Isn't she lovely?

Just playing around with a picture I took of Emily the other night.

It was an itsy-bitsy, teeny weeny . . .

yellow-flowered cute bikini!
Nana sent Ellie this "baby-soup", and she loves it. It is tiny- and she keeps flashing the world her nubbins, but she loves it anyway. I didn't think she would like it, because she has a tankini that she refuses to wear. I don't know what goes on in that girl's head sometimes. She is pretty darn cute in it, but there is no way I'm letting her wear a suit like this in a few more years.

Sleepover!!!

We had the 3 Deatsch cousins over last night for a sleepover! What fun we had. We slipped and slided, swam in the big pool (you gotta watch Abi- she thinks she can swim), ate homemade chicken nuggets and french fries, played games, colored, played the Wii and of course I insisted on a photo shoot.

The kids thought this was pretty funny- from their vantage point they couldn't see AC holding her up.

The bigger girls played dress-up and let me take a few pictures. Emi and Chloe also set up their own beauty salon and Abi and Ellie were their first (and only) customers.
If only Abi could sit still long enough. . .

The boys went right to sleep in Hayden's room, although Hayden informed me that Billy snores- loud.

The girls, well, they were a little more giggly. Abi went to bed first and was asleep by the time I put the big girls in there. Well, whispering woke up Squishy and then she joined in the party. There were giggles and laughs and shrieks and shouts of "night night!" over and over again. It was finally quiet by 9 or so, which I didn't think was too bad.

Everyone made it up at the crack of dawn, and we managed to get 8 people out the door by 8:30 for church. We got lots of looks when AC and I walked in the door with 6 kids in tow. The kids were all so cute holding hands and being so nice. It almost made me want 3 more of my own. Just kidding, it didn't.

We had so much fun with our cousins- we will do it again, soon!

My Little Mermaids

I started the summer with the intention of teaching Chloe to swim. She is five, and needs to know. I spent a week at the beginning of summer teaching Emi and Chloe the basics, and making them practice. Emi caught on pretty quickly, but Chloe was not interested. She could make it to the side if she fell in, but she was not enjoying it one bit. Fast forward to August. After seeing Emi swim at Hayden's birthday party, Chloe is a bit more interested. In fact, she started practicing by herself off to the side of the pool, so she could grab onto the wall if needed. Gradually her confidence grew, and she was getting better and better.

Meanwhile, miss Ellie has been asking me to teach her to swim all summer, so I've been helping her practice kicking and monkey walks and that sort of thing, not thinking she was ready to actually swim. Well, she proved me wrong. Not to be outdone by the big girls, Ellie decided she was ready. She started by swimming a few strokes to me from the steps, and then back. Maybe 2 feet at a time. That was Monday. This video was taken on Thursday. The girl can swim. She is 3 years and 4 months old. We are amazed!

I'm very proud of both of my girls- they decided they wanted to swim, and here they are. I'm also proud of Hayden, for showing them how its done, and helping Ellie practice. Next Summer: The Diving Board.

Birthday Bash

Hayden had a really fun Sports-themed party this year. He wanted to swim, so we kept the guest list small, and had Chauncey help us lifeguard. The boys were all polite and well-behaved, and it looked like everyone was having a good time. AC set up an obstacle course, we had a baseball pinata and baseball cake, and they swam and performed amazing feats off of the diving board. Hayden received some very nice gifts, and had a great day. He has a great group of friends, and I love the fact that he loves a good party, just like his mom!

Please forgive the low quality of pictures- its hard to take pictures on the run in full sun and with our ugly house in the background. But you get the idea.

Max performing his corkscrew jump.

AJ executing a perfect dive. Look at that form!

Max and Tino (with help from AC) on the wheelbarrow section of the obstacle course.

Blowing out the candles on yet another cake. He really wanted a soccer ball cake, but a baseball cake is sooo much easier to make.

Happy Birthday Hayden!

Hayden turned 8 on Friday. Where does the time go? We had quite the busy birthday weekend, beginning with cupcakes at school on Friday afternoon. Friday night was Family Birthday Dinner. The Deatsch's came over, and Grandma and Grandpa and Auntie Tara. I didn't get many good pictures- the kids were swimming and I had taken a few, then I jumped in fully clothed to help Hayden and Billy. Hayden thought it would be fun to swim across the pool with Billy on his back. Billy thought he needed to hold on extra tight to Hayden's throat. Needless to say, Hayden's plan was unsuccessful. I panicked, seeing the look of panic on Billy's face, and so I put down my camera and jumped in. The funny thing is, AC was right behind me ready to get in , and he had swimming trunks on. Oh, well. The pool felt nice, but I didn't get many good pictures.

Hayden opened lots of presents, and got everything he ever wanted (his words), and a very big cake.

Saturday was his friend party, and he had a blast then, too.

Happy Birthday, my sweet boy!

Just for Fun!

Chloe and Ellie went to Sweet and Sassy to get their hair cut the other day, and when we got home Chloe wanted to try on her new school clothes and take some pictures. Well, I love a good photo shoot, so we got home, gussied up, and started taking pictures. Ellie was having a bit of A DAY, if you know what I mean, so it took a little longer for her to get involved. She was very busy screaming and crying in her room about something, you know. However, once she jumped in, the pictures with tears in her eyes were priceless. I roped Hayden into one or two, but he keeps doing the goofy smile, as you can see. I then spent some time playing in Photoshop, and ended up with a couple of really cute pictures, if I do say so myself.

First Day of School, 2009

Hayden, 2nd Grade
Mrs. Garner

Chloe, Kindergarten
Mrs. D'Angelo

Ellie, Stuck at Home
Mom

Growing up sooooo fast.

Chloe's Started Kindergarten!

Yesterday was Chloe's very first day of Kindergarten. I was very nervous, because Chloe tends to get aprehensive and shy, and has a hard time jumping into new experiences. I shouldn't have worried, because the girl rocked. We spent LOTS of time talking about what would happen the first day, who her teacher was, etc. etc. and it seemed to pay off. She hopped on the bus with a smile, sat next to a kid she didn't know, hopped off the bus at school still smiling, then led me to her classroom. Her teacher talked to us all for a few minutes, then read the sweetest book called "The Kissing Hand". She then passed out paper hands so the parents could kiss them, give them to their kids then leave. I was gearing up for Chloe to finally lose it, but I ended up being THE FIRST PARENT OUT!! If you know Chloe, you know what a big deal that is! I was so proud of her- she really handled herself so well. She kept her anxiety contained, and really seemed to enjoy her first day. She also told me that she played with a friend on the playground. She couldn't remember the friend's name, but I was still proud of her. She never played on the playground at preschool the entire year- so this, too, was a big deal. The only bad part was the bus was 30 minutes late for afternoon drop off, so by the time Hayden and chloe got off the bus they were tired and HOT! (It was about 110 yesterday afternoon- very pleasant on a schoolbus, I'm sure.)

I'm so proud of my sweet Chloe- she really is a big kindertartener, now.

Fred's Biggest Fans

Our 31st annual Jamboree camping trip was this past weekend. A major part of that trip has always been Fred and his guitar. For the past few years, since we have a whole slew of little ones again, Fred does an evening matinee with all the toddler loved greatest hits: "ABCs", "Twinkle Little Star", "Sneaky Snake" and, my personal favorite, "I'm Being Swallowed By a Boa Constrictor". The kids loved it. If they would've had lighters, they would've been lit and swaying. There were grins and giggles, open-mouthed awe, dancing, and lots of clapping. Abi decided that clapping may have been her favorite part, and really let it rip.

Here is a picture of all of the kids enjoying the show- even Serena and Sammy. Hayden thinks he's pretty special and just plopped himself down in the best seat in the house.
This year was extra-special because it was Ryan's first Jamboree concert- and Ryan just happens to be Fred's grandson. Welcome to the Jamboree, little man. You are in for a treat.

Thanks, Fred, for all of the years of entertainment, and for continuing the tradition for the next generation. How about "Wheels on the Bus" for next year? And I'm sorry I couldn't stay awake for the Grown-up concert. It sounded great from my tent.