May Parties

We've been busy having fun! It seems like we always start to party in May and it lasts through summer......So far we've been to the circus and the carnival. We have a few more fun things planned for June but July will be quiet until the Big Arrival :) (July 17th, for all you short-term memory people!) Here are some pics....


The clown was a favorite for all the kids. A bit blurry due to the lighting.

And can you believe Kendri still doesn't like cotton candy????? I almost had to shove it down her throat because it was so obscene. Just kidding. I contented myself by eating hers.

Lexi and her friend Paytin. Lexi liked the guy who jumped off the Russian Swing and flew through a hula hoop.

Kyson didn't want to look at me. But he was still saying "cheese". He thought the big cats and little trick dogs were awesome! He kept "gasping" at all the right times.

One of the elementary schools here in Valley Springs has connections with this particular circus. So every once in awhile the circus comes to little Valley Springs to help participate in a fundraiser. It is really fun for the kids and rather comical for the adults. :) But since this is the only circus my kids have seen, they think it is nothing less than death-defying and dramatic! And I will admit, this year there was a huge improvement from the last time we went. They actually sprung for a new tent so didn't look like swiss cheese. And they had quite a few new performers this time around. I still remember last time the girl who kept falling off the ball she was supposed to be balancing on. I don't think she ever actually completed the act. She wasn't there this year. Perhaps she wasn't cut out for the circus life after all.

The following weekend was the Frog Jump which is the county fair. We went with our cousins this year to celebrate Anna's birthday. The kids rode all the rides a million times and had a great time. Kyson, unfortunately, was too little to ride ANYTHING. Even the carousal with an adult. They said California law wouldn't allow it until he 3 years old and 3 feet tall. So I took him around and let him do the ring toss and throw darts at balloons. He actually came away with two stuffed animals! We also spent some time talking to the monkeys. He thought they were pretty cool.

I will admit most of the rides were pretty tame for the older kids. Meaning all the girls. At one point I looked over at Kendri during one of the rides and she was yawning. Then she put her head down on her arms and proceeded to "rest" for the remainder of the ride. Oh well. They can't all be like Disneyland!

Here we are watching one of the shows.

Riding rides with the cousins. Carson, Anna, Kendri, Lexi.

And Kyson working his magic. Those rings lasted about 30 seconds. We don't mess around when it comes to throwing things.

The Nitty-Gritty

Here's a quick run-down of the happenin's around here.

1. Lexi has an abcessed tooth. I know. I can't believe it either. The hours spent brushing, flossing, and rinsing apparently have no bearing on her poor little teeth. Our preventative check-ups every 6 months didn't alert us to it either. So we are now at 5 cavities and an abcessed tooth at the ripe old age of 7. I blame Ryan. My teeth are stellar.

2. Kyson continues to throw things over the fence into our neighbors yard.....or more accurately, his storage unit which is The-Great-Abyss-Of-Junk and nearly impossible to retrieve anything without taking 5 hours and 50 million ingenious methods of retrieval. The latest victims include (but are not limited to)


Lexi's church shoes
Kendri's flip flops
Kendri's zooble toy
Countless balls
Kyson's used swim diaper



Talk about pleasant surprises! ;) Luckily for us, our neighbor is very patient about it. Even with all of my attempts at keeping toys away from Kyson in the backyard he still manages to launch something over. Blast his baseball skills!


3. Kendri is registered and signed up for Kindergarten! She is pretty excited and goes in this week for her Kinder assessment.


I just found out they are changing back to half day kindergarten......uh, excuse me? I had a whole plan thought out for the next school year. Most of which included letting my kids ride the bus home from school so I wouldn't have to work around nap time, fight the terrible parking, the overcrowded cafeteria, and the hauling of an infant car seat and the dragging of a toddler intent on running away from me at any sign of weakness. I was actually counting down the number of days that I had left of going to the elementary school for pick-up.



Anyhoo, I found this out and realized I would be making an extra trip to the school. Oh well, I thought. I'll sign up for afternoon kindergarten and I'll still have them ride the bus home together. And then I found out they are going to start charging to ride the bus. Around $180. Per child. Which in essence means I will still be going to the school. Not once. Not twice. But THREE times a day. I am so depressed about it that I have to stop thinking about it.


4. I went through the 0-12 month baby clothes and have started to sort and wash the nessecities. A big project to say the least, but so many cute things! We have been very lucky to have recieved so many hand-me downs from Ryan's sister. (Thanks Jenni! You're the best!)


5. I have a huge to-do list that is supposed to be finished before our new arrival. We've been chipping away at it for the last few months but still have a lot to do. Some major things include:


Washing the windows
Cleaning the carpets
Putting new bark in the backyard
Getting the broken window fixed
Organizing Kyson's room to fit a new occupant
Cleaning out the linen closet
Getting my son potty-trained

(Grrrr. We have been working on this for awhile and I believe we have hit a plateau. One that has lasted a few months. But I'll keep trying! I am totally against having two kids in diapers at the same time. But we may have to do that for awhile. We'll see.)


And a million tiny things that I am sure I am forgetting. But it keeps me busy and busy means fast!

Let Freedom Ring

A few weeks ago as I was getting ready for church I glanced out the window and noticed the sprinklers were going off for the first time this year. Oh good, I thought. The sprinklers are actually working so far. (We have chronic problems with our sprinklers. Usually they spaz out in the middle of July while we are on vacation so we can come home to crispy weeds.) Two seconds after this thought crossed my mind, a second thought emerged. Followed by a third and fourth. Kyson loves water. And Kyson was dressed in his Sunday best. And Kyson can open the sliding glass door. Even when it's locked.

I wasted no time "sprinting" down the stairs. Sure enough, I saw him outside standing by the edge of the lawn. Phew. I made it just in the nick of time. Or so I thought.

He was already soaked.

Grumbling, I stripped him of everything but his diaper and threw the clothes in the dryer. Luckily, we had enough time to dry them. I went back upstairs to finish getting ready. Five minutes later, Lexi burst into the bathroom.

"Kyson is outside getting wet again!"

I followed her down the stairs and out the door. And yes, there he was. Stark neked. Huddled in the corner whispering gleefully, "Cooooold."

I was just glad he was thrifty enough to take his clean diaper off before running free! My good little wild man :).

Week 30

I am now officially over 30 weeks pregnant. Which means on Saturday I will be in the single digit count-down (9 weeks to be exact). It is at this point that I allow myself to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I start to feel like I am nearly there! Granted the last month is the longest. And seeing how it will be July, I am expecting an especially uncomfortable summer :( Here is a picture to commerate week 30. Kendri took it. Actually she took about 10 and this was the best we could do. I finally relented to the fact that I was probably the problem and not the photographer.

Here is a quick run-down of the pregnancy so far.

1. I passed my glucose-tolerance test with flying colors.

2. I have gained 18 pounds thus far.

3. I have been iron and vitamin D deficient for the last few months.

4. I have not been taking my iron and vitamin D supplements regularly, so I cannot act surprised by that.

5. I have to go to the the doctor every 2 weeks now. I think it's a waste of my time, so I've been trying to devise a plan to skip my next appointment and save me a week. Unfortunately, due to scheduling difficulties my devious plan has not yet become possible.

6. I wake up every night 2 or 3 times to have a party with my kleenex box. My allergies have kicked in and are in full gear.

7. Other than that (and the nasal congestion), I am still sleeping pretty good. I totally believe my "new" mattress is to thank.

8. My newest love is Greek yogurt with frozen blueberries. Ahhhhh.

9. My patience is not up to "Saint-like".

10. My muskrat eyes are back.

So, that's week 30 in a nutshell!