The 46th Time...

(Sun) bleached blond buddies...

(Diva) buddies...

Yes that's "Mockingjay" I was reading :)

Full of personality!

A bit wore out.

Some kid threw up in the Wave Pool so they had to clear it out. Avery tried to run back out and got some special attention from the cute lifeguard.

Saturday 8/28/10

The 45th Time...

The kids and I had another short trip to Seven Peaks due to rain again. We were there long enough for Maddy to do some swimming in the deep end of the Wave Pool.

P.S. Don't you love Maddy's pink life jacket!?! He opted out of the wet blue one for a dry pink one... smart kid!

Friday 8/27/10

Special Delivery...

Tuesday 8/24/10

(Little) Big Girl, Big Day...

Tuesday was quite the day for Avery. Not only was it her first day of school, we also finally got her out of the crib and into a "big girl bed." I think we left her in the crib so long out of convenience-we didnt' have a new baby needing it and it kept her contained... haha! We figured since she was starting school it was probably time! She is now sleeping in the daybed I grew up sleeping in (my sister Jennifer had one just like me and shared a room with me), right up to the day before I got married. It kind of makes me all nostalgic when I walk into her room and see it. While the kids were at school earlier that day I went and picked out some bedding for her and then Steve had the crib taken down and the bed all set up when the kids and I got home pretty late Tuesday night after going to the Gardens at Thanksgiving Point. I was so glad because I was so tired and ready for the kids to be in bed. Avery was pretty excited (and Maddy was jealous because she has more pillows then him) and has only rolled out twice (once the first two nights.) At least as far as I know... Steve pretty much takes kid duty at night because I've become a pro at sleeping through it all (and didn't even know she had rolled out at all.)

The bedding is reversible which is always nice and yes I realized I should have done some ironing before making the bed but was too tired to do it at ten at night.

Tuesday 8/24/10

(Childrens' Discovery) Gardens...

Tuesday evening (after the kids first day of school) we took advantage of $2 Tuesdays at Thanksgiving Point again and went to the Children's Discovery Gardens for the first time. Shalane and My Mom (who had been staying with Stacy) were able to come along with Stacy, Jamie and I (and kids.) We didn't know what it was like and weren't prepared for the kids to get wet but of course we couldn't say no...

Avery is such a skinny little thing and already has a hard time keeping her pants up and the weight of the water didn't help...

She pretty much spent the rest of the evening low riding.

They have all kinds of fun things for the kids to explore. We definitely need to go back when we have more time.

After we had a little picnic we decided to go over to the regular gardens since my Mom hadn't been there before and we knew she would love it...

My Mom with four of her five daughters.

*Photo taken by Maddy (and it was his first shot-I'm a proud mommy!)*

My Mom with seven of her ten grandchildren.

They have all loved her being here and all the attention they have gotten from her!

Of course Maddy couldn't wait to feed the fish.

Shalane definitely was the favorite aunt of the night...

The kids love that she is just a big kid at heart.

The kids checking out the waterfalls-which are so beautiful!

We were there until it got dark (past closing time) and it was such a beautiful night spent with most of my favorite people...

Tuesday 8/24/10

First Day...

Tuesday was the first day of preschool for both Maddy and Avery. It is Maddy's second year and Avery's first. I enjoyed bathing them, helping them pick out their clothes (of course Maddy picked out the green shirt himself) and fixing their hair before it was time to go. Of course I had to get the traditional doorstep pictures before we left...

I can't believe that just five short years ago I was five months pregnant and Steve and I had just found out we were having a boy. We were so excited and seeing him on the ultrasound finally made it feel real... I couldn't believe I was finally going to be a Mom!

Maddy is a bit jealous of Avery's glasses and insisted on taking some pictures with Steve's green "lawn mowing" glasses.

When Maddy was eleven months old we found out we were expecting again. After waiting such a long time to meet Maddy we were shocked I got pregnant so fast... I guess she just couldn't wait any longer and we met our little girl Avery at just 25 1/2 weeks gestation.

We love her to pieces!

I feel so so blessed to have two beautiful miracles to call my own!

Steve had clients all morning long and didn't think he was going to be able to see them off. He couldn't resist though and came home just long enough to give them hugs and kisses and let me take a quick picture. He's such an awesome Dad!

All ready to go...

Awww...

Avery did awesome and seemed to adjust pretty quickly. Maddy made sure to walk her to her class and find her some toys to play with before heading to his class...

He's a pro now and has it all figured out...

Maddy and Avery,

We love you both so much and are so proud of you! We know you will both do awesome in school this year... but will you please stop growing up so gosh dang fast!?!

Love,
Mommy & Daddy

P.S. After dropping them off I celebrated for all of us by grabbing lunch, shopping and getting a massage... awesome!

Tuesday 8/24/10

The 44th Time...

We decided to get the kids life jackets so we wouldn't have to worry and check up on them so much. The boys especially loved them because they could swim around in the deep end of the Wave Pool.

Monday 8/23/10

The 43rd Time...

Maddy had a neighbor friend's birthday party on Saturday. After it was over Steve and I took the kids to Seven Peaks. It was Steve's 7th trip this year. He promised the kids we we all go on slides together. As it usually is on Saturdays, it was really busy so we only went down one slide (Laser's Edge) because the lines were so long. We hung out in the Wave Pool the rest of the time. We also found out that Maddy has pretty much taught himself how to swim. He seriously knows several different strokes and can get pretty far and loves swimming under water. We were so impressed and surprised actually! I'm planning on putting both the kids in swimming lessons next year. Who knows, maybe he will be on the swim team someday...

Saturday 8/21/10

Playing Dress Up...

Monday for FHE Steve and I took the kids school clothes shopping. Steve wanted to help pick out their clothes and it was actually pretty fun! He picked out most of Maddy's while I shopped for Avery and then we met up in the dressing room to try some of them on to make sure we got the right sizes. The clothes are all a bit big on them but I have a feeling they will almost outgrow them by the end of the school year... they are growing up way too fast! We got them both almost everything they need and didn't spend a whole lot... got to love Kohls! Friday evening I decided to have them play dress up for me so I could take a few pics. Maddy insisted on coordinating himself (I would've changed a few things but I think he did pretty good overall.) We didn't get through very many "outfit changes" before they were done (and they insisted on picking their own poses) but I think I got some cute pictures...

Friday 8/20/10