How was Amelia at her first day at school?

A few quotes to sum it up....

"She did awesome" - Teacher Holly

"This was the best 1st day I've seen" - Teacher Christine

"She clapped along with the songs at circle time like she had been doing it forever" - Teacher Holly

"Jeremy was super sweet and helped Amelia get her 'share' in and out of her cubby - Teacher Chris

"She sat at circle time the whole time without getting up" - Teacher Chris

They even told me she tried to keep up with Jeremy during lunch time. They're going to separate them next time because he ate too fast for her and she kept watching to see if he had moved on to the next thing. I packed them the exact lunch (pb & j, yogurt, apple sauce, strawberries (or any fruit), string cheese and some pretzels or crackers depending on the day). It sounds like a lot but they told me a while back that Jeremy needed more food. So, he gets the same thing every day. The pretzels or crackers are usually the only things that comes home. Same with Amelia. Everything was gone except the pretzels. I thought it was pretty funny.

Anyway, SOOOOOO proud of her!!!!!

Amelia's 1st day at Preschool

Wow, I can't believe this day has finally come. I feel like it was yesterday when I decided to start her after she turned 2 and now it's here. Bitter sweet. I am THRILLED to have one on one time with Mabel and "me" time when Mabel is napping but it's hard to believe that my first daughter is 2 already. I think it went over as well as expected. She was such a big girl with her lunch box and "share" (show and tell) and put her lunch box up on the counter. I put all her stuff (diapers, change of clothes, wipes) in her cubby and gave them hugs and kisses. When I went to put her down she held onto me with a death grip. Teacher Holly (who I've had babysit so Amelia would know her) took her away and she was pretty upset. They said they would call me if there were any issues and it's 11:00 and nothing so far. A friend was there after me and said that Amelia was doing just fine the minute I left.

Her share was her baby doll and the car seat!

Smile! Or not!

Mommy and Nicole (both her kiddos, Simone and Blaise, are in school as well) went back to the good old path to take the doggies and Mabel on a long walk! Luna hasn't moved since we've been home...she's a little out of shape :)

I will let you know what the teachers said about her first day!

One tough cookie....

A fun new game in our house! ONLY when mom supervises!

Funday Sunday

As we were drinking our coffee on the front porch Sunday morning, the George's wandered over and the front yard pool/slip n' slide, popsicle making (Bethany got a super cool popsicle maker), painting, planting party came about! It was exactly the kind of day we needed....I didn't pack a single diaper bag or get in the car once! What a blast!

Jack getting the slip n' slide ready!

Ryan took this opportunity to paint the trim and house where he took the shutters off! FINALLY!

All the ingredients for sunflowers!

Yummy!

This was the smaller of the pools!

Look who's joined the breakfast/lunch/dinner table!!!! She has been eating in her chair but now she likes to sit and play while her big brother and sister eat. She just watched them and their every move. Not sure if that's a good thing or not since they can get kind of crazy! :)

Congrats Jbird!!!!!

Only one more year of preschool before Kindergarten! Keep up the good work!

What a day!!!!

You gotta love good days with family, friends, lemonade stands, errands and ending it with some wine on the front yard! I had a sitter for the morning while J was at school so I got lots of errands done that I've been meaning to do but they couldn't be more annoying to do with kids. Return at costco, refund at the YMCA, Target, registering for summer school...you get it. Waiting in lines and dealing with kids is the worst combo. My mom, Courtney and the kids (including my brother's daughter Kira who was with Court for the day) came over after J's school and it was "go time" from there. Lemonade stand on the front lawn, all the toys from the back yard made their way to the front yard (including the roller coaster), friends stopping by, neighbors quenching their thirst and white wine for the adults! The best part...all the people who came by for a visit! Uncle Christian, Molly & Kelly Lazor (the infamous Lazor family who practically adopted me), Nicole and kids, Jamie and kids, Jen Pickett and boys, my mom's friend Louise, Jack and Annie George...it was chaos! Not to mention all the nice people who stopped to buy lemonade (including our friend Sara and kids who came by on their way to a playdate)! We ended the day with dinner on the front lawn, baths and movie time in the garage. My kids were in bed at 7:00 and not a peep out of 'em! Gotta love it.

Jeremy and Amelia love to climb into bed with Mabel when they hear that she's awake. Nothing but kisses and love first thing in the morning.

The beautiful hydrangea in our front yard!!

Dinner time!

We're sad that Courtney and the kids are leaving tomorrow but we'll have to go visit them in Salt Lake one more time before the fall!!!!

Amelia's 1st Haircut

Courtney and I cut Amelia's hair last night and it looks ADORABLE! We probably cut off an inch or so and she stood still like a very good girl. Combing her hair since birth has really paid off...she lets me do pretty much anything to her hair!

Bike Trailer

Ryan finally got a trailer for his bike and took the kiddos on a ride! He's taking them to get coffee and donuts in the morning :) Bike trailer = Happy Mommy

Mabel, this is Tilly. Tilly, meet Mabel!

My mom came over today on her way to the airport to pick up my sister Courtney and the kiddos who will be here until June 25th! So...I am sure there will be updates with lots of pics and cousin time! Mabel can kind of sit with the boppy behine her although she doesn't need it because she leans forward so far! Jeremy was home sick from school today so we had a LONG day in the house. Ugh...nothing worse than expecting to have 2 kids for the day and then ALL 3 are home. Amelia starts school in 2 weeks so I will let you know how that goes...

Until next time!

For those of you who ask....Jeremy weighed 18lbs, 8 oz at 6 months. Amelia weighed 16lbs, 8 oz! So yes, Mabel is the biggest baby we've had but the HAPPIEST! Hmmm....

Mabel's 6 month checkup

Mabel had her 6 month checkup today and she is as healthy as an ox! And as big as one! Chunky monkey weighed in at 19 lbs, 10 oz (95%), 27 1/4 inches tall (95%) and her head is 17 1/4 (75%). Hey, she may be big but at least she's proportional! She was happy as usual! Amelia came with me and every time someone would leave the room or I picked up Mabel, she would yell "ALL DONE"! I told her 100 times before we left that this appt was for Mabel not her so I think she was worried I was going to change my mind. The nurse even said, "wow, it's so nice to hear Amelia talk because she's usually screaming"!

Marina Del Rey

Ryan thought it would be fun to rent a boat and cruise around the marina with the kids! The cool thing about living here is that we decided to go around 3 p.m and we were on the water by 4:30. Jeremy and Amelia have been on a boat before so we didn't think it would be an issue. It was a little bit of an issue for Amelia (shocker) with the life vest and she of course, fell over backwards and landed on her head in the boat. Some crying from her but it was a fun time!

She said, "lets go on that boat dada" about 10 times as we walked to the rental window!

J and A thought this was funny and so did momma!

Yes, even Mabel had to wear a life vest. It made holding her interesting but as usual, she was happy!

Jeremy and Amelia drove the boat and we had a sea lion swim right up along side of the boat!

Mabel chilled out and Jeremy LOVED every minute of it.

We finished the evening with dinner at Shanghai Reds and some ice cream. Bath and bed by 7:45!

6 month comparison....

Mabel is 6 months old, World Cup has started and we keep ourselves entertained!

Playdate at our house with the Phillips and Taylors! From left to right....Blaise, Olivia, Hudson, Simone, Jeremy, Mabel and Amelia!

How can mommy watch the World Cup and not be bothered? Let them tear apart some "hand me down" toys from a friend!

Watch mommy cook dinner in our new camping chairs!

Amelia's new favorite place to play...."momma's car"!

Updates

The potty present is still sitting on the bathroom counter!

The caterpillar is making it's cocoon as I type (kind of gross looking)!

Ryan is currently making plans to camp again, SOON!

Jacqui left today but we made, and I am making, great progress on the puzzle!

We've got nothing but time....

So why not do a 1000 piece puzzle....the "World's Smallest 1000 Piece Puzzle" with my sister and get annoyed that my kids actually need me.

And why not bring (more like a hitch hiking caterpillar from our camping trip) home a caterpillar, make it a home and watch and wait for it to turn into a butterfly!!!!!

Baby doll bashing and baby doll loving

Who loves Mabel?

Jeremy does A LOT!!!!!

Camping with the Taylors at Malibu Creek State Park

We headed to Malibu Creek State Park Saturday morning to test out the whole family camping thing. We dropped Mabel off with Oma and got to the campsite about 10:30a.m. The kids were thrilled and I think Amelia asked to go camping 100 times. Their favorite thing...playing in the tent. Nicole, Paul and the kiddos showed up shortly after us and we got everything set up and then headed out for a hike. Amelia was in the backpack and the other kids were troopers and walked most of the way. It was HOT! We got to the rock pool and it cooled us off quickly. The Taylors cooked dinner and then it was smore's time. The Meinhardt kids went to bed easily (only a couple "mommy" and "daddy" from the tent) but the Taylor kiddos were way too excited to not only be in a tent but to be with each other. Blaise kept Simone up :) We all went to bed but the campers next to us decided it would be really fun to stay awake until 2a.m. 1:30 a.m....Amelia wakes up screaming bloody murder (I think they call those night terrors) and didn't want anything to do with being in my or Ryan's arms. I put her in the car and drove around for 10 minutes and she was fine. Thankfully the camp spot to out other side was empty so once those party animals went to bed it was quiet and we slept until 7. Breakfast was our responsibility! Bacon, eggs and pancakes. We packed up and went to another water spot before heading home. Overall, on a scale 1-10, it was a 5 or 6. We now know what to bring, how to make it easier, etc. Now, if we could just figure out how to get Amelia to nap because she was one tired and grumpy girl all day today!!!!!

They loved their new sleeping bags. Too bad they kept slipping out of them during the night :)

View from our campsite!