Fun on the Trampoline!!!

It didn't seem right to have an entire post about Jesi without a piece of her artwork! She made this picture for Drew today. Can you tell what it is? I was spoiled a month late with my Mother's Day wish - a trampoline! I've been trying to find one on KSL forever with so luck, so we finally broke down and bought one from Walmart! It has been SO much fun! In fact, I'm wondering why I didn't get it for Father's Day or Andy's birthday (or some other good excuse) years ago!!! Ha ha. Sorry, the picture is a little hard to see. I guess I should have darkened it. But, Jesi has Drew, herself, and Kassi all jumping on the trampoline, net and sunshine and all. I'm sure there will be some photos of the kids jumping on it this summer. I hope you all are enjoying the summer as well! I'll have to post our favorite summer recipe soon. I just got done washing, stemming, chopping, and freezing 15 lbs. of strawberries to use in smoothies and our recent favorite - strawberry frozen yogurt! I couldn't pass up a neighbor's co-op that was offering strawberries for 65 cents a pound! Speaking of pounds, this baby is growing so fast - he is about 2 lbs. now and kicking like crazy! I can't believe we still have 3 months for him to grow and I swear my other kids didn't kick this hard when they were this little?!? We're so excited and I know September is going to creep up on us so fast because as my dad always said, "Time flies when you're having fun!" And, we are having a little too much fun! We are also SO excited that after 10 months of waiting, Drew is finally getting some neuropsych testing done at BYU. We're hoping to get some ideas of ways we can help him deal with the scar tissue around the ventricles of his brain which has caused some issues with problem solving, auditory processing, desire to start and complete tasks, etc. He has been doing great in baseball and having fun with cub scouts as well as beginning piano lessons! I guess he told his piano teacher this week that he wants to play a primary song in church and wants me to play the duet part with him!!! Yikes! I better start practicing! He is such a sweet boy and we are so glad he is learning and progressing each day! He has so many talents - most of which he gets from his Daddy, which means some girl is going to be really lucky some day - like his Mommy!!!

Little Miss 5 Years Old!!!

I can't believe our sweet little Jesi is 5 years old!!! She has been our little helper ever since she was about a year old! When I ask her to do something, she gets a big smile on her face and says, "Okay, Mamma!" or "Sure, Mamma!" I've always wished they had little pull-out steps for her in the kitchen - like those old cutting boards that are built into kitchen cupboards! Last Fall she helped me pick all the leftover tomatoes and we attempted canning salsa for the first time. I think next time we'll just can tomatoes - salsa was a lot more work than I anticipated! And, I've been so scared of killing my family with botulism that we still have all that salsa sitting in the basement! I just found out that if you are worried that you didn't prepare or cook your canned tomato products according to the "Ball Blue Book" instructions, that you can boil your jar for 15 minutes to kill any botulism! Good to know! She also helped me remove tons of pits from plums to make the kids' favorite (since we moved here and have a plum tree) jam!
These pictures are of Jesi helping me do some dry packing at home. I had the crazy idea to borrow a canner from the cannery and had no idea how HEAVY they were! Luckily our counter is still in one piece and we only had one big spill from my sweet little helper. We canned wheat, barley, rye, rice, beans, and milk! And, I'm very glad we did that before I got pregnant because that canner was much too heavy to lift with a baby in my tummy!

I think from now on we'll just do our canning at the cannery, but oh the sweet memories!
Jesi is also our little organizer! She is always "organizing" something and I always feel very guilty reorganizing anything that she has so carefully "organized"! This is a picture of her with the magnet frames that she organized!
She loves to dress up - as in the last post with Kassi! I love it when she puts the gloves on her feet!

This year Jesi enjoyed rotating from our home to two other homes of kids in our neighborhood who will be attending Kindergarten next year. Twice a week we would hold preschool for about 3 hours and plan activities that started with the "letter of the week". Jesi was so good at planning activities that started with the right letter! I couldn't find the other pictures, but we had so much fun! For the letter 'B', we made homemade Bread and homemade Butter and had the kids blindfolded with the 'B' box - where they had to guess what the thing was that started with the letter 'B'. For the letter 'H' Jesi decided that we should make a big Hopscotch and some funny Hats. This week (above) we were learning the letter 'N' and we made Necklaces and Nests. I can't remember the other letters off the top of my head, but the kids had so much fun together and us Moms enjoyed our time with the kiddos before the big transition to Kindergarten next year!!! Wow, time flies and your little one is off to school!

We had a cousin's barbeque at our house with all of Andy's siblings and cousins in the area (except Darren and Cari unfortunately, who were out of town). We decided to celebrate Jason and Jesi's b-days after the dinner with some of Andy's Mom's infamous chocolate pudding cake! It was fun to see Andy's cousins who we just don't get together with enough! Now I'm determined to plan one for my side of the family as well! I love barbeques, esp. with family and friends!!!

Jesi announced shortly before her birthday that she wanted her cake to be "half Cinderella and half Strawberry Shortcake!" That was a pretty tall order for an amateur cake decorator like myself. So, I sent Andy off the night before in search of a Cinderella doll and a little Strawberry Shortcake. It was probably cheaper than buying a nasty store bought cake and Jesi was very excited for her new toys! Jesi is showing off her nails that were freshly painted that day. She chose to have her nails painted, paint with Mom, and watch a princess movie. I'm pretty sure it was Beauty and the Beast. The rest of the night is still to come in this post. Kassi got these pj's from her grandparents for her b-day and Jesi wanted a matching pair. I somehow found her size on the clearance rack in time for her b-day!!! I grew up with Strawberry Shortcake and Hello Kitty as well! Of course, Strawberry Shortcake wasn't quite so 'hip' back then!

Jesi really wanted to go to Chuck-e-Cheese for her birthday. So, we went out to eat and then stopped by for a little bit of fun with a few tokens! She loved this headband and shirt from Darren and Cari! In fact, she insisted on wearing them two days in a row!

Originally Jesi said she wanted to go to McDonalds for her b-day dinner. We reminded her that she doesn't care for hamburgers and every time we go there she is upset because we tell her she needs to eat before playing! So, we were happy that her second choice was Chuck-a-Rama! Her Grandpa McConkie would be proud - that was always his favorite place! The kids always have a blast there and we just walked in the door before the dinner pricing kicked in - yes we planned it that way :)! We found it amazing that both at Chuck-a-Rama and a store where we were ordering Andy a suit, an older person, knowing that it was Jesi's birthday, gave her a dollar bill! Andy and I thought between all of our kids, we could really start up a business that way!

Andy and Drew picked out this fun coloring/painting book for Jesi and she has thoroughly enjoyed it! She is definitely a little artist. She is always making sweet pictures and cards for people that brighten their day. She can be pretty shy, but is beginning to come more and more out of her shell and it is fun to watch! (She is rarely shy for us, but it takes a while for her to warm up to others.) She amazed us last Fall during the primary program. In front of the huge congregation, during the primary songs, she would belt out the song so that we could hear her voice above all the other children and she was twirling around in the front row on the stage for all to see. It was sooo cute! So, she has her moments when that shyness melts away and others can see the little girl that we love so much! She is such a sweet girl, always making profound statements that amaze us. She definitely has a good sense of who she is and where she came from. She knows that she is a princess because Heavenly Father is a king and she is His daughter. I hope she always remembers that and stands tall knowing that she is a daughter of God. We love you, Jesi! Happy belated b-day! Your silly mom is in tears now realizing how soon you will be leaving home and finding your prince!

Kassi turns 2!!!

Kassi is trying to show you how old she is with her fingers. She is a little concerned at this point. Andy would say that her facial expressions - especially those that involve the eyebrows come from her Mother?!?
I hope Andy doesn't think the same about this face :). She can't quite get those two fingers to stay up!
Okay, now she is getting a little upset at those two fingers for not doing what she wanted them to do!
With a little help from Mom, it worked! She was quite proud of her accomplishment!
She loved her new "Hello Kitty" night gown from Grandma and Grandpa, her necklace from her aunt and cousins, and her scooter from Mom, Dad, Drew and Jesi! It took her a little while to figure out how to ride it. She was quite creative in her first approaches - riding on her bum and scooting with her legs and having Jesi help her steer!

She also LOVES this dress from Grandma and Grandpa Walker. I'm tempted to have her wear it every Sunday because it is so darling on her (and my favorite color)!!!

She was so excited to get this card and a package in the mail from Grandma and Grandpa Starkey!

This picture and the next show what was in the package - a cute little dress w/ matching shirt and 2 adorable hats that she and Jesi like to wear together! This is her new wave - it is a true wave involving the movement of each finger!

Grandma and Grandpa Starkey actually sent Jesi her striped pink dress a year or two ago and it has been one of her favorites. So, of course when Kassi got her dress, they decided to dress alike! And the hats completed the outfit and the love! They were best buddies all day - as they are most days!

Andy's family was in town and it was Kassi's aunt Cari's birthday that week as well. So, we all ate at the pizza factory together and then came home for some chocolate cake and homemade strawberry frozen yogurt! I was planning on making Kassi another "themed" cake later, but she seemed plenty happy with this one!

Kassi and Jesi LOVE to dress up with all the hats, gloves, scarves, etc. that they can find! I'm a little sad to box up these clothing items for the summer that have provided hours of entertainment! But, I'm sure they'll be back at it again next year! And, Kassi might have her hair fixed for more than a few minutes at a time due to finding a winter hat! I must admit that I almost put my foot down to Kassi's insisting on sitting on her Dora potty chair. You probably can't tell in the picture above, but she is sitting on her Dora attachment. But, if she thinks sitting on the potty chair is as fun as dressing up, maybe that is a good sign for the future?!? I'm hoping Kassi follows in her sister's footsteps and decides to basically potty train herself one of these days before the baby comes?!? Here's to wishful thinking!

Is this what they mean when they call the age of 2 the "terrible two's"?!? Kassi's favorite activities lately include climbing to find scissors, permanent markers (as in this case) and anything else that could be dangerous or make a mess, such as toothpaste, food, etc. We have worried more about her than any of our other children when it comes to making messes and getting hurt due to adventurous ideas including climbing! I had a cute picture of her with just a plain old smile, but this picture shows her personality a little better!

I'm pretty sure it was the same day (despite the different outfit) that she found the salt shaker and went a little crazy. She is always proud of her art work on the wall, furniture, etc. as well as most of her other messes! How can you be upset with this cute girl? Her vocabulary has picked up like crazy the last couple months since her birthday! On her birthday, her new word was "WHY?" The next day, her new word was "MINE!" And the following day, her new word was "Snack?!?" Since then she has been learning several new words and/or sentences every day and it is so fun to hear what her little mind is thinking.

Kassi is our little fruitaholic! If she sees fruit at the beginning of a meal, she refusses to eat anything else! So, we always have to hide the fruit and serve it as dessert! She has recently become deathly afraid of "bugs"! If she sees a dark mark, anything floating in the tub (including grass, lint, etc.), a dead fly in a light fixture, etc. she is horrified. Occasionally she will wake up screaming in the morning because she thinks she sees a bug in her room. I'm afraid she gets that from me - although I've really calmed down over the years, so I'm surprised that it would have passed on to her?!? I feel horrible about the possibility that I could have instilled fear in my child by running away from a bee or screaming when I kill a spider! Her favorite things lately have included "sicles" (popsicles), "roni and cheese" (ever since Drew fulfilled a cub scout requirement by making from-scratch macaroni and cheese for dinner, she has been asking for it often - this morning she insisted on "roni and cheese" for breakfast!), playing outside, reading books, watching "Signing Time", dressing up or playing house with her big sis, playing cars with her big brother (despite his occasional protests), entertaining just about anyone, brushing teeth and then finding a spot of floor somewhere in the house to leave her tooth brush, smashing Mom's toes with her million mile per hour stool, and choosing her own clothes to wear. She prefers p.j.'s during the day and clothing at night, so if you see her in her pajamas in the middle of the day, you'll know that I lost the battle. She loves to have her "bankies" and will insist on every blanket in sight when she goes to bed. So, we have to hide some, or she will cry until she has 10 or more blakets covering her. She loves kitties and puppies and we love how she calls kitties "meows". She loves to pretend she is a kitty. She goes around on all fours and likes to lick her food and your hand! Oh, and another favorite of ours is when she tells us whose turn it is to pray. At night we have scriptures together and then take turns saying prayers together as a family. Kassi will say "Daddy, your turn!" and proceed with everyone in the family from oldest to youngest. She calls Jesi, "Sissy" most of the time which we find adorable. Sometimes she decides to go first, such as for dinner tonight. She blessed "Gamma, Gampa, Jazz" and then said "Daddy, your turn!" She has gotten a little confussed and thinks we always need to take turns praying every time someone prays! Kassi has been a pure joy to have in our family and we don't know what we'd do without her. She is always making us laugh and we have no doubt that she will continue to entertain us for the rest of her life! We love you, Kassi! Happy belated Birthday!!!