Kindergarten Orientation

Maddie had her kindergarten orientation this morning. She just loved it! She got to meet some of the teachers, take a tour of the school and even practice riding on the school bus! They had a treat after so she got to meet some of the kids in her future class. She couldn't be happier! I'm a little teared up about the whole thing. I'm just not ready to let her go! Who will I talk with, play games with, make cookies with?

One strange pespective -- Jared and I have both been talking about how we remember our kindergarten orientation. It's odd to think that the memories Maddie is making right now will stay with her all her life --- UGH! THE PRESSURE!!!

John sits up

Another milestone -- John learned how to sit up. The best part of this was that Maddie spent some time this morning working with him, helping him not to crash and get wounded. She was so excited when he could do it on his own -- she just clapped and cheered.

Little John celebrates the six month mark

I can't believe he's six-months-old. This little boy is such a blessing in our lives. He's so happy and friendly and just joyful all the time! It's probably all the chub that keeps him so pleasant. For those of you who haven't been able to see the chub, I've documented it below.

He's growing so fast and furious the last couple of weeks, I just can't believe it. He's gotten two teeth in ten days. He's learned how to roll both directions and is now landing himself into precarious positions. He will prop himself up on his arms and churn his legs when trying to get somewhere -- crawling is only a couple of weeks away. UGH! I'm happy to see his progress, but it means the baby phase is quickly coming to and end. I'll really miss his toothless smile!

Memorial Day Weekend

We had a great weekend! Saturday was spent on the road visitng. Sunday was spent napping :) YEAH for naps. Monday was spent with friends of all kinds. First we had a little parade on our street. Maddie was crowned the queen of the parade.

Later, a few families came over to just hang out and let the kids go crazy in the backyard. It was great!

Eric Carle Museum

Today we had a family outing -- our first real day-trip in a while. We drove from our home in Old Lyme to Amherst, Massachusetts -- stopping by the scout office in Hartford on the way. There we went to the Eric Carle Museum for children's picture books. It was great fun. They have several galleries with original art work from the books on display, but we weren't allowed to take pictures. So, we took pictures in ...

They have an art room:

A library where Frog and Toad came to visit, they read a story and had bunches of puppets and toys to play with.(fantastic sentence, eh?):

This rug was too perfect for a boy practicing his rolling skills!

They have a long hallway, and a great grassy field outside too:

I canned strawberry Jam!

It's a throwback to a simpler time, but hey -- I live in the country. In the country, you learn how to can. Amazingly, they sell all the supplies at your local Wal-Mart -- who knew?

So, I took the first step in preserving nature's bounty today with my friend Lisa's help. She came over and took me through the process step-by-step -- yeah Lisa! The best part of jam is that it's oh-so-yummy! We made homemade bread later that day, and even used the wheat grinder to make the flour! It tasted so good! I have to admit I was really proud of my new found homemaking skills.


Confession -- I must admit that we haven't grown a fruit or vegetable since we've been married. I have killed every plant that has entered our home. So, in the future, everything I can will be grown by someone else and preserved by me. :)

Thought this was cool...

I totally copied this from a friend, but these are the states I've visited -- 38 states(74%):

Here's all the places Maddie's been (19 states or 37%):

Here's where baby John -- in five months -- has been to 6 states:

Try it out for yourself: http://www.world66.com/myworld66

Happy in Houston

We were lucky enough to go to Houston for a week to get all the Kirkham Grandkids together. It was so much fun! We went crazy trying to see and do everything -- The Blue Bell Factory, Pump it Up, The Mall, The Woodlands, The Houston Zoo, visit Rice, drive to San Antonio for a whir-wind tour of the riverwalk and Sea World. Oh, the food -- yum! Finally real Tex-Mex again -- Papacitos, Los Cucos and something I can't remember.

The cousins were a hit -- seven kids ages five and under all in the same house. Lots of love, lots of noise, and lots of corn dogs. We missed our husbands though. Jeff got to hang out at night with all of us, but had to work in the day. Here's some pictures:

Sydney and Maddie at Blue Bell

The babies at Blue Bell -- John, Kennedy and Saryn

(The moms are Darcy, Kristie and Stacy)

Spencer and Anna -- after running into each other during American Idol

Darcy & John at SeaWorld

Spencer, Maddie, Saryn, Sydney and Anna

all looking at the giraffe in the Houston Zoo.

Happy Parental Units

I asked Maddie to read John a story, and this is what I got:

Name That Kid

I was going to have people guess which child was which, but then posted a picture and identified John as the child, so enjoy the pictures comparing our two kids. Sometimes when he's wearing her hand-me-downs I feel like I've entered the twilight zone!

Growing Up So Fast!

He's growing up so fast -- I just want it to slow down a bit! We took John into the doctor today to get his reflux medication increased again -- he now weights in at exactly 21 pounds (4.75 months old).

The doctor encouraged me to start feeding him solid foods to help the contents stay in his belly better. I've been holding out. As soon as you start solids, it's all down hill. Then the sitting up, the crawling and the walking. Can't he just stay little for a while longer? Please????? It is such an ordeal to get them here, I want to stay in the phase where they just need love for a while longer. Soon the short snuggles will end and he's going to be asking for my car keys! It's just a moment away!

Here's the picts:

Step One:

Step Two:

Step Three:

The Conclusion to the Matter:

Oh, by the way, this counted as family home evening. It was Jared with the big camera, Maddie with the video camera and me doing the feeding. Fun times!

Getting Excited for Houston

This week we're headed to Houston to get all the Kirkham cousins together for the first time in two years. In March, we were able to be with Jeff and Sydney for a few days. Maddie can't stop talking about it. Every day, all day. "I love my cousin Sidney. I sure miss her." Maddie's made a count-down chain just to be like Sydney and keep track of when we're leaving. Each morning, she jumps up and down and tells me that she just can't wait to go. It's going to be VERY interesting having 7 kids under 6 years old in the same house for a week. We'll see how it goes, I imagine it's going to be the best of times and the worst of times all wrapped up in one!

Here's mom and the girls sledding on Wasatch in March:

Baby Blessing

A little late, but here's pictures from John's baby blessing out in Utah:

Dad's Scouting Moments

Dad was recently awarded the Silver Beaver Award for scouting -- it's one of the highest honors given for service in scouting. We were lucky enough to be in Utah for the event.

He also recently attended a scouting event with Pres. Eyring:

Go Dad!