Golden Birthday

Brandon turned 6 on the 6th of February.  We had a really fun day of playing games, eating donuts for breakfast, and having a giant cookie instead of birthday cake.  Brandon has grown so much in the last year and it has been great.  He is showing that he is more and more like his dad.  He is doing well in school, but he doesn't want to go.  For awhile he was asking me daily if he could stay home.  Not because anything about school is bad, just that he'd rather be home doing nothing.  I love this little guy so much.  Happy birthday, Brandon!

Priesthood Times Two

We are now blessed to have two priesthood holders in our house.  Jacob turned twelve last week and was ordained to the Aaronic priesthood on Sunday.  What a blessing to have the priesthood in our home.  Jacob was so excited to attend Young Men's on Sunday.  I feel like time is passing so quickly and he is growing so fast.  I am proud of the young man he has become and look forward to watching him honor his priesthood throughout the year.  Happy birthday, Jacob.  I love you!

Number 4 is 3

Zach turned three today. As I sit here typing, I'm trying not to cry. My baby isn't really a baby anymore. He is, however, a very fun and active little boy. He would tell you he is big though. He loves to play. Especially with cars, trucks, balls, and trains. He is so sweet. He always tells me goodnight and gives me big hugs and kisses. I'll take those for as long as I can get them. I love my "big" boy and look forward to watching my three-year-old grow and learn new things.

Call Me Spider-Man

Zach and I were making an "All About Me" page (with some help from friends) for his preschool class. We are not particular about calling him Zach or Zachary, so I asked him which name he wanted me to put on his page.
"Do you want to put Zach or Zachary?"
"Um, Spider-man."
"No, you have to have Zach or Zachary."
"Zachary."
"Zachary or Zach?"
"Zachary."
"Ok, Zachary it is."
"Mom, can you call me Spider-Man?"
At least he enjoys playing and pretending.

Beginning Reader

With about four weeks of Kindergarten down, Brandon brought home his first homework book. It consists of different things they are talking about...letters and the sounds they make, numbers, writing his name, and some sight words. The Kindergarten teachers have taken what is, in my opinion, a really great approach. "Don't push your child if they are not ready, please work at their pace." So, I asked Brandon if he wanted to work on it and he did.
We started going through the book and he was doing so well. Telling me the names and sounds of the letters, reading sight words, rhyming. I was excited and so was he.
When Brandon was younger, he didn't talk...at all. He made some noises, but didn't have any words. So, we put him in speech therapy. He did well, but I was always a little concerned that he would have a difficult time in school. He is doing well.
He doesn't like school, but that is because it is all day and he said, "It takes too long." However, he enjoys learning and is so excited to show me what he has accomplished. In fact, he just came up to me as I'm typing and is picking out the words he knows. Way to go, Brandon!

Jack

Congratulations, Natalie and Garrett. They welcomed Jack into their family when he decided to show up Sunday night. He was 7 lbs. 1 oz. and 20 1/2" long. He was born at 11:11 PM on September 6. He is doing great and we are excited to have him in the family.

Where Has Summer Gone?

Really. Where did it go? I know we had nearly 3 months with no school, but what happened to it?

I'll admit: By the time August rolled around, I was so ready for school to start again. My kids were feeling ready too. But then, all of a sudden (so it seemed), school started. Jacob and Riley went off to school Monday. Jacob is spending his sixth grade year at a different school this year in an accelerated learning program. Riley is happy to be back with her friends and some cousins this year.

So that I can remember that there was a summer, I'll post some pics of some things we did this year.

We played at the splash pad a few times. Always fun on a hot day. Although, my kids usually ended up playing on the hot toys. Go figure.

We played soccer and baseball with some families in our neighborhood.

We hit the zoo a few times. They've gotten some new animals as you can see from above.

Made it to the Lagoon a couple times. I don't love it, but the kids do and that makes it fun.


We went to the Oquirrh Mountains Temple open house. We were so blessed as a family to attend the open house together. Especially since we had already been to the Draper Temple earlier this same year.









We went to the Treehouse Museum with a free pass from a friend. Thanks! The kids had a lot of fun.













And, finally, the biggest project of all...we got grass! Who knew that could be so exciting? We love it. The kids can play in our yard. We even got our swing set put up. It took a lot of hard work (Nathan had lots of blisters) and we are so grateful to many people who helped out (including a local University football team that helped lay the sod).

So, that is where our summer has gone.