Kind

Last year Emma won an award at school called the "Dragon Leader Award". It was a year long commitment with various things that we had to do all year long. It was a little intense for Kindergarten.

So I was relieved when they announced this year that the Dragon Leader Award would be given out monthly instead. Every month two students from each class would be invited with their parents to a breakfast ceremony to celebrate the accomplishment of the student.

Macey was chosen for her class. We went to school, ate donuts, and she got a certificate from the principal. I teared up when I saw what her teacher wrote on the certificate -- that she was chosen for working hard and being kind. There's no question that Macey is a rock star when it comes to reading. But I love that her teacher acknowledged her kind heart.

Goodbye, Old Friend!

A few months ago Garry asked what kind of family we were going to be. At his work and in the neighborhood, there seems to be families that go boating frequently. They are boating families. Then there are camping families. The families who would go three wheeling. The cabin families. What kind of family were we going to be? What was our thing?

Apparently this year we became a soccer family. Garry coached Emma's and Macey's teams and Emma would also attend Academy Soccer and Goalie Training. It became quite a commitment.

But Macey's last game was Monday and Emma's was yesterday. We are all done with soccer until March! Woohoo! Goodbye, old friend. See you in five months.

Second Annual!

The best part about being settled here in Utah is the ability to develop family traditions. This year we returned to a great pumpkin patch about 1/2 mile from our house. The pumpkins are great and sold at a fair price and there's lots for the kids to ride on and do! Braden really liked this tractor. Grandparents: be on notice for Christmas. They also offer free tractor rides. My favorite part.

And they have a little free corn maze.

And pumpkins. Lots and lots of pumpkins.

I keep thinking about growing pumpkins but then we'd miss out on all of this!!

Someday. . .

Sometimes I take pictures so that I can laugh about it later. Much, much, much later. Molly!

A Bouncy Beautiful Day!

This year for her birthday Emma had a family party a few days before her birthday with some yummy chocolate cake that her Daddy made for her, brownies and a pie. On her actual birthday she was able to hand out candy to her class and then she had a big birthday party at Jump & Bounce. 14 happy and excited girls ran around for two hours -- glad it was not in my house!!

We love, love our Emma. She tries so hard in all aspects of her life. She is a good athlete, she enjoys her singing/theater classes, she gets perfect marks at school. Everything she tries, she just gives it her all, and we think that she's beautiful, too!

Six Fabulous Months!

Baby Braden is now six months old! To celebrate, we let him go at a cupcake. He liked the frosting. A lot.

Braden has been a great joy. He loves his sisters. Emma can make him belly laugh. She's the only one with that skill. He likes Macey. He trusts Macey. She can hold him and he does not immediately freak out. Molly. Now, Molly he loves. And Molly he fears. But mostly loves. She gives out tough love sometimes.

Braden is my most content baby. He loves to be held. We have never had to take him out of Sacrament Meeting. And when I take him out during Sunday School or Relief Society it's usually just because he is babbling so loudly!

He has a lot of hair which I find I want to arrange into a ponytail -- old habits die hard. And he is tall! He's 90th percentile for length and only 40th for weight.

He is sitting pretty well now. But I doubt he will walk as fast as Emma and Molly did. He may be on the Macey-track.

He is my worst sleeper. On 'good' nights I still get up with him three times a night. Bad nights, well, I lose track after seven. Last night was a bad night and I stopped counting when I got up with him three times in one hour. I know I should let him cry it out, but I think it's because his ears cause him a lot of discomfort. After we see the ENT, we're going to have to renegotiate his sleeping habits.

We love our boy!

Jump In!

Our gym has a really nice indoor and outdoor pool, and I love taking the kids there, especially in the winter, because it's a great way to play and burn some energy. This summer I would take the girls quite a lot but make Braden stay in his stroller where I would try to convince him to take a nap. Usually I was entirely successful. He's such a good boy.

But at the end of the sumer, I let Braden explore the pool when we stopped at Lava Hot Springs. He liked it! I think. At least he did not say otherwise. I'm not sure if I will take him again soon -- it's a challenge to get everyone dressed all at the same time! But hopefully as the weather cools down and soccer ends, we'll hit the indoor pool often.

The Day The Plague Came To Stay. . .

Garry is convinced that our house is under the influence of some plague. . .and I am starting to believe him.

We struggled over the last two weeks to get Macey feeling better after battling croup and then pink eye.

During the same time Braden has been battling a little congestion and an ear infection. He is on his second medication to make the ear infection go away -- it has been slow to clear. It has been a challenge as some nights he is up over seven times a night.

This weekend Molly got a really bad cold and pink eye and Emma developed a pink eye that was not reacting to a prescription and so Garry had to take her into the doctor this morning for a different prescription.

And on Thursday Braden goes in for tests because the doctor is concerned that he has a strong left hand preference at a time when he should be using both hands equally.

The plague has landed. . .there's not enough Clorox in the world. . .and we're only in October!

There's A Whole Lot Going Around

Emma and Macey are both, well, not required, but strongly encouraged by their school to read 20 minutes a day. At night time, there is a whole lot of reading going on in our house. Molly hates to be left out of anything and will flip through books often throughout the day. I'll find her like this a lot at night, chilling with a book and her pillow pet.