My Star Spangled Babies

Our Fourth of July this year was pretty low key, we stayed close to home during the day, but then headed to our neighbors and friends home (Matt and Misty Pidcock) for a neighborhood BBQ and Fireworks show. Matt and Misty, more like Matt, is really into the 4th! :D He heads to Wyoming each year a couple of days in advance to get fireworks and always comes back with quite the awesome Firework finds! This is our 3rd year going to our neighborhood get together and we look forward to it each year. The 4th of July has really become another favorite holiday of mine and it is fun to look forward each year to socializing with friends and being with my little family. Each year, I also try to find the kids some sort of patriotic outfit to wear. Kaleb and Karmindy seem to like having a new outfit and enjoy getting dressed up in the Red, White and Blue colors. 

I am so grateful for the freedoms which we enjoy by living in America. I am also grateful for the men and women who so willingly go to war to protect our freedoms! Thank you! I hope my kids will always know that living in a free country and enjoying the freedoms we do, didn't come free. There were those who paid and are still paying a price for it and for that I am grateful.  

My Sweet Little American Beauty!!

Fireworks!! The kids loved the Sparklers and the Tanks!

The kids truly loved the fireworks this year. Kaleb really got into it and made me quite nervous. He is all-boy and was such a pyro. Karmindy liked the fireworks but enjoyed just sitting by me on the lawn, on a blanket watching everything. She has never liked loud noises so her and fireworks don't quite mix. I sure love my sweet little tender heart!

My Star- Spangled Babes!

One Fish, Two Fish!

The Summer went by quickly for us this year. It makes me a little sad because since we are on Year Round School, it doesn't feel like my kids get much of a Summer, however, we really try to make it count!! This Summer I was able to enroll the kids in Swimming Lessons for two weeks. I felt lucky to even be able to get them in for two session because it was extremely hard to find any available at our nearest Rec Center. I ended up taking the Kids to the Outdoor South County pool and it worked well for us. Kaleb had taken there before and I loved it several years ago but went with the Rec Center last year because it was the closest to our home. 

The kids did awesome during their two weeks of lessons, and It was so fun to see them get more brave and progress as the weeks were over. After seeing how much they improved this year with taking two weeks of lessons, I will for sure being doing this next year and may even put them in off track lessons. I took many a pictures of my little fish swimming this summer but I included my favorites!

Little Buck-A-Roo's!

On June 29th, we are able to get out as a family and attend the Riverton Rodeo with our neighbors and friends, Jason and Natalie Bradford and their boys. When I was younger my parents would take me and my siblings to the Rodeo in St. George every year. We looked forward to watching the Clowns, The Bull Riding, Barrel Racing and the Bucking Bronko's. My favorite event was the Bull Riding. I loved it! I also loved that we got to stay up really late- like 11pm. That was so late and exciting when you're a kid!

 Mark and I have never taken our kids to a Rodeo before and I wanted them to experience it for themselves. Kaleb and Karmindy were super excited and both wanted to wear their Cowboy hats. Karmindy had a Jessie Dress from her Birthday Party that was perfect and I let her wear that as well. They looked so cute! Before the Rodeo we were able to watch some Skydivers dive into the Arena wearing the American Flag. It was really cool to watch them. The kids thought it was amazing!!

The kids really enjoyed watching all the events! They even had a calf money event for the kids where they attached a ton of bills to a belt that was tied around the calf's middle and the kids in the audience could come down from the stands and chase the calf and try and get the money. I didn't think Kaleb would do it but he did and he did a great job. He is truly motivated by money so he was in the arena chasing the cows for all his life. He was unsuccessful in getting any bills and was quite upset about it. I told him when we got home we would put a few bills in Kozette's collar and she could chase her around the yard. That seems to pacify him  and calm him down until we got home. We still haven't followed through with that and Kaleb hasn't let us forget!

 It was so nice to be able to relive something that I did as a kid and watch my kids enjoy something that I enjoyed when I was their age.

Diggin' Dinosaurs!

One of my dear friends from Southern Utah, Marylynne Miller and her hubby, Nathan just moved up from Ivin's to Saratoga Springs. We, along with several of our other neighbors from our old Ivin's neighborhood  have slowly moved to Northern Utah. The Recession, job losses and better opportunities have been the reason for all of us moving to Utah and Salt Lake City Counties. I have kept in touch with Marylynne and It is so nice to have a good ol' friend live so close again.  She has always been a dear friend to me and I have always loved her company.

 On Monday, June 18th, we were able to get together and head to Thanksgiving Point  Dino Museum for an afternoon of fun. Marylynne brought her two adorable boys along- Mckay, 4yrs and Andrew, almost 1yr old.. We have always had this joke that McKay and Karmindy are betrothed because they are they same age and are so cute together!! McKay is only a month or so older than Karmindy.

See!

Match made in Heaven!!

Kaleb, Karmindy and Mckay had a blast hanging out and exploring the Dino Museum. It was so fun to reconnect with Marylynne and catch up with her. We all had a fun afternoon and me and my kids are really looking forward to when we can get together again!! Here are a few pictures of our adventure-

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

Father's day was pretty low key around there parts. I took pictures of the kids holding wooden letters and assembled them in a three picture frame. The pictures spelled the word "DAD." The kids gave him the collage and we also got Mark a few pairs of shorts and a couple of casual shirts along with a nice work shirt. Mark requested that I make Spaghetti with the works - salad, garlic bread and Ooey Gooey Chocolate Cake for dessert. His wish was granted and he was one Happy Camper!! He loved the Photo Frame of the kids and proudly took it to work to display on his desk. I think he had a nice relaxing day!

Kaleb's Last Day of School

Today was Kaleb's Last Day of School, it was a bitter-sweet day! Kaleb has loved having Mrs. Forman. I couldn't have asked for a better teacher, Mrs. Forman was truly the best fit for Kaleb this year. I also loved her and have never met a more invested teacher than she was. She was very organized and just absolutely loved each of her students. I could tell this every time I volunteered in her class, which was 2x's a month. 

Today after Kaleb left for school, I hurried and put together a "thank you gift" for his teacher. There is a website called Pinterest that features lots of  craft ideas and I found this teacher appreciation idea on there and tweaked it a bit. 

It says, "Teachers come In-N-Out of our lives, but will stay in our hearts forever!" We put a gift card for 

In-N-Out  in the gift bag for his teacher.

Kaleb was sad to say goodbye to his teacher but expressed how excited he was for Summer and for 2nd grade!

This year Kaleb has made huge strides in learning. He has become a great reader this year and catches on to things pretty quick with out much effort. I think he gets this from his Dad. Kaleb is also very outgoing and  made many friends this year. Some of Kalebs interests this year were reading Junie B. Jones  and Magic Tree House Books, playing/ reading anything Star Wars and doing Math Box activities.

We are so proud of you Kaleb and all that you accomplished this year in 1st Grade.

Karmindy Heart Update

I keep forgetting to blog about Karmindy's heart appointment. On May 6th, we took her in for her annual heart check up. We are so lucky to live in Riverton next to the Primary Children's Extention/Riverton Hospital. It is 3 minutes from our house. Karmindy has been able to have several check up's here and it is nice to not have to drive all the way into Down town for her to see her cardiologist.

 For her yearly checkup's she usually does a sedated echo but this year the Doctors thought she would be old enough to hold still and let them get the pictures that they would need to see how things are going. Mark and I were very nervous about this because Karmindy gets really shy and tends to get very anxious when she is introduced to new things/ or things that she doesn't want to do. When she gets anxious she will close her eyes and pretend people are not around and will become very difficult by throwing a fit. Her fits are the worst!!

Karmindy surprised us and was a champ when they had to do the echo. She held very still and watched Dora for the Tech and  we were able to get the necessary pictures! We were so proud of her. The nurse also took her Blood Pressures in her arms and legs. When they did this, they found out that her blood pressures are all very close in all her extremities. This has never been the case and so we were thrilled with the news. Dr. Day, Karmindy's Cardiologist, was very amazed at this and feels like the Cath- Procedure that we did last year may have tweaked something to help all things work right now. We are still keeping an eye on her tricuspid valve as well as the narrowing in her aorta but for now things are great. Mark and I left feeling not so discouraged about Karmindy's Health. We are so excited that we got good news and are overjoyed that Karmindy's body is doing well!! We will take any good news we can get! We are so grateful for Karmindy in our lives and our so proud of our daughter!

Field Day!!

At Kaleb's Elementary School, they have what they call Field day. Each class does some outdoor activity to celebrate the end of the school year. This year, Kaleb's 1st grade class focused on "Going to Camp." Leading up to Field Day, Kaleb's darling teacher focused on a different activities for each day that pertained to camp. Each activity focused on giving the kids a "Summer Camp-like" experience. On Tuesday, May 29th, I volunteered to go and help in Kaleb's class and assist the kids in Tie Dying T-Shirts. Kaleb's class Nickname for camp was Mrs. Forman's Frogs, so they died their shirts Green. It was such a fun activity and the kids were so hyper with excitement. It was so fun to see how each shirt turned out. Each one was so original. The day before (Monday), the kids made their own binoculars and visors. Tuesday, the kids made their tie died shirts.Wednesday, they made dirt cups with chocolate pudding and worms and had a reading day under the stars. Mrs. Forman had stars hanging from the classroom ceiling and the kids were allowed to bring books, blankets, a stuffed animal and pillows from home. On Thursday, they made a Critter Cage for all of the bugs they might catch on their "hike" to the park. 

 Friday was field day and I was able to go and volunteer. On field day, we "hiked" to a near by park where the kids competed in relay races, had water fights, enjoyed playing on the playground equipment and enjoyed eating snacks. 

 Here is Kaleb competing in a relay race.

Kaleb sitting by his friend Lina, also found out later that they are 3rd cousins! Who knew!? I think there are some similarities!! :) Lina's Mom and Me are 2nd cousins! :) I Lina's mom on this day and will record later about our fun/weird meeting.

Kaleb had a super fun time with his classmates. It was fun to visit with the other parents and get to know Kaleb's classmates better.

Here is Kaleb's 1st grade class. Can you find Kaleb? Hint: He is standing in the upper left hanging onto the playground equipment.

Last Day of Preschool!

Karmindy has truly enjoyed going to preschool this year and has enjoyed having Mrs. Heather as her teacher. She has also LOVED getting to have some of her neighborhood friends in her class. Every Tuesday and Thursday, Karmindy looked forward to going to Mrs. Heather's House to socialize and learn with her friends. It was bitter sweet for me when the last day of School rolled around. I can't believe how quickly both of my kids are growing up; especially Karmindy, since she is my youngest. It makes me very sad but excited for their futures.

Karmindy accomplished so much this year and I am excited to see what she accomplishes this upcoming year before she starts Kindergarten. This year in particular, Karmindy has grown leaps and bounds socially. Karmindy has started to come out of her shell and isn't quite as shy as she used to be. Karmindy has learned all of her colors and amazed us by telling us what sounds letters make even though she sometimes didn't know the letter.  As the year progressed, Karmindy learned several letters and started recognizing them. It was exciting to see her pick out the letter "K" for her name. She would also tell us what letters your friends names started with.

Here is Karmindy with her Preschool class: Mrs. Heather, Karmindy, Madison Jackman, Avery Hawkins, Emilia Pidcock, and Grace VanLeeuwen. Karmindy had two cute little boys in her class this year too. Colton and Peyton had already left for the day when we took this picture.

We are so proud of you sweetheart in all that you have accomplished this year and are so proud of the wonderful little person you are!!

Soccer Trophies

The Soccer Season came to an end on May 26th for the kids. Kaleb and Karmindy both had such a great time playing this season and it was fun to see them both improve over the course of the past few months. They have both grown a lot, especially Kaleb. Kaleb has gotten a lot more aggressive and has become quite a quick runner. They both did such a great job and were thrilled when the last game of the season came around and they were able to get their participation trophies. They both took such a great pride when they received them and couldn't wait to get them home so they could display them on their shelves in their rooms.

VIP Day!!

Life was pretty crazy on Karmindy's actual birthday but the following week, I took Cupcakes into Karmindy's  Preschool class to help celebrate her birthday and for a special surprise. Mrs. Heather, Karmindy's teacher, let her choose a crown (she chose pink/purple) and made her a cute M & M necklace to help her feel special on her VIP day. There were quite a few of Karmindy's classmates who were missing the day I took cupcakes in, but her classmates that were there were thrilled to get cupcakes!! It was fun to see Karmindy get so excited for the cupcakes and be able to eat them with her class.

Karmindy's Favorites
(I wanted to jot down a few of the things that Karmindy is in to right now.)
Favorite Color(s): Purple, Pink
Favorite Toys: Anything to do with Toy Story. She is starting to show interest in dressing up in princess dresses and wearing necklaces/jewelry.
Favorite Activities: Loves to watch movies, especially, all three Toy Story Movies. She also will occasionally watch Mulan, Tinkerbell, Dora, Emperor's New Groove, and Little Einsteins. Karmindy loves to get her fingernails/toenails painted. She loves to ride her bike that she got for Easter and is getting really good. Karmindy also loves to help me bake in the kitchen and really enjoys pulling a chair up to the counter and loves helping pour all the ingredients into my mixer. Reading books with mom/dad is also a favorite. She loves music and can be heard singing/humming in her room while she plays.
Favorite Foods: Macaroni n' cheese, chicken nuggets, peanut butter sandwiches (no jam), bananas, chocolate milk, strawberries, pineapple, apples, chocolate chip cookies, cupcakes. She has a major sweet tooth. It has just been a recent thing were she has become a little bit more picky with eating, which makes me very sad. She has always been a very good eater.

As Karmindy's mom and dad, we have witnessed the special bond that she has with animals and people. Karmindy is very kind and tender hearted and has a sincere concern for others well being. She truly wants everyone around her to be happy and she is such a good friend to everyone. She hates when people get mad at her or others and loves to make everyone happy.

Yodelaheehoo!!

It's Party time!! Karmindy turned 4 on May 15th but we decided to have her birthday on Friday the 18th. Karmindy had Pre-School on the day of her birthday and we figured having preschool and a party may be too much for Karmindy in one day, so we didn't think it would hurt to celebrate with friends a couple of days later. This year, Karmindy begged me for a Toy Story Party. Her wish was granted but I went a slightly different route and focused more on Jessie and Bullseye (from Toy Story 2) with a Western Flair. I love parties, and I probably went a little overboard with all the planning but I just wanted my little girl to have a memorable day. I found her a cute Jessie Dress on Etsy and ordered it for her to wear at her party. We also ordered cowboy hats for each of her guests to wear while celebrating with our Cowgirl Cutie!

We ordered Karmindy's invitations for her friends online and I was tickled with how they turned out!

 Karmindy invited 11 of her closest friends: Avery Hawkins, Emilia Pidcock, Carson Bradford, Teagan and Kiya Smart, Grace Vanleeuwen, Corbin Epley, Madison Jackman, Claire Trimble, Luke Payne, and Sara Childs. It was quite the crew and I was just a little bit exhausted after the whole shin dig but it was worth it to see the excitement that Karmindy had on her face. I know that I couldn't have done the party by myself, so I was really grateful to have the help of Madison Pidcock(neighborhood friend) and Mark. It would've been way to overwhelming!

When the day of the party arrived, Karmindy was super excited and couldn't wait for her friends to arrive.

As her friends started to trickle in, we let the kids pick out a Cowboy Hat and then gathered them around the kitchen table which I decorated in a cow table cloth and Jessie and Bullseye Center piece with tiny hay bales.

The kids made their very own BullsEye Craft to take home with them. 

After craft time, we played pin the tail on BullsEye. It was fun to watch the kids get into it. I think that the majority of the kids had never played any type of game like this before so it was so cute to watch them go from not understanding it to being so excited for the person who got the closest to the mark. We were going to play a "There's a Snake in my Boot" Game but we ran out of time. I had drawn a boot and decorated it and was going to place a bucket in front of it and have the kids see who could throw a rubber snake into the bucket. 

After games, we opened presents, let the kids play outside and then it was time to head home. 

I made each child their own treat bag, which I thought turned out really cute. On the tag that I attached it said, "Happy Trails to You!" and then wrote a little sentiment thanking them for coming to celebrate Karmindy's birthday. We filled the treat bags with a tiny slinky dog toy, a bouncy ball, a ring pop and some "Jolly Rancher" Tootsie Rolls. They kids were excited to take home their treat bags, a balloon and their BullsEye craft. 

Karmindy was super spoiled by her friends and got lots of nice gifts. She truly had a great time! Happy Birthday to Our Cute Little Cow Girl!! We love you so much Karmindy!!