The Tooth Fairy

Guess who lost her first tooth... Miss Kadee! It has been loose for quite some time, but she wouldn't let any of us pull it. The kids had dentist appointments and Jennie, the dental assistant, put some numbing gel on it and I pulled it right out. She is so excited to get a visit from the tooth fairy.

Big girls don't cry...

Guess who learned to crawl out of her crib? Yes, you guessed it, little Miss Kin. So I took it down today and the last 2 nights she has slept in a toddler bed. Tear, I am so sad! Why do they have to grow up so fast?

Valentines Boxes

This year Rory helped Connor make an Angry Birds Valentine Box. Kadee made a cute mail truck at school, and Kinlee didn't make anything, but enjoyed all the Valentine goodies. Debbie had her annual Valentine Dinner and all the kids had a Valentine Party at school. I really appreciate all the hard work that goes into parties and Holidays. I think we sometimes forget how hard the teachers and volunteers work to make sure it's successful. My kids have the best teachers and I am so grateful for them. We had parent teacher conferences last week and they had nothing but good things to say about my kids. The kids are both doing so well in school and were able to set some goals with their teachers. Kadee's goal was to be on Level D of the leveled reading books by the end of Kindergarten and to make all of Mrs. Penry's 100% club groups (she only has the math one left). Connor's goal was to learn to play the guitar (oh boy!) and to complete the third grade sight word list. That's right, he is already working on his third grade sight words! That boy is a reader! I am super proud of both my kiddos and can't wait to see the wonderful things life has in store for them.

Today my beautiful little girl turned 6!!!! I can't believe it! We had her party last night and had so much fun. Four of her friends from school came over and we went to CEU Cosmetology to have their fingers and toes painted. Something very special was the fact that Nana Kelli is going to school to become a nail tech so she got to paint Kadee's nails. They loved it and all the girls were so well behaved. Afterward we came back to our house and had pizza and cupcakes. Kadence opened presents and then we took all the girls home. One little girl told me it was the best birthday party ever, I'm so glad they had fun!

Today I was the mystery reader in Kadee's class. Not only did I get to s urprise her with a fun book and activities (the book was It Looked Like Spilled Milk) I got to bring cupcakes to her and all her friends. After school she went shopping with Grandma Debbie and then Rory and I took her to dinner at the Cowboy Club. The fun didn't stop there, after that we headed to the Wellington PTA Valentine Carnival. It was such a blast! The kids ran around and won tons of fun prizes. I think she had a great day and I am so proud to be her mama.

Kadee's top 6:
Friends:
1. Breanna
2. Haylie
3. MyKella
4. Valyssa
5. Ayva
6. Shalyce

Food:
1. Pizza
2. Apples
3. Oranges
4. Turkey
5. Chili
6. Toaster Strudels

Toys:
1. Password Journal
2. American Girl Doll
3. Justin Beiber Doll
4. Electric Scooter
5. Shoes
6. Bedazzler

Diversity Means...

As I posted earlier, Kadence won 1st place in Reflections at her school. It went to regionals where it was up against all the Kindergartners in Carbon and Emery Counties. She places 3rd at regionals and we are so proud of her. Last night she got to go to an awards ceremony and read her story. She was too shy to read her story to the group, so Nana Kelli read it for her.

This is her story:
At our house, we have lots of animals and they are all different colors and they get along with each other. We have turkeys, and we have a dog, and we have one cat, and we have 2 rabbits. They all eat together, sleep together, and play together. They swing together, dance together, and sing together. The animals are welcome to play with each other, they don't care about the other animals being different colors, they are just friends forever. I hope all the families can learn that some families are black, white, brown, and they still can like each other, they don't need to hate each other.


Connor started another fun filled basketball season. This year he is playing for Wellington Rec and with the 2nd graders in Carbon Rec. He really enjoys it and is getting really good.

We had our first snow day of the season. Kinlee was in heaven. She was obsessed with the snow and cried every time I tried to take her inside. We tried to build a fort, but just ended up with a big pile of snow. Oh well, we had fun anyway.

Rory has been a drug tracker for Carbon County for about 3 years now. He loves it and I really enjoy the hours. He has had weekends and holidays off and we have become so spoiled. Well, they are short handed on road deputies, so they put Rory back on the road for a couple months. I have been so stressed. I worry so much when he is on the road and I hate that now we only know his schedule a month in advance. Let's hope it doesn't become permanent and he can go back to his drug tracker position soon.

Happy 2012!!

2012 is off to a busy start! On Dec. 30 Connor had to get a semi permanent tube in his left ear. This is the 4th tube in that ear. I didn't even know he was having problems, he never complained of it hurting, but he failed his hearing test at school so we took him to an ENT to see what was up. The ear drum in his left ear was deflated, so they needed to put a tube in to strengthen it so it will eventually stay inflated on its own. He did really well with the surgery and was such a trooper. He couldn't eat anything after midnight the night before his surgery and they didn't take him back until 2:30 so he was starving. He never cried though, he just kept asking when he could eat. We took him in for his follow up today and he passed his hearing test- yay! Hopefully this will make a difference and we can correct his ear problems for good.

This years reflection theme was "Diversity Means..." Kadence decided she wanted to write a story and enter it in the reflections competition. She wrote a story about our animals. She explained how they are all very different, but get a long great. Well we found out today that she won 1st place in her grade. We are so proud of her! She gets a trophy and gets to read her story at regionals. She is very excited and can't wait for her trophy.

We waited, and waited, and waited... and finally... on Christmas.... Kinlee got her first tooth! Yay for teeth! Then yesterday, another tooth broke through! She looks so cute with her 2 little teeth and is getting so stinkin big. I keep telling her to slow down and she keeps telling me, "No!"

Top 10 of 2011

1. Kinlee turned one! She is growing like a weed. On Christmas day she got her first tooth and is talking like crazy, it makes me sad my baby is growing so fast! This year she experienced many firsts, like walking, running, dancing, and talking.

2. Kadence started Kindergarten. She is so smart and is doing so well. I really love her teacher, she makes learning so fun. Some of the fun things she has already done this year are: field trips, pretend airplane rides around the world, met Santa, made a candy Christmas train, Christopher Columbus came to visit, they got to meet a banker, a cop, and an ambulance driver, and I got to be the mystery reader in her classroom.

3. Connor started 1st grade. He also played baseball, flag football, and is in the school choir. He is a fantastic reader and loves to learn. He insists he is going to be a professional football or basketball player when he grows up and practices hard all year long.

4. We finished our family room in the basement. It is so nice to have a place for the kids toys, a fireplace, and somewhere Rory and Connor can watch all the sports they want.

5. Rory FINALLY put rock around my tub. It looks so nice and completes one of the major projects on my honey do list.

6. We accumulated a LOT of animals. We went from no pets to; 2 rabbits, 4 turkeys, a cat (who had kittens), and a dog. It had been so crazy but the kids love it. Our little puppy raider is my favorite addition, although the turkeys are so fun to watch. They follow us around and when Kinlee gobbles at them, they gobble back.

7. Rory got to go Elk hunting at the Mathis ranch. He shot a nice bull and of course had an amazing time. He got called into the Elder's Quorum Presidency and between his church calling and working 2 jobs he is staying super busy.

8. I took on a 3rd preschool class and got a job as the secretary at Price River Water Users. I am a little overwhelmed, but I know it will all work out for my family in the long run. Starting in January I won't be teaching the 3rd preschool class anymore, and the secretary job is only 2 days a week so I am slowly adjusting.

9. This past week we took our annual after Christmas trip to Salt Lake. We went on a carriage ride around temple square, walked through the temple grounds to look at the lights, visited with Wally & Kristene, went to the Children's museum, and swam until we were all worn out. It was such a fun getaway and I am so grateful for the time with my family. This summer we were able to go to Cherry Hill, Lagoon, and the Zoo. We were also able to go on a couple camping trips not too far from our house. Although most of our trips are in the state of Utah, we enjoy them nonetheless.

10. Rory won 2 Utah Jazz contests. This was a dream come true for him and we had so much fun meeting the players and dancers. The odds of winning were very slim, so the fact that he won 2 contests is crazy. I like that he is lucky, I get to reap the benefits. :)