All About Hattie!

 My sweet little Hattie was student of the week last week at Preschool. She was so excited to work on her poster, and really thought hard about what she wanted to include. Which meant that I spent a lot of time looking through old pictures so she could pick out just the right ones to share with her friends. But I didn't mind. I was nice to look back at some of our favorite memories.

Her posted included a baby picture and a new picture. She picked one from her 6 month photo shoot, wearing pink lace and pearls. And then we used her recent cowgirl dance picture too. For her family pictures we used one from when she was a brand new itty bitty baby in the hospital and one of our more recent family pictures. She loved the newborn one because it had her Hopper in it too!

For her favorite places she picked a picture from the Salt Lake, Antelope Island and of course Arizona! It took us a long time to find just the right picture from Disney World. She went with one Bug and herself on the  Tea Cups! She included a picture of fishing in Minnesota, and one of herself doing sidewalk chalk...which she loves and I will have evidence of on my porch for months to come!

Her favorite book is Press Here. Her favorite movie is Beauty and the Beast...probably because it just came out and she went to see it twice! Her favorite meal is Spaghetti and Meatballs. She's growing up so fast. I sure am going to miss my little buddy when she goes off to Kindergarten in the Fall!

Sabino Canyon

Mitch and I went to Tucson last week for a quick getaway! We needed it! This was supposed to be our anniversary trip, but when I threw my hip out in December we had to postpone. The timing was perfect, Baylee was home for Spring Break to watch the girls. We got to Tucson on Wednesday afternoon. On Thursday we had big plans to go for our first hike in Sabino Canyon. I had never done 7 Falls, I always wanted too, but thought 8 miles was too much for me. This was Mitch's first time out there. And I knew it was going to be a great day. I was even happier when my sister decided that she wanted to join us!!!

We got to the canyon around 9 and started our trek. We moved quickly and that first 4 miles to the Falls wasn't that hard. We got off the path for a short while but quickly found our way back. The weather was perfect, a little overcast with temps in the high 60's. At times I needed a jacket. When we got to the falls, I couldn't believe it...there were teenagers in the water...in bikinis!!! No thanks!

We sat and enjoyed the view for awhile, grabbed and snack and rehydrated before making our way back. We were about a mile in to the 4 miles back when it happened. At one of the river crossings, I lost my footing on a slippery rock. I leaned down to brace myself on another rock and my phone fell right out of my pocket into the river. I quickly went in after it. So there it was. I could tell that Mitch was NOT HAPPY! We powered it off and went on our way. I had to do the last 3 miles with sopping wet shoes. But we made it. It took us 4 hours to do 8 miles, a little over 21,000 steps and we were done. With only one casualty...my phone!

On the way back to Gigi and Papa's house we stopped at whole foods for some lunch and a bag of rice. I'm happy to say that after 3 days submerged in rice, my phone made a complete recovery. It sure makes for a great memory, and now I can't wait for the girls to be old enough to make the hike with us!

Thursday night after the hike!

One last celebration

Since Gigi and Papa always go to Arizonan right after Christmas they usually miss Kiersten's birthday. The past two years, we have had vacations planned and Gigi has come home in February, so we just celebrated a little early. This year there were no vacations, so Gigi just decided to come see all the kids. Kiersten always loves to celebrate with her family. Gigi even asked her what she wanted for her birthday dinner. She asked for Spaghetti, so Spaghetti it was!

Aunt Cynthia, Uncle Matt, Macy, Colby and Jackson were there. When Gigi is gone, we don't see them near enough, so it was fun to get together. The kids all played while I got to catch up with my mom and brother. After dinner we sang Happy Birthday and Kiersten got to open her last few gifts. She is loved. Gigi is coming back over tomorrow to see us one last time before she heads back to Arizona for several more weeks. We miss her, but look forward to she and Papa's return.

Cute Lil' Cowgirls

We are so absolutely blessed with the Mt. Zion Community Club. They put on such great events for our kids and the parents too! Last year was our first Father/Daughter Dance and the girls had an absolute blast. When the flier came home for this years dance they were all in. And this year Pre-K was allowed to attend, so Hattie was thrilled.

 

After all the time we spend in Arizona we had bits and pieces that we could use to complete the ensembles. Gigi picked up a few pieces and I found Hattie's dress at TJ Maxx.  Gigi got back in town a few days ago. She recently spent a few days in Santa Fe and she brought the girls some beautiful turquoise jewelry. I was excited to help them get ready. And they were excited to have me help them.

I had my own ideas about how we should do their hair...come to find out, they had their own ideas. So after two hours in the bathroom with the curling iron we were ready to go. Okay, well we had dinner, did a little makeup, took some pictures and THEN we were ready to go.

I was a parent volunteer at the dance so I had to be there early. All the dads and daughter just looked so sweet. The girls were all smiling so big. I was at the front foor checking people in. After we wrapped that up, I was helping at the photo booth. It was a hit. Everyone loved it. I even snuck in to take watch them all do some line dancing. The Cha Cha slide was suck a big hit, they played it twice. At one point early in the evening Mitch told me he didn't think he could handle it with all three girls. But by the end of the night, he was a total pro. They had a great time, and I'm so glad we get to do these fun things in our little town.



 

Happy Birthday, Sweet Kiersten!

 Today, my lovely little Bug is 7! I've heard the saying "the days are long, but the years are short." and it feels so true. Sometimes I just can't wait for bedtime. But when I look at how quickly she is growing up, right in front of my eyes, I know I'm going to miss this.

Mitch had to leave town for a work trip so he surprised her at school the day before. He grabbed some Subway and met her for lunch. She loved being able to have lunch with her daddy. This morning she woke up to a donut with sprinkles for breakfast. I even lit a candle and we sang Happy Birthday to her. At school she got to play on the iPad, I brought in treats for her class, and she got to get a gift from the prize box.

After school we had regular routine...We went and got our traditional ice cream cone. It's funny how many people know this is what we do thanks to social media. And since its Wednesday that meant Leah had swim. We dropped Leah off at the pool and I let her pick where she wanted to go for dinner. McDonalds...she wanted a happy meal, so happy meal is what she got. I think she'd say it was a happy birthday. And Gigi is on her way home so we can celebrate this weekend. I love you, Bug...you are so kind and always looking out for others. Love your heart, your smile, your laugh...all of you to the moon and back. Happy Birthday!

Seven is Super!

Oh my goodness, does our cup runneth over?!?! We had a birthday party for Bug this weekend and it was just so wonderful. We held it at Coz's here in Mt. Zion. We got to use their party room, and each of the guests was able to make their own little personal pizza. Kiersten invited so many little friends from school and they ALL were able to make it. Lainie, Jade, Gracie, Lila, Emma and Elizabeth, Ella, Ariel, Camryn and Cayde and then of course our 3! What a wonderful group of well behaved little ladies.

We started out by decorating aprons. They all got to pick a color and decorate with fabric paint. Next we played Pin the Pepperoni on the Pizza. It was fun to watch some of the girls completely miss the board. Then it was pizza time. They all made their own, and seemed to enjoy making smiley faces out of pepperoni. After we ate, we started with Pizza Bingo!

I had the cupcakes and cookies made at Simply Sweet here in Mt. Zion and they were so delicious. The girls all enjoyed them as well. Kiersten requested Cherry Chip and then I had basic yellow cake with chocolate frosting for anyone that wasn't a cherry chip fan.

After cupcakes we played some more Pizza Bingo. I found it on Etsy, and it was a total hit! When all the prizes were gone, Bug got to open her gifts. Lots of Legos and Shopkins...she was a happy girl! A good time was had by all.

#2

This weekend the #2 seems to be popping up a lot. It's two weeks since Bugs accident and what a difference two weeks has made. She isn't 100% but the bruising and swelling is significantly better. And her little spirit has been lifted which is so good to see. She reached a big goal in AR. She hit 50 points and got her second gift card for a free meal at Texas Roadhouse. And then Leah continues to run with Mitch every Saturday. Today she said she hit 2.22 miles. So yeah...#2

We figured the girls definitely earned a trip to Texas Roadhouse. Since we had two free kids meals it seemed like as good a time as any. They loved it. They always get excited when we go to a restaurant. Because we don't do it often. Afterwards we went to MC Sports...new running shoes, equipment for softball which will be starting soon. The weekends are full and we wouldn't have it any other way. I keep reminding myself that my time with them is short, too short.