A Boy Thing!

We had some guys trimming our trees in the backyard this week, and the boys were enthralled watching the "chipper" in action. I was inspired to grab the camera after my friend Ginger took pictures of her son watching workers pave the street in front of her house. Thanks for the idea Ginger! It's such a 'boy' thing!

Student of the Month!

I was so excited when Ryan's teacher told me to come to the year's first assembly to see Ryan receive an award! He was Student of the Month for his class!! He is such a great helper and eager to learn. He loves school and that must be obvious to his teacher too. We are so proud of him!

New Paint!

The completion of the room addition has been stalled again... still waiting for the doors! Aaagghh!! But the exterior paint has been completed! Here are the BEFORE and AFTER shots! Of course, I didn't think to take the before shot until all the paint sample splotches were all over it. :-) It's great to have it done!

Slumber Party!

 

 

 

 

Our best friends came for a visit today and spent the night! The boys were so excited to have a slumber party! The older boys slept in a Spider Man tent in one room where they had a 3-D projector that displayed planets on the ceiling, and the younger boys slept on the pull-out couch in the family room. They watched a fun movie, had yummy popcorn and treats, and stayed up WAY too late! How fun to be so young!

Dentist Visit

Alli had her first dental check-up. It was totally unnecessary and I believe a ploy for my dentist to get more money from my insurance. But it sure made for some cute pictures!

Soccer

 

Blake and Ryan are loving soccer this year! Their team is called the "Fire Blasts." That's what happens when you let 6 year olds pick the name. hee hee The first few picks are Blake playing this past Sat. He's really enjoying playing this year. The next one is the boys together on the field. The next few are Ryan playing hard. He blocked 3 goals during his quarter as goalie and was awarded the "Player of the Week" certificate at the end of the game. Great job Ry! The last pic is our littlest soccer player in training - Alli. She loves to walk up and down the sidelines during the games kicking a ball the whole way. It's so cute to watch.

Room Addition Update!

 

Well, this has taken a while to post, but here it is for those of you who have asked. This is what the room looks like now. The top two were taken 2 weeks ago, the bottom two were last week after the walls were painted. By the end of this week, it should be completed. Everything is being held up waiting for the doors (2 weeks behind schedule) which are supposed to be in tomorrow (Wed). My house exterior is being painted today and tomorrow so I'll post a pic of that too when it's done.

Funny, huh?

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First Day of School!

Well, I don't know who was more excited, the boys or Mom!!

I can't believe my babies are in first grade!
And my first baby is in fifth grade!
Next year he'll be in middle school which just blows my mind!
Don't they look handsome?
Check out Blake's shoes! He picked them out himself and loves them. They've really grown on me too!

I'm glad I snapped this shot before we left because once we got to school I left the camera in the car. Go figure! This is all I have but it's precious!
Such big boys!

Alli will be lonely when she realizes her playmates are gone.
Mommy will eventually be sad when she realizes Alli's playmates are gone.

Pig Tails!

Okay, I know I just did a blog of Allison, but I couldn't resist these pics! I love her in pigtails and she looked like such a school girl and was being so funny. She's finally walking Nana!! Yeah! In the third pic she got ahold of one of the boys' Gameboys and totally knew how to open it and push all the buttons with her thumbs. It was funny. The last pic is her 'sassy' face. She's a load of fun and growing up way too fast!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Jason had to work over my birthday weekend, but the kids were not going to let me miss out! While I was out for a while on Saturday, my Mom babysat. The boys decorated the house starting with arrow signs on the garage and front door directing me through the house and to the family room. There I found streamers and balloons everywhere. They obviously had worked hard. I wish I had snapped a photo of that! Then they surprised me with a sign in the back yard made out of extra 2x4's from our construction. They nailed them all together and it was a huge tribute to MOM! What great imaginations and I sure felt loved!
On Monday when Daddy was home they baked and decorated a cake.
Yummy! I love my family!

p.s. - don't ask how old. I'm still 24!!

Silly girl!

Allison got herself into quite a pickle when she climbed up into the barstool and got stuck. She started to whimper and complain until she saw me grab the camera. Her tears quickly turned to smiles as the flash shined her way. What a ham!

Under Construction!

We are excited to have our room addition half way done. I was going to do before and after photos, but it will still be a few weeks, so here's the before and halfway photos. The first 4 were from the first day. They tore off the stucco from the outside of the house, took out the windows on the two walls and put up plywood. After the concrete was removed on day 2, the middle pic is Blake & Ryan standing in the trench for the footings. The new foundation was poured on day 7 and framing began day 9. It was finished by day 14. Not bad for 2 weeks in to this. They are currently doing roofing, and Jason did the insulation and air ducting himself. Electrical is done. This Sat. we'll start the interior drywall. I'll keep updating pics. So exciting!

Yosemite!

Sorry for all the collages, but just like in my scrapbooks, I can't just pick one or two pictures to represent such a big event!
We just spent a week camping in Yosemite - our favorite camping spot. We look forward to it all year long and we're never disappointed! We got an even extra treat this year as Jason's parents, his sister Emily and her husband Ty and their son Daylen, joined us for the last 3 days of our week. We had a lot of fun. The weather was perfect! Can't wait til next summer! Here's some of what we did: 1. family shot in front of Half-Dome 2. our beautiful camp site on the Merced River 3.my tough boys at the top of Vernal Falls -long hike uphill carrying fishing poles to fish at the pool on top 4.bear in tree eating apples while we bike past him 5.Mom & Alli playing in water at camp site 6.Dad & Alli on hike to falls 7. Alli & Daylen feeding the ducks 8. raft wars! 9.Junior Ranger Walk -holding a skinned animal-the boys earned a J.Ranger pin and patch doing various activities during the week 10. Nana & Papa w/ the kids 11.Group shot-the photo crop took away the beautiful view of Valley 12. Mother-daughter moment at Vernal Falls 13. My handsome Junior Rangers! 14. Alli loves the water w/ Daddy 15. paddle down river -one of our favorite events in Yosemite 16. an Alli & Nana moment 17. bike riding is another of our favorite past times in the Valley - we bike all over the place! It's a blast! 18.Aragon family 19. My boys! Beautiful waterful hike -I was so proud of the kids for making the hike with no complalints! 20. more water playtime 21. gone fishin'! 22.Group shot at the Vernal Falls 23. the boys are having casting contests 24. mama bear and her cub - Jay & the boys followed her for a while - Mom & Alli nervously stayed back 25. Our Family
~Thanks for sharing in our fun. Hope you enjoy the photos. Click on collage to see up close!

Princess Alli

Have you ever seen a cuter princess chair than this? Alli got it from her Grammy for her birthday! She loves to sit on her pink satin throne and is quite the "Princess." I couldn't help but take a few pictures on this morning in her pj's. If you look closely, you can see the wand at the top of the chair which comes out and she swirls it around. So much fun!