Danielle Turns 9

My youngest daughter turned 9. Thankfully she still acts like a little girl, talks like a little girl, and looks like a little girl.

Danielle was pretty excited to have a birthday, a day to celebrate her.

On her birthday we had my sister and her twins come visit. We were also surprised my a visit from my mom.

We had Costco muffins for breakfast, Cici pizza for lunch, and Hawaiian Haystacks for supper.

Besides the food, we did lots more. And I wonder if I am setting the wrong precedence for my children by doing so much. But it is summer and we had the ability to do things. And we had visitors. So we played. And we had fun!

We began the day by bowling. I love the free summer bowling. It was so fun. Danielle felt like a princess and everyone had fun. Danielle's super good friend from school and the neighborhood was able to come with her family.

That evening, all the family met at a park and we celebrated Danielle. Now that two of my brothers and one of my sisters, plus two of Evan's brothers and all their families live in the area, there were a lot of people there to celebrate Danielle.

Here are some questions and answers I asked Danielle. And she was having a hard time giving me answers:

What do you like to dream about? good stuff. Tasty food.

What is your best memory this summer? My birthday. Because I turned 9.

Who is your hero? My mom.

If you could change anything about yourself, what would it be? I would want to be the oldest kid in my family. Because then I could babysit and get money.

What are you most proud of yourself for? Doing the Bluebell Fun Run (5k we did in April)

What is one thing you would like to learn to do well? Reading

If you could only keep one thing, out of everything you have, what would it be? My money.

What 3 words describe you best? smart, kind, and friendly.

What is something that makes you angry? When someone hurts me

What do you want the first thing you do tomorrow to be? get ready for the day.

What is your favorite movie? Once Upon a time

What is your favorite food? Hawaiian Haystacks and Costco Poppy seed muffins

What is your favorite thing to do? Art stuff

What does Dad do at work? Builds storage units

What does Mom do while you are at school? Go shopping and stuff like that.

Who is your favorite Uncle and why do you like him so much? Either Eric or Rob. They like to play a lot.

Who is your favorite Aunt? Aunt Becky. She's nice.

What is the hardest thing about being 9? school. Its going to be hard.

What is your favorite color? Blue

Would you rather wear skirts or shorts? skirts?

Danielle is one of those children that I could learn so much from. She is so carefree and objects mean nothing to her. She cares about being pretty and wearing pretty, sparkly stuff. But she doesn't value anything tangible. She likes everything, but doesn't really care about anything. She is happy-go-lucky. Ecample would be the piano. She has been playing for about 2 years and really likes playing the piano. She practices everyday and doesnt' complain. Spencer has been playing for 8 months and he is about to catch up with her. And she doesn't seem to mind that either. She's happy for them to be doing so well and happy that she isn't being pressured to do more. I really like that quality about her. She takes things in stride, she knows she is awesome, and doesn't seem to mind that people are different. She is happy with who she is. And I absolutely love her the way she is.

My Little Princess

Just found my cute little boy sleeping. Danielle dressed him up and even put makeup on him. He thought it was great. 

I can tell he is still a boy at heart. Check out the play knife on his dress right beside him where he fell asleep. 

Taneal and Camie's week with Grandpa and Grammy

My parents asked if Taneal and Camie could come spend a week with them over their summer break. I would be crazy to say no. I mean, a week with my parents? Who wouldn't want to do that?

They got to my parents house on Friday. They went bowling that evening and out to eat at Panda Express. How lucky are they?

Monday my Dad took them to Hurricane Harbor. Again, how lucky are they? 

The next two days consisted of Dispicable Me 2 and Lone Ranger. They ate out at Salt Grass Steak House and even got dessert to go. Yah, it was the first time they had ever had steak. They also had chicken fried steak one of the days. They went and did a Zumba class. 

Thursday my dad took them to 6-Flags. That was their first time at an amusement park and riding roller coasters. I thought I did so much with my kids, but after this week I realized there is still a lot I don't do with my kids. So glad my parents were willing and able to take my girls to such fun stuff. I would have a really hard time taking my younger kids to do roller coasters with my older kids.

This is Taneal finishing up her chocolate cake for breakfast from Salt Grass Steak House.

Camie actually slept in after 6-flags. She doesn't sleep in very often.

Did I mention she took them to get pedicures?

 And lunch at the mall?

My dad bought them t-shirts from 6-flags.

They had a great week and I missed them terribly. My house was so quiet. They are such fun to have around. Of course they didn't miss us any, they were too busy having fun. I was glad to come pick them up and see them again, but glad they went because they had so much fun.

The Dog Show

My sister was right when she exclaimed, "where are you and what have you done with my sister?!!!"  

Yes, I went to a dog show. 

And it wasn't because we just got a dog. It wasn't because I like dogs, because I still don't. They are still stinky, dirty, gross animals that I am yet to see the purpose of. Kids are all that, but they have a purpose. Dogs, no. At least not that I am aware of. 

In fact, when I entered the dog show, the smell was enough to make me want to turn around and leave. 

But I didn't. I endured. 

We had free tickets given to us by a friend. And we didn't have any Saturday plans. Plus, the kids thought it would be fun. I thought it might be interesting. Never done anything like that. Why not give it a try?

So we headed downtown. And you know what? Besides all the big, drooling dogs and the smell, it was pretty cool. Dogs doing tricks. dogs racing. Dogs jumping. Dogs climbing. Dogs pooping. Dogs getting groomed. Dogs everywhere. Go! Dogs! Go!

We really enjoyed the face painting and the obstacle courses. We had a hard time getting a good seat to see the tricks. And the kids weren't really interested in the racing. But we enjoyed ourselves and were glad we have it a try. 

Evan didn't want to go and kept Nathan home because Nathan is allergic to dogs and figured Nathan would have a hard time. I sure missed having Nathan there. I even kept looking around for that missing kid because I am so used to having him everywhere with me. It really felt like I was missing someone. 5 just isn't the same as 6!

Gavin loves that Dog

I guess I found a playmate for Gavin when all the kids start back to school. Gavin loves our new dog. He walks around everywhere carrying her. He even lets her lick inside his mouth after he has eaten. So gross and he thinks it so cool.

This is the kids at the vets office. We took our new dog into get shots and checked all over. 

I'm still not in love with this dog. My kids absolutely love her. Maybe I will some day. But that day is still not here nor do I see it in the near future. Or ever. But dogs are good for kids and this dog is great for my kids.

Danielle's Ballet Recital

Danielle has always been my little ballerina. She loved the ballet dress-up clothes and was always walking around on her tippie toes and dancing. I signed her up for a ballet class last August and she has spent the last year learning ballet. She has really enjoyed this and done really well. I would love to sign her up for another year, just I don't like the ballet company we used. Hopefully I can find another ballet company that I like because Danielle is really good.

The main reason I didn't like this ballet company was because of the recital.  Most of the year was devoted to learning this recital. They went overboard on everything and weren't very friendly about it. But that's a whole different story that is probably best to be kept to myself. Unless you live in the area and want to know which ballet company to NOT use. 

Danielle had so much fun getting ready for the recital. They were supposed to wear make-up and fake eye lashes (along with a bunch of other specific things). I decided if we had to do it, I might as well make it fun. Danielle though the fake eye-lashes were so awesome. They were pretty cool. I felt like I was getting my daughter ready for prom or something like that. She felt beautiful and like a superstar. 

Danielle even got a trophy after the recital. For some reason, a trophy is a big deal to my kids. I could probably get them to do anything if I offered a trophy with it.

Lets Go To The Movies

We enjoyed the summer movies provided by the local theater. They showed free movies like Despicable Me and Ice Age: Continental Divide. Free to get in, free to watch. With 6 kids, that is a super win situation. We met up with a friend at the theater and she brought her 3 children. I was on one end. I looked down the row at all those kids between the 2 of us and wow. That was a lot of kids.  

Of course, I catch myself doing that a lot, even within my own children. Still amazed that I have so many children.

My Kids are Resourceful

My dad caught my daughter getting a drink. AT SOMEONE ELSE'S HOUSE!

How embarrassing is that?

Potty Training Part 2

This whole having a dog is confusing Gavin pretty bad. The other day he decided he needed to pee outside, just like the dog. He didn't announce this because he knew it wouldn't be allowed. He just quietly let himself outside, kept his feet on the edge of the porch, and lowered his pants slightly. 

He didn't quite lower them enough, I'm guessing. Because he came running in the house with wet hair and told me he got potty all over his head. 

You know, when he was peeing outside like Paisley. 

And did I mention he pooped on my carpet like the dog? After he'd been potty trained for a good 3 weeks? 

Ahhhh! Good thing I have a carpet cleaner. I figured the dog would be the problem, not the 2 year old!

My children are turning into dogs!

I just caught Camie bribing Gavin to eat dog food. Cool thing is Gavin refused. But Nathan actually ate it! Seriously! What is this dog doing to us?

A Day at the Lake

Saturday we went out to the same lake that Taneal and Camie went to on the 4th. 

Nathan enjoying the boat. He liked the boat and getting in the water swimming. He even got out on the tube behind the boat. But after a while he decided he didn't want to get in the water. I couldn't figure out what the problem was. He just hung out on the boat while everyone else was swimming. He finally told me it was because the water was gross. He is right, the water is all green and gross. But we still swim in it. 

Spencer loved the lake. He loved swimming, being pulled behind the boat in the tube, and almost got up on the training skis.

Thankfully Gavin had warmed up to swimming in the pool on the 4th or this would have been hard. But he absolutely loved the water and being pulled behind the boat. 

Yes, we took the dog. Not sure what to do about this dog. Do I leave her at home for 12 hours? Or take her with us? She is just under 4 pounds right now and a hawk can eat her, so I can't leave her in the backyard. Plus, she is small she could easily slip through the fence. 

Danielle jumped ship and went over to Troy and Becky's boat for some serious water skiing. She got up on the knee board and had so much fun.