Teagan participated in the Great Pumpkin Race this year. She ran 600 meters and finished 7th amongst the whole kindergarten group! Way to go Teagan. She ran the whole way, too. And for all that hard work... she got to pick out a pumpkin.

This is how Kyre was found the other day. He had found both Teagan and Kaelsy's backpacks and decided that he would haul them around for awhile. The bee on Teagan's bed... the only thing we have found that will keep Kyre from climbing on her bed. He hates the thing and won't go near it. :-) Thank goodness for small favors!

Teagan got a "Safety Award" at school the other day during the assembly. Not only was it a surprise getting the award, but we all got a surprise when the "Wild Things" came out and performed for the crowd. I think there were a few of Teagan's classmates that actually cried when some crazy guy in a wild black wig and retro purple and orange outfit started running around. Who was that freak?

Kaelsy's #3 Birthday With a Sophie Cake

After Teagan got her castle cake, all Kaelsy could talk about was wanting a Sophie cake (Sophie being my mother's pug) for her birthday. So, after doing some searching on the internet, I found a pretty simple one and went with it. It was a hit, thankgoodness. She loved the cake and her presents. She got a little baby (one to join the other 20), a baby car seat, tool set, shoes and money. She was suppose to get a pug purse, too, but it hadn't arrived in the mail yet. Maybe she will get it tomorrow on her actual birthday. I don't know what Kaelsy will do without her Sophie when we move out of mom's place. That dog has been a great friend to her.

The Grant County Fair

All three kiddos had a blast at the fair this year. We were not too sure about Kyre, but he did great with the rides. The petting zoo was a hit for all of them. Poor Teagan, getting the "short" end of the genes are really hurting her thrill seeking moments. Every ride she was interested in... sorry, too short. She must be getting tired of hearing the "maybe next year" statement from both Brady and I. So, she settled for the "little" kiddie rides again. She loves the roller coasters! Kaelsy...anything that lets her kick back and relax.

Teagan's First Day of School

Teagan was so excited for her first day of school. She picked her own outfit out the night before and was up in plenty of time the next morning. She was rearing to go from that moment. Brady of course was the proud papa getting to take her to what we now call "their" school (it is not just daddy's now). She found her name right away on the Kindergarten wall and loved her teacher Ms. Stevens right away. She already is talking about a new best friend, Camille, and a not so nice boy that slowly became nicer. Drama already. *sigh*

Kaelsy loves her bike helmet that she got from her Aunt Janet. Now mind you, she doesn't have a bike, just a little Fisher Price Tryke, but that doesn't matter. She just loves to wear it around, and it must be on backwards. The other day, she came out of her room just as it shows in the pictures. What an outfit! I just love that girl.

Kyre was sitting up at the counter like a big boy with his sisters. He loved it, until he slipped. He then decided to hide in the sheers. Finally he did make it up into his high chair and proceeded to fall asleep as I got the girls lunch ready. He obviously didn't care for waiting on me.

Random pictures from Arizona

The trip down and over was quite the trip. The kids got to take a break at a rest stop and got a treat from the truck drivers. They loved to get the drivers to honk their horns! They had a blast with Brady's family: going in the woods, seeing wildlife, going to the park, riding on four wheelers, seeing a great fireworks show thanks to Brady's dad, catching crayfish and so much more. They keep asking why Nana and Granddad have to live so far away. I wonder the same thing. :-)

Kyre's First Hair Cut

I truly loved his little curls on the nape of his neck, but... Since all of us girls were getting our hair cut, I figured the boy could get his turn, too. At first he thought sitting up on the high seat was pretty neat. He even found the clippers and their noise interesting, too. The vibrations on the back of his neck were a different story. Thank goodness for Melanie. I know I wouldn't have been able to do it. So quick and efficient and she turned my boy into a handsome little fellow, also. Thanks Mel!

Kyre Turns 1
So, this entry is a little late. His birthday was the 27th but we decided to celebrate it on Memorial Day, so family could be there. Out of the three kids, Kyre is the most active and yet he was the most mellow at his first birthday. Go figure. He liked the cupcake...throwing it more than eating it. And if it wasn't for his sisters helping, he would still be trying to open his presents to this day.

Graduation
Teagan graduated from pre-school Saturday, the morning of her birthday party (it was quite the busy day). She was so excited to get up with her class and sing the songs that they have worked on all year. She even got a scrapbook with a lot of her work throughout the year. She couldn't wait to show it to us. Now we just have to explain it to her that she is completly done with pre-school. Just today she asked when she could go back. She will love kindergarten!

A Princess Turns 5 II: The Party

A Princess Turns 5 I
Day one: On Teagan's actual birthday, she got to open her presents from the family. But of course all she could think about was her first party with all of her friends coming over the next day. She was all over me in the kitchen making sure I did not mess up her cake. Talk about pressure, since her year one cake looked like the leaning tower of Pisa.

Carnival Time

Another Lost Tooth

Since Teagan lost her last tooth she has been asking us when she could loose another one. (She is a strange duck.) Well... the wait is over. Last week she mentioned that she had another loose tooth and very diligently she has been working it back and forth since yesterday. And again, with her father's encouragement she pulled it out herself for the second time. What a kid! Mine would hang by a thread and I still would not try to pull it and I would run if anybody suggested they would!

Our Little Mountain Climber...

On one of the first nice sunny days we had, Brady suggested that we go outside and get some family pictures. Nothing special was done. We went out as we were for the day. I am glad that he did suggest it though (I did balk at the idea at first) because I think we got some cute ones of the kids. The family one was okay, but the one with Brady and me... well... there are just so few pics of us together, so... I left it in.

A few random pics from the last month...

Teagan has been working on her letters and is constantly asking us how to spell words. She loves writing everybody's name. This is her latest work with little embellishments done all on her own!

Kyre, Kyre, Kyre...

Today I went to start the dishwasher, and behold there was no knob to turn it on. Of course, we all assumed it was Kaelsy right off the bat and blamed her. She of course blamed Kyre and well... she was right. After getting the whole family involved in the hunt, it was found... in their bedroom. Kyre has become the little criminal lately and some of these pictures are evidence of his weapon of choice (teeth). He bites everything including us! Thank goodness my mom's furniture is already somewhat distressed, but good grief this is beyond.

Kyre's taking it to the next level

Kyre loves following his sisters all around the house and yard now that he can keep up (some of the time). His sisters tolerate it for the most part and lately Kaelsy has gotten her breaks by going into the bedroom and getting on her bed. Well, that used to keep Kyre away, until now. Tonight Brady found him on the bed (he has completed climbing basics) and I was able to capture these few rare moments of Kaelsy truly enjoying her brother. We'll see how long it lasts since she has lost a "safe" haven.

Easter 2009

On Saturday, we went to my sister's house to dye eggs. Not only did we dye, we spun, we painted, we stamped, we stickered. Needless to say, there was plenty to keep the kids busy. They had fun and yes, I controlled myself again, and didn't jump in to take over. Although, I really did want to do the spinner, but I held back. The girls were so excited when they woke up to see their baskets that the Easter Bunny left them. Teagan perused all the contents while Kaelsy went straight for the chocolate. She is so my daughter! We didn't get a lot of time to do the baskets since we had to get ready for church (we have the early time -thank goodness today). The girls have wanted to wear their dresses since they got them two weeks ago. Once we got home from church, the Easter egg hunt was on even with the gusts of wind going on. Thank you Easter Bunny for not hiding them too well this year. It went quicker and we were able to get inside beore the rain hit. And where was Kyre during all the weekend festivities? Taking his naps at the best times for mom!!!

Some random happenings

Walking Disaster

So, it was only a matter of time before Kyre took his first real head dive now that he is walking everywhere. And as you can see there are two scrapes - one for each step that he tumbled down on our front step. FYI, it was Brady's watch.

KLC

Has it truly been almost four years? I am so glad we had that day where you took me and my daughter fishing. She caught her first fish with you. Our second child is honored to have your name and you are remembered everyday! Here is to you Kaelsy, we will always try to "smile, smile long!"

Spring Break

Well, Spring Break started out and continued for the most part with really awful weather (typical for us). But of course that didn't stop Brady from practicing his swing for golfing with a friend the next day. The girls love going out with him and watching until he has hit his little bucketfull into the field. Then they all go out picking them up so they can do it all over again.

Teagan has been asking to do a "slumber party" in the living room for awhile now, so, we figured break would be the perfect time. Yeah, well... Teagan lasted all of 20 minutes, complaining about the hard floor and of course since Kaelsy is "monkey-see-monkey-do", well... she didn't last long either. But since I had promised to sleep with them, we all ended up in our bed, all except Brady who had fallen asleep. Again... how do men do it? Fall asleep anywhere? I am always amazed. Even though we ended up in the nice big bed, a nice sleep did not come for me or Brady actually. While I dealt with whining kids - Teagan was either too cold or too hot and Kaelsy... well lets say that she can not be anywhere near the edge of a bed. She met the floor hard! After that she was glued to my side all night snoring. Go figure. Brady dealt with the little one getting up at least 3 times during the night. I am not sure who got the raw end of the deal that night. I think we tied.


We have had this huge blow-up soccer ball that we bought Teagan when she was one at our local Spring Festival and it has only been taped up once. Kyre now is the third to carry, kick and hit it all over the house. I just love seeing him carry it.

Yes, we got snow and on April Fools Day of all days. The girls were all excited and very stir crazy (we all were due to the lack of sun and nice weather) so I got their boots and gloves out for them and sent them on their way. Teagan then proceeded to start her own little snowmen/snowwomen family. Kaelsy tried but it was all Teagan. She even named them: Daddy, Mommy, Teagan, Kaelsy and Kyre. I didn't bother to ask which one I was.

Kyre loves watching out the front window and loves to be up on the loveseat so he is that much higher. I just love how he leans over trying to follow his sisters or dad walk by.

He still climbs but waits until we are watching. It is a fun game for him for us to "get" him. And yes, I was not thinking getting the Easter stuff out early. Kyre bee-lined it for the eggs and loves to play with them. This next weekend should be interesting. Hopefully the girls (okay, let's be realistic, I mean Kaelsy) will be nice and let him find some eggs of his own in the hunt.

No words

Kaelsy is truly our "interesting" child. I know some of you can relate - "loving yet wanting to blow-a-gasket at the same time" kind of child. She truly makes us laugh and then want to beat her at the same time. She is so expressive and one of her many little quirks is to use her eyebrows. This will give a taste. She was being silly since I was recording her, but just imagine her doing this when you are trying to scold her. Oh how we love her!

Look Who Is Walking

Yep, we have an early walker. We knew it would be soon, but we never could have guessed by 9 and a half months! Wow! After this video, there was no stopping him. Kyre is everywhere now and loving his freedom. One of his favorite games is to "chase" the girls. And they give him plenty of opportunities to play it! :-)

Growing up too fast...

Kyre, we are finding out like most kids, can be pretty resourceful. He has figured out that he can knock down the girls' little chairs from their table and use them to walk around all over the house. Stinker! He wasn't getting our fingers enough, so he figured out another way. We were all sitting in the family room doing our own little thing when my mom suddenly noticed him strut by from the dining area to the living room. Forget the more expensive Fisher Price walker that had been purchased, go for the chairs!!!

I have no other words for her except that she continued this for another minute and 30+ seconds with a short water break in between not missing one beat. Again... what can I say?

Kyre's Bath Time

Kyre loves his bath time! We finally caught some pictures of the faces we get to see every night. The great thing about these pictures is that you get to see the teeth. You've heard of the "hill-billy" teeth? Well, I did from a cousin of mine. Her little boy had some great ones and I got the biggest kick out of them... It is a good thing since I get to see my own boy with them, too. Along with the great close-ups of the teeth, is you get to see his other looks that he gives us all the time. Look out Kaelsy, you've got competition.

Teagan-ism
Teagan: How old is daddy?
Mom: Ummm 28, almost 29.
Teagan: Oh. You are older than daddy.
Mom: Yes, yes, you are right. You remember.
Teagan: And, how old are you mommy?
Mom: 34.
Teagan: HOLY-SACKA-MOLY! You are soooooooo old!


Again... out of the mouth of babes!

The Thumb and Blanket II
Teagan never put anything in her mouth. She never really attached herself to anything (well, except my hair, which she kissed last night before bed - she hasn't done that for awhile). Then Kaelsy came along and by three months she had to have her thumb and "duck" blanket (still two priorities to this day) to pacify her. Now, Kyre uses the thumb and blanket, too, but he really doesn't care what blanket he has. In fact... it could be an old sock laying around and he grabs it as the thumb goes in the mouth. I caught him the other day getting tired and finding his blanket. The progression in the pictures really doesn't do the moment justice but I tried.

Valentine's Day
Teagan had a Valentine's Day Party at pre-school on Friday. She had so much fun getting the cards ready for her classmates. She chose Barbie Valentines (no surpirse, it was either that or Princesses) and carefully thought which one should be given to whom. She even wrote her name in the "From" spot all by herself. She had a blast. It was all about manners and they got to take their favorite stuff animal to the "Tea Party" that they were having. She is truly going to love going to school next year.

Basketball Princess
Brady has this great fear that Teagan will grow up and be a cheerleader (nothing against cheering). Well, as most of you know, she has been a gym-rat since she was born with me taking her to volleyball camps, practice, and games and with Brady doing the same with basketball. He has taken her to the "Little Hoopsters" day camps that the varsity team does with the Park and Rec. here in town for the last couple of years. And this year he was bound and determined that she was going to do it during the halftime show at one of the last home games. The program is for K-6 and Teagan is just in pre-school. Even though she was the smallest and youngest, you can still see her determination to finish what she started and to do her best to try and do it right. She really loves hanging around the varsity girls and has even named some of her Barbie dolls after some of them. Notice I said Barbie dolls, because deep down she will always be a "Princess."

One of those nights...
Last night will not go down in history as one of Brady's or my favorites. Not only is Kyre still getting up a couple of times in the night, but Teagan decided to, as did Kaelsy who has not felt well these last few days. Kaelsy tried the bed with us most of the night...ughhh...she was glued to me and wouldn't let me move an inch without whining. Finally, sometime early this morning after crying and wanting down from our bed (and of course we were both too exhausted to go put her back in her bed), she somehow made her way to the couch and this is how we found her this morning. In fact... she is still like that. :-)

Kaelsy-ism
So, the other day Kaelsy was trying my patience - just a typical day with her. And as always, I had to resort to threats to get her to listen to me. After the fourth time (yes, all you experts probably have something to say to that, but I know there are some of you that can relate) trying to get her to stop doing something or other (because, of course, I don't really remember what she was doing, I just remember that she wasn't listening... I think she knows what she is doing more and more when I stop and think about it) I told her, "Someone is going to get the belt on their behind and that someone is Kaelsy!" Her reply, "Ummm, I Teagan!" Again... how can I keep a straight face with that thrown back at me? Not very well! What a kid!

Round Two
Kyre seems to have a few favorite things lately. One, he loves to pull himself up into a standing position (I hope this does not mean that he will be an early walker) and he loves the dog's kong as shown in a previous slide. Well the two favorites got combined the other night. The little chair that he can pull himself up to really good was in the perfect position for him to also go after Sophie's kong. We had purposely put it up off the floor thinking we could outsmart the boy...well, he outsmarted us and not only pulled himself up to standing position, but pulled himself up into the chair, too! And we thought Kaelsy kept us on our toes.

First Tooth!
Last Sunday Teagan was complaining about one of her teeth hurting her. When we checked it out, we couldn't believe what we found! A loose tooth! She is only 4 1/2. And Thursday night, after much working from her little finger and tongue all week she was able to pull it out with much encouragement from her father. She definitely has a greater pain tolerance than the rest of us, because I didn't think it was that loose for her to have it pulled. I was proven wrong. She was so excited that she called her Nana and Grandad right away and then wanted to go right to bed so that the Tooth Fairy would come visit her. She wasn't disappointed. The next morning she found a whole dollar under her pillow! Since when did the Tooth Fairy start giving bills? I was born in the wrong time! She has her tithing already filled out to give to the Bishop Sunday, too! What a kid!

Whose Toy Is It?
So, it isn't like we do not have lots of toys for Kyre to play with, but he always seems to find the dog's kong. Unfortunately, Kyre does not know the rules yet. He has his toys and Sophie has her toys. The whole time this was going on, Sophie kept looking at her kong and then at us as if to say, "C'mon guys, I don't get to play with the kids' toys!"