Daxton + Mommy

Daxton and I are slowly settling into our new routine now that all of his sisters and brother are gone.  We have lazy mornings where we just hang out in our jammies watching cartoons.  It reminds me of when I only had Cambrie, and we had nowhere to be.  We just hung out all day.  

Once we finally get up and moving we typically have some errands we need to run.  It is a lot easier with just one kid.  And really, he is so much happier being the only one getting all of my attention.  One morning I made smoothies with breakfast and he wasn't quite done with his so he brought it in the car with him.  Apparently I didn't warn him a bump was coming because he called out, "Mom!  I'm messy!"  I turned around and saw the smoothie all over his face.  I was laughing so hard, and he was laughing hard enough that he didn't mind when I took a picture instead of giving him a napkin first.  

It was a bizarre morning at Costco that day, we saw a dinosaur riding a unicycle pushing grocery carts.  

hile we're out running errands I don't mind that he's a goofball in the carts, or a monkey on the railings.  I'm trying to soak it up because he's my last one.  

Another perk to it just being the two of us, is that when I have a sudden craving for a Jamba Juice (and because last time I made him spill his smoothie all over his face), I don't mind stopping and treating ourselves.  

He loves it when it's time to pick up his siblings from school.  Kelton lets out right next to the kindergarten playground so we get to play a little each afternoon.  

When we get home all he wants to do is play with his brother.  Kelton is craving play time too. Kindergarten is long for this kid and it's nice when he can come home and chillax.  It's been kind of a fun transition and new stage for the two of us.

Soccer season starts...with three!

All right, here we go...all four kids' sports are now in season!  Fingers crossed we can find the time to make it to every practice and every game.  I'm curious to see what kind of magic I'm going to have to work with the calendar this fall.  We signed up Daxton to play soccer for his very first time.  I thought that because he's watched his siblings play for years that he would love to finally have his turn.  I was right.  He loved that he can wear shin guards and cleats, and that he has his own soccer ball.  He loved the first 30 minutes of practice.  He loved running around with his ball kicking it into the goal.  He did take a couple minutes to warm up to the idea of playing by himself, but his faithful big siblings helped him with that.  

When it was finally time for the game you could tell that he wasn't quite sure what to think about soccer now.  Now there were six kids running around the field jostling for the one ball.  He didn't like being pushed or shoved by the other players at all.  More than once he came over to me on the sidelines, picked up his own ball, and tried to take it onto the field to play.  I was actually really proud of him, at least he wasn't like the other five kids on the sidelines crying and refusing to go out there.  I have a sneaking suspicion though that will happen eventually, which is why I tried to get as many pictures of him playing as possible.  

Let's hope this smile lasts!

After Daxton's game it was Kelton's turn.  He has the same coach and a couple of the same players as last season so there was no adjustment period at all for this kid.  He is ready to play.  I was impressed by his team that they tried passing it to each other instead of bee-lining it for the goal.  

It is going to be a good season for this guy.  

Cambrie's game was all the way down in Colorado Springs.  It was quite a drive, but it's such a pretty area down there that I didn't mind too much.  Her fields are significantly larger this year and she's playing 11 v 11.  Her team is still learning how to play positions on a field that large.  Unfortunately their passing was a little off on this game and they lost 0-1.  The other kids didn't mind, they kept themselves entertained by smashing rocks to smithereens, and making rock murals.  I'm sure they'll all have lots of practice keeping themselves entertained at games this season!

Trampoline story

The trampoline has been a huge hit this summer.  McKenzie and Cambrie love practicing their flips and tricks.  Kelton and Daxton love running around playing silly games.  And they all love it when Dad comes out and launches them into the air.  Sometimes those kids FLY!  

As the summer came to an end, we realized that the kids never had a chance to sleep out on the tramp.  Jeremy and I loved sleepovers on the tramp as kids, so we hauled out all the comfy stuff and set up camp.  As it grew darker we sat there playing hot potato and telling silly stories.  When it was finally dark enough to go to sleep we settled down and waited.  While it's true that Jeremy and I have fond memories of sleeping on the tramp, it's also true that we have just as many memories of not sleeping that well on the tramp: rolling towards the middle into a giant heap, being cold, sprinklers coming on, but we weren't about to tell the kids that.  Once we were positive that the kids were all sound asleep we snuck up to our own warm comfortable bed and fell asleep.  

In the morning I heard the boys downstairs around 6:30.  Not bad for a night out.  I went to investigate further and found that McKenzie gave up around 11:00, Cambrie made it until about 4:30, and the boys made it all night.  I was impressed.  

But as we were getting the kids dressed I started to panic a little as I saw all of these red marks on Daxton's face.  His face, neck, arms, and legs were covered with red dots.  Oh no..chicken pox!?  I lifted up his shirt and saw that his back and belly were clear, so it was just mosquito bites.  Kelton and McKenzie came over too covered in bites.  We started counting.  I counted 100 on Daxton, 65 on Kelton, and McKenzie said she found 90.  These poor kids!  Cambrie faired a little better because she had worn long sleeves and pants, but she also had more than I ever have at once.  I have a feeling that if we sleep out again we are going to need mosquito netting, candles, spray, and anything else we can think of to keep those pesky bugs away.

Sliding masters

One afternoon after I came home from running errands, I was very surprised to see a sliding runway set up in our hall and kitchen.  McKenzie and Kelton had some up with a rather intricate game.  They lined the runway with chairs, had signs hanging everywhere explaining how to play, a snack bar with labeled food for everyone, piles of pillows, and a basket full of sliding socks.  Signs were hanging from the ceilings, off of chairs, next to the runway, and on the walls saying things like, "Runway ahead," "Caution, sliding runway," "Beware of sliders," "Socks not required for members," etc.  They had a whole flow where they could drop their sliding pillows, grab a snack, then head back to the front again to pick up a new pillow to keep sliding.  It was such a genius idea that even Cambrie couldn't help but be impressed and grabbed a pillow to take a turn sliding.  Love my clever kids!

First day of school

I'm pretty sure that Kelton has been asking to go to kindergarten as soon as preschool ended.  He could not wait for this day to get here.  The girls were also excited, even though they understand how life becomes a bit more complicated during the school year.  I think Cambrie was actually in mourning for her loss of reading time.  Kelton woke up before 6:00 and found me downstairs on the bike trainer.  Not many kids wake up early enough that they have time to play the Wii before school.  The morning was a bit hectic.  We were trying to remember what it's like being on a time crunch, and trying to learn what our new routine feels like with three kids headed out the door:  lunches, backpacks, breakfast, hair, pictures...it was slightly chaotic.  Luckily Daxton slept through all the chaos.  

The kids looked so sharp as they headed out the door!  

Kindergarten

4th Grade

7th Grade

We cut it a little close for the first day of school and McKenzie had to dash off to her door while I took Kelton to the kindergarten doors.  His class was just walking in as we arrived.  We barely had time for a quick hug then he was off!  I didn't feel emotional or sad about any of them leaving until that very moment.  I found myself trying to hold back the tears.  His classroom windows were right next to the playground and I spied inside for a short time making sure he found his seat.  I lightly tapped on the window to see if I could get him to turn around for one final wave, but he couldn't hear me.  I'm so happy and proud of all the kids for being brave and independent when its time to go to school, but it's still hard watching them walk away.  

Back at home, Daxton finally woke up about twenty minutes later.  "Where's Kelton?" he asked.  Poor guy, he woke up and all his buddies were gone for the whole day.  Thankfully a friend called and invited him over.  Both boys start preschool in a couple of weeks but in the meantime they were lonely without all their siblings.  It was early release so I was back at the school before I knew it.  When Kelton came out the door I asked him what he thought of school.  "Kindergarten is long!"  I could tell that kid was a bit worn out from the day, he looked pooped.  I tried snapping some other first day of school pics but his feet were dragging and he was in desperate need of some rest time.  

McKenzie found me after school just long enough to tell me she was headed to her friend's house.  They hadn't seen each other all summer so it was fun to reconnect.  Cambrie told me that 7th grade is great.  Although I failed as a middle school parent and completely forgot to send her with her schedule!  She had to rely on her friend's phone since they had shared their schedules earlier last week.  Oops.  All in all though, it looks like it's going to be a good year.

Summer tidbits

This might have been a mistake to save all of our summer tidbit pictures until the end of summer.  There are more little stories that I was prepared to write about in one post.  However, having them here as a glimpse into summer moments is better than not at all.  So here we go!  

Pools days!  Naturally the kids always wanted more.  It was a tough year for me to get the kids to pool very often because I still have two non-swimmers.  Kelton will tell you he can swim.  Well, he's close, but there's no way I can turn my back on him yet.  Daxton is pretty content to sit and float, but he doesn't like cold water or bugs floating around him so he never floated long.  One day we were lucky enough to use the passes the kids earned from the summer reading program to go to the Bay.  It was called short by thunderstorms, but what can you expect from Colorado?

She looks like an Indian princess!

Park days!  We spent a lot of time at a lot of different parks.  

McKenzie also had a chance to babysit her first real hedgehog!  She was over the moon excited by the opportunity to watch Luna.  The first time she went over to the neighbor's house to check on her a couple of times and as I went over to supervise my heart melted a bit at the huge smile on her face every time she was over there.  The second time she was able to watch Luna it was at our house.  For a whole week and a half we had a houseguest that the kids could not get enough of!  Every one of them wanted McKenzie to get Luna out so she could play.  Even I liked watching her run around snuffling.

The girls got braces this summer.  They were both excited, yet not excited at the same time.  At least they can be in pain together.  Both girls are hoping this round won't last too long.

I had a couple amazing training rides for Nice.  I've had to ride up Flagstaff once a week and still can't get enough of the mountain air, the smell of the pines, the deer crossing the road, or the views both up and down.  It has been incredibly tough yet rewarding.  

The mailboxes are the signal that I have reached the summit of the climb of death.

One morning after Boulder though, my bike was in the shop so I pulled out Jeremy's mountain bike for a little different kind of ride on dirt!

We took a trip to Utah, which was mostly posted about.  But I found a few straggler pictures from the trip.  Pictures like this one taken at Little American on our drive.  

And this of an amazing aunt playing with her niece.

Cambrie had girls' camp this year.  I wish I had a plethora of pictures to record her experiences, but alas I have just one I snapped before they loaded up in the cars to head out.  She had an amazing couple of days, but I gathered that a couple days later.  The day she came home she told me that she had pulled her first all-nighter with a couple of the girls.  She looked completely beat and was a zombie for at least a day.  I eventually pulled some stories out of her, like the fact that she loved doing the secret sister stuff, she liked the activities, and that no one warned her that everyone cried at testimony meeting the final night.  

Mostly though, our summer had a lot of fabulous moments at home.  After running over Daxton's pedal bike we had to get him a new one.  He loves his fire engine red bike and has finally learned the concept of pedaling.  He really likes riding in circles out in the courtyard.  Many afternoons I would look out to see that the kids had chalked up entire communities on the cement: firestation, police station, bakery, school, and roads.  I love watching them play out there.

 Now the stories get shorter and more snapshot captures of life.  Cambrie is in a succulent phase and has almost 15 different succulent plants.  One day as she was preparing her room for a visit from Nana and Papa, she turned her planter into a jurassic scene.  I love how she impaled Reese's peanut butter cups on the spiky parts of the dinosaurs.

 There's a little library near the preschool and pool now.  One afternoon as we were waiting for the pool to open, we hung out in the shade reading the books and simply having a very relaxing time.

 The boys climbed into their stuffed animal basket one night planning on sleeping there.  The next morning Kelton told me it was way too squishy and he had to move to his bed to fall asleep.  Why am I not surprised?

Popsicles!  Holy cow, Daxton is obsessed with popsicles!  While I generally like them the kids know they have to eat them outside.  I occasionally find popsicle sticks or Otterpop wrappers in the grass, but I can deal with that-mostly.  But Daxton has been a little more lax as the summer has gone on.  One night he left an entire box of grape popsicles on the front steps.  No matter how hard I've scrubbed, there is still a perfect rectangle stain on the cement.  Another morning I awoke to see a perfectly melted popsicle on the banister by the front door.  You know, it almost looks like a sunset.

Silly boys wrapping up like burritos.

McKenzie's gymnastics team is more competitive that before, and that means...slicked back helmet head buns.  She was so excited to see herself as a "real gymnast" with "real gymnast hair," that she practiced her routine on the hard wooden floor until it was time to go to practice.

 My kids can get crazy creative.  One afternoon they turned a box into a spaceship.  Since there was only room for one astronaut at a time, the other became mission control.

I was a little surprised one day to find our upstairs being invaded by little critters crawling down the walls.

 Kelton really wanted to make money, so one night he set up a plum stand to sell plums for $.05 each.  It was an incredibly hot evening and no one was out walking, but he still managed to sell about eight plums (to family and neighbors) and was very proud of himself.

One day McKenzie was set on making a house of cards.  It took her all morning but she finally made three stories. 

Daxton has been loving the lazy mornings where he doesn't have to get dressed at all during the day.

Cambrie has been loving her new roller blades.  Luckily Sabrina also has a pair so the two of them cruise through the neighborhood and make the occasional stop down at King Soopers for succulents and candy.

Sometimes when I worry that Cambrie is growing up too fast, she goes and does something like this:  As she jumped out of the car at a friend's house, she put her frog sitting on my hand to keep me company.  Silly girl.