Off With the Braces

Janae got braces put on her teeth on February 18th and exactly 9 months later, she got them taken off. Her teeth look awesome! Round 2 won't be for a few years. She needs to lose several teeth and have the new ones grown in first.

Before

After

Jordan Elise Smith is Finally Here

Brock and Christine finally got their little girl. Jordan Elise was born on 11-11-11. I got to go stay with their other kids when they left for the hospital. After Carson and Garrett left for school, me and Hayden had a good time playing. We went to visit his new sister that morning. He got to hold her and right away started kissing her and rubbing her head so softly with his chubby little fingers. It was so cute!

The girls were so excited to go and meet Jordan the next day.

Crafty Me

As leaders, we planned a pumpkin craft for a Wednesday night activity at Young Women's. I volunteered to get everything ready for it. Since I was doing all that work, I decided to make a couple examples to show the girls. I love how they turned out and was surprised at how easy they were to make.

Halloween 2011

Both girls chose to be an Indian princess this year, complete with sari and veil. Man, they looked cute too!

Pumpkin carving is getting better as they get older. They are able to do most of it by themselves, which is fine by me. Notice Janae's gloves, she is grossed out by the slimy innards of the pumpkin.

The girls wanted to have a family Halloween dinner this year. Our menu consisted of:
Dog bones, bug salad, snakes and eyeballs, ghosts in the graveyard, witches brew and candy corn cookies. The food was all gone, so I guess it was a success.

Cornbellys

We took the girls to Cornbelly's at Thanksgiving Point again this year. Uncle Dan, Aunt Tami and Corbin joined us this year. We spent about 6 hours there and could have stayed longer. Unfortunately for the girls, mom and dad were done way before they were. The giant jumping pillow was favorite. There were pedal go carts that they both loved too. They tried shooting paintballs too. The National Guard had a rock climbing wall that Addyson tried too. She didn't quite make it to the top,but she gave it her all.

Janae Turns 10!!

Janae turned the big 1-0 this year. How in the world do I have a 10 year old?!? She is really into purple and ladybugs right now, so she chose that for her party theme. I did my best to make her cake like she envisioned. The weather was perfect for a ladybug picnic at the park. She and her friends played at the park, ate lunch, played water balloon volleyball, painted nails and had cake. I think it is safe to say she had a great time. Sunday, her actual birthday, she chose waffles for breakfast before church. For dinner, the family came over for stuffed shells and cake. I can't believe how grown-up she is. We love her lots!

Coloring Contest

The local paper had a coloring contest for all 5th graders. Janae struggled with her picture for a few days, she couldn't make it look "just right". She turned it in anyways and was pleased to listen to the message on the answering machine telling her she had won.

She won a backpack filled with school supplies.

Great job Coley!!

First Day of School 2011

Janae started 5th grade this year at a new school, Monroe Intermediate School. She was so excited to go, until the morning of. I usually take the girls and walk them to their classrooms, but since her school starts almost an hour before Addyson does, she rode the bus. She was a little nervous when she left, but came home every excited.

Addyson started 2nd grade at Jackson Elementary. She was excited to go, like always. She enjoys going to school without her big sister there.

Bear Lake 2011

We made out annual camping trip to Bear Lake again this year. The girls LOVE the water and would spend the entire trip in the water if we let them. We spent 2 full days on the beach this year. One day, Grandma Neff, Aunt Merilee, Uncle Dave and Jimmy joined us. Jimmy couldn't wait to get into the "really big swimming pool".

One day we ventured to the Paris Ice Caves. We had found them online and thought it would fun to check them out. I wasn't sure what to expect. Apparently the ice in this cave never melts. The openings at the top are covered with snow and ice during the winter. The ice melts off the outside but never completely melts from the inside.

Enjoying one last raspberry shake before heading home.

BOCES Cake Decorating

Addyson was able to also take a one day cake decorating class this summer. She was one of 4 kids that signed up. She worked hard on getting her frosting smooth and then decorating her cake. I'm pretty sure that if I would have weighed the cake with all the candy on it, it would have weighed in at 5 lbs!

Princess Camp 2011

Addyson got to attend Princess Camp for her 3rd and final time this year. She loved being one of the older ones who could help the younger princesses. She painted a picture frame, painted a design on a t-shirt, watched Tangled and Cinderella and ate princess themed food during the camp. She was a little sad on the last day when one of the fairy god mothers, Jen was home sick. Fairy god mother Samantha told me that she really enjoyed having Addyson and she was sad that Addyson will be too old next year to join them.

Curly Hair!!

I saw somewhere online that you could curl your hair overnight without using any heat. Janae decided to let me try it out on her. It was pretty simple to do. Dampen hair, put headband on head and start wrapping small sections of hair around headband. Sleep with it overnight and take out in the morning.

She didn't like it in the morning-it was too curly for her taste.

NOTE: Use a soft, cloth headband and not one with elastic. The mark may stay on your head for up to 5 days otherwise. Oops!

July 4, 2011

We did our annual 4th of July dinner this year. Grandma and Grandpa Smith, Uncle Brock, Aunt Christine and their boys were able to join us. The girls helped with the themed food again.

Later on, we ventured down to the baseball fields to watch the fireworks. The girls had a great time.

We (Finally) Have Two Bike Riders

We have been trying to get the girls to ride 2 wheel bike for a few years. Janae started last summer, but quickly became afraid again. Addyson was following her sisters lead and was scared too. Finally, we had them at the track and they were both able to overcome their fears and ride.

Addyson rode around the track about 15 times that night. She sure slept well that night!

Janae too a little longer to get going, but when she did, she was great.