It's the Most Wonderful Time of Year...

The holidays are upon us... and one of my favorite things to do around Thanksgiving is to take pictures to use for our annual Christmas card! Of course, I have to go buy coordinating outfits for the kids and something that matches for David and I. And then, I usually opt to make our picture black and white!

My favorite site to order holiday cards from is Shutterfly. I've also ordered Isaac's birth announcements from them and loved them! They are a wonderful way to make the process of sending out Christmas cards much easier! And, they are such a great quality, that they usually make their way onto fridges for the entire year. I have quite a few that we've received on my fridge now!

Some of my favorites are shown below, but there were just too many to choose from! I can't wait to take our pictures so that I can see what each card would look like with our smiling faces. My favorite are the holiday cards, http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/holiday-cards.

Also check out their greeting cards here http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/5x7-folded-greeting-cards. Oh, and don't forget their adorable gifts! David's desk is adorned with a personalized mouse pad with Layla and Isaac's picture on it! Oh and we have one of these great calendars on our wall that we received for Christmas last year, http://www.shutterfly.com/calendars.

Now, just to choose which one....

2nd grade... here we come!

Today was the first day of 2nd grade for Miss Layla. It's amazing how much she has grown. She got up extra early in order to wash and blow dry her hair so that it would be curly for her big day. She wore her cute little denim skirt (with shorts underneath!) and adorable top. She was cute, and we were even a little early, at least enough to snap a few pictures! (That was until I realized that Isaac had snagged my keys and they were no where to be found!)

I dropped her off in the circle drive, and she didn't even think twice. She hopped out of the car with her gigantic backpack, full of school supplies, and her purse lunchbox. Yes, she had to have the newest lunchbox that resembles a purse with pink and brown polka dots.

And, school supplies? Her list was endless, and each time we went to a store, she tried to pry another item out of one of us. It wasn't like we hadn't already checked the list and crossed it off! I checked her backpack last night because it looked awful heavy. Let me tell you, she had 4 extra boxes of crayons, an extra box of markers, 2 extra packs of colored pencils, an extra pair of scissors, an extra pack of highlighters, an extra pack of paper, an extra folder, 3 extra packs of pencils, 6 extra glue sticks, 6 extra erasers, and countless other items! I could not believe it! We could have supplied an additional 3 kids with school supplies!!!!

Then, David called me at work this afternoon. He was in a little panic because Layla had not made it to the high school, and it was 4:30pm. Well, Layla typically rides the bus to the high school and goes to David's classroom, normally arriving around 4:00pm. So, I told him to just call the bus barn and check it out. Turns out, a little Pre-K girl did not get off at her stop, and did not know where she lived, and they had a new bus driver to top it off! Needless to say, there were lots of tears involved. But, Layla finally arrived at 4:45pm!!!!

So, second grade started out great! And yes, she had homework on the first day!!!! Could be because she started Galaxy though (gifted program) and missed half of class today. Hmmm... we have to get back in the swing of this homework thing!!!!

 

Layla's Haircut!

 

Where has the time gone?

Summer is almost over and it feels like our family has been in "fast-forward" mode all summer, or at least I feel that way!

We started the summer with sending David off to Denver, Colorado. He graded thousands of World History AP exams for the College Board, spent the week in a dorm room, had "minty fresh" socks (airlines are rough on luggage) and rode a bike through a hail storm. At the end of the week, the kids and I flew to Denver to meet him and start our vacation.

Let me tell you, my vacation definitely didn't start until my feet landed in Denver AND we found David in the airport. Flying with two children, especially a one-year old, was not my idea of fun. Try carrying your carry-on luggage, diaper bag, car seat and other various items through the airport while your 6-year old daughter pushes your son in the stroller. It was nerve-wracking! And, my worst fears came true when the woman in front of us asked for a new seat instead of something to drink when the flight attendant came around. Isaac had a little trouble keeping his feet down, when it was much more fun to twist his toes around the clasp that held the lap tray in place. Quite frankly, my thought process was that I either continued to let him entertain himself with the clasp and keep quiet, or I stopped him which would cause screaming fit on the closed-in airplane with no exit? Yep, I chose one woman's discomfort over the rest of the passenger's ear drums!

First, let me say that Denver is beautiful, and the drive to Utah is breathtaking. By the time we reached our destination, Bountiful, UT, we were all exhausted from the long trip. However, it was so nice to see David's Aunt Shuga, cousin Bee and her children Jacob, Rachel and Rebecca. We had such a good time with them and did lots of wonderful things such as the Hogle Zoo, the Salt Lake Planetarium, the movies, Red Lobster, board games and of course, the wonderful food. (I think I gained 5 lbs that week, and I haven't stopped trying to perfect – and eat! – the cheesecake recipe Bee shared with me!) Layla enjoyed having "girl" time and Isaac absolutely adored Jacob. On Sunday, David took us for a drive through the Wasatch-Cache National Forest, which was beautiful! I took dozens of pictures, and we even stopped a little spring where Layla collected a few rocks and got to put her hand in the cold, running water. (David, of course, had to try too!)

Luckily, the flight home was much less eventful than the flight there. Well, I say that, but we were stopped at security and had to answer questions! They were running Layla's backpack through the scanner and saw "something". I immediately remembered that I had left Isaac's empty sippy cups in her bag, enclosed in a small cooler. So, I say to the security guard, "Sir, I'm sure that is my son's sippy cups, I emptied them out though, but they are in a small cooler-type bag." He looks at me, clears his voice and says LOUDLY, "Ma'am, I'm SURE that is NOT what I saw!" So, I guess the new tactic for terrorism is public embarrassment and humiliation! Needless to say, it was the small ice pack in the sippy cup bag that alarmed the guard, which he doesn't find until he gears up with gloves and safety equipment to search the bag. He removes it and declares that it will need further testing before he can allow it through, which is when David and I both exclaim, "Throw it away!" Finally, we talked him into throwing the $0.99 ice pack away so that he didn't have to do swabs and test the contents…. I mean, seriously, I had gone to the trouble of dumping out all the milk and juice so that we didn't have to wait to have them tested, so much for planning ahead. (Don't travel with ice packs!)

After our big vacation, David had the honor of being the "Desperate House Husband" (as he termed himself) since he is a teacher and has the summers off! Layla will tell you, it's the profession to go into because you get the whole summer off! It worked out because Jessica, Isaac's babysitter and aunt (she's married to my baby brother), was pregnant and about to pop. So, the kids have had a great time spending the days with Daddy, even if he's lost a little hair. This year, he might be excited to go back and teach the hoodlums at the high school, just to get away from our hoodlums and the house! By the way, Baby Kadyn was born on July 7, weighing in at a whopping 8 lbs 15 oz.

We spent the 4^th of July in Williston, which seems to be our regular spot for that holiday. There's just something about those Williston fireworks that feels like home, and it isn't 4^th of July without being there. The kids enjoyed the time with family and the festivities. And, to top it all off, I had secretly planned a surprise luau birthday party for Layla since her birthday weekend was "scheduled" to be spoiled by the arrival of her new cousin. Baby Kadyn had other plans, but how was I to know?!?! Layla was a little surprised, especially since her birthday was 9 days away…. But she settled in well with being the "birthday girl", and didn't stop until after her real birthday!

Isaac has taken off in the language department, and can repeat most anything now. He has super manners with saying "Yes, Ma'am", which makes me so proud, and sometimes I even get a "No, Ma'am". He is still into baseball, and makes his Daddy "catch" a few hours most every night. (Not that Daddy mind!) Last night, he really impressed me when he said "Mama, Isaac a kitty. Meeeoooowww!" Layla is still into science and history, and amazes me with the things she knows and comes up with. I'm afraid she is approaching teenage years faster than I desire! If only I could get her to clean her room…

Other than that, I've just been swamped with homework! I'm almost done with my AS, and will graduate at the end of this summer semester. Quite excited to be one step closer to my Bachelor's since I feel the need to be an example for my children.

Since it has been so long since I've posted on here, I've decided to make a new goal. I'm going to try for one post a week…. It might work, until classes start again or David starts coaching or Layla starts soccer or you know, life!