Happy Birthday Makenna!

I can't believe it! Makenna turned 10 on Friday Nov. 21st. Ryan and I put out some birthday balloons to welcome her home from school. She was pleasantly surprised! That night we took her and the rest of the family out to dinner at the restaurant of her choice...McDonald's! On Saturday night we invited family over for cake and ice cream. It was a fun celebration. Makenna You are growing up and becoming a beautiful young woman!

Becoming Self-reliant

Matt and I have wanted for some time now to start a garden. We just didn't know how to do it in our little back yard. We feel strongly that we need to learn how to grow our own veggies and become just a little bit more self-reliant. So, with the help of our brother-in-law Lindsey, Matt got a garden box built. Now all we need it some garden soil, some seeds, and spring to come. Wish us luck!

Trick Or Treat

We had a great time trick or treating this year. We had a couple of families come over for dinner and then headed out together to load the kids up with sugar. Halloween is not my favorite holiday, but the kids love to dress up so Matt and I indulge them. I think they ended up looking adorable. If you can't tell by the pictures Makenna was a vampire, Emily a pirate, and Ryan was Batman.

Family Tradition

Every year since Makenna was 11 mo. old, come October we make our way to the Pumpkin Patch. The kids look forward to this event and can hardly wait until they can go and find that "perfect" pumpkin. This year Ryan wanted the littlest one. Emily looked for one that was perfectly round, which was hard to find... believe it or not! Makenna looked for one that was enormous, had the perfect stem, and just the right coloring. We were successful in all categories!! Matt and I are so glad for family traditions and that we started this one ten years ago. It has evolved over the years to include dinner afterwards at In-N-Out Burger or desert at home. This year when we came home we had yummy root beer floats.

Trains, Trains, Trains

Today was a really great day! It finally cooled off so we took the kids to the "Train Park" in Scottsdale. I have had people tell me about this place but we had yet to go. It is a treasure in our city! We just happened to go on the one weekend a year they have what they call "railfest". They have people from all over come and set up their model trains. We had a great time going from tent to tent looking at and watching all of the different train displays. The girls got their faces painted which they were reluctant to wash off before going to church the next day. The highlight of the day was getting to ride on a train around the park. Oh and we can't forget all of the inflatable jumping things the kids got dizzy in, or the old fashioned merry-go-round! It is definitely a place we will visit again!

Dinosaurs and Other Stuff

Over our four day October break we went with Ryan's pre-school to the Mesa Museum of Natural History. The kids spent a few days learning about dinosaurs so it seemed fitting to go and look at dinosaur bones! It was a fun and exhausting field trip. We ended up going at the same time as some other school groups so there were kids everywhere!!! We saw dinosaurs of all kinds, watched a flash flood, saw a real alligator, pretended we were in jail, panned for gold, played with puzzles, and even saw an exhibit on poop...that's right poop! If you have never been you should go. It is a fun museum you have to do at least once.

SOCCER!!

The 2008 soccer season has begun! We now spend most of our week at either soccer practices or soccer games. It is worth all of the time and energy to watch the fun and excitement on the girls faces. This year Makenna is playing on a half of a full size field and is learning how to play each position. Emily is playing on a quarter field and is thrilled that this year her uniform is finally PINK!!! Next year watch out...Ryan will be playing!

Play hard...Crash hard!

Wow, what a busy day! Ryan long ago gave up taking naps so imagine my surprise when I walked in and found him sound asleep surrounded by Thomas the Train and friends. He was at the gym with me at 8am, followed by preschool from 9am-11am, and then he got to play and have lunch with his friend Bronson. Now I just hope he will be ready for bed tonight and not keep us up until midnight!

First Day of Preschool

Ryan's first day of preschool was an exciting one! He could hardly wait to get there. It was a bitter sweet day for Mom. She was so glad that he was eager to learn and spend some time with his friends, but sad in the same moment knowing her baby was off to school. He looked so grown up walking into school with his friend Bronson!

Life Flys By

Today I received a request to sign up for first quarter Parent Teacher Conferences. I can not believe that almost nine weeks has past since I sent off my two sweet girls for another year of school. It just seems to me that time has speed up. I long for those days that never seemed to end. When Barney and Elmo where life savers and cherrios was a food group all its own. Ryan has seemed to grow into his own"person" recently. He is no longer my baby but my little boy. I cried when I realized that in January he will be a Sunbeam. Everyday I am amazed at how my children are growing and how much they are learning. The other day Ryan started hunting for bugs and telling me that we need to "slam it!" I love and enjoy everyday that I am the mother of three wonderful children. Even on the days I want to send them to bed at 4pm.

First Day of School

Makenna and Emily are back in school! School started on August 11th. I can't believe that I have a fourth and second grader. They both love their teachers and were excited to see thier friends. I asked them what their favorite thing to do at school was and they said recess...go figure!!!

Tonto Natural Bridge

We visited the Tonto Natural Bridge north of Payson, AZ. The whole family enjoyed having a picnic and hiking the trails at the park. The natural spring waterfall was beautiful and refreshing.

Summer Vacation 2008

For our summer vacation this year, we were invited to spend a few days at a cabin with some friends in Pinedale, AZ. Makenna, Emily, and Ryan had a great time playing with their friends, going on hikes and spending some time in the great outdoors. The weather was great and amazing. Makenna’s favorite part about the trip to the cabin was being an eye witness to our friendly neighborhood nightly visitors. The nightly visitors were a pair of raccoons that came to the back patio to snack on some treats. She thought it was pretty cool and she loved to watch the raccoons. Emily’s favorite part of the trip was going on the tree swing, picking wild flowers, and throwing rocks in the creek. At the creek, Janae caught a little frog and showed it off to the kids. Makenna and Emily both loved holding the frog. Emily said the frog was “gooey” and smooth. Ryan enjoyed playing in the outdoors and going on the 4x4 golf cart with dad. It was amazing to see the remnants of the Rodeo-Chediski fire that ravaged the northern part of the state in the summer of 2002.