He's Official!

Kyle was baptized bright and early July 6th, 2013 at 9:00am in the Hunter West Stake Center. 

He very much looked forward to his baptism day.

Kyle and Hayden Loader

Kyle and Kylee Soholt

Fresh from the font.  He seems happy.

I let Kyle choose who he wanted to give a talk and he chose Julia. She did a great job too.

We had a brunch right after at the church's/ pavillion. Most of our family was there (even the Schroeders. Can't believe I didn't get a pic of Kyle and Will. :( We also missed the Tracey Hind family.) 

We gave Kyle a journal and had everyone write a message at the front for the baptism boy. 

We are so proud of Kyle and his decision to follow the example of the Savior and to be a great example to his younger siblings.  What a spectacular kid you are, Kyle!

Last day of School (and Orchard Elementary)

First Day of 2nd Grade

   

Last Day of 2nd grade

Look at how much my big guy grew.
Kyle did very well in school this year.  Ms. Barber could not say enough good about him.  HE had a bit of a rough time enjoying school though.  I felt he wasn't challenged enough. I'm praying next year he will get a teacher that can engage his smart little mind.





When the bell rang at the end of school many of the kids were cheering and clapping. Not my Kyky. He was long faced and melancholy about leaving his school of three years.

 First day of Kindergarten

Last day of Kindergarten

Noah not only grew physically this year but he grew a lot academically.  His ABC's are stronger and he is reading some.  His teacher always said Noah is a sweet boy that likes to daydream.  Adam says that Noah reminds him of himself.

Noah too was sad to leave Orchard Elementary. He just kept saying how much he was going to miss his friends.

The kiddergarten did an end of year program which I always enjoy.  They did a slide show asking the kids what they wanted to be when they grew up. Noah's answer? A Lego designer. Pretty good considering some of friends wanted to be dog walkers and waiters. :)

Kyle's 8th birthday

What a big boy I have!!  

EIGHT! 

Its so bitter sweet. I love having such a great helper.  Kyle is a great big brother. Always watching out for his siblings, helping me keep track of them.  I have seen a lot of growth in Kyle over the past year. He's a kid I can depend on.

But he's also not my tiny baby boy anymore.

 Mind you, he will ALWAYS be my baby, just not so tiny...

 

 We went to ToysRus because I got him a Galaxy Squad Lego that wasn't exactly what he wanted and I knew that. So I told him we could go get what he wanted. When we got there we told them it was his bday so they gave him a balloon and crown. I had to get this picture because the poor sentimental me just kept thinking, this may the last time he will happy wearing a paper crown in public. Basically losing his child like innocence. I know, I'm silly.

We are into nontraditional cakes birthday cakes at the Shiflett house and this year was no exception.

Kyle chose this watermelon cake since he is a super fan of watermelon. 

 It was super fun to make and EAT!

Kyle also got to chose where we had dinner. He always asks if we can go to Chili's...always. So it was no surprise that he chose it for his bday dinner.  

Kyle got Legos for his birthday. No, we are not out of the Lego phase and I do plan on being out in the foreseeable future. Whatever makes my baby happy.

Happy Birthday to my Kiksy Sticks. You are an amazing kid. We love you!

Favorite book is your favorite....

...color?... purple

....food?...pizza, Mommy's Alfredo

least favorite food... 

...TV show?... Lego videos

what are you really good at?... riding my bike/scooter

Who is your best friend?... Nathaniel, Caleb and Liam

What makes you happy? Being with my family and looking at my Pokemon cards.

Favorite animal: wolf

favorite thing to do: Play with Pokemon cards

Favorite movie: Kronk's New Groove

What do you and your mom do together: tickle sessions

What do you and your dad do together:  build Legos

What is your favorite sport: baseball

Where is your favorite place to go: camping (Coyoye Gulch) and Legoland/Disneyland

Favorite book: anything I can read but I really like Calvin and Hobbs

What do you want to be when you grow up? scientist (chemistry)

A Great Weekend

Memorial weekend for the Shiflett's traditionally consists of a few days camping and hiking at beautiful Kodachrome National Park.  This year would be different however.  We are in the midst of showing/selling our home of  8 years.  We had a lot success with our showings and got a couple of offers so we didn't feel like packing and all the while trying to keep our house immaculate.

So while we felt bad missing out on tradition, we had a wonderful weekend just being together. 

Noah's 6th Birthday

Noah was a very lucky boy. This is what Noah got to do on his birthday this year. 

(Megan's first dance recital.)

 But before you feel too sorry for this non-girly birthday boy, this is also what he did for his birthday...

We went to the park and had McDonald's and opened presents.

He got Batman2 Wii, a few Skylanders (don't ask me their names) and a Razor scooter.  He was very thrilled and overjoyed with it all.  He could not stop exclaiming how happy he was. Sweet boy.

A week after his birthday we had a Magic party at Noah's request. (We won't talk about how he changed his mind and really wanted a Skylander party that I refused to do.

 I loved the Magician party idea too much to give it up.)

Little magicians

back row l-r: Dillon, Hayden, Kyle, James

front row l-r: Ava, Ivy, Carter, Coleman, Noah, Noah P.

(There were a few others at the party that were not pictured here:

 Meggie Kate, Ethan, Stuart, Mikayla and Allisyn

We had a real live magician come to the party.

 He was great, the kids loved him and he did all the work. :)

Yessss.

Noah got to be up front and help with the magic tricks the entire time.

He loved it until...

This happened...

He remained fairly calm but kept saying "get it off me. Ow...get it of me."

Noah's guests enjoying his discomfort.

I think everyone had a great time. 

(Especially Megan who laughed loud and long through out the entire show.)

I love my Noah.  He is truly a sweet, funny child.

 He definitely marches to the beat of his own drummer.

He loves his family and proclaim it on a regular basis (but almost idolizes his brother). He doesn't like reading or doing school work. Still loves his teddy bear blanket but seems a little less attached. Chilled out.

Birthday Questionnaire

How old are you? 5...oh yeah, six

What makes you happy? Going hiking and also my brother playing Legos with me

Favorite animal: Wolf

What is your favorite thing to eat? Pizza and hot dogs, Mommy's tomato soup

What is your least favorite thing to eat? tomatoes, mushrooms...I HATE mushrooms

What is your favorite thing to do? Play Legos...and Skylanders...and play with my family

Favorite TV show? Lego design video clips

What are you really good at? Cleaning (making) my bed, milking a cow (Well, some milk fell on my face when I milked that cow...)

Favorite movie? Spy Kids

Favorite color? green

Favorite song: Dynomite by Taio Cruz (Noah loves music and has many favorites)

Who is your best friend? Coleman, 

What is your favorite sport? basketball (Noah doesn't seem to care too much for them yet.)

Where is your favorite place to go? Disneyland and Legoland, Clark Planetarium

Favorite book? Dr. Seuss books

What do you want to be when you grow up? a gold miner, a scientist and a Lego designer

9 month Ella

Ella is such a fun baby. She is starting a get a bit mobile. She can get from her bum to her tummy and scoots using the tip of her toes. She is motivated as she wants to get her little chubby hands on everything she possibly can. Not only is Ella a grabber but she is a major gabber.
 Not fun when the boys are trying to play Legos anywhere in the vicinity. 

 She is wiggley and almost impossible to hold when trying to absorb a Sunday school lesson. 

She makes the funniest sounds (blowing through her nose and closing her throat.)
 She is also, we believe, saying dada and mama. Pretty impressive. 

She likes to stretch her arm(s) out when she sees people- kinda like she wants them but definitely doesn't. It's really cute and endearing if not tricky.

She has two teeth on the bottom now. The right one came in first at about 7.5 months and the left one followed about a month later.

 Stats:

Weight- 19.14 lbs 80%

Height- 28 in 75%

Head- 18.6 95%

6+ 

 Grabby McGrabberson

The juicy roundness of those cheeks...

 Sweet strawberry curls. I hope they stay.

Dancing Queen

Megan finally had her very first dance concert last a few nights ago. It was so precious. 

Megan started taking dance from Just Dance studio in Jan. My friend, Jamie, and her little girl, Alli, attend the Mommy and Me class and got us a spot to join. Megan has always been very attentive at dance recitals she has attended and loves to dance herself. So while I hadn't planned on putting her in dance until at least 4, I decided to give it a try. 

She has mostly loved it. She has been bashful at times but has always been happy to go and tries her best. 

I had no idea what to expect when it came to getting on the stage. I didn't need to worry though. She kept asking me, "When do I get on the stage??" Asked many times. She got out there and did her thing with a smile on her face and had a good time. (I got verklempt.) She was all excited to get back up there at the end for her bow. 

Later she's loved performing her dance for everyone that wasn't there. 

                  4th dancer in. 

         
Megan and her good friend, Alli.

What a sweet little dancer she is. 

Mommy and Daddy are so proud. 

Happy Mother's Day to me. 

If it weren't for these little people of mine I wouldn't be celebrating this day. 

They made cards for me with words like 

"If all the moms got together you'd be the best" 

and 

"I love helping you". 

I love being their mommy. 

And I'm thankful for Adam who makes my job as a mommy a little easier.

He was up early this morning making wild rice soup, 2 salads, dessert, breakfast sandwiches and ironing clothes for the boys.  

What a guy.

 I feel very blessed. 

Things I love about today...

Kyle reads the newspaper. I don't read the newspaper. (It helps that it
was an article about Legos. But still!)

Megan running to the bathroom and telling me she's "not going to freak out" (as she is wont to do).

Megan insisting on using my bathroom to wash her hands because the "boys bathroom stinks!"

Noah telling me if he had three wishes they would be -to be rich with money and gold -to be a ninja "wif" swords and 

-to have robot armour. That's not asking too much, is it?

Ella getting excited about getting the tub. I loved her quick breaths and feet and twirling.