Little Dancer

Ryann has begun taking dance classes at The Little Gym. She really likes it so far. Her class includes tap, ballet, and gymnastics. Sometimes she spends a little too much time looking in the mirror so she misses the teacher's instruction, but she does ok. I'm happy that she isn't too shy to talk or participate. I think she's getting better about that. She may not have a lot of skill yet, but she looks super cute in her dance outfit. She'd better. Those shoes might make us bankrupt if she continues to dance and grow.

Three Months Already!

Ashtyn is 3 months old already. Where has the time gone? She JUST started sleeping through the night on a regular basis. I feel like she's still a newborn. I guess not, since she has now outgrown her newborn clothes. Overall, she's very happy and smiley. She is pretty entertained by her sisters. I spend most of my time trying to keep the two of them off her. They are constantly hugging her, kissing her, patting her, poking her, and so on. After she was sick when she was so small, I've become a bit paranoid about the kids sharing their germs with her. We took her for her 3 month pictures today. The other two were maniacs. Avery even ate a gummy thing she found on the floor. I had to wrestle her to get it back. Maybe there's still hope for Ashtyn. :0)

Life with 3 kids is quite an adventure. I'm off for the next 3 1/2 weeks. Whether or not my sanity will be intact by the time I go back to work is questionable.

Ashtyn at 10 weeks

It's hard to believe 10 weeks have gone by already. Our newborn is now over 2 months old. She's getting to be lots of fun. She smiles and cooes at us. She really likes to socialize. She's very independent, though. She'd much rather swing or lay on her own than be held most of the time. She still wants Mommy to walk her and cuddle her when she's cranky. She still doesn't sleep through the night most of the time. It's been a shock to us because Ryann and Avery were great sleepers from the start.We're just trying to appreciate her being little, since she's our last one. :0)

Graduation

Ryann is an official pre-K graduate. On Friday, May 18, we went to Ryann's school for graduation. We were fully anticipating her hiding her face and refusing to sing again. She had promised not to be shy and to do her best, but we can't always bank on her promises.

When she saw us, she smiled and gave a hug as they walked by. Then she got up on stage and put her head down, as expected. Once the music started, we were pleasantly surprised to see her join in. She didn't do the hand motions, but sang along with every song. When it was her turn to receive her "diploma" and tell what she wanted to be when she grew up, I expected her to clam up. She didn't clam up, but I was surprised by her response. She usually tells me she wants to be a library. I'm assuming that means librarian. Sometimes she says she wants to be a doctor. This was the first time I heard this one...

Yes, ....a cheerleader. Let's hope her aspirations change in the future.

To celebrate the graduation, we went to Johnny Rockets for dinner. "Kids eat free." However, Moms' and Dads' meals are ridiculously overpriced. The girls had fun , though. :0)

Birthday Time!

On Saturday, May 12th, we had Ryann and Avery's birthday party. This year we did a Hello Kitty theme. I kept the cake a bit simpler this time. It had a pink and white checkerboard inside with pink fondant and Hello Kitty picture.

We had about a dozen little friends come over and bounce in a Hello Kitty bouncy castle. They had cake and tore the house apart. A good time was had by all.

Ryann had a hard time understanding that she was not getting another one for her real birthday on Wednesday.

Road Trip

We just returned from a trip to Washington. It was quite an adventure. We left on Wednesday, May 2nd. It was Avery's 3rd birthday. We drove for about 11 hours, but we stopped at Applebee's to celebrate Avi's birthday. We also had cupcakes and presents in the hotel. We spent the night just north of Salt Lake City. Ryann & Avery love hotels. We arrived at Scott's Dad's house in Cheney around 7:30pm on Thursday, May 3rd. The next 2 days were spent visiting with family. It was nice to catch up with everyone and introduce Ashtyn. She got to meet Grandma Dobbins, whom she was named after.
Sunday was Bloomsday, an annual 12k race in Spokane. Scott, his brother, and his dad all ran in it. It was Scott's 12th time running it. Ryann and Ashtyn spent the morning with their aunt, uncle & cousins while Avery and I went to the race. Avi got to ride the carousel while we were waiting to meet Scott. Riverfront park is really scenic. It was a fun day. Scott ran well, so he was happy. We went out for Chinese food after the race. I was glad to be able to experience Bloomsday after hearing about it for so many years.
Monday was our last day there. We spent some more time with family and got packed. We headed back on Tuesday morning. We decided to stay at the same hotel on the way back. Avery insisted it was her birthday again. We arrived back home around 8:30 last night.
It was quite a trip. We love spending time with family. Scott and I have always enjoyed traveling. It's a bit more stressful to do with 3 little kids. We look forward to future trips, especially as the girls get a little easier to transport. :0)

Pictures

On Monday, I took the girls for their first pictures together. Ryann is almost 5, Avery is almost 3, and Ashtyn is 1 month old. Strangely enough, they were very cooperative with the photographer. Everyone smiled and followed directions. The trouble came at the end when Ashtyn had a stinky diaper and was crying for food. Then, when I was trying to order the pictures Ryann and Avery started fighting. It's just another day in the life of a mother of 3. Ugh.
I did think the pictures were cute, though.