September 2018

When the month of September began, Miriam was only a few days old (eight to be exact). She grew a lot over the month and the rest of her family sure enjoyed holding and spending time with her. We have really enjoyed having this baby in our home. 

We went to see the girl's cousin Charlotte get baptized on the first of the month and then had a little picnic at the church and we went to grandpa Hirtle's house right after and the kids went swimming in Grandpa's pool. We took Miriam to church the next Sunday but she cried for most of the meeting so I spend most of church in the mother's lounge with my baby. For Labor day on Monday we had a little barbeque at my parent's house. The kids were grateful to get out of the house and do something. We didn't do a whole lot the next week. The older kids went to school while I stayed home with the little kids. We made a tent and played dolls to pass the time. Brynlee ended up getting sick and throwing up one morning that week so she stayed home from school. Joel got sick on Sunday so we all skipped stake conference and stayed home with him.

Kyla started preschool the next week. Luckily I have been carpooling with some of the other parents so I don't have to take her every time but she now goes to preschool two days a week. I also made it back to parenting class this week and Brynlee got to go to activity days. I took Miriam in to get her lip and tongue tie fixed and then had to do stretches with her mouth several times a day. The kids rode bikes outside a few time but for the most part we stayed inside. On Saturday we took all of the kids out to Artic Circle so I could get some Ice cream. That was the one thing I craved the most when I had to cut out sugar. Then we went to the park where we all enjoyed our treats. 

The third week in September started out with a trip to take Brynlee to the dentist to get another cavity filled. I took Summer and Miriam with her and Brynlee got to miss a little bit of school. Since we went around lunch time we stopped at Panda Express and got lunch on the way home. It was fun to get to do that just with Brynlee and the little girls.

Since Miriam was a little bit bigger we were able to venture out a little more. I took the girls to the library for music and art and we went to parenting class. We went to Alesha's baby shower on Saturday. She ended up having her baby five weeks early and he was in the NICU for a while. She named him Kyren and he is a cute and tiny little thing. I was able to sneak away one night with they were in the hospital to take a peek at him. Alesha had to leave him at the hospital to come to the baby shower. We had a fun time celebrating her new little baby. Joel took Summer and they went on a date night to McDonalds and to play at the park while the rest of us girls had fun at the baby shower. There were a lot of treats at that baby shower and Kyla obviously ate way too many of them because she ended up coming home and throwing up all over the hallway. She was fine after that so I don't think she was sick at least. 

The last week of the month consisted of more preschool and a doctor visit for me and Miriam to get a check-up. On the way there we stopped to visit Alesha and I got to hold Little Kyren for the first time. I went to bookgroup and Brynlee went to activity days. I picked Bryn up from school that day and a train ended up breaking on the tracks so we were stuck there for half an hour trying to get home along with all the buses and everyone else that lives in Kuna.

     The little girls and I all made a trip to the girl's school and we got to watch Brynlee and Annalyn run in their school jog-a-thon. Kyla and Summer even got out there and ran with Brynlee. We went over to grandma's house and made some applesauce and picked apples with her and I took all the girls for a walk to the park to play this week. We ended the week by taking all the kids to Costco so we could get a Costco card. We stopped to visit Alesha so Joel and the other girls could see their new cousin for the first time and then we ended the night with dinner at Chick-fil-a. This was the first time most of our kids have ever been to Costco and to Chick fil a and they loved the experience. It was a bit too chaotic for Joel and I but still fun. The last Sunday of the month was the primary program for our ward and Kyla and Annalyn both did great on their speaking parts. Brynlee had a small solo and she did fantastic. I was proud of all of them. We also had some friends over, played outside, and did our best to enjoy the warm weather as much as we could.

Annalyn at 6 and 1/2

Little Annalyn is now six and a half. Her hair is getting really long and she just recently lost another front bottom tooth so she has lost a total of two teeth. She is in first grade this year and has finally decided that she likes school. She still wishes she didn't have to go every single day but she has gotten used to it and doesn't complain so much anymore. She does not love doing her reading every night but she does it and I can already tell that her reading is improving. It takes her a while to process things and she gets frustrated easily but she is a hard worker and tries her best. Overall she is doing well in school and likes to go.

 Annalyn still loves the colors pink and purple. She loves to do crafts and to make things for people. She made cards for every single person in her class and took them in one day just because. She can be the sweetest girl but she can still be super stubborn and obstinate. I feel like she will come home from school and will either tell me that she just had her best day ever or else it will be her "worstest day ever." Something as simple as getting to be the line leader at school will make her whole day. It can also be ruined by something as simple as her hair not parting the way she wants it to or by dropping something. 

 Anna is our best eater and is pretty good about trying new things. She would eat school lunch everyday if I would let her. She still doesn't like cheese that much but she likes the most different fruits and veggies. She also loves all things sweet and sugary.

 Annalyn has taken such good care of her room lately and makes sure it is clean every night before bed. Her room might be cluttered but she makes sure the middle of her floor is cleared. She hates it when her sisters play in there and make a mess. I am often amazed with her ability to know exactly where everything is at because if her sisters have been in there Annalyn will know, no matter how perfect I think I have things. 

Annalyn loves to be the center of attention. She loves positive praise and loved posing for all of these pictures. She hates when her sisters get things she doesn't get and she keeps track. If she finds more pictures of another kid in our photo albums she gets mad. She also gets pretty competitive about things and hates to lose. She also seems to be pretty athletic; she is a good little runner and is pretty strong. I think we will put her in soccer in the spring. 

 Annalyn has been wearing lots of shorts this summer and now she just wears stretchy pants. She still hates jeans but doesn't wear as many dresses as she used to wear. She also decided she does not like wearing those super fancy church dressed and will often opt to wear what she used to consider fancier play dresses to church. 

Annalyn loves to sing but hates when people talk or sing loud. She often complains of a headache when there is a lot of noise around her. She plays well with other kids but is also content to just play by herself. She loves to play with dolls and barbies and she loves to play outside. 

Annalyn makes our home a pretty fun place. She has the best laugh and knows how to find joy in the little things. When she laughs with pure joy it is hard for the rest of us not to join in. We sure do love this sweet girl. She is pretty fantastic. Here is a little video interview I did with her that I will leave you with so you can get a better idea of what she is like.

All of the photos seen here were taken by my sister in law Heather this summer.