Back to School!

Spencer all ready for his first day of 6th grade! He's headed out the door and it's only 7:10! This is going to take some adjusting! (For me, not him. He's happiest in the early morning!)

He's a little bit nervous, change is always difficult. Best wishes Bud! You are going to be amazing! And don't worry, the locker thing will get easier! (And since John took him to school, that is it for the pictures. It's just not cool to have Mom following you around in middle school with a camera. Go figure!)

Olivia all ready for 2nd grade! She insisted on her outfit, despite the fact that it is a uniform! :) We jazzed it up a bit with pink leggings and bright pink socks.

Our sweet neighbor Brigette stays at our house on three mornings a week before school. Our kids LOVE her!

 I can't believe how much she has grown!

 Olivia's personalized back pack. Still not too big for princesses! Phew!

A bit nervous and excited! You'll be great Sweetheart!

As per tradition, the kids each received a father's blessing before school. Even Jacob. Spencer was blessed to make friends and work well with others. Also to have a clear mind and be able to grasp what he was taught and to excel in the areas he is gifted. Olivia was blessed to be kind to others, to learn well and to work hard. She was also given comfort concerning her peanut allergy and that others would help look out for her. I think she was relieved! Matthew was encouraged to work hard and that he would excel in what he knew. That his intelligence and gifts would continue to increase. They were all encouraged to come to us with questions and that we would listen to them and help them as much as we could. They were also blessed to know how much we love each of them. We are so proud of all of you!!

Our last hurrah!

Feeling totally guilty for not having done much this summer - casts put a big damper on the swimming thing which is usually a major part of summer - I decided to forgo my housecleaning plans for the last day of summer and surprised the kids with a trip to the dinosaur park in Ogden. They were thrilled!

The older kids thought the animatronic dinosaurs were great...

See the look of terror on the babies faces?

They are pretty cool!

Apprehensive about going into the park...

Two peas in a pod! These two are my non stop, into everything, bigger than their own breeches, think they are the cat's meow stinkers!

Growing up so much!

Spending time with Grandma

She is such a nap fighter! Up way past her naptime!

 I don't know why I didn't save the money and just find a manhole for them to throw rocks down!

She thinks she's such a big girl!

Grandma is always such a trooper. She follows along even when I know she is tired, but she would rather make the memories than stay at home in the air conditioning alone. We love you Great Grandma!

Love my kids!

This is Matthew's 98 degree sweaty-head hairdo!

Digging up dinosaurs!

I love this one!

So that's it. Summer is over and it's back to school. I will miss having them with me everyday, but I am excited for the growth and learning that is coming this year!

At Spencer's request...

The Werewolf...

...turns into the 6th grader!

He thought these were hilarious!

Jacob's Rough Week

Poor little man. First he breaks his arm on Thursday. Then on Saturday, he falls running along the sidewalk because the weight of the cast has thrown off his balance and gets a goose egg and road rash on his forehead. Then Sunday, at a ward members house for dinner, he runs over to play on their swing set two minutes after we arrived and gets stung by 5 wasps...on the face! I got stung by a wasp once, right on the behind. It hurt like crazy!! I was literally jumping up and down on the driveway in pain for like 10 minutes! I can't even imagine how bad 5 stings to the face would feel for the tiny little guy! It has been a tough week!

Jacob's temporary cast - until the swelling goes down! :(

Get well soon Jacob!

And just for kicks...pictures of Jacob and Avvy the day he got his cast. Avvy thinks she's something special...which she is!

Jenkins Family Thingy 2011

This years activity: The Living Planet Aquarium, lunch at the Training Table, playing at a splash pad/park and dinner at Dan and Kirty's house. The best part? Spending the entire day with our favorite people in the world!

Summoning the courage to pet the sting rays. Cade is such a helpful and concerned cousin, always willing to watch out for one of the little ones. Thanks Cade!

Spencer instructing anyone who would listen on how to properly pet the sting rays.

 Avvy just thought splashing in the water was great!

Spencer LOVED the sting rays! His shirt was soaked when he finished petting them! I'm sure it was a combination of the water and the slickness of the sting ray's skin that he found therapeutic, and any time we couldn't find him, he was back at the sting ray tank.

I don't think the girls ever did touch them. Maybe partly due to the fact that the boys told them about The Crocodile Hunter being killed by a sting ray?!

Enjoying the penguins. The kids watched them for a long time and laughed and laughed!

  See the arching bubbles? That's a penguin jumping in! The best part of their show!

 Smile!

Such a cute place for a picture! Reminded me of the southern U.S. (Spencer was engrossed with the glowing scorpions in the cave area and couldn't make time for this picture. Oh well.)

Ready for lunch and a nap! Thank goodness for a blankie in the car, a thumb and a few tasty french fries at The Training Table! Thanks for lunch Grandma and Grandpa!

 The water pad where we stopped for the afternoon to let the kids run and play.

 Enjoying the water pad.

 Turning the slides into water slides.

Note the look of mischief on Spencer's face? Zillia has not yet noticed the squirter concealed beneath the towel! Oh that boy! :)

 Kirty made a water bottle for each of the kids. They looked pretty fun all lined up!

 The babies were so funny as they splashed each other and fought over the shovels!  And I have to say that those two little girls can hold their own!

 And the old people sat around and chewed the fat! He he! (notice how I am not in the picture!)

Thanks Dan and Kirty for planning a fun "thingy" for this year! Can't wait for next year!