Star Student

Today was Rylee's first 1st grade parent-teacher conference.  Her teacher had nothing but good things to say about her.  She said she is quiet, but always listens and participates.  She is doing well in math and reading, and her teacher said she was even moving up a reading group this week.  We took the kids to Menchies to celebrate.  So proud of my smart girl!

Halloween festivities

We were so busy this month that we were only able to make a quick trip to Spooner Farms pumpkin patch.  We really wanted to spend more time, but the weather just didn't permit it.  We still got in a few cute pics and picked out some great pumpkins!

 Lance decorated the front porch again this year.  It looked great!  The kids picked out the design for their pumpkins and (sort-of) helped carve them.  They liked drilling holes in the pumpkin more than anything.

 Rylee dressed up as Aurora (Sleeping Beauty) and Carson was a SWAT officer.  The kids had fun trick-or-treating, although they were ready to quit quicker than I thought.  I heard "I'm tired of knocking" and "I'm tired of carrying this bucket."  Which actually was perfect so there was time to go hang out at Jon and Mandy's house. 

We ended the night with Jon and Mandy and some of Jon's family.  The kids ate lots of candy and I had some Hall-o-wine.  =)  Then home to bed because it was a school night.  Boo.  All in all another great Halloween!

1st grade photo!

Rylee's 1st grade school picture.  SO CUTE!

Birthday Sleepover

 Rylee had her birthday slumber party last night, which concludes her 3 weeks of birthday celebrations.  We went to Mazatlan for dinner and then came back to the house for cupcakes, dancing and lots of girl time.

The mom's had a great time catching up while the girls played.  I think we might enjoy these sleepovers more than the little girls!  =)

 Such a fun night!  We are blessed to have such great girlfriends.

Another birthday celebration at Great Wolf Lodge!

 We surprised Rylee with a weekend at Great Wolf Lodge.  The kids were so excited when we pulled up and they saw the sign.  Rylee had the biggest smile on her face.  We ended up getting a free upgrade to a "Kids Camp" room which was awesome!  As you can see in the picture its like a little cabin with bunk beds.  I think the kids were just as excited about the room as they were the water park!  The hotel celebrates "Howl-O-Ween" all October.  They had fun Halloween decorations everywhere and even had trick or treating.

Such a fun birthday surprise for my big 7 year old!!!

Happy 7th Birthday Rylee!

Rylee had a wonderful birthday.  We celebrated a day early with Grandma, Papa, Aunt Mandy and Uncle Jon.  She picked out her cake (Elsa and Anna) and ice cream (mint chocolate chip) and we had everyone over for tacos.  On her actual birthday we let her choose what she wanted to do.... she chose to go to a bounce house, Red Robin and come home for more ice cream and cake!  Monday I brought cupcakes to her class and got to have lunch with her and her friend Molly at a special table.  She was pretty excited to have Carson and I at school with her!

Rylee is lucky enough to celebrate her birthday 3 weekends in a row!  Next weekend we are surprising her with a trip to Great Wolf Lodge and the following weekend she is having a birthday sleepover with her best friends.  

I can't believe my baby girl is 7 years old!  She is such a sweet, caring girl.  She is so smart and loves to learn.  She is reading pretty well and can read most easy reader books.  Her favorites are Biscuit, Pinkalicious and Amelia Bedelia.  I'm sure she will be reading chapter books in no time!  She loves riding horses (especially Rain), going to her jazz dance class, drawing and coloring, making forts, listening to music, barbies, dolls, playing with her brother (and telling him what to do) and riding bikes.  She is a very independent, strong willed girl who challenges me daily.  I love her to pieces and can't wait to see what this year brings for her!

Northwest Trek

 We had a great day at Northwest Trek today.  Our first round through the exhibits was disappointing as most of the animals were sleeping, but at the end of the day we made one more round and all of the animals were up and about.  Our favorites were the red fox, the wolf, the wolverine, the beavers and the otters.

We ended up missing the tram because our lunch took forever, but we found a cool nature trail to check out instead.

 The otters were so funny.  They were so playful and interactive with the kids.  They both followed the kids shoes around like they were toys.  We laughed so hard!  They were awesome!