Firehouse Field Trip

May 23 - For one last Joy School activity, we took the kids on a field trip to the local fire house. They had a great time!
These are the Joy School kids - Jake, Rylee and Arita. Andrew came a little late. The first thing they did was show the kids a movie about Fire Safety. The kids really liked it because it had Donald Duck. It was a pretty old movie though and a little weird. Hopefully, they learned a few things to do in case of a fire.
Since we went in the morning, the Kindergarten kids got to join us, too. Here is Logan and Eden ready for the movie. They loved the fire hats!
Avery was into the little fire hat, too!
After the movie, we headed out to where they keep their trucks and checked out all the cool stuff firefighters have. The kids were super excited for this part!

They passed around this coat to see how heavy it was!
Not sure what Logan was doing here but he was quite into all the equipment. He kept asking to see a REAL ax!
When they showed the oxygen packs they wear, Logan thought it looked like a jet pack and he HAD to try it on. Jake was the only one brave enough to try on all that gear! My cute little fire girl! Next, they showed them some real tools, including the ax that Logan was so excited to see! They even let the kids hold the tools, which caused some serious stress for us moms since they were all quite sharp and also caused many tears since they all fought over who got to go first. I was glad when this part was over!
Then, they turned the kids loose on the fire truck. I think it stressed the firefighters out a little to have that many little kids all over the place!
Rylee really liked to pretend she was driving!
I tried to keep Avery safe on the ground, but she of course, had to climb up there too! That was a little stressful because she would run to the other side of the truck where I couldn't reach her and then act like she was going to jump. At one point, Rylee grabbed her for me and I was pulling her out and then Avery grabbed Rylee's shirt and they both came tumbling down from the truck and I barely caught them! Yes...I guess I was glad when we were done with this part, too! Logan was all over the place! I didn't get many good pictures of him because he didn't stand still for very long. He was loving it!

Logan and his friend from Kindergarten, Emily
For one last activity, the kids got to spray this extinguisher at a cone. They thought this was pretty neat - It was their chance to be like a REAL firefighter!

Our little Joy School crew with the siblings! Kind of a big under 7 crowd! It was a fun day. Lizzie was missing from this picture from some reason and one other baby sister. Back Row: Logan, Eden, Ryan, Emily and Jake Front: Arita, Rylee, Avery and Andrew
My cute little firefighters!

I realized after this trip to the station, I had a lot to learn about fire safety and it was great for me to listen to as well. The kids had a great day and it was a fun end to our Joy School experience.

Our Little Graduate!

May 12 - Our cute Rylee had her BIG Joy school graduation in May. I have been looking through my posts and realized I never really did much journaling of her joy school experience, so I am going to do one big post of the whole year one of these days. Anyway, she had a great time doing Joy School. It was the perfect answer to my dilemma of whether to do 2 years of preschool for Rylee. It was free and only one day a week and Rylee loved it! It was great for me, too. It gave me a chance to be involved with Rylee and her friends, and also gave Rylee and I an occasional break from each other. I loved doing it!

Rylee was SO excited for the Graduation. The kids practiced their songs a few weeks before and were so excited for their cute little program. Ry ready for the Graduation to start! She couldn't wait for everyone to get here. It was at our house and she had so much fun helping me decorate!
Just for fun, here is a flash back to her FIRST day of Joy School, which was in September.
Can you tell she is excited?
Rylee's cute little class. Before the program, we had one last short class and practiced the program a little bit. This is right before we sang the song we sing to start class. It goes "Rylee (or whoever's name...) will you stand up and let us see you smile? We're glad you're here today. Won't you stay awhile?" The kids love it! They always point to their smiles when they sing. It makes me laugh!
Will their cute little graduation caps - Arita, Rylee, Jake and Andrew
Getting ready to start our program...
Rylee loved her cute friend, Arita. They were the only girls and they got along so good together and had fun this year.
CHEESE!
They sang 2 songs for their program. One was called, "Oh, Boy! I've got Joy!" and the other was a cute School Spirit song! The words were something about "our school is the best!" and the kids got really into it and loved using their pom poms!
After the songs, we watched a cute photo slide show that one of the moms made. It was so fun to look back on the year and all the memories. I got a little teary!
Then, the graduates each got a turn to come up and the moms said some nice things about them and they got their little diplomas and a report card.
Presenting Rylee with her little diploma and report card
Mom and the new Joy School graduate
Not sure what is going on with this face... She pulls it a lot though.
Afterwards, we had some special treats. One of the other moms made these adorable graduation cap cupcakes. They loved them!
Enjoying the treats - Unfortunately, we couldn't work out a time that ALL the dads could be there. Since we didn't want any one to feel bad that their dad was gone, we did the program with just moms and the siblings not in school. All of us have a kindergartener who goes in the afternoon, so it works out pretty good for them to all play together. There were also a few babies running around. It was a little crazy, but it was a good time!

Avery really liked her cupcake, too! Logan had a hard time with this day. He even told the car pool that day that he wasn't having a good day and he told me on several occasions that he felt left out and was pretty upset. He loved when we had Joy School here and always wanted to "help", although sometimes he wanted to take over. Once the graduation was going, he really wanted to do all the things the other kids were doing and it was hard for him to realize that this program was just for Ry and he needed to support her. I tried to explain, but I guess it is hard at that age! He hates when the attention isn't on him!
Rylee with her graduation goods - All the kids got a cute balloon that Rylee picked out and a report card, diploma and cap. And they each got their own copy of the fun DVD of the year. Rylee loves to watch it!
Daddy came home shortly after the graduation finished up. Rylee couldn't wait to tell him all about it and show him the DVD.
Mom and Rylee - She is growing up into such a little lady! I can't believe it!
Since Daddy missed the graduation, we took Rylee for a special lunch. With just her and Mom and Dad! That rarely happens at our house and Rylee was so excited about it! She picked Winger's. I think mostly because she likes the popcorn they bring out. She even got a special dessert! She loved having us all to herself and talked nonstop. It was so cute! We love our sassy little Princess. Way to go Rylee! She is VERY excited for REAL Preschool. I kept telling her it was after Joy School, so she was ready to go there the day after her graduation. She can't wait!

The Rest of April...

Here are a few last things from the month of April -

April 2 and 3 - Our kids were angels during General Conference this year. I always print them out packets to color and stuff to play Bingo, but it usually doesn't keep them that entertained for very long. They will listen for a speaker or 2 and then be off doing something else. Or fighting. This year, they were SO good during every session!Except the Sunday afternoon session because some of our family came a little early for Rylee's party and watched the session with us and the kids were a bit riled up. I was amazed how good they were though. It was so nice!

April 7 - Avery loves to watch Mommy put her makeup on and pretend she is doing her own in the mirror. This time she managed to sneak into the makeup and actually put on some of my eyeshadow. Its hard to tell, but she tried to put it on like lip stick. Little stinker! April 8 - Mom turned THIRTY!!! Can you believe it? I am officially old!!!
April 9 - Dad picked up a cheese cake for Mom's birthday since we never actually did cake with the kids. They loved it!
Avery mostly just liked the raspberry topping
April 10 - Avery just looking cute for church. I got this dress out for her (it used to be Rylee's), but it was kind of small, so I took some pictures just in case she never gets to wear it again.
While I was taking her pictures, my phone started to ring and my ringtone is "Pokerface" by Lady Gaga. Avery loves that song and points to her face like this every time she hears it.
I wish she was this happy and smiley for her nursery teacher!
April 10 - We went to Sunday dinner at Grandma Boman's house. Uncle Dean and Aunt Laura couldn't make it to Rylee's party the week before so they gave her their present then. She LOVED it! A Princess art set - It was perfect for her!
Uncle Brad got out his lizard and Logan got pretty brave and even touched it! He is not really a fan of these kind of things and usually the girls are more into it than him, so this was a big deal!
Love this funny faceApril 12 - Avery loves watching the frogs - I think she might even like them more than the bigger kids. She will slide a chair over from the table to the counter and watch them for a long time and say "rog" over and over. She is very entertained by them!
April 12 - Logan all ready for his very first soccer game! He is loving soccer more and more. His dad is his coach this year and he loved that! The games were all pretty chilly, or at least the first few were. He has done great and scored quite a few goals, and every time he scores, he has an awesome celebration, like a knee slide by the corner flag, just like the pros. He is quite entertaining.
April 13 - Logan was so excited for Miss Q and Mr U to get married! They did this really cute activity at school and got all dressed up for the occasion! His student teacher pretended to get married since Q and U always go together. They each took a present that started with a Q (Logan took Quaker granola bars) and they even got to eat wedding cake.
April 14 - Joy School is coming to a close! I am sad! This last lesson was one of my favorites. It was all about imagination. They all chose their very own dressups from our collection, we took a flight to the moon and went on a bear hut and had a picnic. It was a fun day!
Our craft was to make a picture out of lots of different shapes and colors and use their imagination. They did a great job!
Ry put together this ensemble - I'm not too sure how she came up with this combination. She said she was a Bunny Princess... She has bunny ears, an Ariel wig, an apron, a necklace and a Cinderella dress. Such a funny girl!
Darren is enjoying my new camera, too. He took this picture of our dessert one night.

April 16 - For awhile, my kids went through a phase where Logan and Rylee were sleeping in the same room. Rylee would beg every night to sleep on Logan's floor so she wouldn't be scared and Logan would say that he liked the "company". I thought it was kinda' sweet! And they were both sleeping pretty well that way, so I didn't really mind. Whatever works! April 17 - Avery and Daddy just hanging out before church. She was sitting there so cute on his lap while he was reading, which is something that she rarely does because she is such a busy girl, so I tried to get a picture, but she saw me too soon. Then she was introducing me to daddy. She loves to say all of our names right now. And, she is always naked on Sunday mornings because we have late church and if I get her dressed, she always spills or makes a mess on her dress and I have to change her. And then I usually have to change Rylee too so they will match. Ridiculous, I know...

Darren took these pictures of Avery pounding on the door and crying while I was going to the bathroom. She is going through a Momma's girl stage at the moment and thinks she has to be with me all day every day - even when I'm in the bathroom!

Apr 17 - I asked Rylee to help me wash the potatos for Sunday dinner (which she LOVES to do - it is one of her favorite jobs, although she does still call potatoes tomatoes no matter how many times we correct her...) and she came up with this outfit. She put on a little apron and then she put on her little chef hat, but she put it on like a bonnet. This girl cracks me up! She loves clothes and accessories! The other day, Darren went upstairs and she had pulled a shirt on a hanger out of the closet and hung some shorts with them and left them hanging in the bathroom for him. She loves to help everyone pick out their clothes!
Another picture of the potato washing outfit...

And the poses she comes up with... She is too funny! That girl has SO much personality!

April 19 - As a mom, it doesn't get much better than this! This wasn't posed or anything! I actually found them lying like this reading together. It melted my heart and made my day! Maybe even my week. They can be so sweet to each other sometimes. I just love it! And while that reading was going on, this one was sitting on the couch reading a book of her own. Pure bliss for Mom!

April 21 - These pictures are all blurry because I don't know what I am doing with my camera still, but I loved some of the expressions. Rylee and Daddy were having a boxing match and they were having so much fun. Darren is such a good daddy to always play with the kids! And they all love to box! My favorite is when Avery puts on the gloves and starts punching. It is hilarious!


April 22 - Another day at the soccer fields. This time was actually a little bit warmer than most! Cute Avery is a pretty good sport most of the time to sit and watch her brother. I love her little crossed feet!
She does especially well at the games if you keep giving her treats... This particular game, my friend had given me some pink Peeps and Avery had them all gone by halftime! She loved them! And they looked good on her, too. Gotta love those sticky pink lips!
After the soccer game, we went for a special yummy family treat - Ice cream at one of our favorite places - Caspers!

I think he has a brain freeze...He looks like he's in pain!
On the way home, Avery was just being silly. She refused to let me take off her jacket when I buckled her and then she kept hiding in her hood the whole way home. She loves to be silly and she loves to hide!
April 24 - We spent Easter Sunday eating dinner at Grandma and Grandpa Bomans' house. I am in love with these pictures of Avery! On a side note, she cut FOUR new teeth the night before. If you look, you can see them poking through.
Avery and Ethan - The best of friends and the worst of enemies! They seem to always want the same things and end up fighting a lot. But, they love each other and are always excited to be together.
Grandma gave each of the kids a special Easter suprise. Rylee's was a Princess Bead book. You can make tons of creations with little plastic beads, like tiaras and necklaces and bracelets. She loves it!
They also each got a really cute candy sucker!
Avery also got a cute little Peek-A-Boo book that she loves. She really likes lift the flap books right now. But she REALLY liked her sucker! It was like a sticky, gummy candy and she had it all over her face!
Logan got a giant book about dinosaurs and he couldn't wait to start reading!
April 26 - Just another one of Rylee's fabulous clothing combinations. It is one of my favorite parts of the day to see what she will put together. I love that she is also toting her flip cell phone - the toy ones just aren't good enough for her anymore. And for some reason, she calls this red shirt her "bike shirt". I think she might have worn it to ride her bike one day or something, but now she feels like she needs to wear it anytime there is bike riding involved.
April 27 - Avery likes to get into mischeif. Especially if that mischeif involves candy or sweets! She has a nose for it and can find goodies anywhere. This particular day, she was being very quiet and I discovered that she had pushed up a chair to the counter and was chowing down on the remains of Rylee's potty cake. She was loving it and she looked so funny covered in frosting. When I found her, she immediately started trying to shove the cake in faster. She is such a sweet tooth!
Finger licking good!
Avery also discovered how to climb up the ladder and do the slide all by herself! It makes me a little nervous to watch, but she is fast at climbing the ladder and hasn't fallen yet. She loves to stand at the top and say "HI" and wave. Then she goes down the slide on her belly, feet first. She loves being able to do it over and over!
The swing is always fun, too. Even if it is a little chilly outside still.

It was a very cold spring, so we haven't been outside as much as we would like to be. But, when we do get outside, the girls are nothing but smiles! They love it!

April 30 - I just love this picture of my little soccer star! More soccer games...still freezing cold!!!
And my cute little soccer fan! I love this baby!