August was a really fun month! The majority of the month was busy with the start of school, so we decided to start out with some very intentional family time. We took the first Saturday of the month and got up early to head out to the Georgia State Farmer’s Market down in Forest Park. That was quite an adventure and we will definitely head down there again! On the way back we ate lunch at Nueva Laredo Kantina (one of Clint’s hangouts during his GA Tech days) on our way to shop at the new Woodstock outlets. After shopping a little, we stopped for ice cream on the way home. It was a really hot day, but also really fun! After church and long naps the next day, we met up with some friends to head down to Sandy Springs to hear our friend Amy’s band The Mustangs play a concert. The music was great and we all had a really fun time!
We met up with a friend that Monday evening to hear how their first day of school had gone. We have a group of ladies and girls that love getting together to eat and just hang out. I’m so grateful for this group and hope this tradition continues for a very long time! Emma had her Meet the Teacher on Thursday prior to school starting on Friday, August 9th. She has been so excited about K4 and has loved every minute of it. We are so blessed that our girl loves school so much! And, most importantly, that she learns about Jesus every single day at North Cobb Christian School. I love driving with her in the car and listening to her sing songs about Bible verses and sharing with me things that her teachers have taught her. Just the other day, the Lower School Principal called on Emma in chapel to review what they had learned the week before…and our sweet 4 year old proudly proclaimed “God doesn’t want our leftovers, Jesus deserves our very best!” I love it!!
My mom and her boyfriend came in town the weekend before school started and we had a great time with them. We spent most of the day Saturday out on the lake and it was a blast! Emma continues to be our fearless adventurer on the tube. She loves to have different people tube with her…but she never wants to get off! We ate dinner at Henry’s in downtown Acworth to cap off a great day. Mom and Tom went with us to church on Sunday and then we all enjoyed La Parilla before they headed home and we spent the afternoon napping and getting ready for school.
At the end of the first week of school, we cheered on our football team as they scrimmaged Mt. Vernon under the lights at Jacob Dennis Stadium. Saturday morning we returned to that same location to cheer on the cross country team. Emma helped me announce the NCCS Early Bird Cross Country Invitational. Clint and I both love announcing even more since Emma enjoys it.
Emma started piano lessons this month and wants to practice every day! On the first day of piano lessons, we were pulling into the parking lot at school when Emma exclaimed “oh no Mommy…we forgot our piano!!” Fortunately, she understood when I explained that it wouldn’t be too practical to bring a piano back and forth to school. Clint and Emma enjoyed some special Daddy-Daughter time as I headed out on the Upper School Fall Retreat for a few days one week and the 7/8th grade Retreat the next week. In between retreats, my brother Kevin brought his girlfriend down to meet us. Since it worked so great when Mom and Tom came…we just did the same Lake/Henry’s/LaParilla schedule for their weekend in town too…all of our favorite places!
We squeezed in a lot of swimming, not as much golf as we would like, lots of nights hanging out with friends, and the start of an already amazing school year. August was a great month in the Strange family!
