Kindergarten Graduation

McKay graduated from Kindergarten today! He told me to bring a zillion treats to school today for after graduation.... I brought 2 dozen, which he said was ok. He's so excited for summer and warm and friends. I'm very proud of what he accomplished this year!

Quick video from Anaya's preschool graduation

Also, there are more pictures from the wedding here.

All the Fun Things That are May

Holy smokes April and May have been jam packed! We are down to the last 3 1/2 days of school though, and I think we might make it!

This is Taisha on her way to her 4th grade Idaho program. They had 2 performances, and she had to do a project on Idaho. We did a topography map of Idaho with different dried peas and beans representing mountains, hills, plains, and water. When you're in 4th grade it is a big deal if you are chosen as one of the square dancers for the program... and Taisha was one of them. It was an excellent program. My favorite part though was the guy two rows in front of us who REALLY, REALLY loved the program. I thought he was going to fall off his chair laughing at the Hee Haw - style jokes, and he was a very enthusiastic clapper! He made my whole night... oh and Taisha did too... she made a cute square dancer!

Malia had a bug project due last week, and she was assigned the flame skimmer dragonfly. I LOVED this project (except for when the balloons would pop unexpectedly and that one time I was tying the balloon up, and it about took my nail off!) and I think I have found a new talent! It turns out I am a genius at balloon animals!! (Malia got extra credit for making it's habitat.... warm pond with grass.) (Don't look at my messy counter top... we had multiple projects going on, and my craft cupboard was emptied all over the kitchen! I had a hard time finding a clean surface to put the dragonfly down and take a picture!)


Anaya had her preschool graduation last week as well. They had a little program and picnic. This is right up her ally, and she has been singing the songs over and over for weeks! It was a beautiful day too!



Then yesterday we loaded up the family and headed to Soda Springs (this was the first time the whole family has been in the new van at the same time!) for Jesse and Esther's wedding. Yummy food, great program, and so fun to see the family!

We are all done with the big school projects, and Malia and Kayden have been studying all weekend for the last of their finals. I think the whole family is ready for lazy summer days, and a little less to do, I know I am.

You knew it was coming....

McKay's tooth came out last night... and this was the best picture I could get. He was trying to show off his toothlessness, and so smiling his normal smile was out of the question. It's a good thing the tooth fairy is a little flabby around the middle, because when she got up to go to the gym this morning, she remembered to get that tooth and leave some money!! (That is the ONLY time you will hear that being flabby around the middle is a good thing....)

McKay also had another t-ball practice yesterday. This time I got to stay and watch (last week I had kids at the dentist.) He is so funny to watch. He acts like this is Jedi training, only he's wearing a mitt. When the ball comes to him, he moves out of the way, drops down to the ground, rolls, picks up the ball, and throws it back. The ball could come right at his feet, and he still moves over, drops to the ground and rolls. We might have to work on that... or record it. ☺

Some Firsts and Lasts

We are in May now, which I think is almost as busy as December... but there aren't any presents at the end and the weather is better (depending on the day...Spring in Idaho is a little erratic!) But here's a little list of some "firsts" and "lasts" that have happened over the last little while.

McKay has his first loose tooth! He's so excited for it to fall out and collect some money (he should really consult with the other kids on our terrible tooth fairy!)

McKay also had his first t-ball practice. He was a little nervous, but went, and loved it, and has asked every day if he has practice again.

Speaking of McKay, I had the funniest conversation with him the other morning. I was making breakfast and he was reading to me:

McKay: Mom, what does w-h-a-t spell?
Me: It spells "what."
McKay: I don't know.
Me: No, it spells the word "what."
McKay: I don't know, that's why I'm asking you!
Me: McKay, w-h-a-t spells "what"
McKay (trying to sound it out): wwuh - hhhuh - aaa-ttt. I DON'T KNOW!!
Me (goes over and points to the word "what"): This word right here is the word "what."

Sheesh!

I wrote my last preschool check last week. Anaya goes to kindergarten next year, so no more preschool for me! I have a lot of friends that get so sad when their kids go to kindergarten or start to progress to that next phase. I'm not like that, but it's not because I'm in a hurry for them to grow up... it's just whatever phase or age my kids are in, that's my favorite age. I loved my newborns, loved it when they were toddlers, loved it when they started school, and clear on up. So now that Anaya is taking that next step (and she is so ready), I'm excited to see her enter that next phase, and it will probably be my favorite age =)

Kayden had his last track meet for the year. He had a rough month though. He started out with a cold, and that cold got worse and worse. He never really had time to rest or get over it though, and running outside everyday seemed to make it worse. So for his last track meet he coughed and hacked all the way around, and his time was about 10 seconds longer. He's wanting to start training tomorrow for a 1/2 marathon with Rik.

Malia, Rik, and Taisha had the last of their volleyball games. All of Taisha's games were out of town, and most of Malia's were too, so I'm looking forward to having my Saturdays back! (And Friday nights, since that is when both teams had practice!)


Malia had her first Motown singing performance with her singing group. Her solo song is "Stop in the Name of Love" (which I missed cause I had to get McKay to school.) There are more performances coming up. Here's just a quick clip of their performance. I was a little slow getting the camera going, so it's just the end of Malia's solo in this song.

My kids played Pictureka for the first time on Easter (Easter bunny brought it.) It has been a HUGE hit. It is played ever day, several times. It has been played enough, that Anaya and McKay have the board memorized, and have figured out how to cheat, and I'm wondering if I need to hide that game for a while!

We had a really nice Mother's Day. I got to sleep in (I haven't had a good sleep in since General Conference.) Anaya made my bed for me (you should see what a good job she does making my bed!) and she gave me a hula hoop performance... which is exactly what I wanted! Rik upgraded my cell phone so I can keep up with my texting kids better. Anaya and McKay both made me flowers at school that had candy for the middles. They both told me that they made the flowers for me, and the candy was for them... funny. Taisha made me a card and signed it "from your most awesome child, Taisha," and I have to agree. Last Tuesday the Young Women invited their moms over for dinner. They made the food, and it was really yummy and a lot of fun! Kayden woke up this morning and said, "It's Mother's Day. Am I supposed to do anything?" I told him I wanted a hula hoop performance from him...

Gymnastic Recital

Taisha had her gymnastics recital the other night. The picture with her teacher in it is Taisha back hand springing. She has the last of her volleyball games tomorrow. I'm kind of getting excited that things are winding down. There's still a huge list of things to get through, but now that it's May 1st, the end is definitely in sight! Yippee!




When I can, I've been trying to get some reading in. I finished the Rangers Apprentice series (had to get the last books from over seas, since they don't have them in the States yet...totally worth it! I LOVE this series!) I also finished the City of Ember books. The last book was the best, and I kind of had a hard time getting through the other three. I had struggled understanding their (the people of Ember, the Builders, the people of Sparks, the people of Yonwood, etc;) thinking through most of the books. The Yonwood book was my least favorite. After that I read City of Bones, City of Ashes, and City of Glass. I really enjoyed these books! They are rated PG-13 in my opinion though, just a little language and a few innuendos. I started on the 4th Fablehaven book today (I love that series). Another book that I read a little while ago was Graceling, another PG-13 book. The language is just fine, but there is just one little side story that makes it PG-13 in my opinion. I really enjoyed it though, and I'm looking forward to the next one coming out (not as much as the next Hunger Games though... I will be standing in line for that one....it's still one of the best books I've read in a while... ) My PG-13 isn't as bad as the movies PG-13, there seems to be a lot of filth, crude jokes and skin in PG-13 movies, and the books aren't like that, but they aren't like Princess Academy or Goose Girl (if you've read those, you know what I'm talking about.) Kayden thinks I should read Percy Jackson and the Olympians next, because I told him I like mythology, and they look like they'd be a quick read. Rik just finished the Land of Elyon series, and he liked them a lot (I think mostly because the main character is named "Alexa.") Kayden read those as well. Kayden just read the two 13th Reality books that are out, and he read those really fast... so they must be good. I buy most of my books, so if you need something to read, stop over and borrow a few.