Isaac's 4th Birthday!

Isaac turned 4 on September 7th!!  I can't believe how big he is getting!  We had a fun outdoor Transformers party in our back yard, which was awesome because as of this spring we didn't even have grass!  It was great to finally be able to have one of his birthdays back there.

Isaac has been counting down to his birthday for WEEKS!  Every day for a couple of weeks at least he would ask, "Is it my birthday?"  Finally I made a little countdown chain and hung it on the front door to help him understand a little bit better. 

Grandma & Grandpa "Dub" (Walker) came to visit for the week leading up to his party and so generously spent the week building stairs on our deck.  It is SO NICE to have stairs to the deck now!!  Before we had to walk all the way around from the front door to get back there.  Now we can just walk right out the back door!  Woo hoo!

Here's some of the decor: 

The big birthday boy!  He was so excited!

(He's saying "cheeeeese!")

The food, yum!

Got some cute ideas off pinterest :)

Last year we did a water party but this year the weather had been more rainy/cloudy so I decided to do a little obstacle course instead.  I called it the "Transformers Training Course" and had the kids wear little Transformers masks that I found.  It was fun!

The guests just hanging out visiting.  It had been super warm and sunny all day and then of course right as the party was starting the clouds rolled in.  Luckily we had a couple of canopies on hand so we set them up before it started raining.  It didn't rain too bad thank goodness and it did roll out pretty quick.  Just glad it wasn't worse, we've had quite a few crazy thunderstorms this year!

I had to get a picture of this.....every time we have a party Malea makes signs telling people where the bathroom are.  I think it is the cutest thing ever!

Isaac opening presents!

It was so funny, with every picture he would hold the pose and say "cheeeeese" for as long as it took me to get the picture.  You can tell I've trained him well ;)

And the grand finale.....a new bike from mommy and daddy!

His awesome cake!  He was pretty excited about the toy transformers on the top :)

Isaac taking his new bike for a spin!

Transformers and "blue chips" as he calls them (aka Cooler Ranch Doritos, his favorite)....what more do you need?!?

Earlier that day my dad and step-mom stopped by to bring their gift for Isaac because they weren't going to make it to the party.  It was an awesome spider man costume and let's just say he never wants to take it off!

Even spidey needs his rest ;)

Happy 4th Birthday Isaac!!  We love you buddy!

FIRST GRADE!!

My baby girl started 1st grade today!!  How is that even possible?  Yesterday I was bringing her home from the hospital as a clueless first time mother and now she is going to school all day!  She was so excited and ready for school to start.....the last week or two of summer she kept asking me when school was starting and told me that she was sick of summer. 

Like last year, I asked Malea some questions as she embarks on the new school year:

School: Sage Creek Elementary

Teacher(s): Mrs. Shaffer/Mrs. George (Chinese Immersion)

Favorite Color: Purple

Favorite TV Show: "Pokemon"

Favorite Food: Watermelon

Favorite Movie: "Nut Job"

When I grow up I want to be: A pet keeper

Favorite Place: Provo Rec Center (swimming)

Favorite thing to do: Play with my best friend Sarah :)

{It was fun to see how her responses have changed this year.....you can tell she is growing up!}  

Here's some pics from our first day of school photo shoot....to say she was excited would be an understatement!  I thought she was going to burst!

 

Mommy was trying really hard to keep it together!




Malea is doing Chinese Immersion this year, which means she has two teachers....one in the morning and one in the afternoon.  The top left pic is Malea's Chinese teacher Mrs. George and the bottom left pic is the English teacher Mrs. Shaffer.  They are both awesome and so nice!  Malea rotates every other week who she has in the morning and who she has in the afternoon.  

(Little side note....a couple of weeks ago we bought Malea a package of little white ceramic figurines at Walmart that were in the shape of different animals.  She painted them and told me that she wanted to give one to each of her teachers and one to her principal :)  So this morning we put them in little gift bags and she gave them to her teachers.  She is so sweet and thoughtful like that!)

Malea with her principal, Mrs. Burr



So last night I was putting Malea to bed and we just laid there and talked about what to expect for the next day.  I had been emotional off and on all day but had tried to keep it from her because up until this point she was just super excited and I didn't want to give her reason to be sad about it.  I found this cute book called "The Night Before First Grade" and read it to her.  It was a really cute, upbeat story about making new friends and adjusting to change.  After the story we talked about how the day was going to feel long and to make sure she ate a good lunch so she wouldn't be hungry.  I told her that if she ever missed me I could come have lunch with her during the day. She then said "Well I'm always going to miss you" and then she bursted in to tears. She said that this whole time she was excited and now she was sad. Well at that point I just lost it and both of us were sitting there crying together.  Keith walked in and was like "what the heck just happened" (lol).  He sat down and talked to her and got her laughing and then all was well.  I asked her if she wanted me to come eat lunch with her tomorrow and she said yes so Isaac and I went and had lunch with her.

It was a rainy day so the kids had inside recess.....here's a pic of Malea playing with some classmates: 



I took a picture of a coloring page she did that was hanging up in the hall: 



Yesterday morning at about 6:15am I woke up and of course my brain started thinking about how she was starting school and the water works started.  I came across this poem that describes exactly how I feel:

For a lot of parents the start of the new school year is means for a celebration....for me, an emotional sentimental boob, it's sad.  It's a reminder of how fast our kids grow and how they gradually need their mommy less and less (although, for the record, I still need my mom more than ever so hopefully after the teen years my kids will feel that way about me again!).  I think what makes me sad this most is knowing that when she goes off to school there is this part of her life that I'm not a part of and that I don't get to see.  For the first years of her life I was there for everything (for the most part), so the thought of not being there for something so big is difficult. I sometimes wish I could just be a fly on the wall in her classroom, watching her as she soaks it all in (sounds a bit stalker-ish, I know lol).  It really is true that starting school is a big step towards letting go, which is one of the hardest part of parenting.

I know she is going to do great and that everything will be fine.  She's  smart, she has friends in her class, she knows her way around the building, etc.  She has the unique opportunity of doing Chinese Immersion this year, which is amazing.  I don't doubt that she will love school and love her teachers.  That makes this whole thing a *little bit* easier.  But it still make me sad.  I am so proud of her and the amazing young lady she is becoming.  I am sure going to miss her during the day! :')   

Family Pictures 2014

The other day I asked my amazingly talented friend Alisse to take some family photos for us!  I have been putting off family pictures for a while because it's so hard with kids (ahem....Isaac lol) but I decided that we just needed to get it done.  I had been scoping out some spots for a while and found the perfect spot not far from our house.  I have always wanted family photos with sunflowers in the background and August is the perfect time for that!  I found this farm with a darling red barn and sunflowers all over so I got permission from the owners and voila!

I am IN LOVE with all of them!!  I can't wait to print them and hang them up in the house!

Here's a few of my favorite ones:  

Can't believe this beauty is starting 1st grade this year!!

Love this one of Malea & Daddy

You would never know that he was being SUPER grumpy right before.....he had taken a late nap and woke up really grumpy and I was sure that we wouldn't get any good ones of him!  However we ended up bribing him and he cooperated enough to get a few good shots.

I love this one of him!  He has such a great smile :)

Mother & Daughter <3 font="">

It's going to be really hard to decide which ones to frame!!  I might just have to invest in some more frames, lol ;)