AND donate money. I think it's fabulous that awareness is being brought to this awful disease and am praying that some of the money used will be able to actually make a difference and that maybe by the time Reagan and Riley are my age, there will be a cure for ALS and they will have helped to play a (very small) role in that!  Here is the video of our challenge. One of us is smarter than the rest.. Ha! Enjoy!!!!

First Day of Preschool!

Today Reagan and Riley officially started preschool! They are in Mrs. Sanders and Mrs. Schaeffer's class and seemingly had the time of their lives! They didn't stop talking about it the entire way home...telling me details about which new friends they met, who they played with on the new "big kid" playground, and that their favorite part was carrying their lunchboxes to school and eating lunch there!  (Their day goes from 8:45-1:00). They even had cooking and music class today! So fun!  The big difference for me (besides that they stay for lunch this year) is that I don't walk them to their classroom anymore. There is a carpool line and the teachers come out to the car and get them out. I think it made it so much easier (for them) and they just smiled and blew me kisses and walked right to their room. I was admittedly a little teary eyed since I've lost my buddies a few mornings a week now....but the fact that they are still with me on Tuesdays and Thursdays (I only signed them up to go MWF) makes it easier!!!! They woke up early today and ready to go and were just so excited...I hope it's always like this (at least until high school?!?!?)! Can't wait to tell you about all of the fun things they do this year and all that they learn! I attempted to dress them differently this morning but they were having none of it since I'd bought these two new dresses and they hadn't worn them yet. I'll try again on Wednesday! And they weren't overly thrilled about taking pictures at 7:30 this morning so they aren't the best but they still look pretty darn cute if you ask me!
A happy day all around at the Iofredo household!!!!

Celebrating BopBop's birthday (a week early!)

We went to Kiawah for the weekend to see everyone and to help BopBop celebrate his birthday! We decided to plan a little surprise party for him, complete with yummy food, games, presents and even a pinata! The kids all did a great job keeping it a secret and couldn't wait for BopBop to pull in with Nana so that they could shout Happy Birthday! (although Matt says that this video makes it look like Laurie and I were more excited than the kids)! The girls had worked so hard on making their own presents for him and were so proud to give them to him. They even had special plans for what he could do with them. They picked out some pottery and painted them themselves and then it was fired in the kiln and we went back to pick them up. The wait was hard but they were so excited with their finished products! Reagan made a fish plate and said he should eat his eggs on it and Riley made an owl cup and said he should put his paintbrushes in it but if he really wanted to he could drink out of it. Cooper even picked out a special t-shirt for BopBop with different fishing lures on it!   Everyone had a great time! It was so special that we could all be together to celebrate BopBop and show him how loved he is by all of us!!!!
(and of course the ONLY picture that we were able to get of the whole group together has BopBop's head lit up by a light he's standing in front of and he's the only one you can't really see! Bummer....but trust me it's him!)!

BopBop's Boat

BopBop took us out in the boat on Saturday morning! It was such a perfect way to start the day and the girls loved every second of it. He even let them both take turns driving the boat! We saw a few dolphins but the girl's favorite part was when BopBop made the boat go "SUPER FAST!"! They thought it was hilarious...and just giggled and giggled! Too much fun!

Over and Over and Over

While we were in Kiawah for the weekend the girls fell in love with the diving board! They wanted to do it over and over again! These videos are from Friday night after dinner but they did it again on Saturday and have no requested that the pool in our neighborhood get a diving board installed. (not sure who I need to talk to about that! Ha!) They had so much fun swimming with Cooper too...he had a really fun turtle float that all three of them could fit on at the same time (not that they ever stayed on at the same time...but they could have if they'd wanted to!!!)!

GETTING READY!!!!

I took the girls this afternoon to pick out their brand new backpacks for school! They had been using the same sweet little ones for the past two years and they finally outgrew them! This year they will stay for lunch too, so the bags need to be a bit bigger.  They had so much fun picking out their own ones....Riley chose a bee and Reagan chose a doggie. I think they are the perfect picks! They walked all around the Town Center with the bags on...I tried to get them to give them to me and they were NOT having it! Since we got home (which is why I'm able to do a blog post right now) they've been in the playroom with their bags, playing school and "packing their lunches" with their pretend food from their pretend kitchen. I'd try and get a video of it but as soon as I do I know they'll stop....just trust me that it's absolutely adorable. Can't believe these two are going to be starting preschool in just about 2 weeks!

Nana Susan comes to visit!

We had a fabulous time with Nana Susan last week! We were so lucky to have her for a whole week and she was our very first house guest in the new house...and I think she approves! We somehow filled the week and it flew by and we didn't really go farther than about 10 minutes from the house! The girls wanted to do the zoo and take her to the pirate museum in St. Augustine...but it was just SO super hot that we decided to hold off until next visit! We spent the week at the beach and at the pool and playing on the swingset and getting ice cream and keeping Nana entertained! The girls especially liked playing in the playroom with Nana (her attention span with them is a lot longer than mine right now!)! They've been really into playing "school" lately so she got to do that numerous times! They also each got to have a date night with Nana which was super special...and poor Nana had to go to Bruccis two nights in a row! They both picked it for their date night and she was patient enough to go along with it! We all took her to Lulu's one night and to Palm Valley Fish Camp one night too...we grilled out and just had a blast. We miss her already and can't wait for her to come back SOON!!!!