Did I mention it was Ella's 5th birthday?

Okay, so last celebration of the week for this birthday girl. She got to invite some girlfriends to a pool party that our neighbors, the Wears, graciously offered to host. She wanted all things Barbie and the cake to be all pink! There just wasn't enough time in the day for these kids to party like they wanted to, but it was so fun. Thanks so much to all that came and especially to the Wears for their backyard and bonus cocktails!

Ella grew up with one haircut

Our generous, brave, and thoughtful daughter told me 2 weeks before her birthday that she wanted to cut her hair and she wanted to give it to kids that had short hair and wanted long hair. Her donation went to Children with Hairloss. Ms. Taylor did such a great job with her. Ella had her first salon hairwash and in her words, 'didn't freak out at all!' She looks like such a big girl and with making such big girl decisions, I may have to let her go to kindergarten afterall.

Ella turns 5!

This is Miller realizing it is not his birthday and he does not get to open all the presents
Ella's favorite present (although she loved them all), her shoes from Aunt Peanut

So, I couldn't let Ella's actual birthday go down without having some sort of cake to celebrate. Dennis, my Hope Cancer Resource driver, was nice enough to take me to Sam's after treatment one day to grab Ella this Hannah Montana cupcake cake that she loved. She had a great day, full of presents, and hitting the skating rink that night. We were the only family there. It was awesome!

Things that make me literally LOL

Ella was very busy upstairs one morning and telling me to wait. She finally let me come see her ZOO...all her stuffed animals on the staircase. I guess the babygate was her inspiration. She is the biggest monkey of them all!

Ella & Miller had a blast in the sprinklers one day and I noticed that everytime Ella ran through them she would hold her hair apart so she could see. Miller just does whatever she does without any thought as to 'why' and did the same thing. He makes me laugh.

Katy Days 2010

We should just rename Katy Days "Cousins Weekend at Grandmas". The kids love coming here every year. The adults do to as it is one big class reunion. The petting zoo is always a big hit, and of course, celebrating Ella's 5th birthday is a plus. This was the 1st of her 3 'cakes' for the week. Sweet tooth much?

End of gymnastics for now

Ella and Miller performed their last show at the Little Gym a few weeks ago. We call this class the 'no fear' class as the kids will do pretty much anything Ms. Stephanie asks them to do. These are pictures of Ella doing her turn on tippy toes and cartwheel on the balance beam. Her favorite is the bars. Miller did his performance in Ella's class and displayed quite a bit of no fear himself. He only told Ms. Stephanie 'no' once. :)

Ella & Miller's Dance Recital

Our broadway babies did great. We were so proud of both of them. Ella had practiced several times during the week at home and Miller would seem mostly disinterested, but he pulled it out for the performance. They were sad dance was over, but looking forward to the camp this summer.

Week O Fun

I am really starting to enjoy all of the school and activities winding down. This week the weather was beautiful and we pulled the baby pool and slide out. WAC had a Butterfly Garden art exhibit that we went to with friends. Ella, Miller, and Marissa were all chosen to come on the stage wearing special armbands that allowed them to be interactive with the floor and draw. We were also able to go to the Duck Park for a picnic and packed a lunch for the ducks. I'm proud to say that no underwear were bitten on this visit! Best part of the week was finding out Melly's baby is healthy and good and going to be a boy!!!

Great Weekend

The kids and I went to see Shrek 4 in 3d on opening day last week. It was great, may be my favorite one yet. The glasses lasted all of 10 minutes on the kids, although they demanded they see it in 3D. We spent Saturday at farmer's markets and found a bake sale/cupcake decorating spot for a charity. We couldn't pass up a dip in the Bentonville square fountain. Later we went to our first Naturals game of the year and finally saw Jake the Diamond Dog.

Brooks makes us laugh

This is classic Brooks on 'film'. Caught him teeter tottering into the laundry basket. He pushed his way through the trampoline, and then just laid there. Then he hung out to dry in the dora car after his first kiddie pool experience.

Mother's Day 2010

We were absolutely thrilled to be able to celebrate 4 special mommies for Sunday brunch at Copelands. Grammy's friend, Ms. Rachel, joined us since all of her children live out of town. The kids were very patient and good while the mommies enjoyed our mimosas with brunch. We've adopted Ms. Rachel for all such Mother's Day events. We can't get enough mommies!

Brooks' Birthday Party

We had a fabulous turnout of family to celebrate Brooks' 1st year of life. Too bad our little prince woke up that morning with an ear infection. After daddy & Mr. Brad spent the night before putting together the much promised trampoline, it proved to be a hit with the kids, and grandparents alike. Thanks everyone for making the trip down here to make this party so special.