The Playground

I took the younger two to the park yesterday for playgroup. We had all been cooped up inside for a while homeschooling, working on house projects, etc. We really needed to get some fresh air and exercise. Colin came too. He is being homeschooled now so, he decided to bring some work with him while the kids were playing. We are looking to get him involved in some extracurricular actvities so he still has that social interaction he needs. He already is involved in scouts at church. His band teacher said that he could still participate in band if he wanted to, because technically we are still a part of the school district. He is thinking he might like to do that. He also wants to join a chess club and a Legobot club. The Legobot Club is where kids get together in teams and are given an assignment to build a Lego Robot that has to complete different tasks. They then compete against each other.

Fashion Show

Hayley begged to use my camera because she had convinced her two little to do a fashion show with her. She dressed them up in costumes and laid out some of my exercise equipment for a runway. Then they started snapping shots and posing. I had to laugh at Andrew because he really got that male model pose down really well.

Our Mesa Trip

A few weeks ago Jon, my husband, was in a car accident. No one was seriously injured, but his car was totaled. It was the other driver's fault so, we patiently waited until our insurance company finally deposited the money we needed for a replacement car. It was a very long couple of weeks with only car between the 8 members of our very busy family. Luckily, our friend Matt Steele, was nice enough to give Jon rides to and from work, so that I could have the car during the day. I was also watching his daughter, so that was helpful to him as well.

Well, after the money came in we headed up to Mesa to look at a car that Jon had his eye on. We did not end up getting that particular car though. In fact, we had almost given up that day but, fortunately stumbled across one last area to look. We ended up buying a Navy Blue, 2002 Ford Mustang convertible and was able to pay cash for it. So, no car payments! WoooHooo! I tell everyone that it is Jon's mid life crisis car. The kids think it's awesome and are constantly begging their dad if they can ride in it with the top down. Of course, it is perfect weather here for that.

To top off our day, we stopped in to visit with some old friends, that now live near Mesa, Tim and Heidi Steele and their daughter Maritza. I wish I had taken some pictures there. The kids had fun looking at their goats, jumping on the trampoline and playing with their dogs.

I am headed up to Mesa again next week to take Connor on a Youth Temple Trip. I have never been to the Mesa Temple so, I am excited to go.

Adventures in Babysitting

I have been babysitting a friend's daughter (Breanna) for the past three weeks while her school was under construction. She and her brother finally get to start tomorrow. But, it was fun having her with us. She and William got along really well and came up with some pretty creative "projects". Here they are building a house in my living room for the stuffed animals. In the mean time Alison entertained herself with a box.

Family Update

A lot of things have been happening in our little house hold lately. First of all, Jon and I both have church callings. I am the Bear Cub den leader in Cub Scouts and Jon has just been called as the 11 year old scout leader and Primary Teacher. These callings will keep us both busy during the week and on Sundays for Jon. Lucky for us my group meets on Tuesdays and Jon's on Wednesdays, so the issue of child care will not be a problem.

Secondly, we are looking for a new car. Jon was in a car accident last week and his car has been declared a total loss. It was the other driver's fault but, the appraisal on our car will not give us enough to get another one without payments, which is what we want. So we have to layout all of our options and make a decision.

We have also decided to pull Colin out of school. Arizona has a public school home schooling program and we are working to get Colin set up with that. He is in such a small school right now, that some of the teachers were unable to accommodate Colin and his 504 plan in a way that we thought they should. He has been miserable this year, so we decided to finally pull him. As soon as we get the final approval from Arizona Virtual Academy, Colin will be taught at home. Hope fully, by the end of this coming week. It will definitely be challenging, but worth it in the long run.

Miss Curiosity

I probably take more pictures of Alison than anyone else in my family. She is at such a fun and cute stage right now. Her little personality is starting to shine through. She is such as joy to have in our family.

First Day of School

School Started on August 6 here. We live out in more of a rural area, so the schools are kind of small. There were not enough spots for all of my 4 school aged children to go together so, they had to be split up between 2 different schools. Connor and Andrew go to Coronado School and Colin and Hayley go to Valley View. School goes from k-8 grade here. Here is Andrew walking to the bus stop with his big brother Connor one of the first days of school. Andrew likes school a lot, but it is a long day for him. He leaves for the bus at 7:10 am and doesn't get home until after 4. One Friday he came home and said "Finally, I don't have to go to school tomorrow."