Too Cold to Swim?

Today Katie, Meg, and Aunt Jenny came down from Flagstaff to visit. We were all planning on going swimming but can you believe that the temperature at 2pm was 64 degrees? Just two days ago it was 110. The girls went in for a short time and then bundled up in their towels.

Ellie's last day of Preschool

Ellie with her teacher, Mrs. January
Ellie with her friends Talia & Anna
Can you believe it? Ellie is done with preschool and is now a Kindergartner. It is hard for me to believe... not only is Ellie in Kindergarten, but I am old enough to have a kindergartner! She has had a great year in school and has made some great friendships. It seems like yesterday we were looking at houses and thinking about being close to good schools but also thinking that school is so far away. Surprise, the time is here!

Picking Flowers

Last night we went over to my parents house for dinner. Ellie had been asking me all afternoon if she could pick some flowers to take to Grandpa and Grandma. I finally told her yes and she went outside. I was busy when she came back in... okay, I guess I need to be honest. I was actually laying down on the couch. Neither of the girls napped and I was REALLY tired. Anyway, I was laying on the couch and Ellie came in and said, "I need help getting the dirt off of these flowers." I asked, "What?" and she repeated it. I finally sat up and turned around and she had pulled out the entire flower root and all.

A side note about the flowers: This is a conversation I had with the girls regarding picking the flowers.

Ellie: Mom, when we get home can I pick some flowers to give to Grandpa and Grandma?
Me: Yes
Ellie: How many can we pick?
Me: Not too many because a lot of them are dying because of the hot weather.
Ashlyn: Yeah, Flowers die like Jesus died.
Ellie: Yeah, but Jesus rose from the dead.
Ashlyn: Oh, flowers don't rise from the dead, do they mommy?

Ashlyn's Last Day of School

Yesterday was Ashlyn's last day of school for the year. She has been going one morning a week and enjoying it tremendously. She is having a difficulty understanding the concept of "summer break" and continues to ask why she doesn't get to go to school any more.
Ashlyn with Mrs. Donna
Ashlyn with Mrs. Hawes

Jeeper's

Abby's fun consisted of sitting in the stroller. She didn't mind and enjoyed watching her sisters.
Ashlyn on the merry-go-round

Liam, Ellie, and Ashlyn on the roller coaster.

Today we met some of our close friends at Jeeper's. Jeeper's is an indoor amusement park that the girls love. We had such a fun time having lunch and going on the variety of rides. We cherished our time with Liam, Aaron and Caroline as they will be moving in less than three weeks. They are incredible friends of our family's and will be greatly missed.

The Pool is Open!

Summer is definitely here and the girls are once again enjoying the pool. Abby seems to enjoy the water... even with her two crazy sisters splashing around her. We hit our first 100 degree day today and they are forcasting that we will hit 108 in a couple more. I think this will become a common picture with our girls during the next few months.

Mom, where did my hair go?

Lately I have been thinking about growing Ashlyn's bangs out. The other day when I was fixing her hair I decided to see how it would look if I pulled it all back into a pony tail. Ashlyn wasn't paying much attention and when I was finished she asked her usual question, "do I look pretty?" I answered with my same response, "of course you look pretty". I then asked her if she noticed anything different about her hair? She looked in the mirror, gasped, and then replied, "oh, Mommy, I don't think I look very pretty. I think I look funny, what happened to all of my hair, where did it go?" I calmed her down and asked her if she would like me to fix it again and she said with relief, "yes". I combed down her bangs and she thanked me and said "now I look pretty". It looks like we will wait to grow out her bangs.

Flip Flops Can Say a Lot

Ellie and Ashlyn were over at my mom's house the other day and decorated flip flops. Ellie worked so diligently on hers, making sure she chose the perfect decorations, wanting the colors to match and making sure each flip flop was identical. Ashlyn on the other hand, put little thought into hers and insisted on only decorating one flip flop. My mom tried to convince her to put something on the second one but she refused. This drove Ellie crazy! Ashlyn proudly wore her flip flops the following day and Ellie had the hardest time with it. She was constantly telling people that she decorated both of her flip flops but that Ashlyn had only decorated one flip flop and that she did not think she should be wearing them.

These flip flops say a lot about my two older girls. Ellie is a rule follower, likes organization, and does things the way they are "normally" done. Ashlyn, on the other hand, has a very free spirit. She does not conform to others and very much has a mind of her own... she enjoys being different. It is so much fun to see how different each of our kids personalities are and to continue to watch them develop and grow.