Something New

Rylee got her hair cut yesterday and I have mixed emotions about this. On one hand she lost all her beautiful long hair-again! On the other it is really cute but it makes her look older and I don't like that one little bit. She surprised me too because Wednesday she wasn't going short and Thursday I pick her up and asked her if she was just getting a trim. She says "what's a trim" and so I explain. Then she says "I'm not getting a trim. I want it to my ears." Where in the world does she get these ideas?! But she was so excited that she looked older and kept looking in the mirror.

Soccer

So Rylee started soccer a couple of weeks ago. Today is her 3rd practice and her 1st game is tomorrow. It is so cute to see all these kids go for the ball. I actually think Rylee is pretty good when she remembers not to use her hands. That is the hardest part for her. Sometimes I will see her put her hands out to catch the ball and then remember that she can't do that. But she tries her hardest. The end of practices she is all pink faced and sweaty. Can't wait to see the game

tomorrow!

1st Day of School

Rylee started 1st grade this year at Mountain Valley Elementary. She was so excited but she was a little nervous too. It made me sad to hear her concerns this year about making friends but I kept telling her that she will have no trouble and to just be herself. Of course being the worrier that I am I worried about it all day because she had been worried! So when I went to pick her up I saw she had this big smile of her face and I felt so much better. She told me how much she loved 1st grade and that she met a couple of friends and she already loved her teacher. Sometimes I just need to listen to my own advise more often and quit worrying! :)

The girl won't let me do her hair anymore. It's always headbands or ponytails. I have to beg her to even use a curling iron. And below is her posing as usual!

In a Nutshell

So to fill in a little bit (because I am so lazy) here is the rest of our summer.

4th of July weekend Grandpa Jack and my DH took Andrew and Rylee fishing for the 1st time. It ended up that Rylee caught 2 fish that day. She had a blast and the best part was that Grandpa Jack cleaned them up and cooked them for us. I think maybe she had one bite! :)

End of July we went and saw the Blue Angels. Rylee was really excited. All she kept asking about was when the Blue Angels were coming. We sat there for hours in the heat and finally when the Blue Angels show up she looses her enthusiasm. Isn't that always how it goes.

In August Rylee and I took our annual trip to Utah to go to Lagoon. Unfortunately we forgot our camera and all I had was my phone which I did not take to Lagoon. As usual Andrew and Rylee had a blast and were even able to try out a new ride this summer called The Bat. It was "so awesome" and I think we ended up riding it 3 times in a row they were so excited.

We also did our Hogul Zoo day. It was such a hot day and it was the day after Lagoon and we were all so tired (and a little cranky) that we

didn't even spend a whole lot of time there. The best part about that day was eating at The Cheesecake Factory. Soooo Yummmmy!

For the 1st time we went to the Dinosaur Museum in Thanksgiving Point. It was a really neat museum-I definitely want to go back. Maybe next time we can fit in one of their 3-D movies.

Most of the summer Rylee and I just messed around and didn't do a whole lot. We did go to our zoo and she learned how to hoola hoop which she thinks is just awesome. I am so glad I was able to be home with her and miss her so much now that summer is over!

Alaska

I just haven't been able to sit myself down long enough to write about Alaska and today I am putting my foot down. I will not leave this computer until I am done!

Okay so in June we went to Alaska for Justin's brothers wedding. It was to take place on Saturday but of course we wanted to see some of the sights before. So we left Tuesday the 22nd in the morning and arrived in Anchorage I think early evening (already I have forgotten). They are 2 hours behind us and it doesn't get dark there at night so needless to say Rylee didn't ever go to bed on time. Actually none of us did! :) Our 1st night we had a BBQ over @ Cody and Vanessa's house where Rylee met her new best friend Sophie.

Wednesday we drove to Seward for a 6 hour

boat trip. Luckily the weather wasn't too bad so it wasn't horribly cold on the water. During our little adventure we saw otters, orca whales, porpoises, puffins, a huge glacier, a mountain goat and another whale-actually it was just his tail.

Thursday I have no idea what we did-must have been nothing because I have no pictures so on to Friday where we drove to Majestic Valley Wilderness Lodge (not sure where this is) about 2 hours out of from Anchorage. This is where the wedding was being held and it was very beautiful. They had some planes and a little runway there that was neat to see just not sure why it was there. Forld on the water. During our little adventure we saw otters, orca whales, porpoises, puffins, a huge glacier, a mountain goat and another whale-actually it was just his tail.

got to mention that I still have yet to see a moose. Last pictures that Betty Lu and Ryan had in Alaska were full of moose and bald eagles and I haven't seen a one. The little arch is where the wedding was going to take place on Saturday. It was very cute. They had little hammocks that Rylee loved to s

wing on and when I couldn't find her I would look here or for the dogs that were at the lodge. Leave it to Rylee to find dogs.

Saturday (the day of the wedding) we woke up to a beautiful rainy day. We had had good weather up until that day of course. Isn't that the way it goes. Anyway I spent the whole day in my rollers just because I wanted to. It's funny because I won't go out in public without makeup on or in my sweats but I am ok if people see me in my rollers! It rained all day and the ceremony was held inside. It was very nice. Rylee was the flower girl and she did such a good job-she was so pretty. I was the picture taker here so the pictures suck. Then they had a dinner and the rest of the night was filled with dancing and fun. At the end we we

nt outside to this big bonfire (of course the rain had finally stopped) and this is where I finally saw my moose. Actually 3 because we saw a momma and her 2 calves.

Sunday (another rainy day) we just headed back to Anchorage and did a little tourist shopping. You always have to have a shirt that says where you went that you probably won't ever wear but you have to get because you probably won't ever go back. We also met up with Vanessa and Cody and her family and ate at Humpy's and I mention this because the guy from Man vs Food had done a show there previously so I had to try it.

Monday we left for home @ 6:30 a.m. and arrived back in Idaho Falls at 6 p.m. It's when you just want to be home and you have a 2 hour layover in Boise and you flight ends up being delayed. But we made it and it was a fun trip.

Forgot to mention the biggest news of the trip. Rylee lost her 2 front bottom teeth. She was so excited and likes to show everyone that she lost 2 teeth.

Kindergarten Graduation

What an emotional week it has been. Everytime I pull into the school and think about Rylee leaving I get very teary eyed. I don't know why it is so hard for me to see her growing up-I think it is all just happening way to quickly.

Today was Calvary's kindergarten graduation and it was so cute. They had a little program and Rylee even had a part-she got to hold the R from the alphabet bet and say "R is for reading stories, even those that brought a tear" and she did a great job. They sang a couple songs and it is probably because I am just a little biased but I always think that she does the actions the best. She is so into it! And then they called each child up to shake Principal Peck's hand and give Mrs. Thompson a hug. I was doing good because I wasn't crying and I thought I had made it through without a tear. And then they awarded both kindergarten teachers a picture of their class and all the kids had signed it and finished with a prayer. And then the tears came and they just wouldn't stop. The worst part was that I kind of snorted. Oh well, it felt good to get it all out.

Calvary has been such a great school and Rylee really had a great experience and I am a little sad that we won't be going there next year as she was accepted to the new math and science school Mountain Valley for 1st grade. I will really miss Mrs. Thompson as she has been a part of Rylee's life for so long and has always been so good to her. I don't know what we'll do without her. Hopefully we can go and visit. I will also be starting a new job as of next week of Stay at home Mom. I made the hard decision of leaving my job so I could spend some more time with Rylee. I am not sure how this is going to go as I have worked since I was 16 years old and have been full time since I was 19. I am not quite sure what I will do with myself all day especially when Rylee goes back to school. I have some that say you will find things to do and others telling me I will be bored to tears. My boss was nice enough to say that if I happened to want a few hours come fall time to give him a call he would love to have me back so that's always nice to know if I start pulling my hair out! :)

Anyway to finish up this post I'll just say ON TO NEW ADVENTURES!

Biker Babes

I really haven't done anything exciting lately so I haven't had anything to post. I work, come home and make dinner and then go to bed. That is my day. But this weekend my mom and I completed the STAR motorcycle class and I passed. I may have complained a little bit ;) but now that it is over I am really glad that I did it. I don't have any pictures of us on the bikes but I am sure it was a funny site to see. Nobody start worrying-I don't even have my own bike so I won't be terrorizing anyone on the road (yet)! I don't know that I will even get my own bike but before I would even get on the road I would definitley want more practice. I am far from being bike ready but it was really fun. Thanks mom for taking the class with me!