Kindergarten

  How is it possible that I have a kid in kindergarten?  Most of the time I still feel like I Just got out of high school.  I totally should not have a five year old!  When Makella started preschool, I was just really excited for her to go, but kindergarten is different! I have been pretty nervous about it.  I am just sad to see my little girl growing up so much.  But like it or not, today was the day!  Ella has been more than excited to go to school and she was so ready!  She woke up this morning at 6:30 and got dressed right away in the outfit she had chosen last night to wear.  Then the next 2 and 1/2 hours were torture for her.  She could hardly stand the waiting.  It was finally time and we all walked her to school since its not too far from our house.  They lined them all up in their lines and she had to wait for her teacher to come out. She had her eyes locked on the doors waiting for her to come out.  While in line, she made sure to tell me that I couldn't stand in line with her because she wanted to be to do it all by herself...But I was allowed to take pictures.  The bell rang, she blew kisses, waved and then embarked on her kindergarten journey!

I went home and sat on the couch and was not sure what to do, I decided that I don't like not having my girl around every morning.  But now I get to have a little more time to focus on the things that Noah likes to do. It will be good for everyone, I think.

I went back to pick her up and when she ran up to me the first thing she said was, "My day was Awesome!!"  So I think that school is a hit. :)  She had such a good time and already knew a couple of girls in the class which just made it all that much better.

I am so proud of Makella and the little girl that she is. She is so kind to everyone around her and is also such a fun girl who absolutely loves to laugh and have fun. I hope that she can be challenged enough in the classes and enjoy learning and I also hope she can be a good example to the kids around her. I know she will be so great in school and I'm happy to see such a great start to her school days. 

California!

 After I found out I was pregnant,  it was only a few weeks later that I found out my sister was pregnant too!  Our due dates were only about 4 weeks apart.  It was fun to call her all the time and talk/complain/compare everything about our pregnancies.  She has been there for both of my kids' birth and I was there right after she had dixie, but we were due too close to do that again.  Instead I got to go down there after I had Asher to see her new baby.  Asher was born early and Willa was born a little late, so they ended up being about 6 weeks apart.  I left right after Asher's blessing and it was just me and the baby. My mother in law came up from Utah to help Jon take care of the kids while I was gone. I am so grateful that she did that, so I could go see my sister. My mom was also there and it was so great to just hang with them! (And really relaxing to feel like I only had one kid for a few days, it seems so easy without 2 other little kids to chase around.)  Asher did really good on the plane even when I missed my first flight and was held back awhile.  We finally made it and being at Wendy's house was so great!  I feel like I got to know Dixie so much better and she is such a fun little girl.  I loved playing with her and hearing all the cute things she says.

                                   This is the face she made when I told her to do her sad face.

      It was so hot while I was there, but we a chance for some pictures when we went outside one evening when it cooled down. I laid Asher on a blanket and he just passed out.  He loved laying outside.  It was crazy to see the difference 7 weeks can make.  Asher is so much bigger than Willa! But they are just so cute!

                                      
                                            

                                              Willa and Dixie in their matchin headbands.

          A couple more pictures of the two newest little ones. I like the above picture because it really shows how blond Asher's hair it. He has suck shimmery blond hair. Its so cute!  I like the below picture because I managed to get Willa smiling in her sleep.  You can really see it in this picture but when she smiles she has two dimples! She is a beautiful baby!

Asher's Blessing

 We had Asher's blessing day and it turned out perfect!  Jon's family was able to be there for it and my dad was also able to make it. Jon gave him a wonderful and powerful blessing and it was very special!  Im really grateful that Jon has the Priesthood and that we can recieve the blessing that go with that.  He takes these things very seriously and I really appreciate that.  Asher wore his little tuxedo which is the same one that Noah wore.  When Noah got blessed it barely fit him because he was a pretty big baby. Asher is so small that it was almost too big on him. He looked so cute though, it was perfect!  Our church is at 8:30 in the morning, so we went to sacrament meeting and then everyone came over for a little breakfast.  It was fun to have everyone over and chat and enjoy the morning.  Here are the pictures from the day!
  

Makella's new friend

     If you know me at all, its no surprise that I kinda love animals.  We haven't lived anywhere that would allow us get any kind of pet, and Ive learned to live with that.  But lately Ive been really really wanting to get a pet of some sort.  Jon has a lot more sense when it comes to things like that, so Long story short, after much annoyance and pestering, I finally convinced Jon that getting a hamster would be great for Makella. :)  Give her something to do and take care of and be responsible for.  Ive never really had a hamster and was nervous because I thought they all just bite and weren't very nice, but this hamster is so cute and nice and never bites. Even after being manhandled by a five year old. I've grown quite fond of her. Ella decided to name her Emma and noah really wanted to name her too, so we let him pick her last name.  He chose Gamzy (no clue where that came from)  So now we have our Emma Gamzy and life is a little more fun :)  Its fun to see Ella learn how to hold her and take of her and have her own little buddy.  Ella still has a bit of learning to do but Im happy to say that after being given a bath, locked in a very small drawer of a jewelry box(for who knows how long), being dropped a couple times, and squeezed a little too hard....she is still alive :) 

    

Family Reunion

Right before I had Asher, I decided I needed one last trip to relax and have fun before he came.  I took the kids decided to go to my parent's house so they could see their cousins and it is pretty much the perfect place to relax.  It turned out to be great timing because my grandparents were celebrating their 65th wedding anniversary and so all of my siblings came up as well! So we had all the Smith kids there and all but 2 of the grandkids. It turned out to be so much fun!  I was there for about a week before everyone came.  When everyone came, we spent the first day at my parents house, enjoying the perfect weather outside.  We spent the day munching strawberries, looking fir bugs and playing in the sprinklers. So much fun!

                                                        
                                                      6 smiths, All in a row!

                                          
                                      roasting marshmallows and having smores

The next day we all drove to Sunnyside for the party. It was nice to be able to see my grandparents again and enjoy their beautiful yard.  65 is definitely a long time and they are great examples to all of us.  It was weird to see all the kids playing in the yard and house just like we used to do as kids. I still feel like we are not old enough for that.
 
                             Grandma and Grandpa Smith in front of their beautiful flowers!

                  I love watching these 3 boys play together. They are all such good guys!

 My grandparents had 3-4 of these bird houses hanging from their tree and there were babies in all of them! The kids liked seeing the baby birds inside.

 After that, we moved the party to Jeff's house.  Most of the adults went out to Miners for some milkshakes and chili fries, So yummy! I love sitting around and chatting with my brothers and sister, they are seriously funny people.  The next day we went to a park in Yakima and did some smith family races and took some pictures. People started leaving after that and then I finally had to come back home and think about having a baby.  It was such a great trip though and makes me wish I lived closer to my family!

One month!

  Here is little Asher after one month, he just keeps getting cuter and is still a perfect baby!  He has gained 2 pounds already and Im sad to lose my tiny little newborn.

           I just love his shimmery golden hair, its the best!