The Halliburton Family: August 2011

The baby's not a baby anymore...

And so the time has come. My baby has started preschool. How does that happen? I know everyone always says how fast it goes when your kids are little, but seriously! This is fast! Avery is going to preschool at Miss Vickie's house. The same place Alexis went years ago! Avery was so excited to go to school after watching her sister go for the last 3 years! She only got a tad nervous when she figured out that I would be leaving her there and then coming back to get her! She got over that pretty quick though! She went right in and sat down ready to learn. She loves it so far and has made 5 new friends. Cody, Alexis and I all took her to her first day, and when I picked her up, I was all alone. She was so disappointed that her sister wasn't there to hear about her day! As soon as Alexis got home from school, Avery ran to the door and said, "Sissy! I had fun at school!!!". She showed her the shape spotter she had made and Alexis acted like it was the greatest piece of art she has ever seen! I love that they care for each other and support each other as much as they do already. I hope it continues throughout their lives.

My "school girl" as she makes me call her now

The proud sister

The sad mommy :(

Avery and Miss Vickie

Ready to learn

The magnificent shape sorter

Back to school also means back to dance class for Miss Avery. She LOVES dancing and pretty much sings and dances all day long. She has a new dance teacher this year which I am not very happy about, but she seemed to love it just the same.

We love our little school girl who used to be our little baby! Good luck this year Avery!

Alexis is in 2nd Grade!!!!

Lexie Lou is officially a 2nd grader. She was so excited to start school this year as usual! Her teacher this year is Mrs. Wheat, and she seems fabulous so far! Alexis of course was dressed to impress as she does every day. SO not my kid! Taking her school clothes shopping is a major pain in the neck! All she wants is fancy dresses and fancy shoes, and fancy everything! I'm never in more than jeans, tee and flip flops. I have no idea where she got this from! Avery and I took her to her first day of school and of course it was 2000 degrees out! It was fun to see her see her friends again and play on the playground. It was actually kind of weird thinking that next year I will walk away from the school that first day leaving both my babies there. I don't think I am really looking forward to that...

Alexis Dawn, the 2nd grader

Sisters (and yes, that is pizza for breakfast!)

All my girls

The monkey!

Next year kindergarten for this one! :(

Lexie and BFF Paris

Lexie and Mrs. Wheat

Lined up ready to learn!

Good luck in 2nd grade Alexis!! We love you and are so proud of you!

Cousins!!

So, it was my bright idea to have both my nieces come and stay at our house for a week. It works out very well that we have a niece exactly the same age as both of our daughters. So two 7 year olds and two 4 year olds shouldn't be that bad, right? Well, actually right! It wasn't nearly as bad as it sounded! Everyone got along, not many tears, and tons of fun was had by all! The girls went swimming a lot, to the bounze house, out to dinner and lunch, out to frozen yogurt and shopping at Scottsdale Fashion Square. All in all it was actually a really fun week. My mom came to visit for most of the time as well and we hung out with GG and Joe and Marmmett and Toni too. I just may do it again next summer...

Pretty girls (including Ariel)

Goofs!

Playdoh time with Grandma Cheryl, GG and Joe

Alexis

Kodie

Trista

Avery

Alexis and kodie

4th of July 2011

Camping over the 4th of July also always entails fireworks in Payson. The weather is always beautiful, the location is beautiful, and the fireworks are beautiful. Little Miss Avery always covers her ears for loud noises, and the fireworks are no exception! She covered her ears and actually fell asleep on the blanket! How can someone sleep through the fireworks?! I wish I had a picture, but my camera died! The girls loved the fireworks though and especially the ice cream we had after!

Avery, Trista and Alexis by the lake

Avery and her "cane"

Alexis and her "cane"

Cartwheel!

Avery's cartwheel!

Avery's pose

Lexie's pose

Roy and Jackie and their granddaughters

My gorgeous girls

Happy 4th!

Camping over the 4th of July has become a tradition for us the past few years. This year it was soooo hot! Not as much rain as usual, so lots and lots of dust as you can see from all the pics of my dirty kiddos! We had a ton of fun though as usual! Quad riding, the creek, playing in the dirt, camping food...looking at these pics makes me want to go back right now!