2nd grade = swings

In 1st grade Madison could almost always be found at recess on the monkey bars. 2nd grade she still likes the monkey bars sometimes, but so far this year she can be found flying high on the swings.

(i love that some of our mornings are already requiring a sweatshirt, fall is already in the air.)

Even though I know Austin is laughing at some completely inappropriate youtube comedy video, I still love this picture. I love seeing him smile or even better laugh.

I love this kid with everything in me.

So much if the time I feel like I am failing him in so many ways. He has always been and, will always be such an amazing kid.

I am making sure Austin and I spend time together everyday talking, about anything/everything, playing cards, or even watch his ofter inappropriate youtube videos. He is growing up way too fast for me. I'm trying to hold on to the few (kid) years I have left.

Less then one minute
(and a ringing bell that starts the school day)
between these pictures

Madison is not too sure about 2nd grade yet.

10 and 2

...or 10th and 2nd.

Today the kids started their new school year.

Austin and Zachary are now in 10th grade

Madison is in 2nd grade

I'm so excited for a really good school year this year

Austin is striving for straight A's - hope he sticks to this (he is so smart)

I am working at Madison's school as PTO president.

And so far I love it.

So handsome
I love that he dropped the shaggy hair, skater look this year
I am really looking forward to an awesome year with Austin
I think he did a lot of growing this summer and is ready
to buckle down to
get the grades he needs to head of to college in a few years

also dropped the long hair this year - a much better look
I hope this year Zachary takes advantage of the fresh start
(last year was rough)
I am hoping for better grades and that Zac stays out
of trouble this year 

My Bug (lovebug)
I can not believe she is already in 2nd grade
She is incredibly smart and a really good student.
She scored in the top 98% in all of her testing last year.
I hope she keeps up the amazing work.
I hope Madison has a great year.

Flagstaff Extreme Adventure Course

The day before school starts...

What's something totally fun we can do with the kids?

Flagstaff Extreme Adventure Course

We have been waiting all summer for the boys to get back home to go as a family

It was so worth the wait.

The kids had a blast.

Now don't bash me to hard.

But again (and as always) most of the pics are of Madison.

I can explain.

Madison had to have a parent with her at all times (of course) and I was that parent since some of Jason's coworkers and their kids came with us, and Jason and his mom went with the boys (and the coworkers) who also had to have a parent with them at all times.

I had the camera for Madison's first time thru her course then Jason took the camera to get pictures of the boys.

But they were on their last zipline finishing the last course they were able to complete.

So we are planning to go again soon and Jason can stay with Madison and I will go with the boys so we will have lots of cool pictures of them too.

So now that I've made my excuses on to the pictures



The kids has so much fun. If you are in the area it is so worth a visit. Madison went right to bed and even stayed in her own bed all night. She was worn out. And the boys loved it. Next time we will have to pretend they are 18 so they can try to complete all 4 courses.

Home Depot Kids Club Cork Board

The first Saturday of each month Home Depot does a Kids Club. Madison looks forward to this every month.

For August Madison made a pink and black mini cork board. I love that she can, for the most part, do the entire project herself. I may have to hold a nail or hold 2 pieces of wood together but she mostly does it herself.

Next month... Football Goal Post Game.

crazybeautifulgirl

CrazyBeautifulGirl

My baby sister started an esty shop called CrazyBeautifulGirl to sell her adorable hair clips. Madison loves them. They are alligator clips that Madison can put in herself and she looks so cute.

She just opened her shop and only has a couple clips right now but check back soon and she will have more clips and maybe a few headbands.

If anyone is interested and has a special request just let me know and I will forward the request to her.

Don't mind my off centered photos
you can see how totally cute these hair clips are

First Day of 1st grade
with her stylish hair clip

doesn't she look beautiful
I love that these hair clips keep her hair out of her eyes

stylish girl

so gorgeous

super model
these hair clips go with eveything

So please stop by her shop and if you see something you like order from her. These are amazingly cute. I can not say it enough.

I admit I read these. I had no idea what these were about, my sister and a friend recommended them. I read the first one thinking what the heck, but of course I couldn't put them down. They get better through each book. The third being the best (and less graphic). 

from the E L James website :

When literature student Anastasia Steele goes to interview young entrepreneur Christian Grey, she encounters a man who is beautiful, brilliant, and intimidating. The unworldly, innocent Ana is startled to realize she wants this man and, despite his enigmatic reserve, finds she is desperate to get close to him. Unable to resist Ana’s quiet beauty, wit, and independent spirit, Grey admits he wants her, too—but on his own terms.

Shocked yet thrilled by Grey’s singular erotic tastes, Ana hesitates. For all the trappings of success—his multinational businesses, his vast wealth, his loving family—Grey is a man tormented by demons and consumed by the need to control. When the couple embarks on a daring, passionately physical affair, Ana discovers Christian Grey’s secrets and explores her own dark desires.

Erotic, amusing, and deeply moving, the Fifty Shades Trilogy is a tale that will obsess you, possess you, and stay with you forever.

Home Depot Kids Workshop

Home Depot Kids Workshop 8am - 12pm. First Saturday of every month. (I can't believe we didn't know about this before. We have missed out.)

I thought this would be a 4 hour workshop and these little kids would be building a #20 Home Depot Race Car from a block of wood (with a lot of help from the parents).

8am on a Saturday? Yuck. My weekend where I can sleep til 10am is sadly cancelled.

A 4 hour workshop for kids ages 5 - 12? There is no way these kids will have the attention span or ability to stick with this class. Except Madison of course, she is a mini genius :)

I was totally wrong.

The 8am - 12pm workshop actually started at 9am, and was just a 30min - 1hour project that Madison was able to complete all by herself. Literally by herself. I sat across from her and took pictures while she worked away. She had a blast. She loves using tools. She has had her own toolbox ... I think she was born with it. If J is fixing something she is right beside him with her toolbox ready to work.

This workshop was perfect for her. She got an apron with a pin that shows she completed the Race Car workshop. I can not wait to add many more pins to it. Next month, Window Bird Feeder.

Hunger Game series

Hunger games:
In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.


Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister Primrose, regards it as a death sentence when she steps forward to take her sister's place in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before — and survival, for her, is second nature. Without really meaning to, she becomes a contender. But if she is to win, she will have to start making choices that will weigh survival against humanity and life against love.

Catching Fire:
Against all odds, Katniss has won the Hunger Games. She and fellow District 12 tribute Peeta Mellark are miraculously still alive. Katniss should be relieved, happy even. After all, she has returned to her family and longtime friend, Gale. Yet nothing is the way Katniss wishes it to be. Gale holds her at an icy distance. Peeta has turned his back on her completely. And there are whispers of a rebellion against the Capitol - a rebellion that Katniss and Peeta may have helped create.


Much to her shock, Katniss has fueled an unrest she's afraid she cannot stop. And what scares her even more is that she's not entirely convinced she should try. As time draws near for Katniss and Peeta to visit the districts on the Capitol's cruel Victory Tour, the stakes are higher than ever. If they can't prove, without a shadow of a doubt, that they are lost in their love for each other, the consequences will be horrifying.


In Catching Fire, the second novel of the Hunger Games trilogy, Suzanne Collins continues the story of Katniss Everdeen, testing her more than ever before... and surprising readers at every turn.

Mockingjay:
Katniss Everdeen, girl on fire, has survived, even though her home has been destroyed. Gale has escaped. Katniss's family is safe. Peeta has been captured by the Capitol. District 13 really does exist. There are rebels. There are new leaders. A revolution is unfolding.


It is by design that Katniss was rescued from the arena in the cruel and haunting Quarter Quell, and it is by design that she has long been part of the revolution without knowing it. District 13 has come out of the shadows and is plotting to overthrow the Capitol. Everyone, it seems, has had a hand in the carefully laid plains - except Katniss.


The success of the rebellion hinges on Katniss's willingness to be a pawn, to accept responsibility for countless lives, and to change the course of the future of Panem. To do this, she must put aside her feelings of anger and distrust. She must become the rebels' Mockingjay - no matter what the personal cost.

Book summaries are from goodreads.

Honestly - These books were really hard for me to read. I really don't like violence, esp torture, and there was plenty. I have a son that falls in the age range of the tributes and a daughter that is just 5 years away, I had to forget that I was a parent shortly into the first book. However, I thought the series was excellent. The last book, more specifically the very end of book 3 is what made me love this series.

From the authors website:
For eighteen years, Jude Farraday has put her children’s needs above her own, and it shows—her twins, Mia and Zach—are bright and happy teenagers. When Lexi Baill moves into their small, close knit community, no one is more welcoming than Jude. Lexi, a former foster child with a dark past, quickly becomes Mia’s best friend. Then Zach falls in love with Lexi and the three become inseparable.
Jude does everything to keep her kids on track for college and out of harm’s way. It has always been easy-- until senior year of high school. Suddenly she is at a loss. Nothing feels safe anymore; every time her kids leave the house, she worries about them.
On a hot summer’s night her worst fears come true. One decision will change the course of their lives. In the blink of an eye, the Farraday family will be torn apart and Lexi will lose everything. In the years that follow, each must face the consequences of that single night and find a way to forget…or the courage to forgive.
Vivid, universal, and emotionally complex, Night Road raises profound questions about motherhood, identity, love, and forgiveness. It is a luminous, heartbreaking novel that captures both the exquisite pain of loss and the stunning power of hope. This is Kristin Hannah at her very best, telling an unforgettable story about the longing for family, the resilience of the human heart, and the courage it takes to forgive the people we love.

I had read on a couple other blogs that this book is a major tear-jerker, so I was ready. I wasn't going to loose it - sob. Yeah right. I lost it a couple times reading the book. Lost it like, I had to put the book down for the night to recover. But don't get me wrong, it's a great book. It was an amazing story.

As a mom with a son and a step son that just started high school, and a daughter in 1st grade, it makes me think about how I am raising them. About the importance of really drilling in their heads that it is never ok to drink and drive. NEVER! Also to love the kids openly, whole heartedly. And to have an open and trusting relationship with them.

Well enough blabbing, if you like tear-jerkers this is a great book. I really recommend it.   

inside our snowglobe

OK, so the quality of this video is not great but hopefully you can see that it is snowing.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

From authors website:
A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. And a strange collection of very curious photographs. It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children who once lived here—one of whom was his own grandfather—were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a desolate island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.


A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.     

I really liked this book. Silly as it is, I usually pick books with a girl for the main character. I didn't read anything about this book before I bought it so I didn't know that the main character was a boy. Honestly I might not have bought it if I had known. I'm glad I didn't know.  It was a pretty good book.

10 things on the 10th - February

In honor of Valentine's Day...
10 things I love
1. my husband, J (obviously)
2. my kids (again, obviously)
3. my family (sisters, parents, in-laws, nieces, nephews...)
4. reading
5. photography
6. chocolate
7. living in the quiet mountains
8. staying up late - sleeping in
9. my instax camera - I love every picture I have taken
10. being able to stay home with the kids

there are a million other things that could go on this list. I'm sure tomorrow, or a week from now I will think why didn't I put (insert that thought). these are 10 random thing I just thought of right now.

34

Today I turned 34. It was a great day. My youngest was home sick, but not really sick, just a bad cough that kept her up last night. Good excuse to keep her home and spend the day with her. My oldest, I did send to school. I would have loved to have him home too, but it's hard for him to miss a day of school.
I love the instax mini that J got me. I am almost thru one of the things of film and I love each and every picture. I will so easily become my new obsession. I love it! I love it!