1st Grade

I can't believe my baby is in 1st grade! Mackenzie started school today and she was so excited! I was worried that she wouldn't want to wake up because she has been staying up way too late all summer so I thought that it was going to be a rough 1st week of school while she adjusts to the new scedule. But, she actually woke up before the alarm went off! She got ready so fast then was just pacing around the house for a half hour waiting for the bus to come.She was acting like she was a little nervous. She said "I know what to do right when I get to school. I have to wash my hands. But, I don't remember what I am supposed to do after that". so, I asked her if she wanted me to follow the bus to school and walk her in to her class and help her get settled. She was so funny! She said "no! I don't need you at school! I just might need you to buy me stuff". My baby is all grown up! She is becoming so independant. It's such an exciting thing to a little kid and kind of nerve wracking to be going back to school-Into a new class. I know she will do great! She has some really fun teachers. (oh, and they are cute. Mackenzie couldn't stop talking about how "cute" her teachers are.)

A Day At The Zoo!!

Dallas had the day off yesterday, so we decided to do something fun with the kids. We wanted to take them to Lagoon but it was closed so we went to the zoo. The kids always love the zoo!

In the back, you can see the baby giraffe sitting on the ground. It was pretty cute!!

Avery would not sit in the stroller, so we ended up having to carry her the whole time. I felt bad for the poor little thing. It was a bit cold and rainy at our house so I dressed her in jeans and a long-sleeved shirt so she wouldn't get cold and we took jackets for Kenzie and Gavin. It was HOT!! She didn't seem to mind though.
As always, we rode on the train. Avery HATED it! Cried the whole time! She does not like loud noises. She gets scared so easily! On our way home, we stopped in Park City and ate at Baja Cantina, my new favorite restaurant. It was a fun day!

What's a mom to do??

I love being a mom! I love my kids! I love the joy that they bring into our home. I love the sounds of laughter, I love the funny things that the kids come up with, I love it all.. Well, almost all... Lately our 4 year old angel has been going through some sort of power struggle with Dallas and I. We can't get him to do anything. We ask him to do something, and he will flat out tell us "no!" The biggest battle has been getting him to clean his room. It's not a new thing. My kids have always had to clean their own rooms and they do it every day. Lately however, Gavin has decided that he doesn't have to do it if he doesn't want to. Basically, he's decided that he doesn't have to do ANYTHING that he doesn't want to do. I will ask him to go clean it up and he will just go lay on his bed. The other day he was in there "not cleaning" and I told him that every toy that wasn't put away was going in the garbage. I gave him and hour then went in and filled 2 garbage bags with toys. He didn't even care.

Probably for the past 3 weeks, we have had the same battle every day. Today I asked him to pick up his toys and he refused, so I told him to go in his room and said that he can't come out till it's done. He was in there for a couple hours just playing, reading books, and laying on his bed. He didn't pick up even one thing so I set the timer for 30 minutes and told him that if his room isn't clean when the timer goes off, I was taking EVERY SINGLE toy in his room away. It wasn't even very messy. I could have had it done in 2 minutes. I thought he would go right in and clean it up, but he didn't. The timer went off, and he hadn't done anything. So, "What's a mom to do"?? I told him I would take the toys, so, I took the toys! I felt horrible but I have been so frustrated with him and nothing seems to work. Dallas and I bagged up every single toy in his room and locked them up in the basement. Gavin was really upset for about 10 minutes, then he got over it and now doesn't even seem to care. I think it's going to be a while before he gets any of them back. I don't know what to do with him!! He can be such a sweetheart, but he is so stubborn!! I am not one to spank or anything like that but nothing I have tried has worked with him. It might be time for some "Creative Parenting". I don't like being onry with him. I want to be positive, but I also need him to learn that he has to listen. HOW DO I DO THAT?? I'm sure I'm not the only one who has dealt with this kind of thing. I need suggestions! My kids are growing like weeds! They grow up so fast, I don't want to waste time fighting with them or being mad at them. I want to enjoy every minute that I have with them but It's my job to teach them. They are all so different! What works for one, may not work for the next. So far, I just haven't found what works for my little Gavin. I sure do love the stubborn little thing though!

So much love!!

FiRsT PoNyTaiL!!!

Avery won't keep headbands on her head anymore so today I decided to try a ponytail. She HATED having her hair done. I don't how often she'll let me do it, so I figured I'd better get some pictures. She looks like she has little antennas on her head!!

So Big!!

Avery is almost a year old. I can't believe it! She is growing up so fast. She loves to hold my hands and walk around the house. It won't be long and she'll be walking around all on her own. I hope she takes her time. I am in no hurry for her to grow up. She has been such a fun baby! She is almost always happy and she has the funniest personality. She tries to mimic everything the other kids do. Mackenzie was trying to take a picture of her standing by herself, but she'll only do it for a couple seconds. The pictures were all just a second too early, or too late! I really haven't taken very many pictures this summer and I can't believe that it's almost over. This is what Mackenzie and Gavin have spent their summer doing.. Playing outside. They have played in the water almost every day. We get out the slip n' slide and the swimming pool, but most of their time is spent running through the sprinkler. Gavin still loves to dig with his shovel!Avery loves playing outside too. The other kids will walk outside and she will crawl over and sit by the door and cry until I take her out.

Park City

This weekend my friends and I all abondoned our families and went to Park City for a much needed mini vacation. We rented a condo and did some shopping. It was so fun! We met for dinner at Baja Cantina. It was so good! This is our condo. It was so nice! It had 4 big bedrooms, and 3 bathrooms.

The best part was that we had our own personal hot tub out on the deck. We stayed in it until about 1:00 in the morning.
Then we stayed up until 5:00 in the morning talking and laughing. It was so nice to have some time to just be "me" not "mommy"Saturday we spent the whole day shopping. I am now officially done school shopping for the kids. YAY!! It's so nice to actually be able to go into the store and try something on! I never get to do that becuse I'm always dragging three kids along with me. We had such a great time! I can't wait till next year!

The kids stayed home with Dallas and it sounds like they had a fun time also. It's so nice to get away sometimes but I am always glad to come home! I missed my family and I was happy to get home to see them!