Welcome to our World

 My little ballerinas.  They danced while I packed my bags for DC.  It made me not want to leave them!  Fun with friends at the park: Ryan, Kaden, & Kristine.  Wrestling with Daddy at the drainage ditch (aka Meigo's favorite spot).  Dance class with Lizzie.  Michelle's first hair cut.  Of course it had to be done by Sandy.  Who else?  Well, the bangs were originally cut by big sister Kaelah b/c Michelle was complaining about the hair in her face.  Can you see the 2 tiny pigtails Sandy put in?  It is also a very good thing a friend convinced me to trim the back. I don't think a stranger could have talked me into cutting off that hair that has taken soooo long to grow.  It looks much better & is growing nicely now, though.  Thanks, Sandy!  200% boy. My bison & crow at the museum.  We attended a free 40s band concert there & then played a bit.  I just couldn't pass u...

Dear Danny, Oh, how I love you! I love the way you blush when I ask you who my favorite boy in the whole wide world is or who's the cutest boy I know.  You are an amazing little guy, always trying to keep up with your big sister.  You love going to preschool and gym class.  I am still grateful you are a good sleeper -- the only one in the family besides me.  I often tell you I am so lucky to be your mom because that is truly the way I feel.  I love it when it is my turn to rub your feet and sing you "Army of Helaman" as you fall asleep.  You're so funny about how much you adore clothes and which pajamas you will wear.  There are only 2 things standing in the way of you being absolutely perfect : fighting with your sister(s) and cleaning up your toys.  lol.  You are the best son a woman could ask for and I am so grateful you are in our family.  Your arrival into our family made me happier than you will ever know.  I'm so proud o...

This summer we have been way better about the children going out on "dates" with Dan or I.  This is my favorite picture so far.  Dan & Danny went shopping for motorcycles together. I keep getting reminded my son would make a great country boy. The girls showing off nature on a trip to Coot Lake with their daddy.  Between work and school it isn't very often he gets to go. Popsicle time!  Sprinklers and cold treats are the best thing in the world for hot days.  This is my cover photo on Facebook Timeline now.  It was about time for a change... I still had the Halloween picture of the 5 of us up there.  As Reagan noticed, Kaelah has looong legs, no?  She is super fast and growing like a weed.  She is 4-years-old and I had to go out and buy her size 6 clothes.  My one worry about waiting until she is 6 to begin school is that Kaelah is really tall for her age.  But she loves the idea of being taller than everyone el...

Education is a tough topic for me.  I can talk about it for hours on end... if I had the time. In a nut shell, I graduated with a degree in education, had to wait for my local license, so took a job at a preschool.  It was soooo not what they had taught me about in college.  But Waldorf Education, for early childhood and the lower grades at least, is what I feel education should be.  I worked at a Waldorf school as a summer camp and substitute teacher since I didn't have the official training before Kaelah was born.  So, when one of my former co-workers began a Waldorf inspired preschool in her home, it was a no brainer to send Kaelah there.  I can't believe her time there is over! At Kaelah's birthday celebration (above) and the last day of school (below). Stacey said she certainly visualizes us coming back to Waldorf, but as for now, Dan & I have decided (it was a long and painful process) to send our children to public school.  Gasp! ...

Long story short, we decided to take an overnighter Memorial Day weekend.  We headed to Colorado Springs and experienced many things for the first time!  We were very fortunate that the family had to take a potty break at such a great city park.  We ended up spending an hour there even in the wind.  I was super excited to see a real merry-go-round.  Kaelah loved it & I almost died laughing when I accidentally made Danny's legs swing out.  Good thing he didn't let go to the bar!  I thought this was a nice set-up with the hills behind the park.  Danny's birth mother joined the Air Force this week so I insisted we visit the Air Force Academy.  There isn't much to the visitor's center, but the children were very impressed with this super fortress.  Danny exclaimed, "It's bigger than Daddy!"  Kaelah replied, "And Uncle Trent!"  OMG.  You can tell Michelle was very comfortable feeding the giraffes at Cheyenn...

I've noticed there are so many people and normal stuff that just doesn't make it into the blog in proportion to how often we are with them or experience something.  For instance, I've been going to church almost my entire life & I probably have half a dozen pictures to show for it.  Just an example.  On to what this is really about: saying good-bye to Kaelah's best friend.  Oh, California, why did you have to offer such an enticing job to her daddy?  On their last day together us 2 moms & the 5 children spent about 5 hours at the park & at McDonald's.  Running away from the bad guy (Danny), playing in the sand, playing tag, eating lunch, and the actual good-bye.  B. was so upset she began bawling & then her mom, K. started crying and I ended up promising B. we would come visit her in California.  Luckily hubby said that was ok for me to take Kaelah for a weekend.  We'll probably wait until after Labor Day to avoid the sum...

Oh, my beloved iPhone.  I am so glad you are around to feed my desire to document due to a fear that I will one day forget all this due to lack of sleep.  With Danny's 3rd birthday approaching I am keenly aware this also means it has been almost 3 years since Dan & I had uninterrupted sleep.  Oh, Michelle!  Why do you have to be so much like me in that respect?!?  Dan did a magnificent job heading up the project to put a sandbox under the play set in my parents' back yard.  The rope swing was an impulse buy at Home Depot & a tremendous hit with Kaelah.  Speaking of Kaelah, she decided she didn't like her 16" bike & wanted a princess scooter like she saw a neighbor girl riding.  So I told her if I could sell the bike she could have the scooter.  Sold it on Craigslist and she couldn't be happier.  I was expecting at least a tad of buyer's remorse, but not a drop!  She really honestly did not like her bike anymore....