Kindergarten Graduation!

Ava graduated Kindergarten last week and I swear it was harder than dropping her off at the beginning of the year! (which was really hard by the way)  She had such a great school year with her wonderful teacher Mrs. Mattson and learned so much! She was excited about graduation, but not excited about not going to school for the whole summer. :) They wore these DARLING cap and gowns and she looked so beautiful and loved singing and dancing in the program they had prepared.  She also got the "fastest girl in kindergarten" award and was very proud! 

I, of course, had to take pictures of her last day of school.  I just have this need to document everything!

Ava gave her teacher a plant that said "Thanks for helping me grow this year!" and wrote her a very special card that took a loooooong time to finish.  She wanted it perfect.  It says, "Dear Mrs. Mattson- I will miss you.  Thank you for being my teacher.  I had fun and learned a lot.  Have fun with your new baby this summer.  I loved Kindergarten."  :)  Funny thing is that her teacher is due the exact same time as me.  I also had to put a picture in of Ava waving to me from the Kindergarten playground.  We did it all year and Kai would get so upset if she ran off with her friends and forgot to wave to us.  I'll tell you what, there was ONE time the entire year that I forgot to wave to her and it did not happen again!

Ava performing and receiving her diploma!  Daddy also got her a fresh flower lei and she was the only lucky one to have one! 

Kai and Zion loved doing the "chicken dance" and itsy bitsy spider with the Kindergartners.

Our sweet girl.  We are so proud of her and know that this is just the beginning of many successes and accomplishments!

The day after graduation she got to go to field day and had a BLAST!  She has not quit talking about it since and thought it was so awesome that they had to take their shoes and socks off so that the teachers could spray them all with a hose!  She is such a positive girl and enjoys everyone and everything!

Happenings . . . .

We all went to Ava's school for her Literacy Picnic a couple of weeks ago.  The wind forced us to stay inside the lunchroom, but Ava was super excited to have us there. 

 Then my friends threw me a diaper shower for Baby Boy.  It was a lot of fun!  This picture is with my friend Amber.  We had a combined party because we're only a couple weeks apart.

 And of course, we have had plenty of backyard time.  On Memorial Day, we (meaning super-pregnant me), didn't want to travel anywhere, so Randy turned the backyard into a water park with the slide, water balloons, floaties, and basically anything you could think of.  It was a really fun day with our little family that ended with the kids watering all of the desert plants which I'm certain didn't get enough water from our water festivities that day. :)  Oh - and I just had to document how much easier it is to have a boy when it's potty time and we're all soaking wet outside.

 These pictures go to show that Ava NEVER gets cold and Kai isn't quite as resilient.  I don't know if he'll survive if we move back to Utah because I'm pretty sure it was 105 degrees outside when he was all wrapped up in his towel.

Yearly Interview

I decided to start a new tradition this year and interview the kids with 20 questions.  It was so fun to chat with them and hear their responses!  You think you know what they're going to say, but then they surprise you! They crack me up!

Kai - 2012 - Age 3

1. What is your favorite color? Blue & Yellow & Purple

2. What is your favorite toy? The Dragon (Yellow and Purple from a Kid’s Meal)

3. What is your favorite fruit? Strawberries and Blueberries
4. What is your favorite tv show? Bubble Guppies
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Macaroni and Cheese

6. What is your favorite outfit? Blue Basketball Jersey and Daddy’s old #1 “Cuff” jersey.

7. What is your favorite game? Candyland
8. What is your favorite snack? Fruit Snacks

9. What is your favorite animal? Monkey
10. What is your favorite song? Alphabet and Mulan – Be A Man
11. What is your favorite book? Truck Books
12. Who is your best friend? Mikey

13. What is your favorite cereal? Lucky Charms

14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play with my motorcycle that’s a bike and Play baseball
15. What is your favorite drink? Apple Juice
16. What is your favorite holiday? Easter

17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? My pillows and my Blankie (brown and blue)

18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Eggo Waffles
19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? Macaroni and Cheese

20. What do you want to be when you grow up? A Dad and a Doctor

Ava - 2012 - Age 6

1. What is your favorite color? All of the Colors (Especially Light Colors)
2. What is your favorite toy? Michael – (The Gigantic Baby)

3. What is your favorite fruit? Blueberries & Watermelon
4. What is your favorite tv show? Max and Ruby & LazyTown
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Peanut Butter and Honey Sandwich

6. What is your favorite outfit? Pretty Dresses

7. What is your favorite game? Matching Games & CandyLand
8. What is your favorite snack? Yogurt

9. What is your favorite animal? Koala Bears
10. What is your favorite song? I Want Candy
11. What is your favorite book? That’s a Hard One. Grandma Cuff gives me LOTS of books. J Rainbow Book
12. Who is your best friend? Abby (Next Door to Grandma Annie)

13. What is your favorite cereal? Rice Krispies (The stuff that whispers)

14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play Baseball
15. What is your favorite drink? Juice – All of the Juices
16. What is your favorite holiday? All of them, but I like Christmas the most

17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? Heart Blankie and Little Purple Hippo Pillow Pet
18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Cinnamon Rolls
19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? Pancakes and Fried Eggs
20. What do you want to be when you grow up? A Mom and a Doctor that helps animals, but I’m going to be a Cheerleader first.

Summer Fun List 2012

We've taken a cue from a few of our friends and put together an ABC Summer Fun List!  This year has to be pretty laid back considering our baby is coming smack dab in the middle of it and we had to be pretty creative with some of the letters, but the kids are super excited! So without further ado:

ABC SUMMER FUN LIST!

A – Visit Grandma Annie

B – Burger King Playland

C – Camp in the Backyard

D – Sports with Daddy

E – Eat at Wendy’s

F – Fourth of July in Richfield

G – Yard Games and S’mores

H – Help Papa at the Farm

I – Invite friends to play on the water slide

J – Have our Baby Brother Join the Family

K – Keep learning by doing our school packets

L – Library Visits

M – See a Movie at the Theater

N – Family Movie Night

O – Order lunch at the swimming pool

P – Play in the sprinklers

Q – BBQ with Friends and Family

R – Swimming with Uncle Robert

S – Splash Park

T – Tie dye shirts

U – Underwater Adventures at the Mountain Falls Pool

V – Visit Friends in Las Vegas

W – Bowling at Wulfy’s

X – Science EXperiments

Y – Get Frozen Yogurt at I Love Yogurt

Z – Zap bugs all summer

A little more birthday . . . . .

And then I'm done for a while. Except for the major BIRTH DAY that is coming up in about 3 weeks for Little #3. :) On Ava's actual birthday we did a little photo shoot out back with both kids. I can't get enough of these two. I just love them so much and feel so lucky to be their mom!

We were lucky enough to have Grandma Annie and Papa visit for a few days and play with the kids and their new birthday toys!  Ava and Kai were SOOOO excited to try their new ice cream machine so my ever so patient husband went to work.  Let's just say it was a little frustrating to get a small amount of ice cream, but the kids LOVED it and Randy made it happen.

Ava opening her new doll bed in the morning and the kids playing in the streamer decorations Ava woke up to.

Kai and I took cupcakes to Ava's class and watched everybody sing Happy Birthday to her.  She loved it!  As soon as we got home from school Ava had a package waiting in the mail from Grandma and Grandpa Cuff!  There are few things more exciting to little kids than mail addressed directly to them.

Ava specifically asked for Pancakes and Fried Eggs for her birthday dinner.  She is such a funny kid.  Papa got her hooked on those fried eggs.  She also got some SWEET roller skates from the Riddles.  She has LOVED them and it totally takes me back to my childhood.

I know it doesn't seem like it would ever come, but the birthday celebrations for the month of May DID come to an end.  Here's to another year with my beautiful now SIX year old!

Some things I want to remember about Ava at this age.  She LOVES school and gets upset if she ever has to miss.  She LOVES friends.  She LOVES playing with her brother (and fighting with him).  She is still very stubborn and can argue about ANYTHING!  My dad used to tell me I needed to be a lawyer because I could argue that the sky wasn't blue - now I know what he means.  She is so outgoing and friendly with people she knows, but comes across as quiet and shy to people she doesn't know.  I know!  Shocking!  She is an awesome big sister to Kai and cousin to Vienna.  She seems to have quite the motherly instinct.  She loves dancing, sports, loves to run fast, and is super excited for soccer to start.  With that said, she is such a girly girl.  She loves to look beautiful (which isn't hard for her!)  She loves to paint her nails, wear pretty clothes, curl her hair, and hang out with the girls.  She is an AWESOME cuddler which this Mommy loves!  She loves coloring, drawing, and writing and there are always 50,000 pieces of used paper all over the house and she likes to keep all of it!  Every piece is a masterpiece. ;)  She is a great girl with a tender heart, a stubborn streak, and a social butterfly.  We love her so much! 

Splish Splash!

We had a fun combined birthday party for Ava and Kai this year. This super pregnant mommy wasn't sure she could pull off 2 parties, let alone 1, so we combined them together.  We got them this fabulous blow up water slide (which we have used so many times in the last few weeks I can't even count), invited all of their friends, got a chocolate fountain, donuts, and IBC rootbeer, and put Randy to work as the lifeguard patrol!  It was a blast!  The kids had so much fun.  We set up the slide, blow up pool, and the slip-n-slide.  It was perfect weather and we were so grateful for all of our friends that made it!

I can't believe I have a 3 and 6 year old!  Time flies when you're a mommy!  Check out my handsome hubby who is the best daddy ever. 

The Setup (and a cameo by my adorable little niece Vienna)

Fun Friends and Family!  We even had some of our very best friends from Vegas make the drive to celebrate with us!

The kids played and played with their friends and couldn't stop smiling.

Since I am so not in my normal element right now, Randy took charge of keeping everyone safe and being in charge of the water balloon toss.  There were very few balloons actually caught, but the kids LOVED it!

The Birthday Kiddos!

Opening Presents and the party aftermath.  There was A LOT of water on our lawn and everybody went to town on the chocolate fountain and donuts!

Ava and Kai enjoying some of their awesome presents they were lucky enough to receive!  What a fun party filled with good times and good company!