First Day of Preschool!

I can't believe the day has finally come.....our 4 year old firstborn baby girl is off to preschool! As a momma I must admit that there has been high anticipation for this day. Those of you that know Keslin know that she is the sweetest little girl, but is very shy and it takes her a while to warm up to you if she doesn't know you. We have done lots of "preschool prep" to get ready for this day such as attending a couple of open houses at preschool, play dates at preschool, role playing with mom and dad about what preschool was going to be like etc... . She has always been fond of the idea of preschool, but we didn't know how she was going to react when she actually had to go to school by herself without mom, dad, and sisters around.
Well, I am pleased to say that when we picked her up about an hour ago, she had a smile on her face and said that she loved her first day of preschool! What a big brave girl your are Keslin! Mom, Dad, and sissy's are so proud of you! The teacher (Mrs. Warneke said you didn't talk much the first day but that you did everything you were asked to do and participated in all of the preschool activities for the day:) You even gave Mrs. Warneke a hug on your way out the door which far exceeded my expectations for the first day. Way to go girl! You are going to love being a preschooler! We love you to pieces Keslin!

Keslin eating her usual breakfast, pankcakes with sprinkles!

All dressed and ready to go.

All geared up with her new backpack and items for show and tell.

Finally on campus, and not acting too excited to be there.

Still pretty nervous, she knows mom is about to leave.

Playing with the letter board with little sis before school starts.

Giving Mrs. Warneke a hug on her way out the door. Yay, she loved her first day!

Happy Birthday Raelyn!

Our sweet baby girl will be turning one this Saturday....it's always unbelievable to me how fast the first year flies bye! I'm posting about our sweet princess a couple of days early because this momma is going to be very busy these next couple of days and I wanted to make sure I could fit in a Birthday post!
Raelyn, you have brought such an amazing joy to our family....each and everyday with you in our lives has been such a blessing. Your sweet smile with those adorable dimples could lift anyone's spirit!You have beenthe happiest baby and so easy to take care of. All of my life's happiness is wrapped up in you sweet baby girl( and your sisters too of course :0) Happy 1st Birthday little darling! Now off too run errands for Saturdays Princess Party!

Trick or Treat 2010!

Halloween was a total blast for the kids this year! They had their first "real" trick or treating experience this year in our neighborhood. The past three years we have just taken them to go trick or treating at their grandparents houses, and this year we did that plus "the real deal".

The Halloween festivities started at about 2:00 today...first stop was to north Portland to see Grandma Flo and Grandpa Les, and then we went to Mema and G-Pa's, then to Mam and Pa's, then to Aunt Rhonda and Uncle Joe's, and Last to Auntie Katie and Uncle Ben's house. Aunt Katie and Uncle Ben went trick or treating with us around our neighborhood sine they are essentially our neighbors now:0)

The girls made out like candy bandits! I think we have enough candy to last for a few months! They also got some nifty new rain boots, umbrellas, and new pajamas from their grandparents which was the highlight of their day...they liked that way more than the candy believe it or not! They are such girls already....so excited at the opportunity to be able to accessorize their outfits!

We had great fun with our Beautiful Butterfly, Majestic Unicorn, and Adorable little Owl....hope your Halloween was just as fun:)

A Very Happy Mothers Day

The day started out in the bright early morning (at least for us that is....) at Breakfast at Ben and Katie's house. They cooked the whole family a scrumptious meal of cinnamon swirl french toast, cheesy potatoes, a green chili egg dish, peppered bacon, fresh pineapple and strawberries, and strawberry Bellini's....it was delish! As usual, Katie hosted the event with such elegance, thanks Sis for spoiling all of us Mom's on Mother's Day...we love you!

We had a wonderful morning visiting with my Grammies and my mom, and we were able to shower each other with gifts in showing our love and appreciation for one another, thanks for all of the goodies mom and grandma! I have been SO blessed to be raised by such a wonderful mom, she really is the epitome of "the best mom in the world"! I think I can also honestly say that I have the two best grandmas in the world as well, they have been such a big part of my life for these past 26 years and have played a huge role in shaping who I am today, I don't know what I would do without them...I LOVE you guys!

Each year Mother's Day has become more significant for me. I have received the three most precious gift's any Woman could ask for. Getting to look into the eyes of my three beautiful children every day is such a surreal experience of what a true miracle this life really is! There are no words to even describe the way it makes a mother feel, and I feel so blessed to be able to shower them with love everyday and have that same love reciprocated back to me times three!

After having breakfast with my side of the family, we headed on over to celebrate with the Stoddard side of the Family. As usual, grandma Julie hosted her usual Sunday lunch for the whole gang, on today's menu was: Spaghetti, salad, and strawberry shortcake for dessert! Of course I forgot to bring my camera, therefore I didn't capture any of the action, but the afternoon was definitely fun-filled with trampoline jumping, running around in the yard, and the kids spraying each other with the hose. Thanks goodness we finally had a sunny day!

Keslin and Bronwyn finished of the day by swimming in their pool and playing with their water table. They had a blast! It seems like forever since they've been able to play outside for more than a half an hour before it starts raining! Raelyn finished off her day by taking a long snoozer, the festivities and sun wore her out:0)

It's been a day filled with lot's of luvins for the momma! I hope all of you mom's out there had a wonderful Mother's Day as well!
Grandma Flo-Joe and I.

Mom and Katie Cookin in the kitchen.

Look at that beautiful boquet.

Denise and Rae-Rae.

Me and my Momma.

Keslin and Bronwyn enjoying some delicious breakfast.

Me and grandma Mam.

Mommy and Raelyn.

An attempt at a family portrait:0)

Me and my girls!

Enjoying the sunshine!

Little Raelyn enjoying her afternoon nap!

11 weeks and growing....

Well, it's official, our newborn is no longer a newborn! Eleven and a half weeks has already flown by since our third little princess was born and before we even knew it our little miss has already started growing up on us! At her two month appointment she weighed in at 11lbs. 1oz (which is almost double her weight), and was 221/2 inches long which put her in the 50th percentile for both her height and weight!

Raelyn is the sweetest baby ever! She has such a calm demeanor and is happy 99.9% of the time! She has been the biggest blessing to our family! Oh, and better yet, she only wakes up on average of once a night...I am in complete awe and amazement at how easy she is making things on me!

She is provided with 24 hour entertainment from her two older sisters, which I'm sure is why she doesn't really feel the need to fuss ....there's just no time for that with the constant sensory stimulation:0) Keslin and Bronwyn love on her every minute! She gets the Royal baby treatment from them all day long with tons of hugs, kisses, and taking turns holding her.

We are continuing to cherish each and every moment with our three precious girls and are enjoying what each new day brings. I count my blessings every day that I get to be the mom of such three wonderful little people!

The 5 Hip Cooks!

Yesterday was my Sisters 23rd Birthday and we celebrated by taking the whole family to a Thai cooking class at Hipcooks! Aaron was solo and had to stay home with the girls so I could join in on the family fun(thanks babe!) It was Katie's idea and we had so much fun learning to cook together, and my oh my was the food delicious! Our Thai Cuisine consisted of an Eight course meal which included: Veggie spring rolls with tamarind dipping sauce, Chicken saute with peanut sauce, Coconut rice with shrimp and cilantro, Pad Thai, Papaya salad, Green curry with eggplant, mushrooms and peas, Red curry with chicken and peanuts, and Black rice with cocunut cream for dessert! Our stomachs were bursting at the seams when it was all said and done! There were Fourteen students all together, we had a great time getting to know some new people and had some great quality family time together. The class was well worth the money and it was a fabulous four hours of entertainment! Better yet, they sent us home with all of the recipes...so if any of them sound appealing to you let me know and I will pass them along to you:0)!

The Fam minus Aaron.

Our veggie spring rolls.

Coconut rice with shrimp and cilantro.

Chicken Saute with peanut sauce.

Mom and Katie.

Dad and Ben.

Me and my Sis.

Some fellow hip cook classmates.

Our very cool teacher Tristan.

More pictures of the gang.