Back to School: Kindergarten and 5th Grade 1st Day

The School-goers

I had to stop them to get this photo. They were so anxious to get to school. The little man in pink is Jace's good friend and neighbor. Actually he's great friends with all our kids. They'll be walking buddies all year.

Kyle and Lance We met a flock of wild geese on our path toward school. Too bad they're in a school yard. Jared would love to get a permit for these tasty meals.
Buddies.

Lance found his spot without a problem.

... And it turned out to be a great day! Amazingly, even though we live very close to the school, we are also in the zone for getting a bus ride (they don't count the shortcut we take, they count the distance away from school by driving distance), so Lance will walk to school with Jace in the morning, and ride the bus home with the other kindergartners. One of the first things he asked me was, "How did you and Kyle do while I was gone?" His concern for his brother is so sweet. Kyle really wanted to stay and do puzzles with Lance. I told him we did okay, but we missed him, Cami too :)

I looked out my window this afternoon, during Cami's naptime, and saw two brothers playing together again in the backyard, grateful for each other's company. Sweet. I am so glad he's only gone for the morning!

I didn't get a picture of Jace coming home because he snuck inside and was doing his homework long before I realized it. Typical behavior from Jace. He had a great day, too, and was anxious to play with his neighbor friends as soon as he was done. He likes his teacher and is making lots of friends, he says. Looks like it's going to be an awesome year.

Back to School Party!

My mom always had these when my siblings and I were school-goers. She wrapped all our school supplies and new clothes to open before each new school year and we had a little party to get us excited to go back to school. I thought about it while Jace has been in school, but wasn't sure if I was ready for that kind of commitment every year. Plus, he was already excited enough, back then, to go to school.

This year seemed like a good time to start. Jace had a lot of homework last year, and isn't looking forward to that again. And Lance is beginning Kindergarten! So the kids and I went shopping together for school supplies. I gave Jace and Lance their lists, and they pushed their own carts around the store and loaded them. Kyle and Cami helped, of course. I found a few extra glue sticks and items that didn't even look like school supplies in the cart.

Then yesterday while Jared was home, I took off to Kohl's (I just found out that we live right by it!) and got some shopping done so the boys would have crisp new clothes. I remember how much I loved getting new school clothes. I bought a few cute things for me, too, of course, to reward myself for the great job I did of shopping :)

It seemed like a waste to just hand all these new things to them without a party!waiting patiently to open the goods while mom gets a pic You can't tell, but his shoes light up when he walks. He absolutely loves these! Kyle and I are going to have preschool at home this year. I thought hard about putting him in preschool, but I just feel so much more at peace with having him home with us. He doesn't begin Kindergarten until he's almost 6, just like Lance. So perhaps he can go to preschool next year. It will be nice for Cami to have a buddy home with her.
Cami's not sure what the fuss is all about, but she's ready to party anytime.

Jace seems to like his shirts: (Top) "Dear Teacher, I'm a dog & I LOVE eating homework! But you've been assigning TOO MUCH! Please STOP! IF I eat any more homework I might EXPLODE! signed, the dog."

(Bottom) "What I WISH my parents would say...We're raising your allowance to $1,000 a week! You must be tired, I'll clean up your room for you. I know you busted the window, but let's blame someone else! Here's your new touch screen phone. Just for fun, let's pretend everyday is your birthday! TV is GOOD for your eyes!"

Lance loves his new clothes, shoes, and Camo backpack. He quickly changed into them, and my goodness, he looks so grown up. He is so excited to make new friends in school!

~doing the Back to School dance~

We've found the classrooms, met the teachers and principals, and loaded our bags. We role-played how to introduce ourselves and meet new friends. Each child, including Cami, received father's blessings. I think we're ready! Here's to a great school year and many more to come!

Couldn't Resist

The boys did something naughty today. Luckily they looked so cute with their empathizing sister that I can't remember now what got them there in the first place!

Reverse Roles Again

Jace and I seem to be having some confusion with the parts we play in this family. Last time it was about the floor that he'd just mopped. This time it was the noise. We were going for a drive together after the kids were in bed and Jared was home. We headed out to pick up a boxspring, making Jace's bed complete. (Yes, he has been sleeping on a mattress on the floor until now!) It was a great deal. (Can't beat free!) Only had been used about 6 times because it was in someone's guest room. I love Craig's list! I was definitely way more excited about this than Jace, who was perfectly content with his mattress on the floor.
So we began our drive, and a really good song came on my favorite radio station here, "The Arch". I pumped up the volume and began jamming to the music. From behind me, I heard a voice in the distance,
"Could you please turn the volume down?! I'm trying to read!"
Oh, well. At least he likes to read.

For Gramma

A few photos for you, as you wished :)Just hanging out on the porch, where we were when we chatted with you just now :)
Lance is holding up his bug for you to see, Cami's got mom's mug, and Kyle's holding the coveted toy between him and Lance, the whistle dad brought home from work (prizes for the residents with correct answers!)

We love you, Gramma!

Friends

We had a wonderful evening last night with the Linscotts, our good friends that used to live in our little neighborhood back in UT. Luke was also in med school, and now they've been doing their residency here. When we found out that we'd be practically neighbors again we were thrilled! Jared stayed with them while he went house hunting. It is such a blessing to have great friends who keep in touch!

Here or There?

Do you like green eggs and ham? Would you like them here or there? We might as well have been eating our eggs in a box with a fox, or elk, just to see how well that would work.

Poor "Phillip", Jared's trophy elk, named by his brother in law, when he came to visit (and bring our car, thankfully!). The neighborhood kids needed an explanation for this big animal sitting on the floor of our living room. So Grant gave them a story about finding Phillip in our backyard in Utah. A completely made up story that Jace is continuing to follow up on with his friends.

Anyway, his poor head has been sitting there since we moved here, almost 2 months ago. We couldn't decide where this cute head would fit best. Then I made matters a little more difficult by getting this awesome entertainment center free on craigslist.com. I love it! Anyway, I needed some visual aids to make a decision, so I out came the camera. Hmm. Does he look better here? Or there?

How 'bout this spot?

We considered putting him above the fireplace, which I thought would have been perfectly cozy, but Jared was concerned about the heat from the fire getting to him. Gotta keep Phillip comfortable :)

We thought this felt a little crowded. (for Phil, of course)

Then we were lucky enough to have some good friends of ours come visit and get us a little more motivated. We were hoping to have Phillip up on the wall before our company arrived, but still hadn't come to a conclusion.

Jared showed Luke the photos we took and discussed it with him, and they came up with this idea:

Just inch the entertainment center over! I'm pleased with it, Jared's happy, the kids, of course, love it, and, finally after almost two months, I can put our living room together! I'm thinking of putting a small bookcase under Phillip. By the way, Jared makes it very clear that he didn't name him.

(Just a note: We got rid of our entertainment center before moving, and since we got here, we had the TV sitting on a bedside table that we haven't gotten to use as a bedside table since we bought it at RC Willey (obviously before I discovered craigslist) 7 years ago (our bedroom was always too small). So I quickly moved the TV over to its place.

It is so nice to use this table for what it was made for after 7 years!

Look What We Got (cont'd)

Here is the desk I told you about. Jace has been thoroughly enjoying it. He is reading the 5th Harry Potter again, and he's getting a lot more out if it this time around, he says. That's a map of St Louis. I love that the lamp from my mom's parents match it so nicely :O)

The china cabinet and buffet, all put together :) I had to take my time on the decision of which wall to put it. ... and here's a couple of clowns!

Look What We Got

I have a new hobby: Craigslist. I had heard about it in Utah, but didn't try it because I didn't have an urge to try and stuff more things into our already crowded apartment. I miss the memories, though :) I remember living there and thinking longingly, "I will have memories of living here someday."
The day has arrived that we have spaces to fill, and I'm having so much fun! I've been looking in the "Free" ads on Craigslist for things like a desk for Jace's room and a kitchen table. I found someone offering a free desk AND crib. True, we didn't NEED a crib, the Port-A-Crib has worked great since she was born, and would have worked just fine until Cami moves to a toddler bed, but wouldn't it be so fun?! Why live temporarily when you don't have to, and it's your last time to enjoy your last baby? The boys all had slept in a white crib that I bought at DI for $15. It worked great until after Kyle grew out of it and moved into a toddler bed. We needed the space, and since a Port-a-crib fit much more nicely in Jared and my bedroom, we gave it away.
Now I can enjoy Cami's babyhood without being temporary!

She's all for that.
( Isn't it great that it matches the other furniture in her room? Both of those chairs are from my mom's parents and my great-grandmother.)

Then, this morning, I went yard-saling, and was really bummed after going to 3 yard sales and not buying one thing. So I happened upon my handy dandy new phone that I am still trying to learn how to use, and found on Craigslist that there was this very sturdy oak dining room table with a leaf and 4 chairs for free! I went to pick it up, and found that they were also offering their matching hutch and china cabinet! When you've got the space, why hold back?!
We've been eating at a card table for the last 2 months. A table cloth gave it a dining -like feel, and it worked fine, we just couldn't all fit around it. So tonight after swimming, as we were enjoying our first supper at our "new" dining room table, I asked my tired family to take a moment and look a-round.

We all fit!

The generous donors got tons of phone calls about this table, and I'm so grateful that I was the lucky winner! (First one there gets it.) What a blessing.

Here's another great plus: if something happens to it, like a child driving a fork into it, I can easily remember which is more important between the table or the kid. There are already scratches on it :)

Gotcha!

In this case, it was actually Jace that got me. He was pretending to be asleep with his Harry Potter book one evening, and as I tried to sneak up with a camera.... he couldn't hold it in any longer!

If You Can't Stand the Heat... Make Lemonade!!!

Jace sharpened his business skills by having a lemonade stand. He is working towards buying an Ipod Touch. Lance and Kyle even got tips! It pays to be cute :)

?????

Kyle - can't stand the heat?

Living the Dream

A dear friend of mine was an amazing example to me. Her husband shared a story at church about a companion he had in the mission field who, if things got really bad and difficult, he would say, "I'm living the dream."
I remember one of the many times back when we lived in our small 900 sq. ft. student housing apartments and I knocked on her door. She and I had very pregnant bellies. If I remember right, she'd just had my boys over to play. Her husband (a medical resident) was home, and when I asked her how she was doing, she said, "We're living the dream." But she meant it. I could see and hear the sincerity of it. They were happy no matter what their circumstances. They were a joy to be around, and she was always finding ways to serve others and make it seem like you are helping her by doing it. She'd call me and ask if she could borrow my boys to entertain her only boy so she can get things done. Was she kidding me?! I love this woman.

I was reminded of "Living the Dream" earlier today while Jared was gone working. Residency is definitely more difficult than medical school, if you measure it by how many hours you have together at home. But he is so happy doing his dream job and being a doctor, that gets to deliver babies. As I was at home with the kiddos and carrying on with my chores, I thought about this. Jared is working long hours at work and loving it, and I'm trying my best to keep things running smoothly in this nice home, (minus a brand new lawn-mower mishap, maybe I can share that one in another post; Jared loves his expensive wife, I'll leave it at that for now). It feels so great that we are both working hard AND LOVING IT! This beautiful house has been amazing for me, I cannot begin to explain how blessed I have felt to live here. It is easy to count my many blessings right now. I can honestly say, "We are living the dream."

Tonight, the boys were wrestling and I snagged the camera. This is the only time the kids get to see dad, for about an hour each night before he and they have to go to bed. I feel like I'm putting 5 kids to bed, which really wouldn't be so bad ;)

Jared's day begins at 4am and ends, if he is lucky enough to be in bed, around 9pm. He got to deliver a baby today. We are living the dream, and I am so grateful!!!

18 Months

Already one and a half!

I love this photo. She looks so independent.
I can just hear Gramma singing, "Here she comes..." "Miss America!"

I Miss This Guy

This is my Evan. Wait, Jared says he's his Evan, too (gotta love back seat readers!) All of us are missing him especially today, on his Angel Day, or Freedom Day, as we sometimes call it. Tonight, for Evan Time we went through photos that we haven't looked at in way too long. I came across this one. I think he's about 18 mo. here at our Layton home.

We also listened to a song that someone wrote about him, his brothers, Jace and Lance (they loved hearing their names), Cool Ranch Doritos, Ramen Noodles, Mom and Dad, and dancing. He loves country music, especially Shania Twain (no influence from his mother), and this song is very country :). I remember thinking it was a pretty goofy song as I listened to it with Evan while he was sick, but today it jerked tears out of me. So many funny things about him that we loved!! I cannot believe it has been 6 years.

Anyway, Kyle and Cami's name is not in the song, but Kyle gets to share Evan's name (in his middle name), and (this is a little stretch, but) Cami's doctor's name was "Evan" when she was born, overseeing Jared's catching job ;)

We live a bit too far to visit his grave, but we have sweet people taking care of it for us, and I have this sweet photo that we took on Memorial Day before we moved.

We are looking for a tree to plant here so that the kids and we can have an "Evan place" for anything we would have taken to his grave.

Ah! We miss you, Evan! Can't wait to see you again!

I Have a Ten Year Old

I cannot believe...

My Yankee Doodle Dandy is 10!

• Jace's favorite day of the year is: Independence Day
• Second Favorite Day is: Christmas (then Easter)
• His favorite thing to do is: learn about how things work
• He loves: his family
• He really doesn't like: brussel sprouts
• His favorite food is Shells 'n' Cheddar (seriously, I even reminded him of foods like steak and BBQ chicken)
• If he were an animal, he would be a Preying Mantis, "because a spider wouldn't be able to eat me". ( I thought he just liked to pray.)
• When he grows up, he would like to be: an NBA star
• If he has to have a real job, he would be: an NBA star (of course that's a real job, mom!)
• His role model is Paul Milsap because he's an awesome basketball player and he has a good attitude
• Hobby: Basketball, soccer, riding bikes, catching bugs, especially lightning bugs, swimming

Isn't he a great cheeser? Jace still lets me do flag cakes for his birthday. This year, I did a fruit pizza, too. Yummy.
He wanted a pool party, just as I was hoping, since we are members of this great pool around the corner from our house.

Jace has gained many immediate friends here. There are 3 other ten year olds on our street who have welcomed him right in and they are almost inseparable. He also invited friends from his primary class in church. We had their families come, too - we hadn't even met them yet! They played Watermelon Relay, where two teams see who can get the watermelon across first. By the looks of it, Jace is getting beat by a girl HOWEVER he assures me that his team was 3 people ahead of them and were actually winning.

Jace lights the candles
Happy Birthday to you...

I'm impressed with Jace's friend-making skills. Not bad for his first month in MO!
We are so grateful for our Dandy Jace! (Yankee Doodle, that is) (sorry, couldn't resist)

For Gramma

Here's the photo with Cami in pigtails. I took this just a couple days after we moved in.
For the rest of you bloggers- this beautiful rocking chair is from my Gramma and Grampa in CA. I had to keep it in storage for FOUR YEARS! That's a long time! I love seeing my things again and enjoying this classy addition to our home. It fits nicely in our formal sitting room :) I love having a formal sitting room :)

House Tour

The first morning I awoke here, I felt like a queen in my castle. Euphoric. There are tons of windows and light in here. I spread my arms and walked from one end of the house to the other without my fingertips touching any walls. I feel so blessed.

Here are a few clips of our house. I took these the day we moved in, as I was seeing the house for the first time. Please forgive my bad video - ing skills. I was so excited. The kids and I love this house! Jared did an awesome job finding it. Our realtor also rocks. If anyone is moving to MO, I highly recommend Greg Erker. He takes all the time in the world to talk to you and answer your questions.

I'll be posting more pics as we go, but for now, I have been having a blast trying to figure out what to do with all this space! There is also a basement behind the door that Jace was trying to unlock that is the same size as our house, minus the kitchen and garage.

More pics coming!

One of My Favorite Blogs

While I was contemplating how I was going to catch up on my blog with so many exciting things that have happened, I was reading this woman's blog, and it was so inspirational, I just had to share. Her post is titled, "Holding Him, Holding Her, Holding Me" I don't even know this woman, but I learned about her blog when I was pregnant with Cami when I told a friend the name that I was thinking of for my girl. She told me of this woman that has a blog who lost her baby girl, also named Camille. Her blog has since been a huge inspiration to me as she endures and shares her pain and joys during her grieving process. She is a beautiful writer. I have emailed her a few times and feel like we have a lot in common even though we live in completely different states and have never met.
Below is another of my favorite posts written by her about TV watching and screen time for your family. I love this!
Whisperings Become a Reality

And if you'd like to enjoy the rest of her wonderful blog, the site is: adailyscoop.blogspot.com.

Come in!!!

Sit down, converse!

It doesn't always look like this,

Somedays it's even worse!

I was reminded of this poem today as I was packing. My Mom used to keep it hung up in her house, but has since given it to me. I'm not sure why ;)
Our house is hiliarious. Our couch is standing up on end in the back there, can you see it? We're trying to figure out where to put the rest of the boxes we keep packing up...

But I am SO grateful for awesome friends and neighbors!!! We had a yummy dinner brought to us tonight by our good friends and neighbors across the street. Plus, I was lucky enough to have a few fabulous helpers earlier today. Mandy and her children came. Lance and her son are the best of friends, and she is a dear friend of mine that used to live upstairs. It has been perfect to play together. We both had our baby girls within a months of each other. Aren't these two beautiful??? Her daughter was born with a headful gorgeous dark hair. I will miss all of my sweet friends!

PS- I think this photo of mother and daughter should be framed :) So cute!!!