1st day of school

Annabelle started kindergarten today! I can't believe that she's already old enough to be going to school. She had a great first day. After only one day, Annabelle already wishes that she had school all day long instead of just in the morning. I think she's really going to like her teacher. I was a little nervous about that a few weeks ago. At the end of last year when I registered her for kindergarten, no one had any complaints about either of the 2 teachers. They were both awesome, so I didn't request one or the other. Then about 1 month before school started, I hear that there is an opening for a kindergarten teacher at Annabelle's school. The school quickly interviews for the job and a week later, we get a letter from the new teacher introducing herself as Annabelle's teacher. Then only about a week later, I hear that the teacher quit and the school is looking for another new kindergarten teacher with only about 2 weeks before the first day of school. Needless to day, I was quite panicked about how Annabelle's first year of school was going to go considering that the school was probably getting pretty desperate to hire anyone to teach, regardless of their qualifications. But everything worked out in the end. I've now met her teacher and I think this is going to be a very good year.

I knew I was going to be emotional and cry, but I tried very hard to keep myself in check. And I think I did a pretty good job. It was only when I told her bye and have a good day that I almost started crying, but I was able to hold the tears back until I was safely out of the classroom where she couldn't see me. I'm really excited for her. I'm just a little sad that she has grown up so fast. Anyway, it was a fabulous day and Annabelle absolutely LOVED it, as I knew she would. She made 3 new friends and can't wait to go back to school tomorrow.

Celebrate Youth

Every year, there is a back to school celebration called 'Celebrate Youth'. I've never gone before, but this year I decided to take the kids. We met up with some friends which made the day go much smoother. I wouldn't have lasted the entire 5 hours alone. We enjoyed a train ride, a carousel ride, ice cream, popcorn, cotton candy, games, dinner and much more. It was a blast and the kids had so much fun. Sarah was getting over a cold and I was a little concerned that she would have a rough time, but she did great.

 The best and most surprising part came at the end. There was a raffle drawing. I didn't expect my kids to win anything. And in the beginning, I as right. There were 3 age categories and my three kids were in the first category. When their names weren't called, my friend and I almost left instead of sticking around for the grand prize winner in each category. But, I'm so glad we did stay. In order to win, the kid had to physically be there to collect the prize. They picked the first name and called it out, but the kid wasn't there. They picked a second name, but that kids wasn't there either. Then they called out a third name, "Sarah Brown"! I couldn't believe it. Sarah was so tired and had almost fallen asleep in the stroller, but as soon as I heard her name, I rushed to unstrap her and held her up high so they knew she was there. She won $150 Walmart gift card. Go Sarah!

Mini Michaels

Michael had some socks and his basketball shoes lying around in the living room and so Annabelle and Jillian decided to have some fun with them. They wanted to be just like their dad.

More family

A few days after Amber came, my brother’s wife came to visit also. My brother is working in Alaska and my sister-in-law will join him in a few weeks, so in the meantime, she came to see us. We also had Michael’s sister and her husband and two kids along with Michael’s dad and brother stay with us over the weekend as well. It was a full house, but we really enjoyed being with family.

One of the things we did was go to Mesa Falls. We got some great pictures. The only downside was what happened on the drive home. Because there were so many of us, we had to take three cars. I drove Amber, my sister-in-law Hillary, and my three girls in my van. Soon after I pulled out of the parking lot right behind the other cars, there were flashing lights behind me. I couldn’t believe I was being pulled over. We had just been talking about being pulled over on the way there and just an hour later, I myself was being just that. At first, we thought that the cop had seen Hillary without her seat belt on, leaning over from the backseat to calm Sarah down. But it turned out I was speeding. I told the cop that I was only following the other cars in our party, but he said they were going 52 and I was going 65. I was a little skeptical of that, but obviously I didn’t want to argue. After looking at my driver’s license and all the necessary information, he told me he’d let me off with just a warning. Then he went on to confess that he himself didn’t even what the speed limit was. He said that anyone going under 55 was probably okay. So I repeated what he said by saying, “So, stay under 55” and he said, “Now, I didn’t say that”. Ummm, yes you did. Whatever. I’m just happy I didn’t get a ticket.

I decided to carry Sarah in the wrap. I've only used it once before I wasn't sure if I remembered how to tie it. Michael tried to help me figure it out.

We went into the Mesa Falls museum. The kids loved seeing all the animal skins. We told Annabelle to make a scared face, but instead she made a scary face. We had to show her what a scared face looked like.







We also enjoyed time at the park and ride on the carousel. It's great to see family. I just wish we didn't all live so far away from each other.

My sister

My sister came to visit for a week before school started. We had such a fun time. She and I have such similar personalities and we had fun every minute she was here. One of the highlights of her trip was going to the swimming pool. It was built last year and includes a lazy river, a kiddie pool, a climbing wall, and high slides. The kids and I hadn’t gone yet and I was excited to see it.

It was a little difficult to have 3 little kids and only 2 adults, but we managed to have fun. After dinner, just Amber and I went back to pool and the two of us had a blast. We spent most of the time lazing around the lazy river. We went down the 3 story high slide a few times and it was great.

I love having my sister around.

Amber got some great videos of Sarah laughing and even provided some commentary on a video of Sarah sucking on my finger.

International Folk Festival

When the beginning of August comes around, Rexburg hosts the annual International Folk Dance Festival. Dancers from around the world come to perform here and in neighboring cities. The kids and I have gone to the folk dance parade every year since we moved here. There are fewer countries represented each year, but once the economy picks up, I'm sure we'll have 20+ countries once again. It was really fun to watch. I got a few videos of some of the countries.

Poland 


Japan


Hong Kong


Russia

5 Months

Sarah is almost 5 months already. It's crazy how fast the time goes by. We had a little bit of a rough transition getting back into our normal routine once we returned home from our trip to Wyoming, but she's usually a happy baby. I pulled out the walk a few days ago and it has been a huge hit. She loves being in it and already she can make her way around the kitchen. It's really fun to watch.


Also, her hair really coming in on top, so I decided to try out a new hairstyle. What do you think about the new do?