Iowa State Fair 2014

We had another successful day at the fair. The kids got to ride a ton of rides, play a game, eat lots of food, get their faces painted/tattooed, and see lots of animals! Here is our day in pictures:

Simpson College Alumni Zoo Day

We had a fun day at the zoo with other Simpson alumni. We used our membership to get in and Simpson provided lunch and some up close experiences with some of the animals! It was a great day.

Science Center Camp: Splish Splash 2014

Riley attended a week long camp at the science center. It was right up her alley! Lakes, rivers, and oceans!

Riley Nicole: Six Years Old

Six! I can hardly believe that our 4 pound 10 ounce babe is turning 6! I can remember holding her tiny body and thinking what life would look like when she was this age. What would she look like? what would her little voice sound like? What would her personality be like? Nothing can really prepare you for when the time comes, but I will say that I'm a proud mom as Riley turns six! Here is what my six year old has been up to:

- She is wearing size 6 and 7 clothes now. Completely out of the little girls section. She is wearing size 12 shoes.
- her hair is still sooo blonde.
- she is long and lean, weighing in around 44 pounds.
- she is so smart. She uses words we didn't know she knew, and cracks us up with her adult conversations.
- she is kind. She befriends anyone and everyone. Just a year ago she was shy and didn't make friends easily. Now she begs to go outside to play with the neighborhood kids.
- she learned to ride her bike without training wheels in July. She loves her razor scooter and her bike.
- she loves Ninja Turtles, animals, books, crafts.
- she loves watching ninja turtles, Martha speaks, Wild Kratts, curious George. She had a Frozen phase, but that has died down quite a bit.
- she loves nature. She likes digging for worms, looking for frogs, making potions, and finding rocks.
- she has lost three teeth. Her back molars are all beginning to come in.
- she loves soft shorts and just started liking dresses.
- her skin burns easily. She will turn bright red from just a few minutes in the heat.
- she has been asking to do chores so she can earn money. She wants to spend it as soon as she gets it.
- She loves water, juice, and milk. She loves macaroni and cheese, pretzel chicken, peanut butter toast with applesauce, strawberry oatmeal with yogurt, cheese sticks, frozen veggies, and fruit.
- she can tie her shoes on her own!
- she loves being a big sister, and is a mother hen. She loves to go get Cole out of his crib when he wakes up. She loves hugs and to be in control of her brother and sister.
- she is just starting to read. She can read the beginner BOB books, but gets frustrated really easily.
- she is competitive and likes to be the best at everything. We are learning that she has great hand eye coordination. She did a three week long tennis camp over the summer and did awesome.

Mostly, she just seems so grown up. She is beautiful and the best little girl we could have asked for!

Cole Carlson: 1 Year, 8 Months!

My little buddy is turning into my little boy! I can't believe that he is closer to two, than one. He is the cutest little guy, though. He is almost always smiling and has the cutest look when he is getting ready to do something ornery.  Here's what he's been up to:

* he finally passed the 20 pound mark, weighing in at 21 pounds!
* he only uses his paci at naps and bedtime. Hopefully we will be done with it all together soon! When he wakes up he either just hands it to us or we tell him he has one more minute and he hands it over a few seconds later.
* he is wearing a size 4/5 shoe.
* he is still crazy about balls. We went to the zoo last week and all he noticed were the balls in the animals' cages.
* he fights anytime you try to take his shoes off because that means he's not going back outside.
* he is talking a lot more. He says cat, milk, up, uh oh, cup, bowl, pop pop (Harper), ama (grandma), and a bunch more I'm forgetting. He will only use sign language for please and more...the two signs I got around to teaching him.
*He is still missing a bottom front tooth.
* he loves to swing anything he finds, mostly clubs, sticks, or rackets of some kind.
* he is not a fan of sharing.
* he loves his sisters. He follows everything that Harper does, which is not the greatest thing at the moment.
* he is a hugger and a cuddler.
* he has started sleeping much better. Finally he is sleeping through the night. He is also taking a 2 1/2-3 hour nap every afternoon.
* he is starting to notice every big truck that he sees and playing with the trucks he got at Christmas.
* He loves to climb!

He is such a busy boy and seems to continue to pick up new things ever day!

Riley Loses A Tooth

Well, really she lost two teeth! A few weeks back Ri asked me to check if she had any loose teeth. I'm not sure what prompted her to ask, but I definitely wasn't expecting to find any. After all, she's still only 5. Not even in kindergarten yet!! I was surprised to find two bottom teeth loose. A couple weeks later, while in Minnesota, one fell out. She had a look of complete terror until I reminded her that the tooth fairy would be making a stop by the hotel. Then, a couple weeks later while in Spirit Lake she lost her second tooth. Now she has one big tooth growing in and another loose tooth on the bottom. She is just growing up too fast and this was the first glaring reminder that my girl isn't a baby anymore. In just a few short weeks I'll be dropping her off at kindergarten.

Oh, and the going rate of a baby tooth in our house? $1 that is spent in the first few hours of ownership!

Safety Town 2014

Riley attended Safety Town this summer. Safety Town is a week long camp that teaches safety skills to incoming kindergartners. I remember attending and volunteering as a little girl so I was excited for Riley to attend!