Matthew

Matthew finally came home for the weekend! We hadn't seen him since the first of August when he left for school. It was a quick whirlwind trip - he drove home late Saturday night after his football game and had to leave after dinner on Sunday - but it was necessary to finalize and submit his mission papers. All the kids were really excited to see him and loved every minute he spent with them. We're excited for the next time we see him - most likely it will be when he gets his mission call!

Red

We went to a ward BBQ for the BYU/Utah game on the 17th. We ate great food with great company and enjoyed a great game. The kids had a blast running around with friends and occasionally would tune into the game. Needless to say, we were extremely happy with the outcome. GO UTES! 

GNO ... almost

On 9.16 Jeff was reffing a football game and Ryan was on a camping trip with Sam. So Jenn came over with her girls and we had pizza, made hair clips, and watched The Swan Princess and ate popcorn. Jacob didn't seem to mind that he was the only boy around. He has a lot of fun with Ally and Sara, absolutely loves baby Kate and his sister Emily, and can't ever get enough of Gracie. It was a fun night.

Fair

We went to the State Fair on the 13th with my mom and Stacy and her kids. The Little Hands on the Farm was amazing. The kids each got a bucket and an apron and went to a granary and got some corn. Then we went to the dairy and fed the cow the corn and then Emily got to milk the cow. Jacob wouldn't go near it - even though it wasn't real.

 Then the kids got to pick some apples, plant some 'seeds', harvest their vegetables, gas up a tractor and ride it around.

 Then they got to brush a sheep, gather some eggs, and then turn in all their goods in for a paper dollar. Then the last building was a store where they could buy a treat with their dollar. It was well done and the kids had a blast.

 Riding the BIG slide

 Visiting the animals

 We got to get a treat at the end and of course Emily chose chocolate ice cream. It was a lot of fun and great to spend time together and with some cousins and grandma.

Chocolate U

 9.10.11 - The kids and Jeff were decked out in red and U gear for the game...

 ...at least until I had chocolate beaters.

Both our kids LOVE chocolate and Jeff and I don't really care for it. We once asked Emily where she came from and her response was, "chocolate world."

After eating lots of chocolate ice cream at the street ice cream party on 9.12.11

Ballerina

Emily started dance again today. She was excited to see Miss Julie again, to have Mamie from preschool in her class and also several of the girls from last time in her class again. She's learning lots and I love seeing how much her dancing and prancing around the house has evolved in the last year. We're looking forward to her Frosty the Snowman dance this Christmas.

Bookworm

This morning I asked Emily if she would keep an eye on Jacob while I showered. When I got out I found them cuddled up on her bed reading. Emily has always loved books and is doing REALLY well with her reading. Jacob has just started getting into books and I will often find him in the rocking chair with a stack of books next to him. I love it!

Bapa

After Sunday dinner at my parents house on the 5th, Jackson, Emily & Jacob went out to jump on the tramp. A few minutes later Grandpa (or according to Jacob, Bapa) came out to play. They were screaming, laughing and kept trying to 'save' each other while yelling, "Grandpa, don't get me!" But of course they just couldn't stop jumping outside of Grandpa's reach. You gotta love Grandpas!

Two Wheels

All summer we planned on teaching Emily to ride her her bike without training wheels. Then suddenly it was September and school had started and we realized we still hadn't even attempted. So on 9.03.11 Jeff took of her training wheels and we headed over to the elementary school. Jacob LOVES Emily's bike and helmet. Whenever he sees it he puts her helmet on (backwards every time) and climbs on her bike and just sits there. He wasn't too happy when he realized that without training wheels he can't sit on it.   While Emily learned, Jacob played. I can't believe how big he's gotten. I think it's always a monumental moment when you realize that they can climb and play on a playground without your assistance.

 Jeff was a great teacher and after several tries Emily figured it out. She was still a bit wobbly, could only turn right, and had several falls, but she was excited and happy about it and we're proud of her. As she's practiced over that last little bit she's gotten better and braver too.

 Jacob running to 'save' her after one of her falls.

Sleepover

On 9.02.11 Jeff and Emily slept out on the tramp. Emily was SO exicted to have a special night with daddy and to sleep out. They spent some time pointing out stars and talking. Then fell asleep pretty quickly. Jeff woke up in the middle of the night and said Emily was freezing. So he just carried her inside and put her in her bed - sleeping bag and all.

Maybe next year we can fit it in early in the summer so it's warmer!

School

Emily has been SO excited to start kindergarten. I got her a kindergarten workbook a while ago and she loves working in it. She told me a couple weeks ago that she better hurry and finish before school starts. I didn't think she needed to be that far ahead of everyone else and told her she could work on it if she wanted, but that she didn't need to finish it.
This week was busy. We met with her teacher on Monday for her assessment (she did very well) and she got to see her classroom. I also picked up a bus schedule and talked to Emily about where the bus would drop her off and where she needed to go. Tuesday evening we celebrated our 'last night of summer' and went to Tucano's (thank you Mike!). Emily LOVES that place and was very excited to go. Emily insisted on only getting fried bananas and fruit on her plate so she could leave room for all the meat. Good thing we don't go there very often! Her favorite meat is chicken heart and Jeff thinks she ate around 20!
Wednesday morning was a typical morning with waking up and getting ready. However Emily did everything a bit faster than usual and was ready and wanting to go 45 min before the bus was even supposed to come! We ate up some time by reviewing where she was supposed to go and taking some pictures.  Then it was off to meet the bus.



 

 Jeff came home at lunch so he could see Emily off as well. After she got on the bus we jumped in the car and drove to the school and met her there. I was able to get a couple pictures of Emily and her friend Mollie getting off the bus and walking over to the kindergarten playground.

 We snapped a few pictures - one with Miss Mary, all the girls in the ward that are in the same class, sitting at her table and her cubby with supplies. Then once Miss Mary had all the kids lined up, they waved to their parents, blew a kiss, and walked inside. Oh how I wish I could have been a fly on the wall!

 Emily had a good and successful first day of kindergarten and made it home safely. She sat with the neighbor girls who are 8 and 9 and they walked her home. It took quite a bit of coaxing to get her to tell us anything about what she did. But we finally got a little bit out of her. It took 2 cinnamon rolls and all afternoon though. Emily arrived home happy but shortly got emotional and started crying when she realized her brother was already up from his nap and she wouldn't get 'Emily Time.' (Time with just mom and time for her to play by herself). I was able to calm her down and we read a few stories together before she got to play alone and that seemed to help.
That night, per tradition, we had a fancy dinner. Emily lives for these dinners (we only have them twice a year). I made one of her favorites - cranberry chicken & wild rice. We ate on the china, had pink lemonade in goblets, and had candles burning. Jacob is still too young to handle the china so he had a normal plate and a plastic goblet from the kids kitchen. Both kids loved the lemonade and being able to say "cheers."

 After dinner was cleaned up Emily got to skype with Gma & Gpa Holbrook in Russia. The kids loved seeing them and it was good to hear updates on how the work is going in their mission.

We had a successful first week of school and I've enjoyed having the quiet afternoons to myself while Emily's at school and Jacob's napping.  And it was a bit weird for me to put Emily on a bus and just send her off. I was used to walking her into her preschool classroom and making sure she was situated before leaving. I also got to chat with the other moms and her teacher so I got to know them pretty well - plus we co-oped together. Now with my mom working and Jeff's mom in Russia, I can't really help out in the classroom much because of Jacob, so I'm not as likely to get to know the other moms and kids in Emily's class as well. It's all just different. But I'm excited for Emily and how much she's going to learn and grow this year. Beacon is a great school and Mary is a wonderful teacher. We're just all going to be going through some adjustments this fall. Today I was watching two of my brother's kids and we were all out back playing when I suddenly realized that it was early day. I ran in and checked the time the bus was supposed to come and I had 10 minutes to get Emily ready, fed and to the stop!! I rushed the kids inside and had her go to the bathroom and get her backpack while I quickly threw some crackers and banana bread in lunch bags. Then I put Jacob & Cameron in the double stroller and we all raced up the street. Thankfully we made the bus and Emily was able to get to school ok, albeit she came home more hungry than usual. So I'm not used to having a normal school schedule and having to deal with a bus. But I'm thinking/hoping we can get things figured out and get used to it in the next few weeks. But if not I've at least got the next 20 years to practice, right?