My Darling Daisy

In my constant attempts to keep my daughter busy and entertained (since she still does NOT have a sibling who is old enough to be her playmate), I eagerly jumped at the opportunity last spring to sign Lia up for Girl Scouts when the offer came my way.  One of the moms from Lia's former preschool class was already a leader for a troop containing Brownies and Junior Girl Scouts.  However, since her youngest was turning five and starting Kindergarten in the fall, she decided to add some Daisies to the mix and started recruiting at the end of the school year.  Having no idea that Daisies even existed, I just thought it was the cutest thing and immediately signed her up!  Last night was Lia's first Girl Scout meeting.  She was a little apprehensive of the whole thing because it was something new, but this is how she is about everything until she gets there.  As I guessed, she loved it and even had to play Girl Scouts when we got home.  I'm looking forward to watching all of the things that Lia will learn and do this school year through this great organization!

 

Lia all ready to go sporting her Girl Scouts t-shirt and Daisy vest.

Logan joining in the photo shoot in his Thomas the Train jammies.

 



 

What cute kids!

So Proud.

One of the things that I loved about our first home in Puyallup was that it was inside the boundaries of one of the best school's in our district.  It was total luck that this occurred.  And for the past many years, Lia and I would wave to her future school whenever we drove by (which was many times a week).  As silly as it seemed, I actually formed a bit of an attachment to this school without ever walking inside its walls.  I was just so excited for Lia to go there one day! 

Fast forward six years.  Ron and I decide to upgrade and buy our dream home long before we had outgrown our current home while the interest rates and the housing prices were still hot.  So we moved a MEASELY 1.2 miles away and were placed inside the boundaries of another elementary school that was not as stellar as the first.  Ugh.  For several months, I stewed and worried about this, but finally came to the conclusion that we would give this new school an honest try for a solid year before we decided if we would keep Lia there or move her to our "former" school.  Being the natural worrier that I am, I usually find that I worry more than how things turn out in actuality.  I tried to remind myself of this over and over again as the summer wore on.  However, as school started, I quickly saw what kind of student was in her classroom.  Most of the boys AND the girls are loud, wild, disruptive, and struggle to follow rules.  I see it every morning while I wait with her in line for the teacher to come get them and I watch them as they leave each day when I pick her up.  This is due to the fact that her school takes in a MASSIVE section of apartment complexes in our town and, sadly, most of these students are living up to the stereotype of apartment dwellers.  Besides the constant interruptions in her class, Lia has also been kicked and bit by two different boys, and I SAW another boy intentionally ram his chair into hers this past week while he was sitting at the "time out" desk which just happens to be located behind Lia's desk.  It's been frustrating and heartbreaking for me to observe all of this, but as I said, I am giving it a year.

Sooooo, with all of this said, you can imagine how proud I am of my daughter for receiving fifteen, perfect, green smiley faces on her behavior chart for the first fifteen days of school.  Lia is one of the few in the class that has accomplished this and I am proud of her for ignoring the bad examples that surround her and who are constantly getting in trouble.  That's my girl.  Love you, Lia!  Keep it up!

19-Months Old Today!

Logan turned 19-months old today!  He is just cruising through his second year of life.  The big milestone of this past month is that he started nursery at church.  He has only gone two Sundays due to us being out of town, but he has seemed to enjoy it thus far (although either Ron or I have been in the room with him at all times).  He has also continued to learn a few more words.  Logan now says baby, hi, wow, ball, bee, hot, and makes the bunny noise (sniff sniff).  He has also learned the sign language gesture for "All Finished" and uses it frequently at the end of a meal.  He also likes to blow on his hot food (which is so cute) and put things in the trash.  Logan's new favorite past time is playing in the car while it's parked in the garage.  He will play in there for minutes on end, turning the lights on, honking the horn, and opening and closing the garage door.  I just leave the house door open and keep an eye on him from the kitchen and it's a perfect world for a little while.  Logan also LOVES books and will constantly bring us a book whenever we are in his room to read to him on the while sitting on the recliner chair.  Logan continues to be a happy boy for the most part if he is fed, rested, and not being harassed by his sister which is still a big problem these days.  He still loves being outside all the time and playing on any playground or swing set he sees.  He is a very BUSY boy and keeps me moving, but we love him to pieces!!

Pictured below is a montage of Logan eating his daily bowl of cereal which he has actually become quite proficient at lately!

 

 



It's Fair Time!

We headed out yesterday for our annual visit to the Puyallup Fair.  Although we had to deal with the same crowds, saw the same animals, ate the same fair food, and rode the same rides, good times were had by all.  Especially our Logan who was able to get a lot more out of the whole affair than last year.  He loved all of the animals and enjoyed what rides he could.  This boy was entertained in a stroller for MANY hours which does not happen in "real" life.  Here are some photos of our day!
 

 

Papa and the kiddos checking out the milking cows!  Logan LOVED the cows!  You can just tell in the this picture by his "O" shaped mouth that he makes whenever he says the word, "Ohhhhh!"

 

This has got to be my favorite picture of the day.  It looks as though the cow is just as fascinated by Logan as Logan is of him!

 

No trip to the fair is complete without some ice cream!

Lia enjoying hers in a bowl!

 



 

Lia trying out the bubble maker on her brother.

 

After walking for hours, Lia's legs got a little tired and so she jumped at the opportunity to hop into the stroller when Logan was out of it.  I thought it was so funny to see this long-legged, five-year old in a stroller that we had to take a picture!

 



 

The pink clown on the hilarious, pink motorcycle that Logan ran into.  He was fascinated by her!

Lia and I enjoying the giant slide!

 



 

This was the first ride that Lia fell in love with at the fair when she was two and a half years old.  As a result, it is tradition that she takes a spin on it every year!

 

 

Poor Logan trying to get through the gate to join Lia on the motorcycle ride.  The little guy was too short for every ride Lia did except for the train ride and the carousal.

 

 

Lia whizzing by!

 

Logan and Ron getting ready for the train to take off.

 

Mama and daughter riding the train.

 

Logan all strapped up and ready to go on his horse.

 

 

The three of us waiting for the carousal ride to begin.

 

Lia loves the giant slide so much that we agreed to let her go a second time.  Here she is having the time of her life with papa (just look at the smile on her face)!

 

One happy girl finishing her ride down the slide!

 

We finished off the day with a final ride on the autobahn.  Here is Lia with another girl with some crazy, face paint on her face!

 

Our little driver giving us a smile.

 

First Day of School!

The big day finally arrived--Lia's first day of Kindergarten!  She has been counting down the days FOREVER and so you can imagine her excitement when she woke up this morning!  We quickly ate breakfast, got her ready, and off we went on our first walk to school.  There wasn't a sad molecule in my body as I am just so excited for her to begin this journey that I know she will love.  It was so much fun walking with Lia, waiting in line for her teacher, and then accompanying her to her classroom to hear a story before the teacher sent the parents on our way.  I can't wait to hear all about her first day of class when I pick her up in a few minutes! 

My grown-up girl all ready to go in her new, turquoise outfit and Ariel princess backpack.

 



 

Such a cute 5-year old!

Lia and Logan ready to start our walk.

 



The two of them waiting in line for the teacher to come.

 



 

I am so grateful that Lia has one friend from her wonderful preschool program last year in her same class.  Here is Lia hugging Molly before class starts.  You could barely contain these girls' excitement!

 

 

Lia's teacher, Mrs. Schoder, reading to the students.  Lia is sitting in the bottom right of the picture.

 

Another shot of Lia and her class.

 



 

Lia trying out her assigned seat before sending Logan and me on our way!  

Labor Day Bike Ride

I made the goal this year to try to get Lia comfortable on her bike during the warm, summer months when we can be outside.  However, with all of our travels, this hasn't been the easiest thing...but we did manage to go on a couple family bike rides through our neighborhood down to Lia's new school which helped her to improve drastically from last year.  After last night's ride, I decided that she was good enough to try out the Orting Bike Trail.  Luckily she was up for the challenge today and off we went!  Lia rode for a good half hour or so in hot weather before declaring that she was done.  Her face was red and covered in sweat at the end!  I was so proud of her.  Anticipating that this would happen, Ron had the brilliant idea to bring some rope with us which allowed me to pull her back to the car on the return leg.  Overall, it was a successful outing, although we didn't get anywhere close to the end of the bike trail.  We still decided to treat ourselves to ice cream at the McDonald's in Orting since we thought that Lia had earned it anyways.  Maybe next summer we can get her farther down the trail... 

 

Mama and cool-girl Lia in her Diva sunglasses and helmet.

 

My two boys looking good on the beach cruiser!

 

Lia pedaling away.

 

The cutest backside I've ever seen!

 

Pulling Lia back to the truck.

 

 

Riding tandem style.

 

 

This was the hilarious pose that we found Logan in after returning to the parking lot.  This kid just cracks me up!

 

 

Ron feeding Logan his ice cream.

 

 

 Lia eating her well-earned treat!

Blake Island Camping

Lia and I headed out Friday for the fourth summer in a row for our annual camping trip to Blake Island the last weekend in August.  This has become one of my favorite summer activities and I was so grateful that we had the chance to go again this year.  Since Ron's school district had already started back up, he was unable to come with us--so luckily he agreed to keep Logan at home with him which allowed Lia and I to fully relax and have a great time!  As always, the weather turned out to be stunning after several days of rain and Lia had so much fun exploring the island with her cousins.  We also wrapped up the event by returning to Chris' and Natalee's house on Saturday evening for a big dinner party, including the fresh Dungeness crab that Chris had just caught that day!  Oh how I love the Pacific Northwest on a glorious summer day--especially when fresh crab is involved!

Lia playing in Chris' tent with Garrett, Bryce, Trenton, and Riley (who refused to be in the picture).

 



 

After dinner, we wandered down to Tilacum Village to take a peek at the evening's festivities going on.  Here is Lia with cousins, Vivi and Callie, in front of the marina.

The girls in front of one of the totem poles at Tilacum Village.

 



 

Deer wander this island completely uninhibited by humans.  They can be seen the most at twilight and in the early morning hours.  Here are some of the kids posing in front of the deer we spotted that evening.

 

We wandered down to the docks to watch Bryce try to catch some fish.

 

 

Some of the gang hanging out in our campsite after breakfast on Saturday morning.

Lia enjoyed many trips to the playground while we were on the island.  Here she is with her cousins on the tire swing.

 



 

Lia swinging down the zip line!

The girls and Trenton.

 



 

Before lunch, I insisted that Lia get out to the beach for some beach combing.  Luckily, Brynn agreed to join us!

 

 

The two girls heading out on their hunt for pretty rocks and shells.

 

I just love this picture of the two of them bending over at the same time!

 

Heading back to show off their treasures!

 The girls on a log with me at their side.