C's Field Trip to a Nature Reserve

This is C's preschool class. Each mom takes a turn planning a field trip and since I have done so many years of co-op preschool I thought I have done everything around here but this one I have never done. This nature reserve is in the middle of Newport and you would have never known it was there. The kids had so much fun exploring the stream, trees and paths through the "wilderness".
There was a butterfly house and it even had caterpillars and cocoons.

D gets to tag along on the field trips and has so much fun with her brother.

The kids found so many butterflies in this spot.

This is part of the future co-op preschool group.

A's School Performance

With the end of the school year comes busy schedules. A had her music performance at school. The music program at the school is really good and teaches them a lot. It has really helped her with her piano too.
C and D get to go up to the school a lot at the end of the year and see the "big kids" do their thing. For the most part they are pretty good to sit through everything.

1/2 Marathon

Since the beginning of the year I have doing more running and really getting into it. I decided it was time to put all my running to use so I signed up for a 1/2 marathon. Somehow I was able to convince my sister in law to do it with me.
I had a friend running it to. She is faster then me but it was nice to have her help us figure things out at the beginning of the race and then be there at the end to cheer me on.

Big B brought the kids and found me on the course to cheer me on. A and B tried running with me for a little. The course had lots of hills and ended with one but it was still a fun race and I did it in 2 hours 54 seconds. I really wanted to do it under 2 hours but the hill at the end did me in. Now that I have that under my belt a full marathon is in my future.

Fathers and Sons Campout

B and C look forward to this every year. They get so excited that we really should go camping more often around here.
They got to go on a hike and they found some poly wogs.

They were only gone for about 15 hours but they didn't mind a bit. They had a blast doing "guy" things.

Our Last Days With Visitors

I wanted a cute picture with the kids in their church clothes because Miss J had a dressed that matched my kids but this is the picture we got. D wouldn't stay in the picture, C had to be gangster, and Miss J wanted to go home.
We let D hold the baby and she LOVED it. After the first time she kept asking and asking. It was pretty cute.

The next day we went to do some shopping. To be able to get our shopping done we had to bribe my kids. They love the merry-go-round.

All my kids love horses but especially these younger 2. D could ride this all day.

Miss J had a fun time on it too. Another first I got experience with her. We had so much fun the week they were here. It's nice to have visitors around. Glad summer is close and we can play like this more.

The Girls Birthdays

A wanted to get a feather in her hair for her birthday so we headed to the mall with mom, grandma, aunt K, and her best friend. We all ended up getting feathers, even grandma!
Then we went to Claire's to look around and I showed A some earrings and told her to buy them and she said they are for pierces ears so I said I guess we'd better pierce yours then. She was so shocked. Grandma made her call her dad and ask him and he said yes so she got them pierced. She didn't cry but her eyes did get watery.

She looked very cute! Here you can see her feathers and her ears.

That night we had a family party for both girls. (Good thing D is still too young to really get it because A's was the next day which was Sunday so we couldn't go do all of A's fun stuff. D didn't mind at all that her birthday was more about A this year.) D is already very obsessed with princesses. How in the world did she even know about them?! A hasn't been into princesses since before D was born. She got some dress up things and a little motor bike that she loves.

The girls had a great 2 days all about them.

Visitors Come to Town!

Big B's youngest sister came to town. We were so excited to have her and her baby come visit us. She use to live with us and we became really close. It was so much fun to hang out and experience so many first with my little niece, the beach being one of those firsts. We had to hit the beach even though the weather wasn't the best. The kids still had fun.
We spent a lot of our beach time on the swings.

Another first for Miss J! She loved the swings.

We got to go to an Angels game too. A was a little tired but woke up in time for the fireworks.

Another first for Miss J.

A's First Piano Recital

A has been taking piano since February and has become really good. Her teacher picked out a song for her to play, Swan Lake, at the recital but A had already picked her own song, Biddy Bobbidy Boo, that was harder and longer.
Of course I didn't get any more pictures then these two. She did great and I can't wait to hear her get better and better.

Tanaka Farms

For one of C's field trips I organized our annual trip to Tanaka Farms. We had a HUGE group this year!
This is just C's preschool group, minus one plus D.

Here are my strawberry pickers after the had picked lots and lots of strawberries.

We invited our grandma, aunt and cousins.

What a great start to berry season...YUM!

Our Crazy May!!

May is always a crazy month for our family. We start every May with B's birthday. I do a friend party every other year and this year was not one of those years but I think it was just as much work. When the kids got home from school we went to the pool with some friends and cousins. Then we headed straight to B's baseball game.
We were in charge of snack so we had cupcakes and B would rather wear his cupcake then eat it.


Then right after the game we went out for pizza with the family and some friends that were visiting from Utah. He didn't care at all that he didn't get a friend party. It was a very exhausting day for everyone. B is such a good kid! I'm so glad to have him in our family.

Next in May comes our anniversary and mothers day. All we did this year for our anniversary was go out to dinner and a movie. That was just fine with me cause May makes me tired and I didn't want to do much more then that. Plus we always do a Palm Springs golfing/shopping trip in May and I count that as an anniversary get away.

Mothers Day was a good relaxing day. I didn't get out of bed til 10:30 and that was just to have a nice shower with no one bothering me and I didn't have to change one diaper. Later in the week, for activity days, A pampered me. She did a strawberry yogurt mask and a pedicure.

The mask was a little clumpy but it tasted good. We also got smoothies and a cupcake.

The first half a May was great!