Shake your booty!

Samantha started dance today!  She was SO nervous but was trying to be SO brave!

 This is the picture through the window!  She did great and worked really hard!

 She LOVES he new booty shorts and is ready to try out for So You Think You Can Dance!

You did GREAT sis and we are so proud of you!

Will and the dojo!

Will started Karate this summer.  His sensei isn't  Rex Kwon Do and he won't be the next Daniel LaRusso.  It is just a night where he is allowed to hit other kids!

 My favorite part about watching him is seeing him smile and LAUGH!  He has so much fun!

 This is also the first time I have seen Will volunteer from a group setting to try something new.  Yeah!

He definitely isn't ready to defend himself with the strength of a grizzly, the reflexes of a puma, and (most importantly) the wisdom of a man, but he LOVES it and that is all that matters!

 

I HATE (I know it's a strong word) Back to School

First off, I have resurrected our blog.  It took some technical efforts on the part of my wonderful husband (thanks Babe) and here we are again.

The following image makes me want to throw up.

I HATE back to school with a passion.  Along those lines, I hate mornings when Dave leaves for work, I hate Mondays when he goes back to work, I hate coming back from vacation and returning to routines.   In MY perfect world, my cute little family would ALWAYS be together.  Since this is not reality here we are at the beginning of another school year.  BOO!!!

Samantha is starting 4th Grade.

I had a few camera issues (sorry). I don't know how I feel about her "messenger bag" weighing as much as she does.  She had a great day and came home with a notebook full of friends phone numbers.  I guess the academics will come later in the year.

William is starting 2nd Grade.

Will said he is not sure if he is going to like 2nd grade.  I LOVE his honesty.  He would like the class to be all boys.  He was so excited that he didn't have homework.

Ben starts preschool in a couple of weeks and in the mean time he will be working on his Batman 2 skills and doing a whole lot of this...

This is what Ben calls "pushing peoples buttons".  He did tell me today that you only punch your friends in the arm not the face, maybe he might make some friends!

All in all, we survived the today.  I won't admit how many times I went to check on those 2 cute kiddos (above) or how many times I cried.  I will just put on a smile and make sure everyone in my wonderful family knows that I love them and that I am proud to be their mom (and wife)!

After waking up EVERYDAY for weeks to snow on the ground, when it was supposed to be spring.  I took the kids and ran, well drove, to St. George.  Dave, Nana and Papa met us later in the week and we all enjoyed the WARM weather. 

Our kids LOVE St. George and know exactly what they want to do.  Swim, go to the parks and ride bikes. 

Because it was spring break they were able to meet their friends and have play dates!  They loved showing their friends all their favorite spots in ST. George.  Then when Nana and Papa came they got to show off their favorites AGAIN!!  What lucky kids!

Nana took us to breakfast at the farmers market.  Next time the kids think they are going to have a booth at the market and sale their art work! 

I think we pushed Nana and Papa's limits at Pioneer Park.  They were good sports to keep up with the kids running wild on the rocks!

It was a great vacation and as always the kids want Dave to relocate to St. George.  I think they just want him to not work, play all day and have an unlimited bank account.  I think Dave and I would like that too!!

Samantha Presents Manila Magic

Samantha had her big choir concert.  Her first one was 10 minutes and this one was 20!! I laugh because the choir director acted like they were the Mormon Tabernacle Choir,  She wanted the kids to spend a whole bunch of time after school perfecting their skills. Samantha did great once again but she is SO glad to be done with choir.  I am proud of her for sticking with it when it got a little crazy at the end. I think she enjoyed learning the songs but her favorite song to sing is "I'm the Baby Gotta Love Me" which is not a choir number.

Samantha was excited to get her concert over with because right after her and I went to see HAIRSPRAY with her Grandma, a few Aunts and her cousin Emmie!  Samantha loves Hairspray so she was so excited to see it live!

Way to Go Will

Will got the Confidence To Take Action award at school last month.  His teacher chose him because he has to work so hard each day at school and never complains.  I was so proud of him.  I am always proud of my kids but I see how hard Will tries at school and I am so proud of him and his positive attitude. 

Will just recently started asking my what makes him special at school and why does he get to go to the "other"classes.  Every time he asks my heart breaks that he has to face these trials and I can't make it better.  I think nothing is worse as a mother then watching your child struggle and know you can't make it all better. 

 I love him so much and am so happy that he was recognized for all his hard work. 

Mom and Dad love you so much Will.  Keep working hard and know that we are all so proud of you.

Samantha, in true Samantha drama fashion, let us know how unfair this was because she has gone to school for 3 year and she never gets the award.  She said "I know Will has to work really hard and school isn't easy for him but it is just not fair."  Dave and I just laughed because she is getting an award next month.  We love Samantha but I fear for her teenage years :)

Ben's Big Day

I have this awesome husband who is an amazing father. He takes our kids out once a month on a "Daddy" date.  Our kids LOVE this day.  They ask him all the time if it is their special day.  They ask me if they can all him when he is at work so they can plan their date.  I know that it isn't easy to accommodate these dates and I am so thankful that Dave takes time to spend this one on one time with our kids!  Like I said he is a GREAT Dad and I LOVE him SO much!

In order to go on this date you have to be potty trained for a little bit, to guarantee there will be no surprises!!  Ben reached that milestone and got to go on his FIRST Daddy date.  He was so excited he wouldn't even sit still for a picture. ( I took several and in all of them he looks crazy).  For Ben's first date he chose dinner at McDonald's and arcade games at Chuck E Cheese.  He LOVED it!  Thanks Dave for being such a great Dad.