Another Birthday

Oh, 39 - you're way too close to 40 for comfort!

Playing Don't Break the Ice with Aunt Jonelle - Henry was actually pretty good!

Documenting the Everyday

I read about an idea on a photography blog to take a regular day and just take photos of everyday things that would normally not be considered "photo worthy moments." The idea was to show real life, not the posed life or special occasion life.  After doing this a few times a year you could really get a complete picture of our family and after time passes and gives perspective, the little everyday things become special.

The day started out with the kids' jobs - feeding Oogway and the fish, getting ready for school, then going to Sam's Club for groceries, food prep for meals later in the week and then kids doing after school snacks and homework. Nothing special - just a regular ole day. We are done with soccer and Singers Company and it's a nice break before summer activities and swim lessons start up again.

Mom, I'm melting! 

Bank lollipops 

Activity Days Play: The Seven Day Forecast

The Activity Day girls wrote and performed a play called the Seven Day Forecast for their activities the last month and a half. The topic was The Creation and they decided to do a forecast of the seven days - it was based on an idea Claire and I had brainstormed about. BIG news to hit the world with light, land, animals and more. Claire was a news anchor/narrator and did a great job!

Miles Man Date

As part of our efforts to have a date night with the kids each month, we made a chart that rotates for dates with me and Matt, and a family outing. This month it was my turn to take Miles on a date. He chose burgers, so we tried a new place called The Habit. It was really good - cheeseburgers with green bean fries. It was so good that we took the girls with us the very next night to eat there again. 

Then we went to see Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul. Miles likes to read the Wimpy Kid books and was excited to see the movie - it was actually pretty funny. We stopped for movie treats first - Miles was very interested to know the consequences for being discovered sneaking food into the movies. I said in all my days, I've never been caught! So I'm not really sure what they would do... 

I like this date night tradition a lot - but I find it only works if we really plan it out. Having the chart on the fridge helps reminds us, and the kids of course don't let us forget either. 

Miles and I talked about school and the kids that bug him in his class, his feelings about switching schools next year, and about his sisters. Miles is a good boy - sensitive and kind. His teacher told me recently that he is being more of a leader and not a follower in class, something we have been working on and talking about a lot. I hope he can continue to stand up and be an example in his class. 

Last Soccer Game

Miles had his last soccer game on Saturday, and though the team had a tough time coming together they ended the season with a win! Miles had fun and made a new friend - the son of two friends from the singles ward days who we reconnected with through the team. Beau and Miles just clicked - and it was good to catch up with Thad and Summer. Their family timeline is very similar to us - they were married one month after us and most of our kids are born within a month or two of each other. 

Trophies for everyone. Like, everyone. There is a life lesson here somewhere, right? 

And after a long season, we finally got to go to the ice cream truck! Soccer is all about the snacks, right? These kids get HALFTIME snacks and end of the game snacks now. When did that start being a thing?

Singer's Company Performances

We have had a busy couple of weeks - the girls had their Singer's Company performances - three in one week basically. This was their last one, and they did SO great! First performance was a practice for a retirement community and Penelope stayed perfectly still for at least 2-3 of the first songs, like frozen like a statue. Then this last performance, she did a solo! WHAT? I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself - she was really brave. Claire was just on the ball - she knew all the words and moves and was a great leader. Too bad she was in the very back as one of the older and tallest girls. She had a speaking part in the very beginning too. I think they had fun and they tried something new. Success!

Their songs were all about summer and girl power - and their costumes were supposed to resemble old fashioned bathing costumes. Super cute and comfy!

Penelope was really feeling "Try Everything"

51s Baseball Game

We had a family trip out to the 51s baseball game, our triple A team. As part of a radio show that our office participates in, we had a special event down on the field. It was fun but also scary feeling like we could be hit in the head with a ball at any time :) The weather was chilly - and a nice change from the usual sweaty trip out to Cashman Field, but once the sun went  down we were pretty cold. 

Henry had fun playing with everyone, including the security officers. He played catch and also chased the mascot, Cosmo. He would chase him, but then would run away once he got close to Cosmo. 

Mother's Day 2017

I had a nice Mother's Day this year - bacon and eggs in the morning, then a photo with the kids before church (we were late already, what was one more minute?). I'm glad we took it before church because afterwards Henry was in full meltdown mode. 

I also love these Mom questionnaires - and a bonus extra one from Penelope too. I especially like that they picked squash and salads for my favorite foods, but that I also like to make cookies.  This particular questionnaire asked for their mom's weight (who would do that?!) and Claire's answer wins: a bright ray of sun!

Penelope's 5th Birthday Questionnaire

1. What is your favorite color? Pink, purple and teal

2. What is your favorite toy? Baby Alive

3. What is your favorite fruit? Pineapple

4. What is your favorite TV show? Team Umi Zumi

5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Ham and mayo sandwich

6. What is your favorite outfit? Peach colored shirt with flowered skirt

7. What is your favorite game? Speak Out

8. What is your favorite snack? Gummies

9. What is your favorite animal? Tiger

10. What is your favorite song? Monster (Imagine Dragons)

11. What is your favorite book? Piggy and Elephant books (Mo Willems)

12. Who is your best friend? Senai

13. What is your favorite sport? Basketball

14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play on the trampoline

15. What is your favorite drink? Diet Coke

16. What is your favorite holiday? Christmas

17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? Turtley

18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Bacon and pancakes

19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? McDonalds

20. What do you want to be when you grow up? A veterinarian 

Trolls Party - Hair UP!

A Trolls-themed party was a given for Penelope - she loves loves loves Trolls!

We had Troll hair headbands and hug time bracelets, with fun rainbow food - lots of fruits and veggies and Penelope's requested grilled chicken. We also had a new trampoline that we got for all of the kids' birthdays this year - and we hurried and got it set up before P's party.