1st Grade jitters!

Sadly, our summer came and went too fast! Today,Jaeden started 1st grade!! I can't believe how the time has flown by. I remember blogging about her first day of kindergarten like it was yesterday.

Last night we put Jaeden to bed early and when I got up to shut the door, she started crying (which she never does). So I asked what was wrong and she just kept telling me that she wasn't tired...at that point I knew anxiety was setting in. Jaeden usually will not come right out and tell me what's wrong. So I proceeded to tell her how I used to get nervous before the first day of school, even in high school and college...didn't we all? I always hated feeling that way before school started, so I just laid with her until she fell asleep. My poor baby! Thankfully, these pictures don't show how nervous she really was!
Had to get the most important picture...The backpack, of course!!
After beggin Talan to take a picture with his sister, this is what we got. Jaeden had to sneak in and Talan HAD to have his sword!!
Today she woke up happy and still anxious, but at least she was willing to get ready. Luckily for me, her teacher already needed a volunteer the first day!! So we dropped off Talan at Logan's house (thanks Denise!) and headed to school. On the way to school Jaeden says, "mom, my belly really hurts". I reassured her that it was okay and after today she would feel much better. We arrived at school and found lots of her friends (even though she wouldn't leave my side) and my friends too :-) and we all melted in the heat as we waited for the bell to ring. Not sure why I even bothered with a shower! I'm glad I was able to stay in class with her today and I can't wait to pick her up and hear about the rest of her day!! PS...NO, I did not cry :-) Shocker!
Lining up with her new class!Some friends!!

Bows

Since Jaeden goes to a school where uniforms are required and everyone looks the same, I have to at least dress her hair up! Who am I kidding, everyone that knows me, knows I love to have Jaeden's hair all done up, bows and all!! I have been busy getting her bows made for first grade. I think this will probably be the last year that I can get away with having her all "dolled" up. So sad! My little girl is growing up. Hopefully I will be able to pass all of these on to my sister, I'm crossing my fingers for a little girl! :-)

Jumpin through hoops!

We did swim lessons this year and thankfully it paid off!! Talan did so well with this being his first year. We did private swim lessons for 8 days in a row for both kids, and ended up doing another round of 8 days. So all together just 16 days and they can swim!!
The first couple of days Talan cried, but after that he was begging to go first. At the end of each lesson they got to jump through a hula hoop, each lesson it kept getting higher and higher. Here's T:

In teaching Talan to learn to take a breath, his coach had him come up for air and say "hi". Talan was so funny doing this!

Jaeden picked up right where she left off left last year and did SO much better. She learned freestyle, the breast stroke (aka Frog kick), the back stroke and the last day she got introduced to the dolphin kick. Jaeden is so excited that she can swim and keeps asking when we are going to get a pool. It's funny, because up to this point she has had no interest in EVER getting a pool. We are so proud of both of them!!!! However...we will always be watching!


Thanks to Big John for teaching our kids to swim. We are so relieved and happy at the same time!
PS...Yes I finally learned how to put videos on my blog!! Not with the video camera though, only my blackberry seems to work.

Coupon Craze!

I'm exploring the world of coupons and loving it! I have always used them, but never consistently and usually without doing any research. I am SUPER excited for my first real good deal. I NEVER buy Eggo waffles, etc. but this was such a good deal that I couldn't pass it up. Target had Eggo Bakeshop waffles 2 for $3.00. I got four boxes, for each I had a $1.00 coupon off, so I ended up getting each box for .50 cents!!! SCORE! Now hopefully my kids will eat them.
Overall, I ended up going Fry's with some more coupons and spending $18 on milk, produce, and other randoms. After saving $13.00 in coupons at my target visit, I came out right about $50 for both stores and lots of grocerys!! I will keep posting my good deals and more secrets that I'm learning.

Random pics of T-bone!

Talan is in between the stages of wanting a nap and thinking he's too big for naps. So one afternoon he insisted that he wasn't tired. I agreed to let him watch a movie on the couch and this is how I found him a few moments later. My sweet boy, just listen to your mom! Talan's new love is SPIDERMAN!! He still loves all of the other superheroes, but will sit and watch spiderman over and over again if I let him. He pretends he's spidey, and sprawls his fingers out like a web slinger. We often find him "climbing" the carpet! I know that's not possible, but it's his only option as we won't let him climb walls:-) Imagine that!
Spivey and Talan on a motorbike. Talan's the one behind the hulk mask!! Nice girl hat Spivey..that's Jaeden's!
Talan and Zach wearing Chad's shoes. I found them in the hallway like this. These are the cute moments that I will cherish!!

Goodbye Kindergarten :-(

Kindergarten graduation came way to soon for Chad and I. It seems like she just started school and now it's over. We are so proud of her and how much she has grown up over this past year, but it makes us both very sad! Her favorite thing about kindergarten was of course her awesome teacher, Miss Wagter! We truly were so blessed to get such a great teacher and friend. We will miss her very much! This is her on "Crazy day" where she got to be completely mismatched. We loved putting all of her bows to good use! Jaeden is now officially reading!!! She has such a love for reading and I often find her just curled up in a book. This was probably her most proud moment of kindergarten...recieving her first dog tag! After so many more books, she gets another and another, etc. It's a great program to keep kids interested in reading and achieving their goals. We are so proud of her. Now Chad and I can't keep secrets by spelling out words!
The celebration and lots of beautiful flowers!




Goodbye Kindergarten, HELLO first grade!

Muffins with Mom

I am once again catching up on blogs that should have been posted a month ago! Story of my life.
Just as Jaeden had "Donuts with Dad" a few months ago, I was rather pleased when I got an invitation for "Muffins with Mom"! I was treated like a queen...literally, crown and all. She served me a plate full of grapes, cheesecake, and muffins of course! After the yummy treats, all the kids sang the cutest songs in our honor. It was fun to spend the afternoon in her classroom and especially with her.
This is what I found on Jaeden's desk when I arrived. A crown, potted plant, poems, and artwork!


This little fact sheet was the best!!! I'm not sure if you can see it, but according to Jaeden I only weigh 42 pounds and I am 6 feet tall!!! I love her!