Wildcat of the Week

Amanda was highlighted in her Kindergarten class and was asked to bring in her favorite food so we served strawberry waffles. Delicious! They were a huge hit with her classmates.

Obsession

Ok, so we are a little OBSESSED with Twilight around here.

Flip Flops

Ok - so don't get dizzy tilting your head with my fabulous camera skills!

Mutant Children

My sister lovingly refers to my children as "Mutants". Why? Because they prefer books to toys, they learn to spell before they can read, they will fight over who gets to clean the toilet, they go to bed by 7pm, they won't eat all their Halloween candy so we end up throwing it away, they are thoroughly entertained for 20-30 minutes by flipping through the hymnal at church meetings, AND they prefer brocolli over french fries!!!!

Fred

At night in Newport we could hear frogs - LOUD frogs. Allyson decided since she was unsuccessful catching a wild hare at the beach that catching a frog would be a nice idea. We hiked up the hill following the sounds. Both Allyson & Natalie were so brave hunting these amphibians until it was time to TOUCH the creatures. Then their fearful mother had to be the one. We got plastic cups to do the work. I'm no dummy! We brought him back to our hotel room and watched him swim and jump in our bathtub as the girls continued to squeal. Fred, so dearly named, was not invited to come back to Fresno with us. Infact, after just a few minutes of hopping around displaying his ability to free himself of our bathtub, the girls decided he should return to his original family.

We got away!!!!!!

Yes, we took a vacation - a MUCH needed vacation with just our little family. We piled into the minivan and drove south to Newport Beach and spent 3 wonderful days relaxing, swimming, playing games, reading, and napping. It was a complete escape from all the stresses we've endured this past year and continue to endure. Starting a new business is NOT easy so we were happy to leave the work in Fresno and just focus on being together.

BOYS!!!

We have had the best time with my friend's four boys this weekend. She & her husband had a funeral to go to so we offered to watch her kids while they were gone. We set up our little bounce house in the backyard. I saw the kids moving the bounce house and asked what they were doing. "We're going to put it by the swingset so we can jump off the swings into the bounce house." I said, "Well, wait just a second for me to get my camera." You know, my GIRLS would NEVER think of doing that!

Softball Season

Yeah! I love this time of year. We get to spend so much time outside and the weather is just gorgeous. We've made tons of new friends with girls who enjoy throwing balls around too. And Camille is happy as a clam running around free! (Still need to get a picture of Natalie in her uniform.)

Spelling Bee

Each school district in our county sent 2 students to the Fresno County Spelling Bee. We just happen to be in a very large and competitive school district, yet Natalie was one of 2 students that made it. In order to qualify, she had one of the top 2 scores from a written test administered to thousands of 4th, 5th and 6th graders.

On Thursday morning her friends rang the doorbell and surprised her with a huge banner. A great way to start the day. Her dad gave her a father's blessing for comfort (and to settle the nerves) then we picked up one of her friends so she could have a cheering section. The spelling bee was great and Natalie was fantastic - spelling words that many adults couldn't. Only the top 2 out of the 41 participating went on to the State championship. We are proud of Natalie. She won't be going on to state but she certainly was a star.

Cousins are the best

Allyson with her little cousin, Mikey. Adorable.

Just want to share

Allyson decided to have a movie making birthday party like we did for Natalie. You give the kids a video camera and then have them draw from slips of paper to know what scene they are to create. They have 5 minutes to plan the scene and 2 minutes to film. At the end of the party they get to watch themselves in a movie.

For Allyson's party we did the theme "What will Allyson do when she grows up?" These are what the slips of paper said.:

Allyson might want to be a fashion designer. She goes to a fancy party and dresses the people so they look beautiful.

Allyson might want to work with animals. She visits a zoo and learns how to take care of animals.

Allyson loves babies and little kids. She might want to have a daycare. She goes to a daycare and sings songs with the little babies and kids.

Allyson really likes to go on airplanes. Maybe she’ll be a stewardess. She goes on an airplane and learns about serving drinks and taking care of passengers who get sick.


Allyson might want to be a doctor. She goes to work in an emergency room.

Allyson is thinking about being a chef. She meets with other cooks to make a gourmet meal and serve people in a restaurant.

Allyson might want to be a dancer. She goes to a studio and learns about all the different ways to dance.

Allyson really likes the theater. She meets with a group and they put on a skit.

Allyson thinks about being an athlete. She goes to train with other athletes for the Olympics.

Allyson might want to join the circus. She goes to see all the different kinds of acts they have.

Allyson really likes magic. She meets with a bunch of magicians and learns how to do magic tricks.

I'm not a very nice mom

This morning I was organizing my digital photos and noticed a disturbing theme. I seem to think it's funny to do "mean" things to my kids then take pictures of them afterwards.

Wanna see?

Amanda won this Chinese fingertrap at the pizza place and was so excited. She asked how it worked and I simply (and very slyly) told her to just put her fingers in each end. Yeah - she didn't think it was so funny. But before I let her know how to release the grip, I had to take this picture.

Uncle Damion (such a GREAT guy) sent the video on the right (watch that one first). I'm so glad my kids weren't in the room when I watched it because of the words that flew out of my mouth. So then I said "Kids. Come see what Uncle Damion sent us." I videoed them while they watched the movie. I told you I'm a wonderful mother.