Last Day of School!!

The time has finally arrived! Today was the last day of school for Amelia and Cooper. They are officially 5th and 2nd graders! They woke up very early to be sure and be ready for the day's festivities, and rode their bikes to school for the last time:

 After a few hours of school that were mostly games, eating, and having fun, they came home and we hit Pizza Pie Cafe for some post-school binging:

After a massive, yummy lunch, they came home and did what? Played school with their stuffed animals, of course!

Summer is now officially in full swing in this house!

Cooper's Gymnastics Showcase

Another post for Cooper! This weekend has kind of been Cooper's weekend. Not to worry, Amelia's is coming up soon! We went to his showcase for gymnastics today. I really like the gym we attend. The coaches are all so good with Cooper, and he is learning so much. He's really strong and coordinated. Here's some pictures and videos:

Cooper with Coach Justin. He owns the gym and coaches the competitive team, but always takes time to talk to Cooper and encourage him. Cooper just loves him.

Cooper getting his medal.

Amelia had fun, too. She's thinking she wants to be back in gymnastics.

I put the three best videos together. It's Cooper on the parallel bars, pommel horse, and rings. He did really well; he has so much control and strength, and even his coach was impressed with his pommel horse skills. If you watch him on the "mushroom" (the round thing he goes to after the pommel horse) he gets all the way around. No one else could!

                       

The showcase finished up Cooper's year of gymnastics, and I'm thinking I'll sign him up again next year. Have I mentioned he loves it?!  Next up, Amelia's ballet recital!

Cooper's Class Trip to the Zoo

Today I was, ahem, blessed to chaperone Cooper's class to the zoo.  No, truthfully it was a lot of fun. I do, however, think a study should be conducted as to why after two hours of walking in the hot sun children have MORE energy when they started!!

I was assigned to Cooper and four of his classmates. The bus ride down was fun, with various songs from "Frozen" sung, with the original words being substituted with "toilet" or "flush". At the zoo, we visited each animal twice before meeting up with the rest of the class. The bus ride home was slightly more chaotic, but we made it safely.

Here are some pictures:

Cooper and his friend Triston acting cool.

Cooper on the tiger.

Everyone in our group.

Our group again.

Our group was a good bunch of kids, and we only "misplaced" someone once, when he wandered off while everyone else was drinking from the water fountain. I'm so happy I could go with Cooper today, and look forward to helping in Amelia's class next week! Only a few more days of school until summer hits, and craziness ensues!

Weekend fun!

This weekend we had a great time in Blackfoot. We headed down Saturday morning. Amelia and Cooper played with Lynnli at Nana's and Grandpa's while I had a fabulous lunch with a good friend of mine. Afterward, we hung out with this little guy for a bit:

Amelia and Coltman.

Cooper and Coltman.

 We hung out at the park for a bit and burned off some energy:

We also found that cousins that game together, stay together:

After Lynners went home, we went out to visit our favorite aunt and uncle. Sunday we stayed home because it was stake conference. I know, I know, but I just couldn't sit through a meeting twice as long as sacrament meeting with Cooper. Next year, I promise. We got home this evening and are raring up for another week!

 Also,  after completing my last semester I received this:

I know it's only an associate's degree, but it's tangible proof I have one down, and one to go! Oh, also that all my pain and suffering was worth something. :-)

Mother's Day

I have the best kids in the world. Truly, I don't think there are more thoughful, funny, imaginative, and creative children out there! For Mother's Day I came out to notes on the wall, a few games, and the presents they had made at school sitting on the hearth, surrounded by their favorite stuffed animals. The couch and chair were covered in blankets for my "sitting pleasure", and lovely Nutella toast was waiting for me. As I sat down to open their presents, they played background music by none other than the master Bon Jovi himself.

Yep. The absolute best kids in the world!!

Also, I love my mother. She's pretty great.

Bear World 2014

Yesterday we made our annual trip to Bear World! It was a perfect day, sunny but not too hot yet. We drove through the park and Amelia took a few pictures:

Unfortunately, none were of the bears..........luckily, they looked mostly the same as they did last year, so you can refer to that blog if you want to see them. After we drove through, we went to the visitor's center.

 And watched the adorable bear cubs run around, play, and even got to pet one. Amelia and Cooper couldn't stop giggling watching them play with each other.

We looked through the "hide-room" and saw all the animals that are in the park or living in the area.

Amelia and Cooper with a grizzly bear.

And then, of course, on to the petting zoo and rides:

This deer's name is Andy.  I was getting quarters out of my purse to give to Amelia and Cooper so they could buy food, and I felt a tug on my purse. I looked back and Andy was chewing on my purse strap. After a short tug-of-war, I reclaimed my deer-slobber purse. Good times.

After we finished, we drove through the park again, but didn't take pictures. The bears were moving more than usual, and I had to be careful not to hit one. Think of the damage they would do to my car. It was a fun day, and we look forward to going again next year! By the way, I also got Community Passes, which gives half off admission for the rest of the season. If anyone wants to borrow them for a visit, let me know!

Amelia's Jazz Recital

As we come to the end of a school year, we have programs, recitals, and celebrations galore. Last night was Amelia's jazz recital. She did SO well. She was offered a place on the competing team, but I think we'll wait one more year until we do that. She absolutely loves her dance class, works hard, and has a real talent for it---more than I ever did! :-) I didn't take a video because I opted to buy the CD of the whole recital, but here are a few pictures:

             In her "Footloose" number, she came flying offstage and nailed her round-off.

At the end of the rectial, Amelia's teacher called up a student from each class and awarded them the "most improved" award. This was the student who was always on time, listened during class and worked hard, and learned the routine the fastest with the least amount of mistakes. Basically it was the students she "didn't need to worry about." SO PROUD OF AMELIA!!

Next up, Amelia's ballet recital, Cooper's gymnastics showcase and more end-of-the-year parties and celebrations!