sewing day

Months ago, when we planned our Youth Temple trip, I had no idea that Brooke would have that day off school.  I asked Grandma to come watch the kids since we leave about 4 PM, but since Brooke had the day off, Grandma suggested that they have their special sewing date that they've been talking about. It seemed like great timing, so Grandma come out in the morning and took Brooke to Hobby Lobby to pick fabric for the bag they were going to make. Brooke picked a pink fabric with princesses all over it :)  It was very fitting since she wore her Rapunzel dress on the outing, haha. 

It was fun being home for part of the process (cutting of the pattern, pinning, etc.), and they were just getting to the sewing as I left for the temple trip.

When I came home late that night, Brooke's completed bag was sitting at the bottom of the stairs with her big baby inside (which is why she wanted to make the big bag in the first place.)  That was the first thing she wanted to talk to me about in the morning, and I love that she was able to practice her sewing skills with Grandma!

first top tooth

Shortly after losing her second bottom tooth, Brooke commented that one of her top teeth was loose.  I examined it, and although it was sightly loose, it didn't seem like it would be falling out anytime soon.  Fast forward a month or more, and that tooth became VERY loose!  Not so loose that I thought it would fall out on its own, but I could tell that it was bothering her. She also made multiple comments about NOT wanting to loose those top teeth because she would look weird.  I assured her that she most definitely wouldn't look weird, but that it was all part of growing up :)

A few days later, I told her that one of her friends (Ethan) had lost his top tooth and he looked adorable!  She of course wanted to see the picture, and when she saw that he still looked "normal", she didn't seem as worried about it.  A few days after that, she commented that she MIGHT have Daddy pull her tooth out that night because it was distracting her in class.  "I'm still doing my work and everything, but it keeps distracting me!"

I also reminded her that she would get to be the first kid on the tooth chart in her classroom, which was the final piece of motivation she needed. As soon as we finished dinner, she had Kevin inspect her tooth. He thought it still needed a bit of wiggling, so he had her work on it for a few minutes.  Then it was go time...

Kevin gave it a good tug, but she immediately said, "Ouch, Daddy" with his hand partially in her mouth.  He of course stopped and apologized for hurting her, then told her they might have to wait a few more days.  I could see the little wheels turning in her mind as she weighed the pros and cons of waiting for the tooth to get looser, or dealing with a bit of pain.  Kevin and I were both of the mindset that she should do whatever she wanted, and surprisingly, she wanted Kevin to try again. I could tell that he was a little hesitant because he didn't want to hurt her, but he was willing to try again.

Again, she didn't like that tugging feeling, but she still wanted it OUT!  Since it was even looser, she didn't like the feeling of the gap behind the tooth.  Kevin told her to go brush her tooth really hard and see what happened.  I tried to take a picture of that snaggle tooth, haha, but it's hard to tell how much it was sticking forward.

Brooke opted for one final pull, and Kevin made it happen :)  I was really so impressed with her bravery, especially because I could tell that it hurt her little mouth.  In the video, you could tell that she was excited/shocked/emotional all in the same moment.  Tears came to her eyes, and Kevin quickly scooped her into his arms.

She really has the best Daddy, and I'm really glad that he is the tooth guy because I'm not sure that I could do it. (Funny fact: one of my childhood besties used to have MY dad pull her teeth because it freaked HER dad out, haha!)

I adore these two and her adorable toothless grin.

That was a lot of excitement for one night, but she made sure that the tooth was placed into her special pillow for the tooth fairy to collect while she was dreaming.

All tucked in (with baby cow, of course) for the night...

 The tooth fairy did indeed visit, and left her a note and SIX quarters.  Wow, she was excited about those quarters :)  

And this is too funny not to post, especially after that sweet picture of her all cozy in her bed!  As I braided her hair the next morning, she picked my phone off the counter and took a few selfies.  I think she was trying to be funny because I told her she had chocolate donut on her face, but I am never deleting this picture, haha.  I am sure she will REALLY love it when she's a teenager :)

little gym

Does this boy look a little excited about his first ever gymnastics class?? Because he WAS! With the new school year starting, and since Kevin and I decided to hold off on sending Colby to an official preschool, I was looking for options of activities for him.  A few of his friends from the ward attend the Little Gym in Mansfield, so I signed him up for a practice class.  I had heard it was a bit expensive, and I wanted more details before making any commitments.

Well, he definitely loved it!  There were about 10 kids in his class, with 2 super happy and enthusiastic instructors. They moved through several whole group movement activities, then split into two groups and worked themselves around the gym at the different stations.  (The parents are all in a room behind the huge glass walls, so I was able to watch the whole hour-long session.)  In Colby's first area, they were working on their somersaults.   Once she saw that Colby definitely had that mastered, she started moving the foam block away from the foam ramp, requiring him to kind of leap forward and roll.  He was having a ball, and she was giving him lots of positive feedback. He was more hesitant on the balance beam at first, but by the end of their time at that station, he was independently doing what the other students were.

During the class, I had the chance to talk to his friends' mom, Liz, which was really fun for me as well :)  A win for everyone, haha!

I wanted to talk with Kevin before making the final call, but I was impressed with what I saw and I could tell that Colby really liked having something special that was uniquely his.

boating with sturgills

This picture is beautiful in every sense of the word!  Beautiful little friends, beautiful surroundings, beautiful memories made! We finally coordinated a boat outing with the Sturgills and it did not disappoint :)  Their kids were super excited, which totally made the whole boat outing.  It's fun to see other people enjoying what our family loves.

I mean, look at this smile...

We spent lots of time swimming, wake boarding, and tubing! The lake was pretty empty (which was a total surprise with it being a Saturday,) but it made for ideal lake conditions. Danielle and I ever got out on the tube and had a major laugh session. I was cracking up for so long, my face hurt! The bumping of the boat was causing my hand to slap my leg, and Danielle thought I was doing like the "knee slapper" thing since it was so funny.  When she told me that, we cracked up even harder.  Sometimes you just need to experience the childlike joy of being carefree and laughing till your face hurts.

Near the end, we piled all 6 kids into the tube and took them for a fun ride.  It was hilarious watching them together and seeing them all give different signals for us to slow down, speed up, make it a bumpy ride, etc. 

As the kids were climbing into the boat after our final swim, I had them all line up for a picture.  We'll have to recreate this outing next year for the memories AND the photo op :)

Thanks, Sturgills, for an amazing lake day!  It's crazy to think that Danielle and I have been friends for 12 years!!  A lot has happened in those 12 years, but thankfully we've had each other's support through it all.

first grade

I imagine that I will feel this way every single year, but I really can't believe that our little girl is already starting First Grade!  I am really sad for the summer to be over and to miss seeing my girl for nearly 8 hours a day.  That's a really long time, and I know I will miss her something fierce. 

But she is excited, so that brought a little excitement to my heart :)  We went to Meet-the-Teacher on the Monday before school started, and Brooke and I were both anxious to get to know her teacher, Mrs. Farwell.  Kevin didn't get to come with us because work has ben crazy, so I made sure to take lots of pictures to share with him that evening. 

As we walked down the school halls, we noticed several new wall paintings.  I LOVED this quote and have talked to Brooke a lot about always being kind to others. She really is good at this, but I want to always focus on these great traits.  "Be the kid who can get along, be the kid who is generous, be the kid who is happy for other people, be the kid who does the right thing, be the nice kid."  Such a powerful message! 

We made our way through the school to the first grade hall. and I loved watching Brooke take it all in.

Mrs. Farwell was at the door to greet us and she seemed really sweet!  Brooke was shy, but still polite :)  We wandered the room until we found her desk and instructions about where to put all of her school supplies.  As I filled out the welcome paperwork, Brooke and Colby sorted the supplies into bins at the front of the room.  (I find it kind of annoying that the supplies I bought for Brooke went into some community bucket, but hopefully she'll have what she needs throughout the year!)

There's something fun about school supplies all set out, right?

I took a few more pictures to remember this night (and to show to Daddy), and we were on our way.

Mrs. Farwell has been teaching for 28 years, which gives me a lot of peace knowing that she knows what she's doing :)  She's been teaching First Grade at Daulton since it opened 14 years ago! I have a feeling that Brooke is going to have a great year in school, and I'm excited to see her learn and grow. 

As we headed back to the front of the school, we saw the Daulton Drgaon.  Brooke was not even a little bit interested in taking a picture with him, but Colby was sure excited about it. Thumbs up for Daulton :)

Brooke WAS interested in taking her picture by this cool wall of mirrors.  They have done such a great job with decorating the walls of the school and I am grateful for the inspirational messages they provide for the students.

And just like that, Brooke is officially ready for her first day of school!  She seems so grown up to me, and I'm grateful that this visit to the school seemed to boost her confidence about a new teacher and new classmates. She is going to do great things, I already know it :)

That night, I tried to make a special dinner (I can't remember what it was, though!), and then Brooke received a special Father's Blessing from Kevin.  It was a beautiful experience, and both her and Colby were so reverent because they KNEW this was a special moment for them.  Although Colby isn't starting school, he wanted a blessing as well.  I peeked during the blessing and my heart could have melted as Colby sat there cross-legged on the chair with his eyes pinched closed and his little arms folded. They both gave Kevin huge hugs at the end of the blessing, and when I asked Brooke about her blessing that night, she made a comment about feeling special that Daddy could give her a blessing.

School didn't start until Wednesday, but we opted to do blessings after the Meet the Teacher to just stay on the school vibe. The next night, we carefully laid out Brooke's new outfit and prepped her lunchbox with a few of the nonperishable items. Waking up early was the only thing I was concerned about, but the morning went off without a hitch!

She looked adorable in those overalls and she knew it, haha!

As I walked her down the hall that morning, I felt myself getting emotional at the most random times.  Like when I saw the Daulton Dragon, haha.  I hugged and kissed her goodbye, and was anxious to see her again that afternoon.  The pick-up process is a little different for first graders, which I don't love, but we will adjust to it.  We still turn in our individual student's sign at the First/Second grade door, but instead of sending kids out one at a time, they just let them all walk out at once.  It's a little chaotic since Brooke couldn't see me amongst the mass of parents, but we've since picked a meeting spot at a tree near the door.

Brooke had nothing but positive things to say about her first day, and when family members called to ask about her day, she repeated the same favorites: recess and being able to sit wherever you want during lunch.  Haha, that's the important stuff, right?

Day Two was nothing but smiles...

As I walked her in, she proudly pointed to the bus puzzle she had completed the day before.  They have a new rule that I can only walk her to the classroom the first two weeks of school, so I plan on taking full advantage of my limited time walking her in!

After drop-off, Colby and I met up with Danielle (and Cam) and Joanna (and Brock and Marlie) for a "Boo-hoo" breakfast.  Danielle's son, Bradnt, started Kindergarten, which is such an emotional step!  Luckily, we have each other to lean on!

Then it was off to run errands with my buddy! I really worried about how he would adjust to Sissy being at school all day, but he has done better than expected.  He does request more shows in the morning because he does't have Sis to play with, so I'll need to break him of that habit.

Errands are WAY more fun when they have little rides along the way, haha.  Although, I warned him that we weren't going to actually ride any of them.

The hardest part of getting back to the school routine was the early mornings for this kid...

I hate waking him up every morning because he gets cranky by mid-afternoon.  I have even considered going back to nap time, but I know that night time would then be super difficult again. So, I will just hope that we all get used to this new schedule and moods will improve :) (The above picture was one of our best afternoons, so it had to be documented!)

Brooke is loving school and her mood is great each afternoon when we see her after school! She was proud to report that she filled her whole punch car (a classroom positive reinforcement tool) and chose the "Bring a Stuffy" option as her reward. (Other options include: "Treasure Box" and "Lunch with a Friend".)

She carefully placed her bunny, Snowball, in her backpack and was ready to head into school.  I had to take a picture to document how cute the whole thing was :)

It is such a relief to see your child adapt so beautifully and find happiness in something they do every single day!  I feel truly lucky that it's been a smooth transition back to school, and that Kevin is waking her up again this year and helping her get dressed and down the stairs while I do lunches.  Parent Team Work at its finest :)

beach date

I feel like the last few posts are all about the final days of summer, but I really felt the pressure of trying to cram in fun stuff before Brookie went back to school and we had to get into some sort of "routine".  Since one of our favorite places is the beach area at Lynn Creek Park, we made that a priority.  We went on our ward lake day as well, so the kids had plenty of friends to play with. It's always nice when they can entertain themselves and I can chat with the other moms, haha.

After a few hours, it was just us and the Hibberts left.  Their four boys were playing so well with Brooke and Colby and they began working on a large water hole together.  It was cute seeing them work together, and both agreed that their favorite part of the day was working together on that hole.  The simple joys of working together on a common goal, right?

Colby and I will enjoy a few more lake days while Brooke is at school, but those too will be done at the end of September when the park closes for the season!