(Here's a picture of him getting an award for being the best academic in the class)
And here's some of Uncle Chris with the rest of the family~
Cheers buddy, congrats!
Camping AND shooting GUNS! DOUBLE YAY!!
Okay, so it's a PINK red rider bb gun. So what? He's not quite old enough for one of his own so he had to borrow his sister's gun. The point is that he got to go shooting with Daddy while they camped in the FREEZING weather last week. Totally not kidding, that's ICE behind the kiddos the next morning when they woke up. Editor's Note: You don't see MOMMY anywhere in these pictures because Mommy is not crazy and stayed home in the nice warm house so she wouldn't freeze her tushie off.
Good times.
May 2012 find you so blessed that your cup runs over and you have to drink from your saucer.
I got so lucky that he found me. He is a good man.
We attended the local Rotary auction last week and, like previous years, the kids got to present a few items to the cameras and were televised across the greater mountain area. The first item the presented was a quilt that sold for about $400 (above). They also presented and doll that sold for over $300 and a rocking chair that also sold for over $300. Man, put those kids in front of a camera and people just melt like chocolate :)
Congratulations Miss Sarah & Wally on your upcoming baby girl. I can't wait to meet your daughter. I just know you two will make great parents.
Thank you to all of the American Soldiers who have fought to protect what society is often trying to tear apart...
My little darling was invited by a friend to join the birthday girl in a day of princesses, pampering and partying. They met in Upland at Olivia's Princess Doll Tea House and got to dress up and show off all of their royal moves. They were super cute to see dressed up together. I will truly miss these days when they are gone.
United States Soldiers!!!
For my little girl, of course, the highlight was getting her face painted pretty:
The highlight for my little man was getting to sword fight with the kingsmen:
And for me? Well, I guess it's not one thing in particular that stands out, but just having the chance to spend a fun weekend together as a family (and the free carnival games):
That was an easy task because there were SOOOO MANY pumpkins! 
It was funny because the whole experience was over so quickly that we were kind of surprised to find ourselves ready to go shortly after arrival. 
I guess that's what happens when there are so many great pumpkins to choose from~
We were originally considering keeping our little darling home this year for home schooling until the school was willing to put her into advanced classes (around 2-4 grade). We reconsidered when we learned a little more about one of the teachers. She is so sweet to the kids, very organized and well, just has her act together. Although I was a little tentative at first about how much time was being wasted in the classroom on non-learning activities, I am so happy that we decided to keep her in school. She is beginning to bring home some advanced homework and all of the "non-learning" activities are the parts that she reports about when I pick her up. It is then that she is learning coping and dealing social skills that I just can't teach her at home. I am glad now, even though I know she is not learning at her highest potential yet, because (like I originally guessed) a big part of what children learn in school has nothing to do with textbooks or worksheets. Her teacher is well equipped to monitor and guide those activities as well. Our little kindergartner is indeed in good hands.
Last night I spent several hours putting chocolate covered sunflower seeds on mini nutter butters that I spent an hour covering in chocolate, which were on top of several chocolate mini-cupcakes that I added pumpkin and dried blueberries to so that they'd be under 80 calories and still taste delicious and have the same crunch that you hear/feel when you step on a spider. You see, today was "S" day at the kindergarten that my daughter attends. I thought it would be a cute snack to help reinforce the letter S for the kids. What kind of crazy, lunatic mom spends that much time spider cupcakes that the kids will devour in under a minute? I guess this kind. If I can't deny it I might as well own it.
Some girlfriends and I got the kiddos together for an afternoon of bike riding the other day. It was cute to see them playing so well together on their various levels of bikes, trikes and scooters. There were no casualties and minimal whining which always makes for a better day with friends. I think that applies whether they're 5 or 50.
Recently we were invited by some friends to join them for a tour of the local Dominoes pizza parlor. The kids got to walk all over the store, investigating everything it took to produce one of the best pizzas in our area. They were particularly fond of playing in the cold cold refrigerator where they discovered TONS of shredded cheeses and got to poke at some rising pizza dough. From there they moved on to being mesmerized by the magnet that goes on top of the delivery cars. It was stuck to the side of a vending machine and the kids took turns trying to pry it loose from the magnets holding it on. The highlight of the day however, had to be when they all got to make their own pizzas. They stretched the dough, spread the sauce and sprinkled on the toppings. Then they got to place it on the conveyor belt that led it through the oven. When it popped out the other side of the oven it was transported to the cutting table where they got to participate in cutting and boxing their own pizza pies. We thanked the Dominoes employees profusely and headed to the local playground to enjoy our feast. What a great way to teach kids the appreciation of cooking food and how everything happens in a sequence and rewarding them for a little hard work. Great GREAT idea for a playdate. Thanks Lauren!
I spent the weekend with a few girlfriends doing some scrapbooking at one of their houses. When I got back, my little darling had prepared this note for me. She is SO STINKIN' SWEET.
Here's the list she prepared for herself the other night at bedtime. There are seven things on the list. Can you read them all?
Bacon-wrapped barbequed water chestnuts
Yeah, I admit it, I am in denial. There is no way that my precious little girl is old enough for school. What happened to her lying on the floor in the living room, reaching for the toys as I cheered her on, hoping she'd learn to roll over? What happened to her first stumbling steps? and waking up crying at night wanting to be cuddled? and learning to brush her teeth? What do you mean it's all been done already? There doesn't seem like there's been enough time...
We had a blast on the Colorado river last weekend. The floatilla is our annual rafting trip with friends down the river. Well this year it just happened to coincide with the Bullhead City River Regatta, where 9000 other folks are doing essentially the same thing. We were worried at first about how it would all turn out since we hadn't partaken of the festivities in the past. As it turns out, 9000 friends makes for a great party. Here's a shot (above) of our starting group, complete with out camo attire (each year has a theme for us). Oh, and a random asian guy in an orange life jacket, which I hear is good luck (kind of like a rabbit's foot, but less barbaric). Good times.
We ventured north to visit with Bugs Bunny and his funny friends recently. My two little ones had done some reading and earned us some free tickets to the park. He's got a nice pad with some fun rides. The kids, Meg and I had a fun time. Here's some highlights:
We started our day with a ride on the log ride. This was a good "not too scary" introduction to the roller coasters for the kiddos.
My son's favorite ride was the train ride in the little kids' section of the park. He likes things at a slower pace...for now.
Which was in sharp contrast to our LAST ride of the day, Superman, (seen here waiting in line in a kryptonite cave) which the two little ones were too small for but Meggy got to ride THREE TIMES! She was on the last car of the night so they ran them consecutively.
My daughter however DID get to ride Ninja and ride it and ride it...she rode it three times too. Turns out she's quite the little daredevil.
I rode it with her too. I have to admit, I had one hand on the handle bars and the other on my little girl, just in case she went flying. I know, I know, overprotective mom...I get that alot. But we all made it out safely, with no ejections from rides or throwing up so it seems we must have done something right :)
How big? SOOOOOO BIG!
The west side of the south rim of the canyon.
It was in excess of 110 degrees so more fun in the water than out of it.
Our hotel in Laughlin.
