Got Preemie

What a better time to start to update and catch up on your blog than at 3:30 am when you can not sleep.  It seems like I am a total blog slacker in the fall.  I always get way behind.  I am going to start working on my blog, hopefully daily, so that I can catch up.

Most people know that the NICU at Intermountain Medical Center is a very big part of my life.  The girls were there for 4 and 5 weeks when they were born and I also volunteer there once a week.  There was an auction/fundraiser at a park in Midvale that we were able to attend.

 

It happened to be on the same day as the U of U vs BYU game.  So we all dressed up in our red gear and headed out.  Go Utes!

 The kids had fun meeting the firemen and climbing in the fire truck.

I was able to make some hair bows to donate to the silent auction portion of the event.  My name made it onto the banner.  We bought a BlendTec blender and this fun basket filled with U of U items during the live auction.  We also bought a photo session in the silent auction.  We were so excited to give back to the NICU after they had given so much to our girls while they were there.  This is going to be a annual event.  I can't wait to attend each year.

JJB GTG and Trunk Show

Once again, I am way behind on my blog.  I am going to try and play catch up again.  

Back in September, I went to a Ju Ju Be Get Together at a park in Sandy.  Ju Ju Be as a company sponsors the event.  They send gift bags for everyone and then have raffle prizes.  The big prize this year was a One of a Kind bag.  The bag was a Marvelous Mums Be Right Back.  It was so pretty.  Sad that I didn't win it.   It was a fun day filled with good friends, good food and fun!

Back Row - Victoria, Kari, Alison, Jen, Nichole, Emily, Brianna, Wendy, Alivia, Gillian, Annie, Rachel, Hollie, Joshalyn, Hollie's sister, Simone, Brandy and Corrine
Front Row - Shamie, Lauren, Jamie, McKayla, Adrienne
Little kiddos not included in names.

A few weeks later I was able to go to a Ju Ju Be Trunk Show at a cute little baby store called Sassy Babies.  These are put on by Ju Ju Be and the store.  You can go and browse different Ju Ju Be bags.  If you buy something, there is a gift with purchase.  It is always so much fun to hang with friends, have some treats and buy some bags.

These yummy cupcakes were provided by the store owner. 

1st Time at the Dentist

The girls both had their first visit to the dentist recently.  I was nervous about how it was going to go, but it turned out great.  I took them on different days, because I didn't know what to expect.

 Emrie's visit was first.  She climbed right up in the chair and was ready to go.  She was so good when the hygienist and dentist asked her to open her mouth.  I was so proud of my good little girl.  She was so happy to get her new toothbrush, toothpaste and to pick sticker earrings for her prize.

I knew Eva's visit would be a little more challenging.  It always takes her a while to warm up to people.  She wasn't very happy when first getting in the chair.  However, she was excited to wear the dinosaur dental bib.  It took her a bit to get used to opening her mouth.  I had to keep reminding her to try and open it wider.  She ended up doing a good job.  She was also happy for her new toothpaste, toothbrush and to get sticker earrings like her sister.

Yahoo for successful first dentist visits!

1st Week of Kindergarten

Lucas started Kindergarten on September 4.  He was so excited to start his new adventure.

 

I had him hold a sign about the first day.  I am so excited to do this every year and see how it changes.

Ron came home on his lunch break to take Lucas to school.  Lucas was so happy that his Daddy was able to see him off on his first day.  Lucas was also very excited to use his new backpack.  After looking high and low for a dinosaur backpack, we were lucky to end up finding one at Kohl's.

We went to the school and took a picture by his school door.  After that he stood in line to go inside.  He looks so sad in this picture, but is actually excited, maybe just a bit nervous.  He was able to find his hook and hang his backpack.  He ventured into the room and found a square on the alphabet rug to sit.  When we went to his assessment, the teacher had given him a little assignment.  He had his assignment with him on the rug.  After that, I left.  I teared up while he was in line.  I was proud of myself for not crying more.

We went out to dinner for a 1st Day of School celebration.  Lucas chose Spaghetti Factory.  YUM!

 

Wednesday

 

Thursday

 After walking Lucas to school on Thursday, we walked to 7-Eleven to get drinks and Slurpees.  My mom has had fun walking to school with us several days.  She was so sweet to buy us our beverages.

Friday

Lucas had a wonderful first week of school.  He got more and more comfortable each day.  I am still sad that he is at school 5 days a week.  It has been such a change for us.  But I am very happy that he is at school with a great teacher, new friends and learning so much.

Getting Familiar with School

 Over Labor Day weekend, we went to my parents house for dinner.  The kids loved the cupcakes.  Eva was walking and fell.  Somehow her face went right into the cupcake.  It was hilarious!  We also had a ton of fun launching the 2-liter bottle rocket.

On Labor Day, we decided to take a test run of walking to the school.  We wanted to see how long it would take us to get there.  Since Lucas was starting school the next day, we also wanted to get him a little more familiar with his playground and the door he would enter the school.  It took us 15 minutes to walk to school.  So that wasn't bad at all. 

While at the school, the kids had so much fun playing on the playground.  We were also lucky to hear the bell ring.  It isn't like a regular bell ringing.  It plays a little melody.  We explained to Lucas that is what he will hear when school is over each day.  I did have a little crying moment sitting and watching the kids play while I thought about my little buddy going to school.  I am so glad that he is going to get a good education, but it makes me sad for him to be gone 5 days a week.  I was glad that we had the day to prepare him for school the next day. 

Sponge Curlers

I decided that I wanted to try sponge rollers in the girls hair.  I had bought some at the Dollar Store, just to see if they worked before buying pricier ones. I gave them a bath, put them in jammies and got rolling. 

 Emrie's hair was much easier to roll, because it is longer.  She was so good and just sat while I rolled away.  She slept in them all night long.  When we woke up in the morning, we took them out and this was the result.  I definitely need more curlers, so that I can roll less hair and closer together. 

Eva's hair was much harder to roll.  It is shorter and much more fine.  As with Emrie's, I need more curlers to use to be able to put them closer together.  Most of Eva's curlers had fallen out over night.  She only ended up with a little bit of  wave at the bottom.  It was very cute though. 

I can't wait to purchase more rollers and try again.  I have read a few tips online about how to make it easier to roll and the curlers to stay.  So I can't wait to put it to the test. 

Ending Our Week of Fun

On Thursday we met some friends at the Lehi Legacy Pool.  We had never been to that pool.  It was so much fun.  There are two great kid areas at that pool. 

 After having tons of fun swimming, we went to Culvers for lunch.  YUM!  The kids enjoyed visiting with the other kids and eating ice cream after their lunch.

 On Friday, we went to our last playgroup.  I was so very sad.  Since Lucas is in afternoon kindergarten and all of his other friends are in morning, it won't work out for us to go anymore.  At least the last one was a really fun one. 

We met our friends down at the Highland Splash Pad.  When we first got there it was a little chilly.  I was worried.  The nice thing though, was that there was hardly anyone there.  It ended up warming up and not very many people came.  So it was awesome.  The kids had SO much fun playing for hours. 

I am sad that this is kind of the end of an era, but I am so happy for the friends that I have made and all of the fun we have had over the few years that we have done playgroup.

Kindergarten Assessment

On Tuesday we continued our fun week with having a fun playdate with some friends.

On Wednesday, Lucas got to go to his school and meet his teacher.  She did a short little assessment with him to see where his knowledge is. 

When we walked into the room, he just stood there and looked around and took it all in.  It was so cute.  Seeing his room and meeting his teacher made him really excited to start school. 

Day of Public Transportation

The week before Lucas started school, I wanted to do something fun with him every day, kind of like a last hurrah before school started.  The girls love buses and Trax, so we decided that we would use only public transportation that day. 

 We started out with riding the bus from IMC down State Street to the Government Center.  When we arrived there, we got off the bus and went to visit Grandpa Jacobs at work.  After our fun little visit, we hopped back on the bus and rode downtown to City Creek.  Once we got to City Creek, we ate lunch in the food court.

 After the food court, we let the kids play in the dinosaur play area.  They were all in heaven, especially Lucas.  They could have played for hours.  It was so nice to just sit and chat with my Mom and watch the kids have so much fun.

We then walked around City Creek.  We went to the Disney store first and each child got to pick something from there.  Lucas chose a Spiderman school kit, Emrie got a Rapunzel doll and Eva got a Lotso bear from Toy Story 3.  While walking out of Nordstrom, Emrie had the tantrum of all tantrums.  Oh boy, was it embarrassing!  She wanted to push the stroller and I wanted her to ride in it.  She was still screaming when we tried to take this picture. 

For our ride home, we hoped on Trax.  We decided to take the long way home.  We rode all the way out to Daybreak and back to the Fashion Place Mall stop.  We got off, got back on a train heading to the South Towne stop and then came back to our stop at IMC.  Riding the public transportation was not only fun, but it was quite the experience, to say the least.  It was such a fun filled day!  Thanks for coming with us Grandma!

Wicked

I have been wanting to see Wicked for years.  On August 26, we finally got the opportunity to go and see it at Capitol Theater.  I have wanted to go the last two times it has come into town, but always missed getting tickets.  Luckily this time, we were able to get tickets on Row L, right smack dab in the center.  They were amazing!

 Shamie and Ron

 Dad and Mom

We were so happy to get to go and see it with my parents.  Oh my!  I can't even begin to describe what a good play it is.  I had no idea there was comedy in it.  There were some really hilarious parts.  I can't wait to go see it when it comes back.

Imagination at Del Taco

We met some of our playgroup friends at Del Taco to eat lunch and play in the play place.

It was so nice, it wasn't busy, so the kids got the place to themselves almost the whole time.  Shannon and I were able to just sit and visit while the kids were being imaginative.  They set up chairs and high chairs and were "driving" a car.  It was so cute to watch their little minds being so creative. 

Lagoon - It's What Fun Is

We went to Lagoon with Ron's sister Lisa and her family.  A few of Lisa's in-laws also came.  This was the first time that the girls had been, so I was very excited to see how they would like it.  I got so many fun pictures, I just couldn't leave any out.

 When we first got there, Ron took Lucas to go on some of the roller coasters.  I took the girls around Kiddie Land.  It was so nice.  There were no lines and they walked on everything.

 We then met up at Bulgy the Whale.  I split off with Ron and Lucas to ride a few rides and Lisa took the girls on more kid rides.  Lucas had been on much scarier rides, but was really nervous while standing in line for the white roller coaster.  He ended up loving it.

 The girls loved riding the Tilt-A-Whirl with Lisa.  Eva was too short to ride a few rides, including the Scrambler.  The Flying Aces was a big hit.

I wanted to go on the Ferris Wheel and most of the other adults didn't want to go.  So I had a car full of kids.  It was a lot of fun.  We always love the train.

 While Lucas was away riding RattleSnake Rapids with Scott, we took the girls on both Haunted Houses.  Emrie was fine all the way through the Terror Ride until the very end where the horn blows.  Eva was cute through Dracula's Castle.  She kind of looked out of the corner of her eye half way through and then buried her head in my side for the other half. 

The Carousel is always a big hit.  We had such a fun and adventurous day.  The girls fell asleep in the car soon after getting on the freeway.  Emrie was so tired that she fell asleep with her water bottle in her mouth.  So hilarious!  What a great day!  We can't wait to go again next year.

Mall Fun with Friends

 We met some of our friends at South Towne Mall to hang out and have fun for the day. 

 Before we left, I decided to try out some new hairdos on the girls.  They turned out super cute.

First we met in the food court and ate some lunch.  While the adults chatted, the kids had fun playing on the coin rides.  They didn't care that they weren't on, they just loved climbing.  After lunch we went on the carousel.  The were each excited to pick out the animals that they rode.

Lily, Josalyn, Eva, Makayla, Emrie and Lucas

Next we went downstairs to the dinosaur play area.  The kids had so much fun running and around and goofing off together.  Jos was not happy at the end, when we tried to take the photo.  It must have been nap time.  I love my girlfriends and am so glad that we can get together with our kids to play.  This particular playdate made my heart a little sad.  It was the last time seeing my friend, Brandii, before she moved to California.  Good thing she will be coming back once a month to bring Jos to see her dad.

Bike Riding

Ron has been working with Lucas on learning how to ride a bike without training wheels.  Ron is an amazing dad and is so patient with him. 

 He has a long way to go still, but he will get it.

He is so proud to be learning to ride his bike.

Emrie and Eva were so excited to ride bikes also.  Emrie is getting really good at pedaling.  Eva is still a little short to make it work, but she'll get it soon enough.  In the meantime, she loves to sit on the bike and push it around. 

Reunion at Lava KOA

We went to Lava Hot Springs and stayed at the KOA for the Lewis Family Reunion this year.  It is always fun, but this year was a blast!  There were so many pictures that were taken, I had a hard time narrowing it down.  So warning....this post is picture overload.

 This is my favorite picture taken at the reunion, hands down.  Thanks to my cousin, Lindsey, for capturing such an adorable moment.  One morning we went down to breakfast and the girls were still in their jammies.  They took a little walk down the road together, holding hands. 

We had so much fun swimming at the pool on Friday.  Even baby Ben swam for a little bit. 

 I think that the kids look so stinkin' cute in their life jackets.

 The Kamping Kabin was set up for 4 people to sleep.  The girls shared the bottom bunk.  We put swim noodles under the sheet, so that they wouldn't fall out of bed.  Thanks to my Mom and Dad for buying them.  Eva did fall out one night.  It was sad.   It proved to be a challenge to get them to actually lay down and go to sleep.  This must be a sneak preview for when we put them in beds at home.  Oh my!  The rail on the top bunk was not very high.  We were nervous about Lucas sleeping up so high.  We made our own higher rail with other things.  It worked like a charm

 The Treats and Lewis's were so sweet to bring crafts for the kids to work on.  They had so much fun making visors and picture frames.

 While the kids were making crafts, a handful of the family went river running.  It was SO much fun!  I took a few spills, but I didn't get injured at all.  A few people in our group did, especially Stacie and Chris with bumps on their heads.  We ran it three times.  The last run was the best for me.  I made it down each waterfall without falling off my tube.  Yahoo!

 After they got done with crafts, they headed into town to get ice cream.  The shop scooped it out into a square.  So fun!

 We had so much fun hanging out at the campground, playing and having fun.

 The KOA put on a flashlight candy hunt for the kids.  How fun!  The auction was a huge success and made a nice amount of money.

We loved staying in our little Kabin.  It was nice to have electricity and air conditioning.  If we stay at a KOA again, we will definitely be choosing a Kabin again.