We're not tired...

We don't need a nap.  We're not tired.  This was their mantra today.....and then they caved in and fell asleep on the floor.

Patriotic Salute

I've been a little emotional lately, that's no secret, but I was surprised how emotional I was on the last day of school.  The kids did a Patriotic program where they wore red, white, & blue and sang songs.  I started getting choked up when they walked in the room wearing their big Uncle Sam hats they'd made and singing "You're a grand old flag".  There's just something too cute about a bunch of 4 year olds singing songs and doing hand motions, especially when it's a patriotic song talking about how much we love our country.

This has been a huge year of growth for Reese & Ryan, physically, emotionally, and spiritually.  Ms. Nancy gave us a book of all their artwork and schoolwork.  It was so amazing to look back at the things they drew at the beginning of the school year.  They could barely write their names and at the end of the year they were drawing pictures of the whole family and writing their names perfectly.  Each child received an award tailored to their personality. Ryan received the Kung Fu Panda Award because she loved karate and always reminded Ms. Nancy that Tuesday was karate day.  Reese received the Crayola Award because she was always drawing, writing, or coloring, and she would bring blank color pages to school for the other kids to color.  They were both SO excited when their names were announced with their awards.  I'm really going to miss Ms. Nancy and Ms. Randi.  They were wonderful teachers and I am so grateful for the love, care, and education they gave to Reese & Ryan this past year.  I really hope that Pre-K is just as good.

Not sure where I fit in

This is a totally random post but I feel the need to blog about it.  I went to Nordstrom on today because their Womens & Kids Sale started and I thought I could find some great deals for myself.  Not so much.  I went to Brass Plum because that's where I feel comfortable most of the time.  While I was shopping I was surrounded by teenage girls that were yelling out things like OMG and LOL.  Shoot me now.  I felt like I was too old to be shopping in that section.  I checked out a few tops in the TBD  dept. and the cheapest thing I could find was $60.  No thanks.  Too frugal to shop in that dept.  Someone told me I should shop in the Point of View section of the store.  Cute but kind of mom-ish.  I guess that's where I'm at.  The kind of mom-ish dept.  I would really love to find a personal shopper/stylist that can go shopping with me and help me put a few outfits together.  I feel like I should be able to find some great stuff at Nordstrom, but don't know where to start.  Help!  I need a style makeover.

Buddies

 These 4 are buddies.  Rome & Haley have been staying with us a lot lately and we love having them.  It's crazy with 5 kids in the house but they all play so well together and have tons of fun.  It's always hilarious when we try to get everyone to sleep.  It's like one big party every night.

Birthday zoo

We had a crazy weekend of birthdays, four to be exact, but I have to say that the petting zoo party was the creme de la creme for our kids.  Reese, Ryan, & Ryder were all so brave and went right up to the animals.  There were chickens and ducks in the animal pen so I tried to stay outside as much as possible and take photos, but I did have to step in a few times to keep Ryder from drinking the goat's water.  Here are some fun highlights of our day:

Everyone wanted a piece of the baby bunny that was swaddled in a blanket.

Ryder L-O-V-E-D the animals and was all up in the mix.

 This was insane to me.  The girls wanted the rooster to sit on their shoulders!  Creeped me out but Reese was a pro and then she tried to help Ryan.  Such a thoughtful big sister.

Comic relief...

and just what I needed.  We had a girls night out at Kona Grill last night after we got the kids to bed.  It was great going to reverse happy hour and as we were finishing up around 10:30 wed decided that seeing the new movie Bridesmaids was a must.  Holly, Karen & I went to the 11pm movie.  This is crazy because it's waaaaay past our bedtime on a school night, but so fun being spontaneous.  The movie was SO funny.  I was laughing out loud in many of the scenes and it felt really good to laugh that hard.  Thanks to my sweet friends for a fun, impromptu, late evening out.  I paid for it today but it was worth it. 

Ready for Summer

The weather has been so cool and wonderful lately.  I am loving every second.  We've had a few hot days here and there and when it gets close to 100 degrees the girls are all about jumping in the pool.  They decide it's chilly after a few minutes and are promptly sunning themselves on the lawn.  I think they are so excited about the warm summer days where they can stay in the pool for hours on end.

William's 1st Birthday

Our little nephew William turned one today and it's hard to believe a year has flown by.  Jess & Jared had a luau birthday party at their house with friends and family and it was a blast.  We got dolled up in our Hawaiian gear and partied the night away.  What a fun party!!

 Birthday boy!

 We love cupcakes.

 Ryder & Daddy sporting the Hawaiian duds.

Me and Reesie doing our squish hug.

BBQ fun

You might remember that me and 2 of my besties were pregnant together and now our babies are all toddlers running around together.  Masey & Ryder were born on the same day and Kensley was born 3 weeks later.  We had everyone over for a BBQ and it was so much fun.  The kids all played so well together and we had a blast catching up with everyone.  I love my dear friends so much and it's so amazing to see them as mothers with their precious daughters. D&E--thanks for such a fun day!  Love you girls!!

Mother's Day

Mother's Day was such a great day. We went to Jared & Jessica's house for bagels and coffee.  The kids played while the grownups sat around and chatted.  The girls were so excited to give Mimi her Mother's Day gift, a windchime and a fun bowl with 4 little froggies on it that we decided represented her 4 grandkids.  Mimi gave Jess and I Bath and Body Works tote bags filled with all kinds of goodies.  I love that stuff.

 Reesie loves her little cousin, William.  

She always wants me to take photos of them together.

 Mimi, Me, Ryan, & Reese.

Cute little cousins.

 Me and William.

I didn't take any more photos of the rest of our day but we ate lunch at La Stala and then headed to Uncle Chris' house to see Grandma, Grandpa, and our cousins.  After we got home we put the kids to bed and I went to see Water For Elephants with Karen & Holly.  I read the book 4 years ago and was really excited to see the movie.  The book is amazing and I thought the movie was well done.  It was fun getting out with my girls and was a wonderful ending to a perfect day.

16 months

 Ryder boy is 16 months old today and it's for me to grasp how fast he's growing up.  I vividly remember the girls at this age and he's so darn cute, just like they were.  We have a full fledged toddler on our hands.  He's busy, busy, busy, and into everything.  Never a dull moment with this kid around.  Here are a few highlights of our little man:

• Loves playing peek-a-boo with anyone and everyone.  He thinks it's hilarious and it never gets old.
• Sleeping like a champ at night, about 12 hours and taking 2 solid naps during the day.  I was trying to push him to one nap but it was backfiring, so we're back to a nap somewhere in the 9 o'clock hour and again in the afternoon.
• He's pointing at everything and loves telling me which direction to go by pointing.  When I'm putting him to bed he's always pointing out to the family room like that's where he'd rather be.
• Saying more words and signing more too.  He can say Ryan's name and it sounds like "I-an".  I've heard him say 'Reese' once.  It sounded like "eese".  He signs please, more, hurt, all done, bath, outside.
• Loves animals and the noises they make.  He says, "moo, neigh, quack, baa, chirp noises for birds, & elephant.
• Doesn't want to sit in his highchair.  He would rather stand on the barstool next to his sisters or sit on the kitchen island so he's in the mix of everything.  He climbs on the barstools in 2 seconds flat and refuses to get down.
• He loves his belly button and everyone else's.  We ask him to find Mimi or Mommy's belly button and he's running right over to lift up a shirt and poke your belly button.
• His hair is getting L-O-N-G.  It's so cute and curly in the back.  The front is getting a little shaggy but we're still letting it grow.
• Ryder LOVES daddy.  When the door chime beeps he says, "Dada" and goes running for Cory.
• The last molar broke through and he now has 16 teeth, 8 on the top and 8 on the bottom.  I think the teething is over for a bit.
• Still our little skinny guy that can wear 6-12 month pants and fit into a size 3 diaper.
• I can tell that he's understanding everything we say.  I know his comprehension completely exceeds his verbal language and it's fun talking to him, knowing he's understanding everything we say.
• He has such a fantastic personality and we love watching all his adorable expressions.  His face lights up over the littlest things.  He makes his excited face and we all crack up.

We love you so much, Ryder boy.  You are SO much fun right now and we love watching you change and grow.  Each day with you is a gift that we treasure.

Our outing with Gammie

On Friday afternoon I received a call from our dear friend, Erica Butler.  She told me that she had invited my Gammie to her daughter's 17th birthday party and my grandma was trying to drive herself to the party.  Well, Gammie has no business driving her Buick boat to Tempe so Erica asked if I would drive Gammie to the party and bring the girls along.  Of course!  We were so excited to tag along and celebrate.

 Reese didn't really want to pose for a photo.  She decided to pick a winner instead.

 When Catherine was opening her presents she had two very helpful little girls right by her side.

 Catherine, me, & Gammie.

 Catherine & the girls.

Mother's Day at Risen Savior

 The girls hosted a Mother's Day Tea at preschool.  Mimi joined us and the girls served us food and tea.  They were so sweet.

Mimi was in charge of the camera and there were many photos like this one below where my eyes were closed but it was pretty cute of the girls.  I'll take one for the team.

Ryder boy came along with us and was his usual rowdy self.  It was prime nap time and he was a sport while we noshed and listened to the musical performance.  He really loves their preschool classroom and knows right where his favorite toys are stashed.

Their class made really cute clay pots with homemade flowers and a photo in the center.  They also made an adorable recipe book of all the kids' favorite recipes.

Here they are singing their hearts out.  They knew every single word and all the motions that went along.  I was such a proud mama.