Alyssa's Birthday With Her Friends

I probably say this every year but birthdays are a big deal to me and especially for the children.  I have no problem going all out and having their day be as special as it possibly can.  This year was no different for our baby girl who turned 5!

When I asked her originally what she wanted to do she said have a party at the house with all her friends.  That meant twenty seven kids would be coming to our house.  NO WAY!  The second choice was the bounce place.  They do such an amazing job for birthdays I couldn't refuse and it's actually a great deal.

It was booked, invitations sent out, and now we waited.  She couldn't wait for her big day.  It was a few days before her actuall birthday but no biggie.  This day was all about her celebrating with her friends!  She invited all of her good friends she hangs out with and her preschool class.  When all was said and done she had twenty three kids there.  It was actually a blast and everyone had so much fun!

The kids had an hour and a half for play time and then forty minutes up in the party room where they got pizza, dessert, and Alyssa opened her presents.  Alyssa has three little suitors that I am aware of.  The long term one, Mason.  Then the two new ones Jackson who makes pictures for her.  His mom said they have several and he will make them all different but always makes her a princess.  This made me laugh!  Then there is Bret, who is always talking about her to his family and saying how pretty she is.  When his Grandma told me this it melted me heart!  I just hope these boys stay away when she gets older!  Haha!

She got amazing gifts from all of her friends and it felt like Christmas in our house after we got all the gifts in!  When it's your day you should be showered with love from all the people in your life and I hope I can continue to do this with my children for as long as they will allow me to!

When we got home it was very low key but a perfect 5th birthday for a little girl and her friends!

Valentines Day And Hockey

Another Hallmark Holiday has come and gone.  I'm not a huge Valentines Day fan just because I don't think you need just one day to be told how much you are loved or whatever.  It should happen several times throughout the year!  With saying this we did celebrate a little just because it's fun with the kids.

Alyssa had her party at school that Wednesday and was so excited about it.  I love this age!  Since she had swim on Valentines day we got pizza for dinner and of course the kids got some little gifts that they loved.  Cory and I weren't going to do anything but he surprised me with a nice bottle of wine that I like.  We had plans to go out to dinner the next night so we kind of used that as our celebration. 

Saturday our friends invited us to go to hockey with them.  They have season tickets right behind the penalty box of the visiting team.  Cory and I both love going to sporting events and wished we had more time to go and enjoy it.  We were excited to go and the kids were as well.  Both of them have been in the past and I was excited to finally get them to a game this year.

Knox was really into it until the last period where he then wanted to go to the bathroom every few minutes.  Which he never used just wanted to go wander around.  At the end of the second period the ref/official gave  Knox the game puck.  It was pretty cool and he was very cute about it.  Alyssa was a little upset she didn't get one but such is life!  I did explain that we had another one at home she could have and that seemed to make it a little better.

My friend and I got the kids a bunch of treats that they enjoyed and we did manage to stay the whole game.  The Everett was playing Seattle and unfortunately lost but it was a good fun time.  When we got home the kids were exhausted and to bed they went.  We had a big day on Sunday so I was really hoping for them to get some rest!

All Four Santa Pictures

Again a little late but better than never.  Here are all four of our santa pictures this last year.

Kindergarten....It's Not What It Used To Be

I knew in Marysville the school district registered earlier than the other schools around the area for Kindergarten.  When I received the information in January that it was going to be the first weekend in February my heart skipped a beat! 

Come September I am going to officially have a child enter the exciting yet scary world of elementary school.  Up until now her main influences good and bad have been us, her parents, and family and friends who we have chose to hang out with.  Now she is going to start spending time with children and adults who are going to start influencing her good and bad that I have no control of for the most part.

Don't get me wrong, I'm very excited for her and everything to come.  It's just scary too and a whole new part of parenting.  I'm sure I will have many more posts on my thoughts, fears, and reality on this in the coming months and into the next school year so bare with me!

Back to the registration.  Alyssa was so excited to go and Marysville does what they call a Kindergarten and School Registration Expo.  I was actually pretty impressed with it.  The nice thing to was that since I came prepared I didn't have to wait in any long lines.  For us the actual part of registration was less than five minutes.  We went around to some of the booths got information, checked out the bus and saw some cheerleaders.  Guess who was excited about that!? 

What really hit me was when we were at the literacy booth and were handed out  five small books that she will be supposed to be reading next year it kind of freaked me out.  Not the beginning ones but the one by the end of the year where there are a few sentences. 
I probably sound crazy and that's fine.  Don't get me wrong the sentences are simple but really kindergarten?

I feel like kindergarten is the new 1st grade and preschool is the new kindergarten!  Again I'm very excited for her and she is so ready to start this new chapter!  Thankfully I have six and a half months to worry!

Afterwards we went to a good friends birthday party at a pizza place and the kids had a blast.  To top off that weekend we ended with another birthday party at a jump place.  The same place Alyssa will be having her party this weekend.  It was a great exhausting weekend.

Mr. Giggles

So this is a little late but better than never right!? Here are some of the things Mr. Giggles our elf did this year while visiting us. He arrived Thanksgiving night and stayed until Christmas Eve. Of course my first time doing this I picked the time when Thanksgiving was a little earlier than normal so I had a lot of days to do this!

The kids had a blast with him and still talk about him. They can't wait for him to come back! I can't take credit for all of these ideas some I had seen on line. I thought of a few that weren't age appropriate that I thought would be funny. Maybe next year he will get a little crazy! Anyhow I didn't put all on here but enjoy a few!

Back To Reality....And More!

Alright it's almost the end of the January and I am trying to get all caught up on here! Nothing too crazy has been going on normal everyday stuff. Alyssa is back at school after vacation and all the activities have started back up.

The kids went down to Longview for a weekend and had a great time. Alyssa was a little concerned about only going for such a short time and that next time it needs to be at least five days. She is a riot!

Knox has started gymnastics at our gym once a week. He is liking that and the teacher is amazing and he knows her from the gym. There are also some of his friends in the class as well. I think the highlight for him is not the class itself but running over to the side and watching the guys play basketball in the other half of the gym. It cracks me up!
He is doing amazing potty training and has been staying dry at night but I just can't bring myself to not put a pull up on him because if he did have an accident he would wake up. Since my kids have always been good sleepers pretty much since birth I'm not ready to get woke up in the middle of the night!

In the next month I plan on getting him signed up for swim and possibly soccer or t-ball in the spring. This child has a lot of energy to burn off and since he hasn't napped for the last year and a half I need something else for him to do to burn some of that off!

Next weekend kicks off what I call Birthday Season. We will have at least one birthday party to go to until the end of March and one weekend we have two! I will also be getting Alyssa signed up for Kindergarten. She is so stinking excited about this. She will tell me everyday after school how much she loves school and to learn. Hopefully this will never change!

l have to say 2013 is going to be a busy and exciting year for The Simmons Family with the kids growing up and starting new adventures, Cory and work, and Me.

New Years Eve

I enjoy celebrating New Years but don't feel I have to stay up until midnight or get totally smashed as well. Since having kids my idea of fun has definitly changed. My good friend and I decided to get together and celebrate with the kids since both of our husbands were working.

All the kids get along so well its really fun when we get together. We decided just to do finger foods for dinner since the kids always pick and play. Knox and Mason had fun playing the drums, cars, and hunting wolves. The girls had a blast dressing up and playing with all of Alyssa's jewelry. Alyssa has finally found someone who is as girly as her!

The kids started to get somewhat antsy and the flashlights came out. They played and hunted for a good hour or so. We had fun watching them play and use their imagination.

Everyone left around 9, midnight eastern time, and the kids and I were in bed not soon after. It was a perfect way to ring in the new year

Nutcracker and Tea

We have started a fun tradition with us ladies that at Christmas we attend the Nutcracker and then go out for tea.  Alyssa just loves every part of it.  I hope this is something that continues for years to come.

This year was Alyssa, Grandma Gail, Great Grammy, and I.  There weren't too many dates this year for us to attend due to schedules etc. and they started a little later than normal.  We were able to go to the matinee on the last day of performance.  Not that it even mattered when we went because it was still very magical.

Alyssa starts talking about it oh I would say either after she sees the first commercial for it, Christmas stuff starts being out, or when we received the tickets which was in August!  This little girl sure has a passion for the arts and I love it!  She wanted to dance up on that stage so bad with all the ballerinas.

After the performance we went out to tea at the Queen Mary Tea Room.  It's not a very big place so you are somewhat cramped all in.  It's a pretty cool place to go if you ever get the chance.  My only complaint is the price, it can be a little spendy.  The main thing is my little girl loves everything about it and this day is always about her.

She was so very excited to get her hot chocolate, which she got her very own pot full of it.  When her food came boy was she thrilled.  I have to say she did great eating and even went for her fruit first.  Although I really don't have too much of a problem with my kids eating nutritious foods so that is nice.

We were there for a few hours before heading back up to Magnolia and then making the long drive home.  It was a very long day but fun.  We had a blast hanging out with Grammy and Grandma Gail and all the conversation.  Of course looking forward to next year as well.

Christmas Part Two

On Saturday Cory's parents came up and we went to the Christmas lights at Warm Beach that has become a family tradition.  We all love going there and they have a lot of fun stuff for the kids to see and do.
The weather really cooperated for us that night and didn't rain but was stinking cold!  I will take that anytime.  We were there for almost two hours and were able to do everything we wanted except for get the face painting that we passed and didn't go back by and the warm doughnuts.  That was OK.

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The kids were really excited for Sunday because it was Christmas number 2!  Grandma and Grandpa Simmons came over early that morning and we spent some time opening up presents.  The kids loved all their gifts.  They are funny how they go about it.  Alyssa wants to open every single one of them while Knox wants to open one play with it and come back for the others later. While they loved all their gifts they received that day I would say the highlight for Knox was his monster school bus and the ballet shoes for Alyssa. She also received a ballet necklace that I don't think has come off since. This girl has a passion for dance!