Preston: Preschool Graduate

Preston graduated from preschool the end of May. He was kind enough to pose for me a little before we went to his program.

 What a handsome little guy I get to hang around with all day.

It was great to watch them perform the program. They each got to do a speaking part and a nursery rhyme to show-case all they'd learned this year.

Preston has really come a long way in nine months. In September, he couldn't hold a pencil, write a single letter or number, use scissors, or name half the alphabet. (He disliked anything that resembled work.) Now he can write his first and last name, all his numbers, cut, and read small books! And now he thinks it's fun! I am so proud of him for his progress and determination to learn.
  

The only thing Preston would tell me about his preschool program was that he would get a candy balloon when it was over. He was pretty excited for this special treat.

Preston with his fabulous teachers: Mrs. Rawlings and Mrs. Pulley. They were so good to him and loved him despite his rambunctious ways (at the beginning of the year, he was always climbing on top of the tables).

Here's Preston's favorite buddy, Stanley, with the teachers too.

Adelyn's Gymnastics Exhibition

Adelyn had the opportunity to perform in her gymnastics exhibition meet last month. She was quite nervous and didn't smile a single time while she performed (she was all business and focus). But she did a great job on the skills.

 All the gymnasts in Levels 2 and 3. Adelyn is right in the middle.

 On the bars, just before her handstand.

 Adelyn coming out of her backward roll in a perfect plank position.

While doing her bar routine, her coach Andrea stood by to spot her. But she didn't need it; she nailed the routine! The bars are her favorite.

 Adelyn on the beam with her ribbon. Finally smiling when it was all over with.

Adelyn with Whitney, her gymnastics coach.

Zoo Field Trip with the First Grade

I got to go with Adelyn's class to Hogle Zoo on a field trip. We had a great time. Here are four of the kids in my group: Grace D., Ammon, Adelyn, and Jesyca.

The tigers were really active. The kids laughed at this one because it liked to swim.

 The girls looking at the elephants. 

They each pretended they were one of the gorillas. Adelyn was the infant.

Treehouse Children's Museum

On our way back from Bear Lake, we went back to Ogden and visited the Treehouse Children's Museum. It was a wonderful place. There was so much to do and explore. The kids had a ball.

Everywhere you turned there was something to dress-up and do or an art project to tackle.

Preston is in the oval office dressed up as the President during colonial times.

Adelyn was a nurse at the newborn nursery. She did a great job.

Then she did some meditation inside a huge Native American tepee.

The kids went Western and rode some motorized horses and cows.

Giddy-up!!

Yee-haw!!

Adelyn was the Fairy Godmother for the "Cinderella" play the kids put on for the adults.

The girls loved these big stuffed horses inside the Mongolian hut.

Adelyn was dressed as a Russian flower girl.

They had a whole section on Medieval times, another focused around American history, and then an exhibit to teach the kids about many different countries and cultures. We had a great time. We will definitely be revisiting this place.

Bear Lake

We decided to go to Bear Lake during the off season because we got a great deal on a huge hotel room through my parent's time share. The purpose was just to get out of town and RELAX! So that's just what we did. We took our bikes up, and the first day we went on a 8-mile bike ride to a really fun beach. Adelyn rode her bike the whole way; the younger kids were in the bike trailer. We took sand toys and the kids just played and made a complete mess of themselves.

 Preston made a great discovery.

 Adelyn tested out the water.

 Annalise had the dirtiest bum on the bunch.

 And Preston had the sandiest feet.

We had a beautiful view of the blue water.

 After some lunch and a rest, we went to Garden City Park and enjoyed the great play equipment.

We also tried our hand at fishing for a bit, but without success. We swam in the indoor pool once the first day and twice the second day. (Probably the kids' favorite part.) And we went and got famous Bear Lake raspberry shakes. Other than that, we just hung out and read books, watched movies, and played games. It was truly rejuvenating and lots of fun. We had no internet or phones the whole time we were there, so it was a nice break from the world.  

Eccles Dinosaur Park

Our next stop in Ogden was the Eccles Dinosaur Park. There was lots to do and see and we had a great time. We started off looking at a the inside displays and robotic dinosaurs.

 It was a beautiful day outside, so we spent a lot of time looking around.

 Addie didn't know what the sign above her said; she just thought she was in jail.

 Annalise riding "Dino." She thought this dinosaur was the prettiest one.

 We spent a lot of time playing on the playground with the stone animals.

This was a really bumpy, fast slide. 

 Cut little posing Lisi.

 Ryan looks really small on this dinosaur skull.

Union Station

So, I haven;t ever spent much time in Ogden, but on our way to Bear Lake during Spring Break, we decide to check out a few sites we've heard about. We stated with the big Union Station where there is big display of retired train engines and cars.

This is a huge steam engine that ran mostly on water. The wheels were about 8 feet in diameter. Incredible!
It was awesome for our kids to see these huge trains up close and climb on them.

 And fun for my big Ryan kid, too.

 This is the train car that carried the Olympic Torch for the 2002 Olympic Winter Games.

If your kids are all into trains, I would highly recommend you stop by. After all, it is free to look.