Hailey's Preschool Graduation

I can hardly believe that our little Hailey is all done with preschool! For graduation the kids get to walk the stage and are handed their diplomas by their teachers. Hailey really loved her teachers. Teacher Cindy always had a way of lifting her spirits when Hailey wasn't so sure that she wanted to be at school that day. Seeing the connection that Hailey had with her teacher meant a lot to me to know that they cared that much about my child. I can hardly believe that after 5 straight years of having a child attend Lighthouse Preschool we have come to a break. It really is a great school and we are really proud of Hailey graduating. Watch out Kindergarten! Also we want to thank Nana and Papa and Great Grandma Marilyn and Grandpa Mac for coming to support this special event for Hailey. We are grateful to have loved ones around to share in these celebrations with us!

MEMORIAL WEEKEND

For Memorial weekend we went to the Lakehouse to hang with Nana and Papa, Edgrens (Brad, Rach and kids) their friends the Suttons and of course the Taylors. We were planning or I guess at least hoping for great boating weather(which is what we packed for), instead we got cold, cloudy skies and scattered showers. But did that stop us?.....Well yes, some of us. Follow below to see what you do at the lake when it's raining! Don't forget check out some of the video clips!

Well... you still go boating... dressed a little warmer!

And of course if there is boating, there must be tubing... or tube surfing...

But then you get cold, so you have to find places to get warm again. Hailey and Drew buddied up quick as they cuddled up under the drivers seat by the heater. Jade, Cambrie and Cole found another spot that was tucked away from the cold. Check out the clip...

As the crazies filed off the boat Drew showed Hailey how he keeps warm...

This is a must see!

If you are crazy enough to stay outside... there is still fishing, playing in the water,

and playing in the sand building forts!

Rachel shows the other end of the spectrum of what you can do... Most of the parents stayed huddled up on the deck watching and waiting/hoping the kids would say they were cold so we could all go inside. We had no such luck. Just look at them go, they were everywhere!

Although later we did find that were was still fun stuff to do inside... like playing pool,

or playing air hockey, or cuddling up for a movie with friends. (I don't think I've ever seen as many Diego's as I did this weekend!)

On Monday, the last day of the vacation, the sun actually decided to come out, so of course we had to take advantage of it!!!

The kids went digging, fishing and playing in the sand, Cole even made Jade into a Mermaid!

They enjoyed chips and salsa out on the dock, (it had the most sun)

Overall I think we still had a great time rain or shine. It was a lot of fun to be with our family and friends/cousins (ha/ha) I know my kids really look forward to the times we get to hang with the Edgren kids. They still aren't quite sure of the relation between them. To help clarify let me quote Cole-

Cole: "Dad are we cousins or just friends"

Brad: "Kinda both"

Cole: "O.K."

Well that really cleared things up, thanks Brad...

Thanks again to all for the fun time! We hope to see you again real soon!

Colby and the Shop Vac

When I was vacuuming out my car Colby was determined to help and quickly became fascinated with suction of the shop vac. Note that in the pictures below, this was all Colby's doing- not once did I put the vacuum up to him, he just kept doing it over and over to himself. He would get mad at me when I wanted to use it to actually vacuum up stuff in the car. He found it much more useful on himself.

Courtous Cougar Award

Jade got recognized in a school gathering as she received a Courteous Cougar Award. They choose a student from each class to honor or recognize for that month. Jade loves her teacher Mrs. Hake and Mrs. Hake always speaks so kindly and highly of Jade. It has really been a great year for Jade and although she is excited for 4th grade I know she will miss the wonderful time she has had with Mrs. Hake. Below is a video that has part of what Mrs. Hake had to say about Jade and why she received the Award.

A Sad Farewell!

This was a sad day when we had to say goodbye to our friends the Skinners. They have been really good friends to us and we wish them well in their future adventures. HOPEFULLY they will keep in contact. Thank goodness for blogs right!! If you want to

give them a visit click here

Jade our little Aristocat!

This year Jade tried out for the Yes Kidettes production of The Aristocats.... and she made it. There were quite a few kids who tried out including Cambrie and another one of their friends so it was crazy and a little hard for Cambrie when only Jade made it. For those of you who aren't familiar with Yes Kidettes, because I was clueless, it is a county run performing arts program, and they have Yes Co. for older kids like high school age, Yes Kids for grades 4th-8th and Yes Kidettes for 1st - 5th graders. The play they put on this year was The Aristocats. Jade was an Aristocat in the ensemble. She loved every minute of it! She told me it was a perfect part for her, because she had never done something like this before and she was a little shy, and this was a good way for her to get used to being on stage. - It kills me to hear her talk sometimes- so mature- I can't believe she is growing up so fast. Anyway it was a really cute production and a great experience for her. It was hilarious in the performance when she first came on stage, she wasn't smiling that much, then you could tell she saw us (mostly Cambrie, because Cambrie was on the top of her seat waving both arms) then she had a huge grin on her face that lasted the rest of the show! We were all very proud of her!

Who wants to lick the beater?

This is Emily GY's off year for birthday parties so since they were over at our house the night before her birthday we made her a cake. While the other kids were off playing Colby and Callie wanted to be helpful as they always are, so we decided try letting them lick the beater and spatula. As all things typically go for Colby and Callie, what ever one has the other one wants and Vice-Versa- check them out sorting out the situation...