Kids stuff

Princess Garden stuff from Aunty Genasee!

My dear sister Genasee got my girls some really cute Disney princess gardening things. They each got a hat, gloves, apron, bucket, flower pot, shovel and tool bag. They were on sale at Lowes where she works, and when she saw them she said that she just had to get them for the girls. They have really enjoyed playing with them in the sand box. Here is a picture of Anela modeling them and demonstrating how they work.

Bike

When we moved from the house to the apartment we got rid of a lot of stuff. We gave some away, some to DI, and threw some away. Afa (my husband who goes by our last name) gave/threw away a lot more than he should have. Including the kids bikes and art table which he gave to some guy we don't even know. I think that he thought that we wouldn't have room for them, so he got rid of them when I wasn't around to tell him otherwise. Anyway, I have been looking for replacement bikes at DI ever since. But it is hard to find bikes there in good condition, and the right size. Well last week I finally found a good one for $5. The only thing is, it is really tiny. But I figured it would be OK for Ariana and Gerry to share for now (I am still looking every week for bigger ones in good shape) and next year it will be perfect for Anela.

The back tire really needed some air, it held enough that I knew that it didn't need a new tube, but not enough for them to ride it. So I went to Chevron by my house were they have a free air pump. I tried to pump the tire, but the pump was broken, so I went across the street to 7eleven. Their air is 75 cents. I looked around, but I didn't have any quarters. So I went further down the street to another Chevron thinking that their air would be free too. Well theirs was $1.00. I went to the other 2 gas stations on the same intersection looking for free air, before remembering that I had a dollar in my wallet that I could go into the store and change for quarters. I got the quarters and payed the 75 cents that the last station charged and tried to pump up the tire. The stupid hose was shaped in a way that I couldn't fit it onto the tire!! So after fighting with it for 3 minutes the air turned off and we still had a flat! I was really mad about the wasted time and was ready to go home but decided to go to the Jiffy Lube across the street to see if they would do it. They weren't busy thank goodness, so I asked them. They were so nice. When I told them that I had gone to the gas station first one guy said "You didn't pay for air did you!? Air is free, you don't have to pay to breath it!" That is exactly how I felt. So he took the bike, filled up both tires, put a new cap on the back tire since it was missing the cap, and tightened up the training wheels. Then the other guy joked that I would need to bring it back for a tire rotation 'cus the back on was wearing unevenly, or else tell them to ease up on the breaks. They were so helpful and playful, and talking to the kids about their "cool bike", it really made me feel better. I had been in a bad mood after fighting with that air hose, it's good to meet good people who can make you feel better like that!

Ariana on the bike

Ariana and the downstairs neighbor Epeli

Anela

Anela loves her big sister so much. She follows Ariana everywhere. Ariana usually is perfectly happy about this, but sometimes she gets annoyed and tries to hide from Anela. She hid in the closet only to be followed directly by Anela. I wanted to take a picture to illustrate and got a good one right as Ariana rolled her eyes at the situation.

Anela is at such a fun age. Every day I am amazed and amused by the things she does and says. It makes me sad to know that she will be grown out of this stage all too soon. I didn't feel so sad about the others because I knew I would have more. It's really sad to know that my last baby isn't a baby anymore!

Anela put a cup on a ball like a hat and sang "happy birthday" to the ball. I tried to take a picture of her while she was singing, but she ran away.

Kimberly getting ready for her ride.

Anela giving Kimberly a ride around the apartment in her baby doll stroller.

Sick Kids and Independence Day

Not a whole lot going on here. The kids were all sick from about the middle of last week and through the weekend. They seemed to be getting better, but I think the cold, wind and smoke from fireworks aggravated the situation a bit. Ariana did her usual thing and slept till she was better, but Gerry and Anela are still coughing a lot. Anela is having a hard time sleeping because of the coughing. She fell asleep just now, since she was up most of the night, hopefully her body can heal itself now.
For the 4th we went out to Genasee and Rich's house in Tooele. Gen made hot dogs on the bbq and mac and cheese. She also had a huge bowtie salad that was really good, but we didn't end up eating much of that. We went on a walk to the park (Anela stopped on the way to throw up, then just kept walking like nothing happened) (Gerry walked right into a drop off box as we passed the library, and Genasee laughed her head off at him) the kids had a lot of fun playing with some of the other kids who were there. Then we left when Anela fell down at the end of the slide and just laid there on the ground. She had been going down the slide continuously the whole time we were there, but I could tell that she was getting too tired. When we got back to Gen's we had pie that she made special for Ariana, because Ariana loves pie. By then it was getting dark so we went out for the fireworks. We started with the sparklers, then the fountains, then we moved across the street to join their neighbors and took the big ones that Gen and Rich got. It was cold and kind of windy, and after we went across the street the kids were running around with the other kids, which I didn't like because it was so dark that it was hard to keep track of them. So it wasn't quite as fun as I thought it would be, but I was glad that we got to go out there, because we don't go very often. It was nice to get to spend time with my sister anyway.
I took my camera out there, but I didn't end up taking any pictures. Sorry.
Afa is working out of town again this week. I guess the kids and I are just going to be staying in all week till they are all better. I hate having sick kids! Last night while Anela was trying to sleep and couldn't, she was kind of moaning and rolling around. I just wish that there was something to make her feel better!!!

They grow up so fast!!

This week was Ariana's last week of kindergarten. She goes to a school that is year round so they go longer. The older grades are in for another week, but kindergartners are out this week so they can all do their assessment tests next week. Ariana goes in for hers on Tuesday, and I know that she will have no problems at all. She has done so well in school.

On Wednesday she wanted her hair in a braid so I did a french braid for her for school. When she took out the braid that night, she loved that her hair was all crimpy. She wanted me to do a braid Thursday night for her to sleep in, so that she would have cute crimpy hair on her last day of school. Well, we forgot to do the braid and she was all upset Friday morning, so we curled her hair in ringlets instead. She loved it, and so did I. It's not very fun standing there curling hair for as long as it took, but it was so cute!

I can't believe that my baby is out of kindergarten. In seven weeks she will be starting first grade and Gerry will be off to kindergarten!! It is so crazy. Anela is already asking me to let her go to school with Ariana, that got me to thinking, and I realized that next year she will be old enough to start pre-school at the same elementary that the others will be at! Next year all of my kids will be in school!

It was kind of windy, so it looks like her hair was sticking up a bit, but she looked so cute!

I couldn't help myself, I just kept taking pictures, she just wanted to run off to meet her friends.

Attack of the Laffy Taffy

Today I got some Laffy Taffy for the kids to have after dinner.

While I was opening Anela's, Ariana suddenly said "Oh no! My tooth!"

She had bitten into her taffy and her loose tooth came out in the candy!

It's kinda gross, but I thought that it was funny, so I just had to take a picture and post it!

Tooth in the taffy

Ariana missing another tooth. Soon she wont be able to eat.

Why we haven't posted in a while.

At the playground at the zoo during the field trip with Ariana's class.

ooops! I can't get rid of it.

Ariana with her "boyfriend" Zac. He said that he wants to marry her when they grow up, and she is already planning the wedding! She designed a dress for Grandma Bailey to make for her and has half of the guest list done. She has even told me what I am supposed to wear!!

Ariana and Zac wrestling a crocodile!

Baby elephant playing with her balls. She was so cute running, kicking and hitting the balls!!

The group that I was in charge of at the zoo for Ariana's class field trip last week.

Riley, Ariana, Zac, and Tyler

I always wanted a daughter with curly hair. Now that I have one, this is what our mornings look like!
On the way home from the zoo on Anela's 2nd birthday. May 15

At the zoo on Anela's birthday. Silly girl didn't want to put her head in the lions mouth for the picture!

I know it has been a while since I last posted, but I have a very good reason. We moved! We were not happy in the house we were in, and had been wanting to move for a while. Then some things happened that made it possible to move right away. It was all very sudden. We found the place and got approved and moved in all in less than a week! We are still in Magna, just further west, and we are in an apartment now. I was a little worried that I wouldn't be happy about the size since it is quite a bit smaller that the house, but I love it here! It is 3 bed 2 bath, and really nice. Yesterday we went to the pool for the first time, and had so much fun! I never thought that I would want to live in an apartment, but I really love it. We have a pool, a workout room, and really nice landscaping, and we don't have to pay for or take care of any of it! The kids have met some nice kids in the area and are adjusting really well. The only problem they are having is remembering to be quiet and not run since we have neighbors below us.

Anela turned 2 just over a week after we moved in, and we did get to go to the zoo for her birthday. It was fun, but there are several empty exhibits right now because they are renovating. We did get to see the baby elephant though, she is so cute!

Last week Friday I went to the zoo again with Ariana and her class as a chaperon for their field trip. That was really fun too. It was nice to spend some time with the class and get to know some of the friends that she is always talking about.

Waiting for the sun!

My little cuties are just waiting for another sunny day when they can go outside to play. It was really nice for a while but today is REALLY WINDY! And the forecast said that we are going to be getting A LOT of rain in the next 10+ days, and maybe even a little SNOW!!

As you can see they are ready to have some fun in the sun. I am excited for the weather to get better too. I know that we really need the rain, and I am OK with it, as long as the sun follows. What I am really looking forward to is going to the zoo. I think we are going to try to go for Anela's 2nd birthday which is coming up in just a few weeks.

And hopefully we will get to go to Lagoon sometime this summer. I was really wishing that I could go to Lagoon today because I have been pretty stressed lately, and I think that some of the rides would wipe that out, at least for a while.

My sister Colby gave me Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights quite a few years ago, and I really like Jane Eyre. I just re-read it recently and wanted to re-read Wuthering Heights but I couldn't find my copy. Last week I was looking at books at DI and saw Pride and Prejudice. I hear references to this story in many places, but I have never read it or seen any of the movies that have been made from it. So I decided that I should read it. I really like it. It reminded me a lot of Jane Eyre, there are many similarities. If any of you have not read these books, they are highly recommended by me. Especially Jane Eyre and Pride and Prejudice. Wuthering Heights is something that everyone should read because it is a "classic" but it is really quite crazy! The only reason that I want to read it again, is because it has been so long since I read it the first time, I don't remember all the details.