1st Day of Pre-school

Such a big girl. Julia's 1st day of preschool. She wanted to wear her
birthday dress and her hair in braids :)

Ever since Kate went to school last year all Julia could do was talk about going to school too. She would get out her backpack and pretend to go to school. All summer she has been talking about it and we have been practicing her letters, numbers, shapes, and colors. Monday we went in to meet her teacher and to see where her class room was. She got to pick out her cubby with the purple bear. Since purple and pink are her favorite colors we had to just pick one. Then she had to go pick out a paper that had her name on it. It was a little hard to find hers because there is a girl in her class that spells her name almost like Julia but her name is Juliet. So I told Julia to just spell it out loud and look for the 'a' at the end. We both sat down and filled out somethings about Julia so the teacher could get to know her. What her favorite food and color was. How many people she had in her family and something unique or interesting about her. Then the teacher took a picture of us so she would be able to make sure the kids were safe and got picked up by the right person.
We made our way out and Julia kept asking me if she could stay. She was so excited that she didn't want to leave, but I told her that Wed.she would be able to stay in her class.

Learning Dynamics Preschool

Her class room

Welcome Back to School

Julia wanted a picture by the big tree swing
they had painted on the wall

School was all she talked about the rest of the day and yesterday. She wasn't worried at all and didn't seem nervous one bit. We picked out her outfit for the 1st day and she got ready for bed. She went to bed quickly because she had something fun and exciting to do the next day. When she woke up she came in and said to me in her excited voice, " Mom, I get to go to school today." I had to chuckle a little it was so cute. When I was her age I don't recall being so excited, I was a nervous wreck and I remembering crying alot.

So TODAY was the day! We had to leave a bit early just to get through all of the construction but we got there in plenty of time. Layne came too so Julia could show him where she was suppose to go. She found her name tag right away on the door, put it on, and we gave her a hug and she walked right into the room. No tears, no being shy. What a big girl....this was easier than getting her to go to primary at church.....go figure! I can't belive how confident and brave she was!

1st day standing outside her class

She found her name no problem :)

Her teacher, Mrs. Moberly

Finding a place to sit and begin her 1st day



The first day was a success. When the door opened all the kids were sitting quietly waiting for the parents to pick them up. Julia ran over and gave me a hug....she had to go back to get her bag that she gets to take to school everyday. We got in the car and I tried to ask her about her day. She shed a few tears because she was telling me that someone had taken a book away from her but then she said he was just cleaning up. A little boy had hit her and she was a little upset about that too but it sounded like she had a great time, coloring, singing, and learning new things. Julia did ask if we get to go again tomorrow but I told her in 2 days you get to go back.

After school with her new bag

Enjoying her cookies :)

We got home and we had a snack of cookies and milk. A little tradition I want to start....my sister had that great idea. Instead of a big back to school breakfast she decided to make an after school snack....cookies :) Everybody is to nervous on the first day to eat such a big breakfast. Julia pulled out the papers in her bag and showed daddy and Christian. I will need to start a folder for all her school stuff and see how she progresses during the year. So today was a milestone and a success. Here's to all the years of learning and growing!

Back to School BBQ

On Monday we all got together and had a little back to school BBQ. Hot dogs, hamburgers, and a nice juicy watermelon.......Yummy! It was fun to sit and talk and see how excited the kids were about starting school. Kate will be going into 1st grade and will be at school for a full day and Julia will be starting pre-school. They are both so excited. I wish I was like that when I went to school.




Everyone enjoying the food



Hanging out

Kasey and Royce

Christian lovin being outside

Layne and all the kids played a little football too. Caleb loves to have Layne hike him the ball and then he says, "Hut-Hut" and then "Pat my butt." (this is the signal the quarterback gives when he wants to hike the ball but Caleb just does it after the fact.....pretty funny) Then he takes off running and the girls try and tackle him. Julia took him down a couple of times and drew blood on one attempt.

Hiking the ball

Layne showing the kids the 'stiff-arm'

Football buddies

Tackling pose

AHHHHH.....can you smell it?? Fall is in the air. Back to school time. College football. Cooler weather. I LOVE this time of year.

Picture of the Day

Trying something new..............

Julia's 4th Birthday

My baby girl has turned 4. Where has the time gone. I remember the day she was born like it was yesterday.It was certainly a exciting and fun-filled day! Julia wanted a 'Tangled' themed birthday so that's what it was. Everything was tangled, the cake, balloons, and then she got a tangled shirt, pj's, dress-up, and a doll. Did we miss anything??? She LOVED it!

A purple 'Tangled' cake!

I didn't want her to see the cake until we lit the candles but she did watch me frost the cake, purple, no less. While frosting it she kept telling me, "Mom, this is going to be the best cake ever!" No lie, I think she said that like 50 times. It was so cute. I love to see her so excited. I waited until she went to bed to decorate and set up for the day. I wanted it to be a surprise for when she woke up. I hung paper lanterns, like the movie had and got some balloons. The pay off was when she woke up and came out and told me it was beautiful!

Waking up to her 'Tangled" birthday

It was Alpine Days this week and so we decided to go to the parade. We all got up and ready to go and Julia was excited to go. Its not as big or as grand as the Preston Parade but the kids still had a great time and got some candy too. Next stop after the parade was the fire station. They actually had it open and the kids were able to get inside and see it. Layne even got in on the action. I think all the kids thought this was the best part of the day! 

Christian and Julia before the parade.

Everyone hanging out waiting for the parade

Layne said "every boy dreams of
becoming a fireman."

All the kids on the front of the truck

On our way home we got a snow cone to try and cool off a bit and then we had a bit of lunch and a much needed nap. When Julia woke up it was about time for the party so she wanted to get ready. We got her a new dress to wear and a bow to match. She loves to wear her 'party dress!' Before everyone came over we went outside to get a few pictures of Julia in her new dress.

The birthday girl in her new dress

After everyone showed up we had an early dinner. I had asked Julia what she wanted to have for her birthday dinner and she told me watermelon. I then had to say we need a little more to eat than watermelon, so she told me she wanted to have turkey sandwiches and chips. Simple and easy! So we all ate our fill of sandwiches and watermelon. And then it was time to have cake and presents. I love Julia's face in the picture because she hadn't seen the cake up until this point. She was excited. We sang Happy Birthday and she tried to blow out the candles, I had to help her out a little bit. Then we moved onto presents. This kid is certainly loved and spoiled by all her aunts and gramma. Like before mentioned she got a lot of Tangled stuff. But she loved her new umbrella and clothes. Even though Julia loves dress-up and princesses she is becoming a tomboy. Gramma got her an adjustable basketball hoop. Its been a big hit and Layne and I even get in on the fun. She also really liked her coloring binder and new pail of crayons she got from Aunt Kristy and the kids. It was a great idea! She had been asking for a bike forever, so that was our big gift to her this year. She cannot wait until Monday to go outside and try it out. I have a feeling I will be spending a lot of time in the park for the next few months until it snows.



Her reaction seeing her cake for the 1st time



Helping her blow out the candles

Waiting for a rainy day

New Tangled Dress up

Her new bike

Even last weekend we had gone up to Preston and then the Parker Party at the ranch and she was once again spoiled by the grandparents. She got a really cute outfit and a brand new princess suitcase, so when she comes to visit she can pack her own bag! She loves to put all her clothes in it and pretend to be going somewhere. We had to take it away from her so she wouldn't ruin it before we could even use it! She had a great time with Grandma and Grandpa Cromwell last weekend. Grandpa even got her a new shirt while we shopped in Jackson Hole. She wasn't there when we picked it out but when she saw it she hugged the shirt and said it was beautiful. I made sure she told grandpa thank-you! She had a fun filled 2 weekends in a row celebrating her birthday. Thanks to everyone for making Julia's day so special. 

Extra stuff about Julia.................

Favorite colors: Pink and Purple

Favorite shows: Team UmiZoomi, Bubble Guppies, Phineas and Ferb

Favorite movie: Depends on the week so right now it seems to be Cars and Tangled

Foods: She finally started eating sandwiches so she LOVES PB&J, chicken nuggets, any and all kinds of fruit. She loves her apple juice in the morning. She has this thing with cereal too. She loves to mix Honey Bunches of Oats(the bee cereal, as she calls it) with Wheaties or another kind of cereal. Still likes oatmeal too but loves to eat cereal without the milk??

Favorite things to do: likes to paint and color, she is really good at puzzles (we have a 200 piece Disney puzzle she can put together herself only having done it with help a couple of times) she loves to go swimming, likes to watch her movies in her room, loves to play with her cousins and visit gma/gpa Cromwell's, going to primary, going to the park, and as of late likes to ride her bike.

Things Julia says on a regular basis: 

"What in the world?"

"It was just an accident."

"Go Cougars!"

"Don't say that word, mom/dad."

"I have boogers." (when she has a running nose and wants someone to get her a tissue)

"Hey, Bubbas." (talking to Christian)

"Watch it" or "Back Off" (picked those up from her dad)

"Mom, Christian's crying." (even though I can clearly hear him)

When Julia gets upset or is mad she loves to cross her arms, squish up her face and stomp her foot. She loves to grunt at us too. We try to get her to use her words but she isn't so great at expressing herself when she's mad.

She gets embarrassed really easily. Julia is usually saying or doing something pretty funny and we laugh, but not at her, at what she has said or done. She kinda starts to cry and will try and hide behind me or something. Or when she does something that is by accident and we just say her name to get her attention she thinks she is in trouble and will do the same thing. She also has a hard time when other people are mad at her or try to discipline her.

She still tells me and Layne that she loves us everyday about 2-3 times a day. And when we do something really nice or special for her she says, "You are the best mom/dad ever!" Thanks so nice to hear!

She is really excited for pre-school to start next week. It's going to be a great year! She will be learning so much more and I'm anxious to see her grow and learn new things.

Julia is also a great big sister. She loves Christian and is really good at watching him and making him laugh. She loves to help him eat, take baths, pretty much anything. She is a great kid. So smart and funny. She has a beautiful smile and a great laugh. Wwe love her to death! We are so glad you are a part of our family. Happy Birthday Big Girl!



Picture of the Day

My niece, Jane, was getting ready for bed and I pulled out my camera to take a picture of Christian, and she just started to say CHEESE, wanting me to take a picture of her. I took a few pictures of her and this was my favorite. A big CHEESY grin!

Christian 8 months

Such a big boy. Everybody loves his chubby cheeks and his smile. My extended family can't get over how chubby his face is...they all LOVE those chubby checks and the double chin. I guess he gets that from his daddy since he was the same way when he was a baby......people were always pinching his cheeks!

He is having a rough couple of days because he has either a cold or more teeth coming in. He wants to be held constantly and doesn't sleep well at all. His 2 bottom have come within the last month. He is starting to eat food other than baby food, the easy stuff like bread, crackers, and puffs. He still loves to eat and gobbles down the oatmeal and fruit and veggies. He can hold his own bottle pretty well now too, but still has a hard time putting it back in if he drops it completely.

Christian loves to pull himself up on things and is
now getting up on all 4's and rocking back and forth.

Christian is on the verge of crawling. He goes from a sitting postition and puts his hands down on the ground. He will attempt to be up on all four's but just wobbles back and forth. While lying on his tummy he will spin around in circles on the floor and has a pretty good reach. If he could walk he would, he just doesn't have the balance or control of his legs yet. He LOVES to stand up with assistance. We went to 7 Peaks water park a few weeks ago and he just stood in the shallow part of the pool in his inner-tube and walked all over the place. I still wish they made those chairs they can sit in and just walk all over the house but oh well.

When he isn't frustrated with trying to move around or having teeth come in, Christian is a pretty happy baby. He loves to play with Julia. Julia is really great at making him laugh. He loves to just sit in her room and just play and watch Julia. He also has started to really like bath time. He loves to sit up now and just splash his hands and play with toys. He likes to talk and grunt. His new thing as of late is spitting. I know he is learning and exploring but its not fun to deal with when he is eating. The food flies everywhere.

I wish I could say that Christian is a great sleeper. I WISH he was like Julia in that aspect. Julia slept through the night at 3 months old, but thats just not the case with Christian. He loves to be rocked to sleep but the trick with him is this.....you have to kept rocking him until he has been asleep at least 15-20 mins or he wakes up immediately when you put him down in bed. I don't mind rocking him to sleep at night but when its nap time I just want him to go to sleep on his own. So after our little vacation weekend it starts next week..... he will have to put himself to sleep for naps and at bedtime. It will be hard because he hates it but hopefully the crying will lessen as the week goes on.

Its been a quick 8 months and I've loved having Christian in our home. He is a happy and healthy and that's all I could ask for. The next few months will be fun. Seeing him start to move and become more independant. I love, love, love his big boy!



Christian and Mesa. He loves to play with the dog and
Mesa loves the attention and gets along great with all the kids.



Exploring his world. He loves to be outside

LIKES:
Eating
Being Rocked to Sleep
Being able to stand up
Bath time
Playing with Julia

DISLIKES:
Having to cry himself to sleep
Having his clothes changed/getting dressed
Having teeth come in