Making Friends

I love that Eli is betting big enough to really play with his brother and sister, and love even more that one of those siblings will actually let him play with her from time to time.

Onto "Big Kid Preschool"!

Logan and Ali had their last day of preschool. We  have all loved it, and we're really going to miss their teachers, friends, and the whole experience. Here they are at "Graduation":

Ali and her best friend Ava. When they saw each other that morning they ran to each other and threw themselves into a huge hug!

Logan with Evan Z and Jovani:

Here they are with their great teacher Mrs. Liz. She was the perfect blend of fun and toughness that my kids needed. They couldn't get away with "I can't do it!" when she was around!

And dear Ms. Romero won them over in moments with her sweetness, gentleness, and pictures of sailboats:)

So here they are on their first day:

And here they are on their last:

It was a great school year, but I'm enjoying having them home more too. Though I'm already tired of Logan saying, "I have nothing to do!" Ah, the joys of summer:)

Small Mouth=Big Problems

Ali got her small mouth from me. She will probably have problems with it her whole life, like I do. But recently she had her first complaint about her small mouth. She was happily enjoying a blow-pop, when all the sudden she was making very concerned-sounding noises. Noises were all she could make because the lolly pop had gotten stuck between her top and bottom teeth and she couldn't open her mouth wide enough to unstick it! Poor thing!

Lil' Slugger

Eli recently found Logan's baseball hats and he has claimed them as his own. They actually fit him great, and I am thrilled. I love the way my kids look in hats, but so far Eli is the only one interested in wearing them. Cute boy!

Admit it, you want to kiss that face:)

Logan's First Camp Out

The Father and Sons camp out was last weekend, and Jason decided to take Logan on his first camp out. To say he was excited would be an understatement. We hoped that reality would measure up with whatever he had pictured it as in his mind. It did. This face says it all:

I think it was a hit!

Mother's Day

I loved Mother's Day this year! Logan and Ali were old enough to understand what was going on this year, and to make me feel special. Firs thing in the morning Ali gave me a knock-you-down-big hug and said, "Happy Mother's Day!" and that was just the beginning of the day:) I got my favorite breakfast from my husband (french toast), a plethora of cards from my kids, and a cute statue from Jason to replace one Eli broke. Then in church I was giving a talk, and since part of it was on self-reliance, Jason told me to go ahead and sit on the stand the whole time while he  "practiced self-reliance" and took care of all the kids. So I got to sit through a whole sacrament meeting in peace:)

The kids made these for me in preschool, and I'll admit I'm a sucker for anything with my kids' hand prints!

And Eli made this for me in nursery. I've said it many times and I'll continue to do so: Bless nursery leaders!

We went to my in-laws for dinner and Ali ran in excited to tell Grandma "Happy Mother's Day" and to hand her the gift we got her, about which she said, "This is for you, but you can't open it yet. It's a secret. It's jewelery!"

And my favorite moment of the day came from an exchange between Ali and her Aunt Amy. Ali had mentioned that she wanted something for Mother's Day. I said, "But you're not a mom," to which she said, "But I want to be a Mother!" She wasn't much comforted by my assurances that someday she would be. But then later she was holding a dolly and Aunt Amy said to her, "Happy Mother's Day, Ali!" Ali got THE FUNNIEST look on her face: a little bit surprise, confusion, and delight. She finally laughed and said, "No!" and then after a pause, "Say it again!' Sweet Amy; they went through the exchange of "Happy Mother's Day, Ali," and "No! Say it again!" at least a dozen times:)

My mother-in-law told me that she enjoys Mother's Day now, but didn't as a young mom. She said it made her feel guilty because all the kids were telling her how wonderful she was and she couldn't help but think of all the things she should be doing, but wasn't. Should I feel guilty that I absolutely DON'T feel guilty on Mother's Day? I think it's great to have a day where we're especially praised. My family actually does a great job of that all year round, but extra love never hurts. I have to say, being a mom is the best thing in the world, and I am SO grateful for my family!

The Creative One

I am trying not to fall into the trap of labeling my kids, but it is hard. I frequently find myself thinking, "She's kind," or "He's brave," but then I realize that they each have some form of most personality traits. Ali has a funny sense of humor, but it's Logan that I love watching when he's watching TV because he cracks up at the littlest funny thing. Logan can tell us how to get to the places we drive to frequently, but Ali can remember facts she read once in a book. Ali is creative in that she has her imaginary friends Mickey Mouse, Dora, Olivia, etc come over to play, but Logan is creative in how he plays with his toys. A bowl in never a bowl, the tunnels are never tunnels. See the house he made, complete with a slide as an exit? I so enjoy watching who they are becoming, and hope I can help them be all I know they can be! 



Snuggle Siblings

Eli needed a snuggle, but I just couldn't sit down at the moment, so I plopped him on the couch next to Ali and asked if she could please give him a love. She scooted right over. The two of them sat like this for at least five minutes. So sweet!

Do As I'm Doing

We have one little boy in this house who tries very hard to do the things his brother and sister can do, the way they do them. Whether it's reading:

Playing on the Leapsters (he gets the etch-a-sketch):

Playing play-dough:

Or eating at the table:

No if only he would decide to talk like them...:)

Workout Partner

They say one way to assure you exercise regularly is to have a good workout partner. Mine is so cute, I should never have any motivation problems!

New Wheels

Logan and Ali were pretty excited about their birthday presents from Mom and Dad: new bikes! I had to assemble Ali's bike and was more than a little annoyed when I realized there was a part missing, but the kids were really good about sharing Logan's until the part came in the mail. In fact it worked out great because it took them a little while to be able to get started on their own consistently, but since they were sharing the one bike whoever was waiting for a turn would either ride a trike or run behind the one on the bike so they were right there to give pushes when needed.

Every once in awhile it hits me that they are getting so big. That happened a lot those first couple weeks as I walked behind them, watching them ride in the distance. As my dad would say, "They're growing up! They're going to be on missions soon!"