Finally, The First Day

After all the registration process, Meet the Teacher, and Parent Day the big day finally arrived. Thanks to Gracyn's morning sleep strike and her screaming, "Out, out, out!!!", from her bed at 5:45am, we were all up early and anticipating the day. She is in afternoon kindergarten, so we had a while to wait! When we arrived at school, we said prayers for her, then headed in to line up. She didn't ever look back. She was ready to go and so excited!!! I only shed a few tears in the car on the way home as I was praying for her and asking God to let her be a light to the people around her and that her journey through school would be a blessing. I tried not to think too much about turning my baby over to the world. It is the beginning of a long road.

I picked her up a few hours later and took her for ice-cream and a debriefing. Turns out if you offer ice-cream she will actually talk. I got to hear all about her day and it was all good. She is ready for a great year.

Practice Run

My little carbon-copy! Daddy and his girl.

Addison and Mrs. Stromberg

The first day of kindergarten is a kind off "practice run" around here. They only go for a little over an hour and Mommy and Daddy get to go with them. We did an activity together than the children had some time with the teacher while the parents visited with the principal. Then, the kids got to have recess on the playground while we had an orientation with the teacher. It was a great way to get to know Mrs. Stromberg and learn a little more about the school and her classroom before we sent our girl off!!!

Good-bye Summertime

We were super busy squeezing in lots of last minute summer fun last week, too busy in fact, for me to take a single picture. But, I still want to remember. In the last week before summer...

~We went to two birthday parties.

~I took the big girls to see "Beezus and Ramona"....a fabulous movie!!! We are loving the books
too.

~The big girls each got their own library cards, which they are so proud off.

~We had a super fun playdate at Big Monkey Bizness

~We went swimming twice. That is where Gracyn mastered two of her newest words "Noodle" pronounced "Noo-nuhl" and "Mine". She loves her yellow swim noodle and she does not like her sisters to touch it. The pool is also where Reagan had to be rescued by a lifeguard. She was REALLY FINE, and Tommy and I were both a few feet away and watching her the whole time, but he was being over-cautious....I am glad for that.

~We had Addison's Meet the Teacher.

~We had a great family night at the Douglas County Fair and Rodeo. The girls had saved up quarters to play games at the carnival, we watched a bit of the rodeo, and we had a blast walking through the animal barns. They loved getting up close to the bunnies, pigs, sheep, goats, cows, chicken and turkeys. Addison especially is such an animal lover. She even called Pappy on the way home to ask if she could have a goat at his house.

~We visited Tommy's office for Coke's Family Fun Day. The girls played games, we had hamburgers, they saw the Broncos' mascot and cheerleaders, and their fav was the wipe-off board in Daddy's office.

We put the girls to bed early Sunday night and snuck out for a date. Don't worry, we had a babysitter here. I had such a great last week of summer with my girlies. It was fun being on our own schedule and doing whatever we wanted for just a bit longer!

Meet the Teacher

Last week we went to Addison's kindergarten Meet the Teacher. Mrs. Stromberg is such a sweet teacher, I know Addison is going to have a great year. She was even nice enough to promise that Addison could sit at the same table as her good friend and neighbor Clara. We shall see if they can sit together without getting too chatty!!!

It has been a nice, slow transition into school, with several events there prior to the first day, so I think I am ready. Addison for sure is good to go. We had one last meeting with her teacher today, and she practically drug me down the hall. I told her she was walking me like our Maggie dog does!!!

Tomorrow is the official first day. Her bag is packed and she was off to bed early. Negotiations are still taking place over the bus.....she wants to ride, I am hesitant. I am so thankful to be blessed with a loving, Christian teacher. I am praying for a great year!

Messy Hands and Hair Drama

Taming these 3 of the crazy bed-head, plus my own hair take up some time in the morning!

And Gracyn loves painting, but she does NOT like to have her hands get messy!!!

Park Days

Few things are more fun to me than summer evenings at the park with my family. Saturday, we met the Coulters' at Jason's Deli for dinner and then headed to Westlands Park to play. The park is about 20 minutes from our house, so we don't go there often. Tommy had never been, and it has been over a year for the girls and I. We had such a great time. I still sometimes just stop short at the breathtaking beauty of Colorado! The girls had a great time playing with Austin, though I didn't get many pictures of him....he is too fast. Gracyn was in a great mood and hamming it up for the camera, and the big kids got to explore the tree house, a huge slide and the fountains. Fun times for all!!! We can't wait to go back.

Mood Swings

This little girl has no middle!!! She is either in the best mood ever, all day long, or she is what the girls like to all "major grumpitude". Yesterday, she almost drove me crazy....she frowned, cried, clung to me, shouted NO, and whined ALL DAY LONG. The day started rough! Tommy was home in the morning, preparing for an afternoon flight out of town. He went to get her out of bed when she woke up. The minute he opened the door, she screamed "Nooooo, Mamaaaaa!!!!" at him and threw herself back down in the bed. He spent the next few minutes coming in and out of her room, while she screamed no at him and waited for me to come. It was down hill from there and she spent the entire morning grumpy!

Now today, she is the complete opposite!!! As many times as she made me nearly pull my hair out yesterday, today she has made me smile. She is full of laughter, smiles and fun playtime. She has been content and easy going. She woke up happy (though still asking only for Mama) and has remained that way throughout the day.She has played with her sisters and I and explored the house, her use of the word NO has even been minimal.

I think at this point, she is my moodiest girl for sure. Now if I could only figure out what it is that determines that mood, so I could have the happy version all the time!!!

Girl's Day at the Zoo

In keeping with my plan to have as much fun as possible before summer vacation ends next week, the girls and I headed to the zoo Friday morning. I managed to pick the hottest day of the week, with temps hovering around 100 degrees, but we still had a great time! The wild peacocks, birds and geese that roam the zoo grounds continue to be my girls' favorite things! We had a great time!

The Wildlife Experience

We are trying to soak up the last few weeks of summer and hit all off our favorite fun spots before we have daily commitments! Last Wednesday we loaded up and headed to the Wildlife Experience. We have a membership and go there often....the girls love it. The Dutcher girls met us and we had a great time.

Afterwards we headed to Castle Rock for a change in Chick-Fil-A pace. They have a different playground than ours and a little sprinkle bar for your ice-cream. The only downside was that it would be a 30 minute drive home and I didn't want Gracyn to fall asleep in the car. No problem, I just got her an ice-cream cone of her own to eat on the way. The barely put any ice-cream in it and she was thrilled. Happy and awake the whole way home. The only problem, I realized when we got home and there wasn't a trace of any ice-cream left. She ate the ENTIRE thing, including the small paper wrapper around the bottom of the cone. Oops!!!

Fudge Pops

The kids are happy, but it definitely wasn't my smartest purchase ever! Gracyn was easy, we just hosed her down. But, the big girls ate theirs fully clothed and I then spent 30 minutes that evening scrubbing chocolate out of their dresses! Oh well, they love them, summer doesn't last forever, and there are only 17 left in the box!!!

Fountains!

After Storytime last week, the girls and I walked over to the park behind the library for some playtime in the fountains. It was really warm here, so the cold water was nice! We packed a picnic and had a great time. Reagan loved it.....she was all over the place and splashing like crazy. Addison liked it okay, though I think she was too cold most of the time and she didn't care for being pelted with water. Gracyn watched from a safe distance, munched on Cheetos and played in the grace. She did venture in some when she discovered that she could fill the Tupperware bowls and pour water!

Texas Friends

Last week, our old neighbors from Texas were in Colorado on vacation and we got to spend the morning catching up with them. The girls and I got up and headed to Focus on the Family in Colorado Springs to visit Ann, David and Nathan. Nathan is almost 15 now, but he was always Addison's little buddy. For 2 years starting when Addison was 1, Nathan walked home from school to our house and hung out with us about an hour or two until Ann finished up work at her school. Addison was always delighted when "Napan" arrived. She bossed him around and he played everything she wanted him to. When Reagan came along, he held her occasionally and entertained Addison while I took care of her.

It was so good to see familiar faces!

Gracyn ran around checking things out.
Sassy Reagan was performing a show on their stage!

Here they are in the book-nook, no luck with the group shot!

We played at Focus until I was sure that Nathan and David were bored to tears, then we headed to lunch at Red Robin! I am sure it was an interesting lunch for them....never a dull or still moment with my crew!!! Thanks for making time on your trip to see us.

Free

I completely forgot to write about my favorite! I don't know how I could have left this out.

Last week at church, the girls learned about Joseph and his coat of many colors. On the way home we were talking about how his brothers were jealous of him and I asked them if they knew what jealous meant. Addison told me it was when you wanted all the stuff that other people have. We then started talking about how we should appreciate the things we have and try not to want for what we see others with.

It was a good serious discussion, until Reagan piped in, "Well, if you want something someone else has, you could just ask Santa Claus, because he will just bring it to you. For Free!!! Then, you won't be jealous about it anymore."

Wisdom, from a 3 year old.

Comedy Tour 2010

~Addison told Gracyn she was going to be a "Smarty-Pants Blondie" when she grew up.

~Addison told me, "I know how dogs and cats have their babies. They poop them out of their bottom. I saw it on Milo and Otis." Nice, thank goodness for C-Sections and the fact that all our babies just came right out of mommy's tummy.

~Tommy and Addison were on the bottom bunk getting ready to read bedtime stories. Reagan came running in the room, jumped on the bed and said, "Make some room for little Reagan!".

~Walking out of Jason's Deli, Addison sniffed the air and said, "It smells like giraffes out here".

~Watching the saddle bronc riders at the rodeo Addison looked at a rider and said, "Wow, he's really rockin' it!".

~My dad said was teasing Reagan, to which she replied, "No way hosey." I think she means No way Jose.

~Addison was looking at my bridal portrait and asked if I was a kid when I got married. I am not sure what that says about how the aging process has been on me for the last 8 years.

~Reagan and I were going back and forth about something a few days ago. I was trying to explain something and she just didn't believe that what I was saying was true. Addison came across the room and whispered in my ear, "Sometimes you just have to tell her okay and pretend that she is right." This is hilarious to me, because we have to do that with Addison ALL THE TIME.

~Reagan is often working all angles to get something first. She will tell me, "Well, I am the one who is hungry, thirsty, etc...."

~Tommy told Addison, "Your Mommy, she is hot!". Well, she takes everything quite literally right now, so she proceeded to study me for the next few minutes. Then she pointed to a red mark on my arm, where I had been holding Gracyn and said, "Well, I guess you look a little hot right there."

15 Months

~22 pounds, average height, blond as can be and blue-eyed

~LOVES playing on beds, as pictured above

~has tons of words and picking them up daily, "baby", "no" and "mama" are the clearest and most often heard

~has to bring her 2 blankies out of bed with her every morning

~still not sleeping through the night, but takes a great nap and does great at bedtime

~nurses 3 times each day

~LOVES feeding Maggie

~discovered how to hunt for rolly-polly bugs with her sisters

~climbs out of her high chair to sit in my lap and eat off my plate at most every meal

~LOVES to dance

~puts a "show" on for us if we put her in a tutu and give her a microphone

~LOVES to swim

~LOVES going for rides in her pink car

~reads her animal book everyday, and every time says "uh-oh" when we get to the elephants

~LOVES birds

~bites when frustrated

~happy, sweet, funny little girl