DANCING KIDS!

Over the past year both Madi and Jaxson have been taking dance at UDA. Although At times I hated carpooling every week, it was a pleasure to see them preform at Kingsbury Hall last week end.

Madison has been taking a Jazz class with her best friend Hailey Winterton. There dance routine was to the Pink Panther and what a cute routine it was. I had no idea what a little performer Madi is! She was darling to watch on stage, with her cute smile and moving hips! There costumes for the routine were one of the cutest in the entire 3 hour performance. They even used garbage cans as props. I was very proud of her, watching her on stage!

Jaxson has been taking Hip-Hop with a couple of neighbor friends and he loves it! I laughed so hard watching him on stage because he was the smallest, little guy out there. (He was actually supposed to be a year older to be in the class, however they made an exception because they wanted more boys involved) He loves to perform and I am so proud of him and his desire to do anything. I'm not sure dancing is his forte', we may have to stick with sports!

Overall it was a busy weekend with the dress rehearsal on Friday afternoon, matinee performance and evening performance on Saturday. (UDA runs a tight ship, very organized and demanding and all worth it!) The kids were wiped out by the time we arrived home Saturday evening at 11:30! What a weekend.

FRIENDS FROM FLORIDA

Last week I let my kids miss school because my good friend Courtney was in town. Courtney and I went to school together and had our first kids within a couple months of each other. Chiara and Madison were little buddies right from the start! (They really had no choice in the matter, because Courtney and I did a lot together) Needless to say they built a strong friendship. Courtney and her cute family moved to Florida about four years ago, so Cory could go to dental school. Lucky for us they still come to visit because all of their family is here in Utah.

We decided to take advantage of the good weather on Tuesday and we loaded up the kids and took them for a picnic in the park. Madi and Chiara had a great time together and spent the entire day together. Jaxson and Bryson played well together too. (Bryson and Jaxson were preety little when they moved away, so neither of them remembered each other). Courtney and I had such a great time catching up and enjoying the beautiful weather.

We are so glad Courtney and her family will be spending a lot of time in Utah this summer. We can't wait to get together and see them again soon.

ALL STAR BASEBALL

Jaxson decided to play baseball this spring with most of the neighborhood. It has been so fun going to the games and having social hour, oh I mean watching the games! Actually the boys have been really fun to watch. It is amazing to see the growth in Jaxson over the past couple of years vs. the first time he played tee-ball. HE LOVES IT!!! He is a good little player too, he is one of the teams strongest hitters and he also can throw. He tells me he is always going to play baseball. Being a good player comes with a confident attitude, Jaxson reminds me after most games that his team won because he had the best hit of the game. I'm glad he has a love of sports and I'm glad I love watching him play, because I'm sure this is just the beginning of a long future for him. Despite the often cold weather at the games, I am really sad the season has come to an end. Lucky for Jaxson his coach nominated him for ALL STARS, so he has one more game before he hangs up his bat this season.

0 TO 1 IN NO TIME

When I think about how fast time has gone this year I can't believe it! It is so amazing to me the developments of a baby in their first year. My how our little Reagan has grown.

Accomplishments

Smiling - 6 weeks
Discovers Voice - 2 months
Rolling Over - 3 months
Laughing - 3 months
Doing Crunches - 4 months
Eating from a Spoon - 4 months
Sitting Up - 6 months
Crawling - 6 1/2 months
Standing and Walking Along Furniture - 8 months
First Tooth - 9 months
Walking - 10 months
Plays Peek-A-Boo - 11 months
Goes Up and Down Stairs - 12 months
Plays Patty Cake - 12 months

KINDERGARTEN SWEETIE

For mothers day the kindergarten classes put on a program for all the moms. Last Friday I had the opportunity to watch this fun program, Jaxson and I got to go to lunch together in the cafeteria afterwards. Weeks before the program Jaxson was counting down the days, he was so excited for me to be a part of us, which made it even better for me. I love watching the children's faces light up when they saw their mom walk into the room. You could definitely tell when a mother wasn't there yet by the expressions on these cute, innocent, little faces.

During the program Jaxson sang many songs with his classmates, my favorite was 4 Hugs A Day! The lyrics went like this for the chorus (4 hugs a day, that's the minimum, 4 hugs a day, not the maxium) I also enjoyed Bears In The Bed, they put a twist on the end of the song that was very clever. (I got the whole bed to myself, I got the fluffy, fluffy pillows to myself and I got the remote control to myself) It was very cute!

All the kids drew pictures of their moms, it was humorous to know how are children picture us all. Us moms all got a good laugh.

My favorite part of the program was just watching Jaxson. He is getting so big and I was so proud of him sitting on the stage, singing his little heart out. I think we had the biggest smile of the group!

I couldn't of asked for a better mothers day gift!

PARTY GIRL

Reagan turned one on April 16th! Wow, how the time goes by. I can't believe it has already been a year since she joined our family. We are very blessed to have her, with her big personality! All I can say is she is a non-stop busy body! She is very different than my other two children. It is hard having another A type personality in the home. (I liked it better when it was just me.) She is definitely going to be my tantrum thrower and I'm not sure how I am going to handle that yet. Despite her strong willed personality she brings such joy into our home.

Reagan was darling at her party. I think she really enjoyed it. She was such an angel opening her presents and wanted to play with everything. She even wanted to put on her new shoes. She is spoiled and loved all the thoughtful gifts from friends and family. I loved watching her eat her cake. She was dainty for a moment or two and then dove right in! I thought she was going to be sick from eating so much chocolate frosting, other than a few more poopy diapers the next day, she was fine. I did however have to throw her in the bathtub to clean her up. (She had frosting in her ears, she liked it so much.)

I do have to tell my mom thank you for saving the day. As all of you know me, I am a party planner, right down to the little details. Everything has to be perfect, and my kids love their birthdays! Wouldn't you know something would go wrong to make me cry. I went to pick up Reagan's cake at Harmon's and they forgot to make her cake all together. I found this out 45 minutes before the party was to begin. Harmon's felt extremely bad and gave me a free cake. I called my mom in a panic and she rushed over to decorate it. It completely matched the birthday party decorations and was super cute! Thanks again mom!!!

 

 

CAN'T WAIT FOR SUMMER

It seems that we have been waiting a long time for spring to arrive. Here we are the middle of May and we have only had a few descent days to enjoy. Even the warm days have been windy. Despite the poor weather conditions, we have tried to cure our spring fever by enjoying these warm days outside. Everyone is sick of being cooped up in the house and ready for that summer sun.

TRIALS OF RAISING A 6 YEAR OLD BOY - PART 2

It's been about 6 weeks since my last post about Jaxson and his wild behavior, well he's at it again. I wish I could glue his feet to the floor to keep him grounded.

Saturday morning we were clothes shopping for the kids, because the kids were so bored, Dan took them out of the store and was running around with them. During this time we discovered that some of our neighbors were playing in a piano recital at the mall, so they decided to watch. Jaxson being the smart person he is, decided to climb up a column in the mall wearing his flip-flops. Of course he came crashing down, smack down on his forehead on the tile floor. Dan came back into the store I was shopping ans said "I hope you didn't have plans for family pictures any time soon." Jaxson was in his arms with a bloody nose and had the BIGGEST goose bump I have ever seen! (I was ready to throw up at the sight of it.) This goose bump stuck out an inch from his forehead and was a giant rectangle, blood was also running down his face onto both Dan and Jaxson's clothing. Mall security showed up with an ice pack and we laid Jaxson down in the stroller while we finished up our shopping.

Throughout the day, Jaxson continued to climb on things. I can't tell you how many times I had to tell him to keep his feet on the floor. THEY NEVER LEARN!

Later that same day Jaxson was playing catch with his friend Mathis, unfortunately for Jaxson the baseball landed right on his big toe, smashing and bruising it underneath. He will be lucky if he doesn't loose his toe nail.

And last but not least, last night Jaxson was out on the driveway (in his flip flops) jumping on his pogo stick. He is getting rather good at this and he knows it, so he decided to jump really high over and over. This is when I could tell he was over to loose control, and sure enough the crash happening right before my eyes. He came tumbling down, smack on his face,falling on top of the pogo stick. This is when the black eye appeared next to the goose bump on his forehead.

I'm not quite sure if it is going to be harder for me or Jaxson getting through these next several year of being a rambunctiou boy.

MOTHERS DAY

On Mothers Day I couldn't help but think about all the things I am grateful for about being a mom despite the every day woes of motherhood including...

Non stop jabber and questions from three different kids, especially when you are on the phone, watching American Idol, talking to other adult or trying to have a moment of quiet time.

Answering the same question over and over because your children do not understand. This is all because they are trying to be involved in a conversation you they were not intended to be involved with.

The constant picking up on everything in your house because your 1 year old likes to throw toys down the stairs, throw things out of drawers and scatter them everywhere, pull clothes out of drawers and then carry them around, until she finds something more interesting to play with.

Listening to a 2 minute story that takes 10 minutes to spit it out.

Washing your hands 30 times a day, due to changing diapers, washing bottles and cleaning up dirty kids; which results in cracked, dry and bleeding knuckles and hands.

Not being able to get a single thing done all day because your baby wants constant attention and has to be everywhere you are, but right in the way.

Trying three or four things for lunch because your kids won't eat what you fixed them first.

Piles and piles of laundry, which never ends. I love Mondays!

And then there is cleaning the house! My favorite is when I just washed the floor and darling kids, decide to eat with their mouths open and crumbs go everywhere. That is also when the punch gets spilled and the floor is sticky yet again. Can't it be clean for just one day?

Homework you don't understand. How are you supposed to help your children? My kids used to think I was smart until I said go ask your teacher, I don't know the answer.


But then I think about all the things I love about being a mom...

I love that my children are so forgiving and love me in spite of my shortcomings; including lack of patience and yelling.

I love that my children want to tell me everything that is important to them and what they have learned each day.

I love that when they know mom is mad they try to be good and do the things they know will make me happy.

I love when they pick up their rooms and get so excited for me to inspect it and tell them what a good job they did.

I love that it doesn't take much to entertain them and that just being with mom makes them happy.

I love that what I say to them matters and that they want to be good kids and want to please me.

I love that they can be silly and make each other laugh, even when it is not the most convenient time.

I love that they want me to tuck them in at night and give them a big hug and kiss.

I especially love the smiles on their cute little faces when they are happy and I love that they are happy most of the time and can make me happy too!

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY TO ALL OF YOU!

HOW MUCH DO I LOVE MY KIDS?

Every year on the last Saturday of the month, I wake up at 5:45 to stand in line for swimming registration! Why do you ask do I do this, because my kids love swimming lessons at Shinsel's Swim School and so does everyone else. We have gone to Shinsel's every summer since Madi was four years old. I used to drive 30 minutes for swimming lessons before we moved to South Jordan, now I only have to drive 3 minutes. Obviously we didn't move to our house because of swimming lessons, it's just another perk! The class sizes, water temperature and snack shack after swimming lessons makes it a fun lesson for all of us involved. Heidi and I got to Shinsel's at 6:00 am, look at the line in front of us. At 7:00 am this was the line in back of us. It was a cold morning, but Heidi and I got through it with some hot chocolate, camping chairs and fun conversation. What can I say, its tradition!