Fancy Nancy Turns 3!

Ella turned three on October 21st, and I couldn't think of a better way to celebrate it than the Fancy Nancy way. For those of you who aren't familiar with Fancy Nancy, first of all you are missing out, but she's this little girl who likes everything fancy, frilly, and over the top. I love, loved this book, since I'm a Fancy Nancy at heart, and my little protege, Ella is even more so.

The morning started out with the house decorated in pink balloons and a Fancy Nancy Survival Kit for Ella. It had the new Fancy Nancy book, a princess crown, chapstick, lotion, glitter headbands, butterfly stickers, and rose petals that dissolve in the bath tub.

After we had breakfast, Ella, Ruth (Ben's sister), and I headed to get manicures and Ella also got her toenails painted. (I had a picture, but it just turned out blurry). She just seemed at ease and totally in her element. She just talked with the lady doing her nails and when she was done, the lady was sweet enough to read Ella some of her Fancy Nancy books while we finished.

When we got home from getting our nails done we had a tea party complete with flower peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, heart cucumbers and cheese, chips, and fancy milano cookies. And it wouldn't be a tea party without teacups and rose tea (fruit punch). The kids were so funny. They ate with their pinkies up the whole time and addressed each other as "darling".

Then Daddy showed up during lunch with a special surprise. Flowers for the birthday girl! Ella was so excited. Good thinking Daddy, every fancy girl needs flowers (hint hint :)

For dinner we told Ella she could go wherever she wanted and she kept voting for Taco Bell, so we tried to upgrade her to at least a Mexican restaurant. She actually didn't care as long as she got a soft shell taco. We all dressed up fancy, even daddy and Logan. (Hyrum is frowning in this picture, but I totally looked fat in the other one we took :)

Hmm. . . she's not eating with her pinky up?

The girls side of the table. Ella is totally striking a diva pose here.

After dinner Ella opened presents. She got plenty of girly, girl stuff and loved all of it.

Daddy made her cake, which was supposed to be a crown, but we got a little strapped for time. Hey, I can't complain, I didn't have to make it and it tasted great! I still cannot write on cakes without it looking the kids did the writing.

So, now my baby is officially three! Before you know it she'll be off to kindergarten. Don't grow up to fast my little Fancy Nancy!

Pumpkin Day

It started out being a fairly normal day, and somehow turned theme: Pumpkin Day! First the kids decorated some pumpkin pictures that grandma sent them with the instructions to mail them back so she can decorate her house. (Don't worry Laurie we'll send them out tomorrow). The kids went crazy with the puff paints and glitter, and it was a mess to clean up, but they had so much fun being creative. It's painfully obvious which one Hyrum did, not that he's obsessed with pirates or anything.

For dinner we made pumpkin pancakes, which are so yummy! Thank you Karen. They also have this cinnamon cream sauce that goes over them, and I swear they are one of the best things I've ever tasted. My kids wolf them down, which is another plus.

After dinner we carved pumpkins. I'm not really good at that whole free hand pumpkin carving thing, so I found some cool templates online. My hand is killing me, but I think they turned out great. Mine/Ella's is Cinderella's castle (maybe it's Sleeping Beauty's, I'm not sure). Ben and Hyrum's is the dragon from Sleeping Beauty. Now, I'm just praying that no mean kids decide to smash them, because there is no way I'm carving another pumpkin. For the last couple of years we just let the kids paint them, because I don't like touching the goo, but I dug my hand in there and totally shocked Ben. It was kind of fun actually.

So, our unplanned pumpkin day was a success! I'm exhausted and orange, but I can't wait to cook those seeds. Yum!

Hats Off To You Dr. Seuss

Today for our "date night" (we went at 2 in the afternoon) we went to see Seussical the musical at the Scera and I really enjoyed it. It's so different from the usual Rodgers and Hammerstein stuff I'm drawn to and I loved that. It was really colorful and just full of energy. Not to mention hilarious. It's also something I think kids would really enjoy (I was sitting next to tons). So, if you are looking for a fun and different kind of musical I would totally recommend this. I couldn't believe how much singing and dancing this one had. There really weren't any "lines" at all. Thankfully the actors were extremely talented, so it was fun to listen to and watch. Thank you to Dr. Seuss for creating such a wonderful world, where anything can rhyme and anything can happen.

Logan aka King Boo-5 Months

I know he actually turned 5 months on the first and it is now the ninth, but I figured a late post was better than nothing. Isn't he just so cute! Logan doesn't have a doctors appointment this month, so we just weighed him on our scale and he came in at about 17 pounds. Yep, that's my little chunk! I'm not sure how long he is, but he's actually pretty proportionate. He doesn't seem as chunky because he's also so tall. He does still have those kissable rolls though. Here are some of Logan's 5 month milestones:

*Sitting in a bath chair, instead of the baby bath tub

*Can hold onto objects.

*Scoots himself backwards when he's on his tummy (he can get across the room now).

*Eats rice cereal, oatmeal, fruit, and we are starting vegetables today. (I was going to wait to start any of the "jarred" baby food until he turned 6 months like my other kids, but he just seemed really hungry still. Seriously, I would feed him the oatmeal and he'd just scream like "Are you kidding me? That's all I get?")

*Is finally taking a good 2-3 hour afternoon nap. (Morning nap is still sporadic, but that's mainly because we are in and out of the car a million times in the morning. Poor kid.)

*Can sit with support.

*Loves to interact with the kids (especially Hyrum; he thinks everything he does is funny.)

*Is starting to enjoy playing with toys.

We sure love this little/big guy. I've decided on a new nickname for him, King Boo. It's on the wii, Mario Party 8. Watch it and you will totally see the similarity, minus the fangs and menacing scowl. He's just round, and is always smiling and sticking his tongue out. Not to mention Logan is almost completely bald. He's even starting to make sounds like King Boo. It's so funny! If I had any talent in sewing I would seriously make him a King Boo costume for Halloween, which would come in very handy since I think he's too big for the one Hyrum wore at the same age. I don't think anyone would really get who he was supposed to be but me though, because King Boo is a ghost that has like this red cape thing and a crown. I think people would just be confused, but I would still think it was hysterical.

Pixie Perfect

Saturday, Ella and I decided to have a girl day and go get our hair cut. I was kind of nervous about taking her, considering she has only had her hair cut once, but she sounded excited about joining me, so I took her along.

She was so brave! We sat next to each other while we both got haircuts at the same time and she just talked with the lady cutting her hair and seemed like she was having a grand old time. Hyrum would of been bawling on the floor at the first snip. He still cries every single time we cut his hair, but apparently Ella loves getting hair cuts. I just told her she was going to get her hair cut like Snow White and that sealed the deal (despite Daddy's attempts to convince her to keep it long like Ariel). So now she will have cute hair to go with her Snow White costume.

The title of this blog is dedicated to Ella and her little tinkerbell camera that she carries around that says "pixie perfect" every time you snap the button. I have to say her hair cut is definitely pixie perfect and suits my little fairy daughter.

Yesterday and today people complimented her on her hair and Ella just replies "it's so gorgeous." Ah, more of Mommy's brainwashing at work.

I also got my hair cut since it hasn't been cut since the last time I blogged about it in February, but I didn't take any pictures because it really wasn't all that exciting. The just took an inch and a half to two inches off, so it's just a little shorter and less nastier looking. However, this was Logan's expression after seeing my new hair do . . .

Clearly he is in awe of all my motherly beauty! What can I say? I'm one hot momma!

A Second Chance

The last few weeks I've been mourning the loss of a memory; my son's first day of school. I knew I couldn't turn back time, so I was just having to accept that I missed out. I just wished God could somehow give me a do-over, a second chance. I knew it was an impossible wish, and yet He made it happen. . . .

For years I've been researching a charter school in our area and just praying that Hyrum would be able to go to this school. New students are chosen based on a lottery and my heart just broke when I received a letter telling me he was 45 on a waiting list. Two weeks before school started I called again just to double check and he was number 25.

I had prayed fervently about where to send Hyrum to school, and I felt very strongly that he was supposed to attend this particular one. However, the odds were against me and I realized that I would just have to live with that uneasy feeling I kept getting when I prayed about sending him somewhere else.

On Friday, I received a very unexpected message on my phone, informing me that a spot had opened up and Hyrum could enroll if he so chose. I was in complete shock. I have wanted him to go to this school for so long, and there was the opportunity right within my reach. However, the choice was much more complicated now.

For starters, school started 2 weeks ago and Hyrum has already become familiar with his teacher and his routine. Not to mention the school is only a few blocks down the road and I carpool with our neighbor.

When I had originally filled out the paper work for the lottery for Reagan Academy, I had two neighbors who were already guaranteed spots. So even though the school is clear in Springville, I would have someone to carpool with. Now, however, both of these families have moved which would mean I would have to drive back and forth twice a day myself.

I still felt really good about the school, but since some of the circumstances had changed I really had to think about it. Unfortunately I only had until Monday to make this decision. Monday morning, Ben and the kids and I, toured the school and met with some of the administrators. I felt good throughout the whole process, and so we enrolled him to start immediately.

So, long story short, I got a second chance at my son's first day of school. I was up way too late last night buying his uniforms and then I couldn't sleep a wink because I was so excited. I got up super early and decorated the house with red balloons and confetti (one of the school colors) and promised Hyrum a special breakfast of whatever he wanted. We really wanted to make the transition more of a celebration of him "getting picked" to go to the special school. When we first told him, he wasn't really keen on the idea of leaving his friends and classroom, but he warmed up the minute he walked through that door.

I really feel good about this decision, even though it isn't as convenient for me, and I'm sure it wasn't easy for Hyrum either, but I think in the long run he will be so much happier at Reagan Academy. I just love that they have so many resources and specialty classes that other schools don't offer. I also really like that kids learn on their own level, and can progress whenever they are ready to move on. I hope this will be a good experience for Hyrum and I'm just so thankful for a Heavenly Father who knew how important this was to me, to allow me a second chance.

"Solid Food"

Last week we gave Logan his first taste of rice cereal and I guess it went as good as can be expected. Let's face it, rice cereal is mushy, gooey and tastes really awful. I think it's quite a feat if any baby is willing to take more than one spoonful. I'm not sure how it even got in the solid food category. It's super runny and in no way could be categorized as food. A weak glue substitute, maybe, but not food. He made a lot of faces and spit most of it out, but every day gets a little better. I'm always more excited when I can start feeding them fruits and baby "desserts" from a jar. Some of them aren't half bad and I don't have to feel so guilty forcing them to eat it.