Three Little Monkeys

Most of you know how I love the Three Little Monkeys store in Fruit Heights (next to the Rock Loft - Secret Haven). Well, I was WAY excited to find out that they will be opening another store by Costco in Bountiful! Wahoo! Are you drooling yet? I know I am! Oh, and not only do they have a website, but they have a new blog too. Check it out:
http://3lmonkeys.blogspot.com

Car Pool

A couple of ladies in the ward and I decided to have a carpool for kindergarten pickup. It sure beats having to go to the school THREE TIMES A DAY!! So our neighbor picked up last week and Makenna was thrilled to be in a carpool and ride in Ella's car. This week is my turn and we arranged for Makenna's 2 friends to come home with us, have lunch and play for a couple of hours until I take them home. This morning I reminded Makenna that her carpool friends were coming over after school. She said, "Carpool? Car Pool? There's really not a pool in our car. You'd have to have a truck for that!"

Sleeping Beauties

I know the girls will one day hate me for posting pics of them in their undies, but I couldn't resist.... At least one of the girls likes to crawl in bed with me after Quentin leaves for work - and this morning I found all 3 of them scrunched up together on one half of the bed. So cute!

We Did It!

This summer, Centerville City has offered a cute little "Take a Hike" pin for participants who complete 5 specified trails. We've been working hard and we finally finished our last hike and got our pins! The girls have been so excited to work toward that goal - even Kasidee has been asking basically every day, "Hike? Daddy home?" It's been fun to get to know some trails that we haven't been on before - and we found one we definitely want to do again (Deuel Creek South Trail) - so fun!

Sleepover with Granny

For months, the girls have been begging us to let Granny sleepover at our house. They've enjoyed several sleepovers at her house, but she's never slept at our house. I'm not quite sure what they were expecting, but they loved having her over last night. She came for dinner, then we played the Wii and watched Singing in the Rain. When it was bedtime, Kiera and Makenna both wanted to sleep with Granny in the tiny twin guest bed. Kiera even snuck out after we tucked her in and wanted to cuddle with Granny in her bed! But once everyone was in their own beds and fast asleep, all was well. The girls bounded down the stairs this morning to see if Granny was up. We had waffles and played a "Punch Bug" game Granny brought. Granny's such a good sport for putting up with us and letting us enjoy her company!!

Farmington Canyon

Last Saturday we joined Quentin's brother's family on a spontaneous trip up Farmington Canyon. We drove to the base of the canyon then loaded all 6 kids in Corbin and Nikki's van. Quentin and I parked our van and drove our 4-wheeler up the canyon - 9 miles! I hadn't really ridden on the 4-wheeler since Quentin got it last Fall, so it was fun to be able to ride with Quentin! Once we all got to the top, we found a picnic area, had some lunch, and Quentin gave the kids rides on the 4-wheeler. We returned home dusty and tired - but with lots of fun memories!





THE GIRLS PLAYED "STORE" WITH ALL THE TREASURES THEY FOUND!

Just Call Me "Miss Kellie!"

Well, so everyone has had their first day of school - second grade and kindergarten. And yesterday it was my turn for MY first day! I began teaching at Kiera and Makenna's old preschool! As you may recall, just under a year ago when I was a monthly "parent helper" at Makenna's preschool, the teachers asked me if I would be interested in being a teacher for the optional Wednesday class this year. I jumped at the chance! So I have 10 4-year-old students and teach the "Mozart Math" program, which integrates music and math education. It is SO fun! The kids were great, and I'm excited for the opportunity to get out of the house once a week (just for 2 1/2 hours), make a little bit of extra cash, and especially get my feet wet for when my friend Jill and I will start Scootlebugs Preschool in my house next Fall! Yippee!

Impressive Weekend

Quentin has been in the Elders Quorum presidency for a couple of years - first as the secretary, then the second counselor and a little over a month ago he was called to be the first counselor. As part of the new presidency, the quorum members and their families went on a weekend retreat! One of the presidency members invited everyone to spend Friday and Saturday night at a cabin in Hobble Creek Canyon. Well, cabin is not quite the appropriate word - LODGE would be a better word. This 20,000 (yes, 4 zeros) square foot lodge used to be owned by one of their family members (to be used as their private residence!) and then was donated to BYU. BYU now rents it out and we were able to go for FREE! Incredible. It was overwhelmingly big and beautiful. There were 3 Great Rooms, an indoor basketball court (with womens and mens locker rooms!), an indoor treehouse and playground, a private stream and pond, 9 bedrooms with their own bathrooms, and enough beds to sleep 40 people! Absolutely incredible. After we wiped the drool from our chins, we spent the weekend with 3 incredibly amazing families - it was such a neat opportunity to get to know them even better and be able to hang out and enjoy each other's company. What a fun experience! (P.S. The pictures of the front don't even show the entire lodge. It was in a U-shape, so it was hard to get a picture of the whole building.)




PLAY AREA IN REC ROOM

TREEHOUSE IN REC ROOM

ONE OF THE "GREAT ROOMS"

WALL OF WINDOWS LOOKING OUT TO THE POND

HALLWAY WITH WINDOWS ON BOTH SIDES AND ARCHED FLOORING

KITCHEN

ENTRY WAY

THE LITTLE KIDS (MINUS KASIDEE AND BABY PENELOPE)

KIERA, GLORIA AND ELLA


THE WHOLE GANG

US!

First Day - For Real

So even though school started last Monday, Kindergarten is a little weird. Quentin, Kasidee and I got to stay with Makenna the whole time on Monday and then the kids didn't have to go back for the rest of the week, except for a 20-minute appointment for the Kindergarten Assessment. So today is the first "real day" of Kindergarten. Makenna has been so excited, and the thing she was most excited about was being able to stand in line outside the door till the teacher came to get them. Simple pleasures, eh? She was just beaming this morning, and I could tell she felt so grown up!

I was surprised as I felt the sting of tears while I was walking back to my car. I know Makenna will be fine and she'll have so much fun. I'm excited for her! I guess it's just hard realizing how fast time goes - and knowing that part of growing up requires {ME} letting go - knowing that her world is expanding and that I won't be the only one taking care of her.... Big day for all of us!

4-Wheeling!

Quentin had last Thursday and Friday off. Even though Kiera had school, we tried to make the most of his time off. On Thursday he took Makenna for a 2 1/2 hour ride on the 4-Wheeler. They packed a picnic and enjoyed their one-on-one time. Makenna loved being on the 4-Wheeler. When Kiera heard what they did while she was at school, she felt a little sad so Quentin took her on Saturday. It's so nice, because the trail that leads to the Centerville foothills is just 2 streets away from our house. And from there, you can go to the "B" in Bountiful, or go north into Farmington Canyon. Quentin (and the girls!) love riding!!

Random Pics

Just a few pics that were too cute not to post!!

Having fun at the neighbor's swimming / ice cream party . . .








Having fun at the park with a few of our neighbors. Since Makenna didn't have kindergarten, she was the oldest kid there - but she had fun pulling the "little ones" in the wagon!



Kiera loves to be in charge of bedtime stories - and she loves reading to Makenna and Kasidee . . .

First Day

Well, today was the Big Day. Second grade for Kiera, Kindergarten for Makenna. Wow - how'd they get that old?! They've both been so excited and have been counting down the days. Quentin, Kasidee and I got to stay with Makenna for her whole day, which lasted a whole 1 and 1/2 hours. She won't go back till next Monday (besides an assessment test on Wednesday), so I guess today was just a "pretend day." But I could tell she felt so grown up and was excited to start on her "homework" as soon as she got home.

Kiera, on the other hand, gave us hugs at the classroom door and walked in on her own. A few parents lingered outside the door, anxiously peering in. But the kids all seemed to act like it was "old hat." Big kids.

So it's been a big day for all of us. A new phase, a new schedule, a new start. Here we go!

Last Days

Well, only a few days left till school starts, and we're trying to milk it!! For the last couple of weeks, I've been "mourning" the passing of summer. Fall is my favorite season and I love looking forward to it, but since I've had kids going to school, I get so sad around the middle of August - I start missing them before they're even gone!

Sorry to get sappy. Anyway, Thursday we enjoyed a perfect Summer evening at the Bountiful Farmer's Market. I love it there - the live music, and all the yummy food! We got some peaches and blackberries. Oh, yum! We met Granny there and then we all went to El Matador for dinner afterward. More yum!

Then yesterday the girls and I met Quentin at his work during his lunch hour. We got sandwiches from Subway and french fries for the girls, then let them splash around at the Gateway fountains. Fun fun! Then the girls and I visited the Salt Lake library and checked out lots of books (thanks for your library card, Dad!), then browsed at Wild Oats (or is it Whole Foods now?) and Restoration Hardware.

Quentin had suggested a backyard campout for yesterday night, so when he got home from work we set up the tent, got out the firepit, roasted marshmallows and made smores, and Kiera entertained us with some Mad Libs. Bedtime came, and I realized that we've been spoiled with our tent trailer. When we go camping we take our tent trailer - it's so nice to have a spot that's clean with soft, comfy beds. But in our backyard in our little tent on the hard, lumpy ground (even with the awesome air mattress my sisters and brother-in-law gave us), it just wasn't comfy - especially knowing that my nice bed was just a few feet away in my bedroom. But the girls were so excited so we stuck it out...and woke up with mosquito bites everywhere!! I got one on my lip, and poor Kiera got about 10 on her face - including her eyelids. Poor thing - I feel so bad for her!

But all in all, it was a fun experience and certainly one that we'll remember!