Alicia Keys

I have spent many birthdays with my close friend Holly. We met in the 1st grade and have enjoyed each other's birthday celebrations for almost 30 years (we love birthdays so much that when we were children we even celebrated our dog's birthdays). This year we were treated to a special treat from her husbands banker. Holly's husband, Travis was given 3 tickets to the Alicia Keys concert and backstage passes. It was so fun for Holly, Brooke and myself to go as ourselves and feel like teenagers again.





We had premium parking that took us through a back door, where we found a buffet of great food and drinks. Even though we had already eatten dinner that didn't stop us from enjoying the spread. It was an awesome way to attend a concert.




Alicia Keys is very talented, and puts on a great concert. Here is a little clip to enjoy.... (I would have filmed the whole song, but it was hard not to want to dance while holding the camera)

Thanks girls for a great night... Happy Birthday Holly!!

Back to School

The kids started school this week. They were all excited to head back, however we all agreed summer went way to fast. This year I have three in school. They are getting bigger, but they are still my babies. I'm glad they each like school and that they look out for each other while they are there.

On the Friday before school started we found out Landon and Mason weren't going to continue in a 3/4 split class. Instead they would move up to a 4/5 split class. This change brought on a new teacher for them, one who typically teaches 5th grade. All of the sudden they seem like thea big kids on campus. Where did the time go?

Here Mason has found his desk.

Landon was excited to find his desk next to a good friend from last year.

The boys were also asked to be "greeters" this year. It is a program at our school, where a group of students greet fellow students and parents each morning and after school. Landon and Mason love this kind of stuff. Their spot is the front of the school. On the first day I went along with them. I had to keep reminding them that they didn't need to have a long conversation with each person that came by. They are funny boys with always something to talk about.

Below is Landon greeting.

Landon doing a back to school pose.

Lydia has been counting the days until she would start school. She was all smiles on the first day of school. We are excited for her, but we hate to see her grow up so fast.

We have a little in with one of the Kindergarten teachers at the school. She happens to be Grandma! It's nice to know Grandma is just down the hall from Lydia, and that she can keep tabs on her. Lydia's teacher Miss. Karow was mentored by Grandma last year.

We live by several kids that are going to Kindergarten this year. So catching the bus with some of Lydia's friends is so much fun.

There she goes. How fun it is to be 5!I was one of those funny moms that went to the school to see her get off the bus.

Lydia's in a large class this year with 2 times as many boys than girls. I took this picture and realized I didn't have one girl in it. I don't think she will notice the small number of girls in her class, she is pretty use to boys.

Finally, I'll let her go.

Last Few Weeks of Summer

School starts tomorrow morning and we all have mixed feelings about starting up again. It has been a great summer and we have enjoyed spending time together as a family. Here is how we have been spending our last few weeks.

A few weeks ago we took a ferry ride from Edmonds to Kingston. This particular Saturday was very warm so the cool breeze on the Sound felt heavenly.

Zeke had a Birthday!!!

He even had a Chocolate Zucchini Cake for his birthday cake.


We finished up our last session of swimming lessons. All three of the kids improved their skills. The boys got their side breathing down and Lydia swam the length of the pool all by herself. It was very exciting!




We spent time at Lake Tapps. My parents live on a small island on a lake, and we love spending time with them on the lake.







They have a nice neighbor that lets us borrow her paddle boat and kayaks. The boys particularly love the paddle boat.
For Labor Day Weekend we went to Cannon Beach, Oregon with the Beaird Family. We had a relaxing weekend playing with them and enjoying the beauty of the Oregon coast.

Jacob loves to play outside. The beach was heaven to him. The Dads and older boys played football on the beach most of the time.

They are all crazy about football!
The weather was perfect for kite flying. We just wished the breeze was a little warmer.
Landon is always up for a pose. He's pretty proud of this one.


The kids seemed to not notice how cold the water was.

When the tide is low, it's fun to get up close and personal with the fish wildlife.
Cannon Beach is one of my favorite places to go.
One day we went into Seaside. What a crazy group.

To celebrate our official last day of summer (Tuesday) we went to the Zoo with the Hatch family. Most schools in Seattle start on the Tuesday after Labor Day, however our district doesn't start until Wednesday. So it's the perfect no crowd day to go to the Zoo.

The weather was perfect and the animals were very entertaining.
We love the Woodland Park Zoo. They are always adding new stuff. This year it was the Pink Flamingo exhibit. We learned an interesting fact about the Flamingos. The reason they are pink is because they eat so much shrimp. Isn't that crazy!