Lagoon!

I just got back from spending the entire month of June in Utah. We had so much fun even though it seemed like we were gone for so long. I kept telling people that every day was like a big party. Seemed like we always had something fun planned. I have more to say than I can put in one post....but one of the days, we went to LAGOON!

The kids had more fun than I think they could handle. The day started out like this:

My dad and I could not figure out if Avery was scared or happy. Shear screaming for the whole ride! My dad said, "That right there was worth the price of admission!"

I agreed wholeheartedly.

My dad was so sweet and drove up to see us and help me take the kids to Lagoon. Logan became his little buddy. Here we all are on the Skyscraper Ferris Wheel.

Avery does not look like she is having fun at all :)

Surprisingly, there weren't long lines. The kids went on these cars at least 10 times in a row. They would get off and go hop right back on. Avery thought it was so fun, because she always got to go with her brothers. And her brothers had fun taking care of her on this ride. It was really cute.

My favorite picture...Avery with her arms up on the roller coaster. That girl is a crack-up. The wild hair flying captures her personality quite well. Love it!

So the best part was the Colossus! We kept driving by Lagoon nearly every day before we went because it is right off the freeway. I kept telling Daven about the Colossus and how he should go on it. He was terrified, particularly because it goes upside down. He told everyone for 2 weeks....I AM NOT GOING ON THE COLOSSUS!

Well, we got to Lagoon and I told him he should do it. He was dead set against it. I told him he might not even be tall enough to go. He decided he wanted to at least check; which made me think, maybe there is some interested there? Well, he was tall enough...but BARELY! He said, I am NOT going on it.

We went and sat down for a minute. I told him how fun it was AND that I would give him $1.00 if he'd go. I literally watched his eyes perk up and he decided to do it. I couldn't believe it. I seriously did not think he would take that bait. Someone would have had to pay me $100.00 at that age. He was so nervous, but we did it together. We called Mike right away after. He was so proud of himself. But when asked if he wanted to go again, he said, "Next time." That was followed by, "Mom, if I go on the Colossus 50 times, do I get $50.00?" NO WAY! But way to go, Daven!

I'll have to post more about our trip. We had a great time seeing everyone, Grandma's, Papa's, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins and friends. It was a great change of pace and we LOVEd the cooler weather. More to come!

Party of the Year

We had the funnest time at Brunswick XL for the boys' birthday party this year. I'm sorry for going on and on about it, but they did a great job. I e-mailed the lady in charge and said that her boss should be paying her more! We were that pleased.

I've never done a party at a "place" before. But it was super reasonable. The staff was great. And the kids had a blast!! Worth every penny. The night before, Mike and I felt excited because we went to bed on time, and all we had to do was bring the cake and candles. We said it was our year off, and it was great!!

Brunswick bowling thought of everything. They had a live d.j., neon bowling, and fun dances for the kids to do. The party was 1 1/2 hours but the kids were entertained the whole time.

Okay, I was a little nervous when we first got there. The kids wanted to bowl and we had to help most of them out. I thought, this party is going to take a lot of energy. But, they quickly got the hang of it and were soon having a great time. They loved seeing their names and scores!

Annabelle's action shot!

Look at the face! Super into it!

McKinley

Logan and his friend, Kanyon from school. Kanyon was the most worried/proud of his score!

I'm sorry, this picture just had to be posted, it was so cute. She makes bowling shoes fashionable.

Even Avery bowled a few times. She was so shy and quiet the whole party.

Paige

We were so excited because Mike's parents happened to be in town. Grandma was such a huge help at the party. Avery loved grandma to hold her.

See, they thought of everything! Even the bowling mascot!

They had the kids to the cha-cha and the conga. This was so cute. They got really into it and burned off some energy in between bowling games.

My cute boys. Happy Birthday! Logan will get to keep celebrating when we go to Utah in June.

Can't believe I have a 7 and almost 5-year old! Love you boys.

Happy Birthday - Cha-Cha-Cha!

Happy, Birthday, Cha-cha-cha! I guess that's how all the kids sing it now.....

Happy Birthday, Daven!!!

Our Daven turned seven years old! Isn't he a handsome kid? Look at that smile. I love this picture. He doesn't look like as "little" anymore! I asked him on his birthday, "Do you feel like you are seven, or do you still feel six?" He replied with a firm, "SEVEN." He seems like a seven year-old to me, crazy!!

Daven loves Super Mario Bros. Logan and Avery gave him a Mario keychain for his backpack. He brings home his work from school and nearly every day there is something he's written/drawn/colored about Super Mario....he loves it. If I didn't limit his wii-time, he would play 24/7 I'm sure!
One of Daven's grandma's sent him some Poke-mon cards. Aside from Super Mario Bros, Poke-mon is a new love. Can you tell by his face how excited he is?

Mike and I gave him a new bike. I think he was surprised but wanted to get back in to play with his Poke-mon cards. Some day, I think he'll be glad we got him the bike! We've taken him out on it a few times. Our goal is to get him riding this summer!

I asked if he wanted cupcakes or a cake. He requested chocolate chip cookies and ice-cream. I guess that means I make really good cookies? ha-ha. I'm glad he likes them. Plus, they were super easy!!!

I love my Daven so much. He is such a smart little boy. I am so proud of how well he is doing in school. He brightens our lives every day. I hope he never loses his zest for life, because it is contagious. We all love to be around him because of how happy and energetic he is.

And Now She's Two

Happy Birthday to our fun, adorable, lively little girl. Avery turned two a few weeks ago. She was so excited for her party. She found the Elmo cake-pan I had made for Daven when he was two. She carried it around the house for a few days. I decided to make her an Elmo cake. Any time you would ask her, "Avery, is it almost your birthday?" She would say, "ELMO Birthday!" It surprised me she knew what was going on.

We celebrated the Saturday before. Our friends, The Sherwoods were so sweet to come over.

It was a very simple party. We sang Little Bunny Foo-Foo.

Avery loves to "bop them on the head!" This is one of her favorite songs she sings in nursery on Sunday at church.

Pizza Face

Presents! She is still good at unwrapping them!

She got 2 new pairs of flip-flops. She loves shoes, so it is fun to have a choice every morning as to which ones she wants to wear.

The cake....She stayed up with me the night before to "help" ha-ha. She sat right next to me the whole time. I gave her a little frosting to play with. Mike kept asking if she wanted to go to bed and she adamantly told us, "No, I wan help mommy!" It was fun to have a little helper and someone that was so excited about her cake.

I can't believe she is two. She's adorable. She pulled a classic two-year old stunt before the party. She had picked out a different party dress. We had her dressed and a bow to match in her hair. Five minutes before the party, she freaked out and had a wardrobe change. I have to laugh. How could she care what she wore to her party? She is the most independent thing I've ever met.

Sorry, Tia if the red frosting stained anything. I guess some of the kids liked the cake :)

And this is her new pink cup and tinkerbell plate from her grandma. We had to put them away as soon as she opened them. If they are clean, this is what she wants to use. I guess drinking from pink cups is far superior to other colors. We just roll with it.

All the Reasons I Know She's a Girl....Part 2

It is almost lil' miss Avery Mae's 2nd Birthday. I have been thinking lately how much she acts like a little girl now. (And sometimes like a teenage girl!)

I did a post when she was a few months old about all the reasons I knew she was a girl. Well, it is becoming even more apparent every day. I think it is time for another one!

I catch little things she does every day that are so different from the boys. It usually makes me chuckle and catches me off-guard. Oh, how we love this little girl. I am so glad she is part of our family. And I don't know what we would do without her!

Here's to all the girly things about her:

1) She is the BEST time-out supervisor in the whole world. Ever since she could walk, if someone gets put in time-out, she's there! She sits by her brothers, comforts them, and most recently has started lecturing them in her jibber-jabber voice. Her new phrase - "no no ga-ga." That means "no no Logan!"

2) Avery is always the first one on the scene when someone gets hurt. She loves to comfort, kiss, and nurture her brothers. She'll squat down and say....."okay" as in "you're okay." We just laugh. It doesn't matter what she is doing, if someone is crying, she has to drop EVERYTHING and go investigate.

3) She thinks she is everyone's mommy. She likes to walk Logan into preschool. She'll walk inside and make him giver her a hug. As she closes the door behind her, she'll say, "Have fun, ga-ga." And the funny thing is, she really thinks she's being a mommy.
4. She is great at pretending there is something in her eye. This is her go-to pose if she doesn't want to talk or look at you. Usually if there is a male in the room, she'll look away and pretend to have something in her eye. Every time!

5. She loves the color pink! I think she is pre-programmed this way. One day she was coloring with her brothers. She found a pink crayon and brought it to me and said, "Look mommy!" I must have said it was a neat pink crayon because ever since then, she loves anything that color. And if she sees something she'll yell "Pink" just to let us know! She has these pink pants and a pink Notre Dame shirt. Every time I pull them out of the dryer to fold them, she won't let me. She'll strip down and put them on screaming about the fact they are pink. And if I happen to wash her pink socks, they go on, too. She looks like such a scrounge in that outfit but she feels really pretty.

6. She changes clothes at least 3 times a day. And she also takes forever to choose her outfits. I don't know why, I certainly don't change my clothes 3 times a day. And the outfits she comes up with are very interesting. How can a 2 year-old have such a strong opinion?

7. She loves to give fashion shows. Any time she feels particularly cute, she'll parade into Mike's office to show off her outfit/hair to daddy!

8. She loves DISPENSERS...soap, lotion, shampoo, tape. The other day I got out of the shower and it was really quiet. I could just hear a soft click-click noise. Well, lo and behold, I walked into our bedroom and there was Avery with the lotion click-clicking away. I cannot even tell you how much lotion she had on her legs.

On multiple occasions we've walked in and she's tried to shampoo her hair with the bathroom soap or clean the shelves in the boys room or make other types of dispenser mischief.

9. She loves backpacks. I'm sure this will translate into purses someday soon.

10. She is really good at opening presents. Once she figured this out at Christmas, she just went to town. Loved it.

11. She loves to help me in the kitchen. She thinks she is helping all right.

But here's the thing....as much as I know she's a girl, she has a sprinkle of her brothers in her, too! She loves to put on their dress-ups and pretend to have sword fights with them. She gets so excited every time she sees a fire truck coming down the street. And if baseball or any sport it on TV, she'll make sure her daddy knows about it.

We love this little girl....she is the perfect addition to our family!

Happy almost birthday, lil' Avery Mae!