Field Trip to the Grocery Store

Levi went to a local grocery store with his preschool class the other day.  It was my third time on the same field trip.  I am now an expert.

 

He was very excited about the trip!

They watched a bakery worker decorate a cake.

And helped grind some ground beef.

Levi and his best friend Molly.

Cutest little kids at the store!

Nutty Kids

The kids had to entertain themselves at Home Depot the other day.  They made claws out of nuts.

 

 

Then we went home and helped Dad to rebuild the trailer.

We've Been Waiting For This Moment

We introduced the kids to Star Wars over the weekend.  Levi had already become obsessed with the idea.....almost every birthday present he received was Star Wars themed.  He got a book series that told the entire story, but they had never seen one of the films.  So we found the movies on Amazon, ordered them, and the day they arrived, Levi was over the moon with anticipation.  He kept saying, "I can't talk about it, I'm so excited!"  We made a special night of it with hamburgers and milkshakes and then the kids brought down all their Star Wars toys so they could act out the movie while watching it.  We only watched the original, first movie, Episode IV: A New Hope, with plans to continue the series as it came out over the next several weekends.  I was nervous that the movie wasn't going to live up to the excitement the kids gave it, but they loved it!  I think knowing and recognizing all the characters really helped them enjoy it.

 

Penn Pals

George Fox University's mascot, Pennington the Bruin, hosted a pizza and ice cream party for everyone in the Penn Pals club during a basketball game last weekend.  Our three little Penn Pals were super excited to attend!

 

Pennington

Pizza and soda after watching the GFU women's basketball game.

There were athletes representing almost every sport there to give autographs to the kids.  They loved it!

Ice cream!

And a few games were set up around the room.  It was a super fun night and I am so impressed with the community relationship with George Fox!

Laurel's Birthday Party

On her birthday, Laurel was blessed with a snow day from school!  What a perfect way to start her 7th year!  In the afternoon, two of her good friends came over to help her celebrate.  We started with games, snacks, presents, and play at our house. 

 

 

Then, we started "Laurel's Favorite Things" party!  We went to the pet store to see what kind of fun animals they had.  Unfortunately, no puppies that day.

 

Then, on to the candy shop.

 

And we ended our day at Shari's for hamburgers and milkshakes.

 

And a free slice of pie for the birthday girl!

Happy birthday, sweet Lolo!

New Year's Eve

We had a perfectly lovely last day of 2015!  The weather was super cold, but gorgeously sunny so we went to the school to play basketball for a while.

 

 

Then, we surprised the kids by going ice skating at a local rink who was having a New Year's Eve party.  It was the first time the kids had ever ice skated and they were thrilled to try it!  Unfortunately, as soon as we got onto the ice, two of the three kids immediately started crying because it was more difficult than they thought it was going to be.  But, after going around once, they learned that it was okay to try something new and they had a great time!  We skated for 2 hours and at 9:00, we had a mock countdown to the new year, celebrated, then packed up and went home!  It was a perfect family outing! 

Happy 7th Birthday!

 

This spunky, adorable, compassionate, smart, funny, and loving little girl turns 7 years old today!  Laurel is such a fun girl to be around.  She plays hard, thinks critically, and loves deeply.  She has many good friends at school and enjoys being in her class, but her absolute favorite place to be is home with her family.  Laurel is a very kind sister and friend, but her stubborn and independent nature grows each year.  We have had some serious stand-offs with Laurel standing her ground.  She can push my buttons more than her siblings, but mostly just needs time to process why she is upset and then she goes right back to being her normally sweet self.  She is such a quick learner and I am so impressed with her and her school work this year.  Laurel tends to rush things to just get them done and can make unnecessary mistakes that way.  She is a helper to everyone around her.  She is not afraid to be by herself and have her own ideas, which I love about her!  Laurel loves hamburgers, her family, anything with sparkles on it, playing outside, and dresses.  She is all girl all the time and is rarely seen without her fingernails and toenails painted.  We are so incredibly blessed to be parents to such an amazingly generous, responsible, independent, and charming little girl!  We love you Laurel Ann!

 

1. What is your favorite color?  Purple
2. What is your favorite toy?  Joy (American Girl doll)
3. What is your favorite fruit?  Strawberries
4. What is your favorite tv show? Movie? Girl Meets World/Descendants
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch?  Chili
6. What is your favorite outfit? Red Christmas dress
7. What is your favorite game?  Memory
8. What is your favorite snack?  Vanilla cupcake fish crackers
9. What is your favorite animal?  Cat
10. What is your favorite song? If Only (Descendants soundtrack)
11. What is your favorite book?  Dolphin Tale
12. Who is your best friend?  Kalia
13. What is your favorite cereal? Golden Grahams
14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Swing
15. What is your favorite drink?  Root Beer Float
16. What is your favorite holiday?  Christmas
17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night?  Beauty
18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast?  Sausage and bacon
19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday?  Hamburgers
20. What do you want to be when you grow up?  Teacher and a baker