Teeth

She FINALLY lost a tooth.  She has been so anxious to lose a tooth,  all of her friends and classmates have already reached that milestone.  A couple weeks ago we noticed that her bottom middle permanent teeth were coming in behind the baby teeth. One tooth was a little loose but the other was not at all.  I called the dentist and they said to work on wiggling it for two weeks and if its not out by then to call back.  She wiggled a bunch and finally on June 16th her tooth fell out as she was brushing her teeth.  The other tooth was still pretty tight so I called the dentist back and they scheduled her to come in and have it pulled.  The day before the appointment she bit into her protein bar and made it super loose.  But she wouldn't wiggle it or let me touch it, she said it hurt to bad.  They next morning I took her to the dentist, the tooth was just barely hanging on so all they did a quick 1-2-3 pull and the tooth was out.  

Swimming lessons

We just finished two weeks of swimming lessons.  And the best part was having friends in their classes.  On the last day of class they let the kids play around in the pool, go down the slide and play on the lily pads.  We had a little drama with the slide, Leila is not quite tall enough to go down by herself but between Leila's tears and me talking with the life guards they agreed that she could do it solo.  As soon as class was over a huge Midwestern storm rolled in, complete with thunder, lightening and hours of rain.  

Blast Ball

We signed Grey up for Blast ball this spring and he had a great time.  Blast ball is a very laid back version of t-ball.  Every Saturday they would practice as a team for about 15 minutes and then scrimmage for about 30 minutes.  Each player got a turn to hit the ball and no one was every out, no competition whatsoever.  Some of the boys on his team were pretty aggressive when it came to going after the ball, they would tackle each other trying to get it and Grey pretty much stayed out of any fight.  He was just happy to stand in the outfield and get the ball if it came to him.   Grey loved finally getting a turn to play a sport.

Recent stuff

Just some journaling and things I want to remember.

1.  School is out and so we are trying to get into a routine with everyone home.  I've come up with a couple of chores and reading they have to do each day and then they can play.  I've also tried to be less structured so that they can just be kids and play.  We've talked about things they want to do this summer like going to the fair, library, zoo,baseball games and the swimming pool, but they also love the freedom of just being able to play and be outside.  We kind of wing it each day, if we feel like swimming then we go, if we plan something but then they decide they just want to play with their friends outside that's OK too.  Leila, Grey and Asher are getting so big and playing really well together, they can spend an entire afternoon playing some game or imagining some magic land they all live in.  Don't get me wrong, they still fight and argue but for the most part they are just happy to play together.  Hopefully this continues all summer long.

(Grey can either read books with me or practice writing his name or other letters for his chore.  He really struggled with writing his name but his cute preschool teacher made this chart for him and it just clicked.)

2.  My kids are getting so big.  The other night I sent them upstairs to get their pajamas on and they all came down ready for bed.  When did they all get big enough to dress themselves?  Going somewhere is not a huge hassle, they can get on their own shoes and get in the car.  It sure is nice but I sure miss my little babies.  I already posted this picture but I wanted to mention how big they all look in it.

3.  We had ward boundaries realigned.  I'm not going to lie, I was really upset, dare I say furious.  In my mind what they did was logical, our ward was huge, busting out of our tiny building.  The other ward was tiny, barely functioning and not even able to fill the chapel.  I understood the need for it but change is hard.  And I know the gospel is true no matter what ward you are in but again change is hard.  It is hard to lose some of your dearest friends who are more like family (I know they are still my friends even if they are in another ward), I just don't like it.  Most of my really close friends ended up in the other ward and poor Leila lost all of her friends.  She cried during the entire meeting and told me she was never going back to church.  I knew then that I needed to change my attitude and really work to be more positive to help Leila see that it was going to be OK.  Our first week as a new ward was last Sunday and it was a little weird, it just felt small and like I was a visitor but I do know that it will be OK.  Leila came around to the changes once she learned I was called to be 1st counselor in the primary presidency, she is so excited to have me in the primary.  I'm pretty excited too and nervous but I truly love being in the primary.

4.  We started a garden!  The thought of starting one overwhelmed me even thought I really wanted one so just put it off.  Well my visiting teacher really pushed me to do one and I'm s happy we did it.  I built some raised garden beds and a fence to keep the bunnies out.  We planted zucchini, green beans, carrots, tomatoes, sweet and hot peppers, lettuce, spinach, basil and strawberries.  The kids have loved watching everything grow.

5. We have been putting our swim pass to good use.  Lots of day spent at the pool, sometimes we go for a couple hours and sometimes for 45 minutes.  All 3 love the water!

6.  Leila finished pre-team gymnastics and moved to level 3 on the compulsory team.  She is now practicing MW from 4-8 and F from 1-5.  Its a lot of hours in the gym but she loves it.  We had an ice cream party with her pre-team on the last day of practice and then on the first day of team practice at the end they had a pool party with level 3 and 4 girls.  

7.  We went to Home Depot to get materials to build a kip bar for Leila and happened to go during their kids workshop so we let the kids build the project.

And here is our finished project, a bar for Leila to practice on.  And the funny thing is all the kids in the neighborhood love it.  Most afternoons the kids are lined up waiting for a turn on it.  

8.  Our kids are worn out most evenings, between playing with neighborhood friends, swimming, swimming lessons, library visits, park visits, gym and just summer time fun they are tire little kids.  

May 2014

I'm so behind so here are  a bunch of pictures of May and what I can remember of it.

Lots of playing outside!

Greydon started t-ball on Saturday mornings.  He has loved playing!

The farmers market is open for the season, we've already been a few times.  The kids love picking out a treat.

Greydon participated in the ward talent show, he sang with a group of primary kids.  They of course sang "Let it Go" from Frozen

Greydon got a a much needed haircut.  He didn't want to take baths anymore because when his hair was wet it was heavy and dripped water down his face.  He loves his new do and nobody recognizes him.  

I got to go to a Mother's day breakfast at Leila's school.  We enjoyed cinnamon rolls and juice.  I love getting to spend time with Leila at school.  May also brought an end to my volunteering every week in Leila's class, I loved the time I got to spend there getting to know the other kids in her class and her teacher and of course being with Leila.  

We played in the sprinkler and on the slip 'n slide.  All three love playing in the water!  Asher is a little stinker and has been known to turn the hose on and spray anyone he can find including the neighbors.  

Greydon had his end of preschool celebration.  They invited the parents to play games outside and then watch a slide show of the year.  Greydon has loved preschool this year and all his friends in his class.  

There was lots of playing with neighbors and being outside.  Every time I turned around Greydon was running outside to find friends.

Going out for ice cream!

And going on bike rides.  

The last day of school was May 27th.  The year flew by but we were definitely ready for a break.  Its nice to have some lazy mornings and no homework.  

Greydon loved Ms. Emilee and is so excited he gets to have her again next year. 

Leila was so lucky to have Mrs. Burk this year, she is a fabulous teacher, one that truly loves teaching and has a talent for it.  We were sad and excited that she had a baby in March, but Leila had an excellent long term substitute named Mrs. McDaniel.  It was a great year at Ashland Ridge.  We are now moving to the new school Rock Creek.  You gotta love growth and boundary changes;)

When they got home from school we had our traditional streamers and Popsicles.  

That pretty much sums up our month!