And so it begins!

Oh my...our "baby" started Kindergarten! The beginning of the school years! I'm not exactly sure how I feel  about all of it. I told Makell a few weeks ago how much I was going to miss her when she was at school, and (jokingly) said maybe she should stay home one more year. She looked at me so serious and said, "Mom, I have to go to school to learn things you know!" It made me laugh! She is so ready and excited!

Kourtney and Kaitlyn made sure to remind me to not forget to take a picture out in front of the school. The other girls had the same picture taken in front of the school on the first day of Kindergarten! Last week I told Makell we needed to go backpack shopping so she would have something to carry her papers home in. She told me she didn't need to buy a new back pack because she had plans to use one of Kourtney's old ones. She spent two days pulling out little scraps of paper and even vacuumed the inside. We all tried to convince her to pick out a new one and nothing was going to change her mind! :) Kaitlyn told her she was crazy. Yep, that's Kaitlyn for you...never passing up on something new!

In front of her classroom door. 

Not only was Makell excited, but myself as well! I love Mrs. Echardt and her fun style of teaching! Makell went in, found her spot at the table, and was eager to get started! I have tried to prepare myself on how I would handle my youngest going to school. I told myself that Kindergarten is only half day so it shouldn't be to terribly different than the previous year of preschool . Well, I quickly found the motherly emotions rush to the surface. No matter how hard I tried, the tears welled up. I was able to hold it together until I made it back to the car. As a mother sending your baby off to school there are feelings that just can't be explained. Those of you who have sent your youngest child off to school know what I mean, and those you who have not... just wait!  

Turning 12!

Kourtney celebrated her twelfth birthday yesterday! I love that she chose to wear this particular shirt! She is definitely a ray of sunshine in our lives!

The girls and I snuck down to her school the night before to decorate her locker. She said she was pretty surprised when she opened it the next morning! We were hoping to surprise her as she road home from school, but a neighbor girl spotted the balloons clear down the road and asked Kourtney what they were for? She said she was still surprised only we didn't get to see her reaction.

This is Adam's favorite part of celebrating birthday's! He lost count after #4 so he had to start over. :) Kourtney reassured him she was keeping track.

Once again Kourtney chose cheesecake for her birthday cake.

It was fun going to Claire's and watching Kourtney pick out birthday presents. Ironic that while shopping in a jewelry and accessory store Kaitlyn and Makell instantly remembered that I owed each of them some money so they could shop as well. :)

The Beginning of Fourth Grade!

Seriously, this little girl is growing up way to fast! She is now going into fourth grade! She has had mixed emotions this summer, but is now really excited about the school year! I think this will be a great year for her!

She looked a little nervous going into her classroom. Her first day report was fabulous! She said, "Fourth grade is going to be fun!"

7th Grade ...aka...Junior High!

The day has arrived and school has begun! Kourtney is off to Junior High! After going to the Open House, and meeting her seven teachers, she is stoked! She thinks it's comical that she is taller than a few of them! The only trick will be getting that darn locker open every time! ;)

Goal Completed!

Kourtney finished her Faith In God requirements and is now excited to move in to Young Womens! As a Mother I love The Faith In God program! It requires an individual to work on different tasks throughout the ages of 8-11 that will help them develop skills, talents, strengthen their testimony, develop a relationship with their Heavenly Father, recognize their self worth, develop greater faith, and become everything Heavenly Father wants them to be. I have loved witnessing Kourtney and Kaitlyn's individual growth as they have worked hard at accomplishing their goals. Just this past week during family night, Kourtney bore her testimony of the temple and it brought tears to my eyes.

We have seen how doing this has strengthened our family as well. We have loved participating in activities, service projects, and learning the Articles of Faith together. I am so proud of Kourtney! A wonderful accomplishment!

To learn more go to : www.lds.org

School Buddy!

Kourtney has a buddy at school this year...grandpa! It's crazy to think that we have a daughter that old! My first year in Junior High (sixth grade) was my dads first year teaching, so Kourtney thinks it's pretty cool that grandpa is still there! Toward the end of last year, there was talk of boundaries changing which meant that there was a possibility Kourtney would attend a different Junior High school. Fortunately (yeah!) the boundaries stayed the same and Kourtney was able to attend the school where grandpa taught. She loves the fact that she gets to see him everyday and I love the fact that she has a personal body guard everyday! ;) It's quite the change going from 600+ kids at school to over 1700 kids! Largest school in the district.

It's crazy to think that our daughter has now entered the Junior High school chapter of her life. I look at her and it's evident to me just how much she has grown up this summer. She is really looking forward to new and fun experiences this year!

The Lessons I learn from my Children...

I was reminded of a tender lesson the other day by my five year old. I really feel like I learn more from my kids than they do from me. I guess that's why we are told to become like a little child. Life can be so simple through the eyes of a child.

I had all the girls in the car with me to run a few errands. I knew the car was low on fuel but didn't realize just how low! I looked down at the gas gage and saw that not only was the gas light on, but the needle was buried past the E. I reached up and pushed the button on the top console that shows how many miles left before the tank is empty. It read only one mile. I spoke up and told the girls that we had better say a prayer that we make it to the gas station before we ran out of gas and and be stranded somewhere. Before I knew it one of my girls started saying a prayer out loud. I felt like I had better keep my eyes open since I was driving ;),and glanced back up at the mile indicator and witnessed a big fat O. At this point we were about four miles away from the nearest gas station. One of the girls said, "do you think we are going to make it mom?" I replied, "I don't know?" Then my missy Makell spoke up and said, "Yes we will! We just said a prayer that we would make it!" At that moment all my anxiety and nervousness left. She was exactly right! I felt a little foolish that my faith wasn't where my five year old's was at that moment.
This experience made me think about the quote: Live by Faith and Not by Fear. A few minutes after Makell's surety, we pulled into the gas station without any trouble. I pumped eighteen gallons of fuel into an eighteen gallon tank. :)

The past few weeks at church I have been reminded that there is nothing wrong with expecting miracles daily.
Pres. Hinckly tells us that; "Through faith and prayer miracles are brought to pass."
I was grateful for those profound few minutes of my five year old exercising her faith and watching a miracle take place!

Motherly Makell...

I couldn't pass up not posting these pictures of Makell. If you know Makell very well you will notice that she was born with some gravitational pull towards babies or anyone younger than her for that matter. Her nurturing ability and desire was evident at a very early age. She always had six or seven baby dolls that she would pack around and play with at the same time. Now that she is older she tends to go after the "real" babies. If she has slipped out of sight , your best bet is to locate a baby and there you will find Makell. Poor little Landon next door gets the brunt of Motherly Makell. I really think Makell believes she is his mother at times. My neighbor told me that a few days ago Makell laid Landon in his bed and tucked him in. She was walking out of his bedroom while closing the door behind her when Melissa noticed her. Melissa said little Landon had such a funny look on his face as to why he had to go to bed during the middle of the day. I asked Makell about the situation, and she told me that he needed a nap. I had to explain to her that his real mom was the one to decide that. :) As I saw Makell pushing Landon in the stroller it was evident that she wants to believe she is older than she is. One thing for sure is, Makell will be a great little babysitter when she is older. Adam and I joke around that we can totally see her ready to start a family and given the news of having quadruplets, and being totally fine with it. :)

Parade & Annual Water Fight

This years state holiday fell on a Sunday, so a lot of the towns festivities were held on Monday. We started our day off by watching the parade. I witnessed something I have never seen before. When the parade began and the American Flag approached us we all stood up and put our hand over our hearts. As the horseman carrying the flag passed by , I heard him yell, "STAND UP! This is your countries flag!" I was shocked to look over and witnessed a whole group of people still sitting down as the flag passed right in front of them. I became saddened and upset at the same time knowing that people were choosing not to honor and respect our countries flag! By standing for the flag, we honor our country, and those who attempt to serve it in so many different ways. It gives me great appreciation for where I live and the freedoms I am privileged to enjoy! It's sad that those who live and enjoy the "land of the free" wont stand up and support it. :(

As the parade continued I wasn't quite sure what to think about the local county jails entry. A few men in jump suits were riding in the back of a truck as an entry for the parade. That's definitely something we don't want to encourage! The kids were a little disappointed to find out that no one was allowed to throw out candy. During the parade my dear friend Donna walked by with a bag full of candy. Her son was in the parade and had purchased candy to throw, only to find out that he couldn't. Donna started unloading her candy on my kids. Before we knew it she was surrounded by multiple groups of kids kids hoping to get a piece of candy. Donna always saves the day! She's awesome!

After the parade we went over to Matt and Janette's house for our annual BBQ and water fight! This is one of many favorite traditions! It must be the kids satisfaction in drenching the parents! Matt purchased some surgical tubing so we could somewhat have a chance fighting back! Surgical tubing was the water toy from my era! We had some interesting and troubling times with those growing up! Three feet of tubing filled with water quickly turned into about twelve feet! It was awesome! Adam and I turned them loose on the kids! It made it all worth it!

Swimming

The girls just finished swimming lessons this past week. I have been so impressed with the progress they have made! I'm not sure if it is the maturity of the girls or the teaching technique of the teacher that has made such a difference this year? Makell absolutely loves the water! Her teacher Kalie gave her the nickname of "little fish." If the other kids were struggling to get their dive toy, Makell would volunteer to get it for them. The majority of the lessons were spent under the water. :) She loved doing star fish floats. I was amazed at how long she can float for! Kaitlyn did awesome! Her self confidence has soared by leaps and bounds! She loved having races with Kourtney to see who could swim the length of the pool the fastest! Kourtney is amazing! I loved watching her gracefulness as she would swim laps in the pool. Her teacher really worked on the breathing technique with her and she had it down in no time! Adam and I laugh because our kids swim better than we do! We felt reassured by our kids when they told us that if we were ever in trouble while swimming, they could save us! :)

Island Adventure Camp

Talk about one busy summer! I thought the summer months were suppose to be relaxing while taking things easy, but NO... it has been everything but that! I feel like we were hardly home during the months of June and July! With family vacations, girls camp, JYC camp, Island Adventure camp, swimming, and sporting games, the last few months have been a blur. Now we get to begin the "prepare for school craze" which is right around the corner! I will say that I have only heard once this summer that the kids were board and had nothing to do. With only one complaint, I will consider the summer a success!