Eggs-cellent!

We have Whiting blues and greens as well as two Rhode Island reds (the brown eggs)

(Look at the size of this green egg! It's as big as a duck egg! The one next to it is a typical "large" egg)

Just an update on our cute little chicks:

They aren't cute OR little anymore. They are big ugly chickens (that personally I don't really like) but they are good for one thing....eggs! With our 6 chickens we get between 6 and 7 eggs each day. I'm not sure which chicken it is, but one of them lays 2 a day. The girls still LOVE them and carry them around like babies. Chickens are not very smart, but these ladies are pretty social and get excited when the girls come out to see them. :) They have been fun!

One Sweet 6 year Old

Here she is....one sweet little six year old! Regan had her 6th birthday on October 3rd. Wow! Time flies when you have a sweet girl like Regan. She is so easygoing and easy to please. She loves everything and always has a smile on her face :) Regan loves her friends and her friend Helen has a birthday the day after hers. Helen's mom (Mindy too!) and I decided we would kill two birds with one stone and have a double party (since they have the same friends anyway).

The two birthday girls decided on an "Under the Sea" theme for their party. We found a company that had an "underwater" bounce house and had blue koolaid, sea animal cupcakes, sea animal beads that they strung on necklaces, and face painting by the dads. Mindy even found some sea animal stuffed animals and bubbles to go in our party bags. It was a good idea for a party theme!
Two cute birthday friends, Helen and Regan!

The whole crew (that's a lot of girls!) It was one pretty great party!

For Regan's actual birthday (Sunday) she wanted donuts for breakfast and we opened presents from the family. Since Carli got her iPod when she turned six, Regan couldn't wait until she turned six and SHE could get an iPod. Luckily she reminded us or I would've forgotten! So, her big gift from us was a pink iPod shuffle :) We've heard nothing but her singing Taylor Swift at the top of her lungs since! We sure love our sweet little six year old!! Happy Birthday Monkey!!!

Morning Surprise!

This post is going to be completely out of order. I've been trying to play catch up on the most recent events, but I HAVE to make this post today! We woke up to a happy surprise....SNOW!! Watching the girls this morning has been magical! I can feel their excitement and happiness! Mollie has been "wishing" for snow everyday for a week (I think she associates snow with Christmas) and this morning her wish came true :) In fact, the first words I heard this morning were from her. "Regan! It....is....SNOWING!" This was followed by the sounds of Carli running down the hallway to their room and Regan literally jumping off the top bunk to see! I couldn't help but think of the words to an old Karen Carpenter song (don't make fun of me!) that says "Oh, the first snowfall of the winter

What a joy for a boy (or girl!) to behold.

Under wintery skies of gray

it was snowing all the day,

and it showed no signs of stopping,

Every kid with eyes a-popping,

Will be soon be, belly-whopping

on his knees."

The first thing the girls did was get their snowgear on and go play! It was a great time to be the mom :) Yes, we had to get ready for school, but we didn't care! We caught snowflakes on our tongues, we had a snowball fight, we rolled in it, we made snow angels, we laughed and smiled; It really was magical!! We had 20 minutes until it was time to leave for school so we rushed in and got ready, drank some hot chocolate (with marshmallows of course!) and left early enough to walk in the falling snow. It was a great morning. I've thought about having the girls ride the bus next year instead of me taking them, but then I have days like this where we had time to enjoy BECAUSE they don't ride the bus. I love seeing them enjoying the small moments of life. Like our blog title says, "We remember moments." This was a great moment!!

"BLAH"

Mollie-4yrs Regan-5yrs Carli-8yrs

Instead of purchasing those "BLAH" school pictures this year, I signed up for one of my photographer-friend's "back to school sessions". She snapped a quick individual of each girl and I asked her to take one of the girls together too. It was fast, cheap, and easy. Gotta love it!

Back to School

Where did the summer go? It came and went so fast this year! It's already time to head back to school! Carli is now in 3rd grade and her teacher this year is Mrs. Faber. She seems VERY strict and VERY organized, but Carli should respond well to that. Yes, I have always cried on the first day of school, and this year was no exception. I walked her up to her classroom and she just went right in without even saying goodbye! (I think she was a little bit excited!!) So I called her back to give me a hug! :) I love being embarrassing! Carli is getting so big and is such a good student. So proud of her!

Hard to believe, but sweet little Regan started Kindergarten!! She has the same teacher Carli had, Mrs. Bricker. I wish I could say that I kept it all together but I didn't. I was a blubbering mess! I didn't think I would be as sad with #2, but it was just as bad! I was so excited for her, but it was so hard knowing that she is officially in school now. There's no going back! Regan was SOOOOO excited! She did so good in her pre-year evaluation...already so smart! I know she will do great!

It is a big year for me because my Mollie also started Preschool! She is at the elementary school with her sisters (Regan and her are on the same playground!) and her teacher is Miss Venee. She is so ready to be "big" and couldn't wait for her first day!! It's been a transition on the days I send them all to school and come home to an empty house. I don't know if I'm okay with it! Mollie has always been so independent, she will do great! I love that she has something all her own too! My girls are growing up so fast! Hope it's a great year!!

Crazy 8's

All 3 crazy 8's- Fall 2010 (Carli- DUCKS Regan- FLIERS Mollie- DOLPHINS)

Just before school started, the fall 2010 soccer season began. For the first time, all 3 girls played. Mollie wanted to play when she was 3, but we had been putting it off because of how time-consuming it was with just the 2 girls. She wanted to play like her sisters SO BAD so we signed her up! It was a little busy with 4 practices each week and 3 (sometimes 4) games on Saturdays (sometimes at the same time!), but the girls loved it!

Carli is a soccer-fanatic!! She LOVES soccer!!!! It is an absolute blast to watch her and her team play because they are so intense :) Chad is still the assistant coach and it has been a fun thing for them to do together. The coaches push these girls so hard and the girls don't care; in fact, I think they like it! They like it because they always win!! They lost a total of 2 times this season (I think) and tied the undefeated U9 team, which they were VERY excited about. :) As for Carli, she is still a super-fast runner but is also one of the starters. Her ball handling skills have improved so much. I've never seen another player who works as hard as she does! As she told me last year...."Soccer's my thing, mom!" She's our little soccer-girl!

Regan is the exact opposite of her big sister :) She is naturally athletic, but doesn't really have a lot of motivation! When Regan puts in ANY effort, she is AMAZING on the soccer field!! She can score goal, after goal, after goal! On the other hand, if she doesn't want to try (or just isn't in the mood) she just "trots" around the field behind the other players. VERY frustrating to watch!! Funny thing is that's just Regan...she has been like this since she was a baby. She only does what she wants to do. She is naturally talented at almost everything without having to put forth a lot of effort. To be honest, her biggest interest is TV and food!! I still think her favorite part is the after-game treat! :) In our defense, she insists on playing soccer every season, but it makes for a long season!

What can I say about my Mollie.....I have some pictures which make her look like she is really good, but unfortunately she has a HUGE disadvantage: her size. She is a full head smaller than the shortest player on any U5 team! Her little legs have a hard time keeping up, but she sure tries hard! They don't even make soccer cleats small enough to fit her :) I know I sound biased, but Mollie IS the cutest little soccer player running around after that ball!! She improved a lot throughout the season and we are looking forward to seeing her play next season!

Coolerest Cousins

We have the best cousins in the whole world! We have been so lucky to see almost all of them this year. I love seeing the girls make memories; it brings back great times with my own cousins when I was a kid. I know they will always cherish these relationships. As Mollie says,"We have the coolerest cousins!"

Like Mother, Like Daughter

Carli is so much like me it's scary! I came in her room today and found her clothes laid out for tomorrow, her room cleaned and organized, her bed made, and her soccer bag ready for her next soccer lesson. I also found her first "to do" list....I couldn't be more proud!! Like mother, like daughter!! :)

A Special Day for a Special Girl

We had a special event on the very last day of July.....Carli was baptized! Still not sure where the time went, but Carli had her 8th birthday on the 25th and was baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints. She took the missionary discussions, interviewed with the Bishop, and made the decision on her own. We are so proud of her and her great choices! She is such a wonderful example to her sisters and friends. As a parent, it's hard to explain the happiness you feel watching your child choose the right, even when their friends aren't. It is complete joy! We had so many family members come up to support Carli and we appreciate it so much. (sidenote: I still can't believe we fit that many people in our house!) Thank you to all who made the long trip to be there! You helped make it the special time that it was. Thank you to all our great friends too! It was a day full of forever memories! We will never forget it and I know Carli won't either. What a special day for a special girl. Carli is such a special girl whose light shines on everyone around her! Congratulations on such a special day Carli-bear!! I'll love you forever!