Hello, Teenager!

This is my super special, awesome daughter holding her newest little cousin. She LOVES him!

Well, it's official, I have a teenager of my very own! (well, I do share her with her Daddy who adores her). Kylie turned 13 yesterday! To celebrate her special day, she wanted a sleepover with her BFF and a day at the mall with her BFF (no parents allowed). She had a super fun time shopping (they even tried on prom dresses!). She made smart decisions and came home with some way cute stuff! She is such a good girl, and so responsible! I love her to pieces!! She is my favorite teenager EVER! Love her!!! Here is a picture of her today:

Treyson made her a special birthday crown. And TJay wanted to make her add up her age in candles, instead of just a "1" and a "3". :)

So, let's go with the lists of 13:
13 reasons why I love Kylie
1. She is an awesome babysitter.
2. She is fun to hang out with.
3. She is sooo very creative.
4. She is good at everything she tries.
5. She is a great nail painter.
6. She has the cutest handwriting (and loves to do cute lettering).
7. She is kind.
8. She is goofy.
9. She is fun to watch play racquetball.
10. She is sweet to her sibs (when she wants to be).
11. She is super smart.
12. She is gorgeous.
13. She is MINE!!! :)

Kylie, I love you so much and am so glad you are my daughter. You are such a cute girl who is so much fun to do things with! You bring so much joy & laughter into our lives! Thanks for doing everything you do to help our family. Thanks for being a great example to Lyssa & Trey. They love you & look up to you so much! You're the best!!!!
love & kisses, your mommy

Yes, we are still here

ok, so you know it's been waaaay too long since you've blogged if you sign in (to your own blog) and say, "look how cute this background is." um, ya, so I forgot that I had changed it, and it's been sooo long. But, we're still here: alive & kicking, just INCREDIBLY busy! Treyson just finished his first soccer season (loved it) and is enjoying Karate. Since he is learning "fung pu" (as in the movie "fung pu panda") he is a REAL superhero. Nothing is better than that! :)

Alyssa is dancing again this year: tap & ballet. She is in the older class and goes for an hour now with kids older than her (her teacher wanted to move her up). She is also in a city volleyball league now and had her first game Saturday.

Kylie & TJay have racquetball league every Tuesday night - they love it. It's like a weekly date night. The kids & I started a hula class a couple of weeks ago and are really enjoying it. Treyson likes to do it and it's a pretty good workout. When we get finished with the Tahitian practice, our bellies hurt. It's a great way to be active together as a family.

Throw in school (I'm in 5th grade, Kylie in 7th, Lyssa is in 4th & Treyson goes to morning pre-school/daycare and afternoon kindergarten) and work (TJay enjoys being a DBA in AF) it makes for a fairly busy household.

Saturday we went to Trey's soccer game, Lyssa's volleyball game, did homework, yardwork and house work, then went to the lake for our last boating time of the season and followed it up by motorcycling in the desert and a campfire with smores. That was just one day. That may explain why I haven't blogged in a bit. I do need to catch up and add some pictures.

Also, I have a new nephew - the first on the Cash side! Dave & Robyn have a baby boy: Justin David, who we think is the cutest little thing around! We love to hold him and snuggle him and give him kisses. I have to get a picture of Trey holding him, he always has the best, sweetest little look on his face. Trey has been asking us to go to the baby store and get a baby brother (it's closed). So we told him we'd share Justin. Now he calls Justin: "my baby brother who doesn't live with us". It is soooo cute!

Well, I've gotta be done now. Need to finish putting grades in, grab a bowl of cereal and head off to bed. Tomorrow after school we have piano lessons & the gym - guess it'll be a laid back day. :)

Lost Tooth

Treyson got his teeth two or three at a time when he was a baby. Does it suprise anyone that he is losing them that way too? :) Trey's bottom two front teeth were loose at the same time. He has been wiggling them for weeks every single day. We check them, they are sooo loose. His adult teeth have come through so he's had 4 bottom teeth. Today I noticed something was different and checked, one tooth fell out. We don't know when (besides today) and we don't know where (i'm guessing he swallowed it with lunch). But, one is gone and one is still loose. Here is a picture of Treyson with 3 bottom front teeth instead of 4! Hopefully we can catch the other one when it comes out. (although the tooth fairy will still come - even without the tooth).

School Daze!

School is back! Yes, I love it. I love the change in season. I love the new schedule. I love the lists (yes, I'm a list person). I love everything about it! I even love working. Teaching is great. The kids are awesome. I just like it (I get stressed too, but I still like it.). I love first day of school pictures and uniforms! The best part: I have the best, smartest, cutest, most wonderful children to take to school! (and I still miss them like crazy during the day. I love that they are all at my school so I can see them during the day - yes, I spy on the kindergarten during my lunch break. Admit it, there are a lot of jealous moms out there. :)).

So, here's the break down: Our school is a K-8 and here are our members: Kylie is in 7th grade. She has 8 classes, 8 teachers, a locker and a BFF in most of her classes. Kylie is a joy and she is loving school.

Alyssa is in 4th grade and still has a lot of friends and loves school, she would love skipping summer break because she misses it so much. She is going to be in my class for math & language arts and she is so excited about that.

Treyson is finally at the girls' school. He is in afternoon Kindergarten and loves it. He also goes to a "house school" in the morning (his words to differentiate the two). House school is a pre-school/daycare. He eats there, has pre-school, field trips and other activities. He loves that too. So, we are all in school (Dad works around the block from us). It's a great time!

Soccer

Well, Treyson is old enough to play city soccer (and mom remembered to sign him up) and he is loving playing! He is on a team with his buddies: Ethan & Reagan. Treyson loves to play goalie! He is a fast runner and a good kicker, when he's concentrating and not playing around with his friends. :) We often tell him, quit playing and pay attention. Parents are so silly! Here are some pictures (thanks, Jill) of our little soccer star.

Exploring

Smiley Kylie! I don't remember what we're looking at, but I think I'm stopping Lyssa from doing something crazy (what is a Mom for). I also wanted to include this to show how beautiful the scenery is and also prove that I was there. Sometimes not so many pictures of me participating. :)

Alyssa in a crevice that only she could go in.

Daddy helping Trey get started. Treyson loves his bike.

Next is Daddy jumping "over" Treyson. :)

On August 8 it was too cold to go to the lake - and supposed to rain - which puts the Belt's into a quandry. What do we do? We decided a motorcycle day in the desert was in order. Everyone had a great time! Treyson kept wanting to go for more rides on his motorcycle. He is getting better at steering, slowing and accelerating. TJay lessened the "guardian" switch which gives Trey more power and helps his bike ride better (it also gives him access to more speed, which is why it was turned down). He enjoyed it more, since he could ride easier.

Alyssa wanted to work on learning to jump, so she spent most of the day riding up a tough hill and getting better at that. She also tried her hand at jumping. She is a little go-getter like her Dad. Speaking of, TJay also wanted to work on his jumping and rode up and jumped on a hill. He also shoveled a part so it would be better.

Kylie wasn't feeling very good, so she didn't ride, but she napped and read books with her Mommy who also didn't ride (Mom never rides). In Tjay's travels, he discovered an old mine area with a "cave" (rock crevice) we could climb in. So, we went exploring. It was fun to climb in and around. Alyssa is our crazy climbing monkey/explorer and she found a crevice to climb in that only she could fit in. Everyone climbed up to the top and all over and had a great time! We love going out there.

Mohawk Time

It was way past time to cut Treyson's hair and I was having a bit of fun. It was so long, and we had decided to shave it so short, that I decided to leave the center long for a few days. It was so fun to do (and a great suprise for TJay)! Treyson loves it. When he got out of the shower he wanted to "make my hair big again". When my Dad was 17 he got a mohawk when his mom sent him for a haircut. She was so mad. I probably would be too. But, it's cute on a five year old! :) Here are the pictures to prove it! ps. if anyone needs a "hawk" of their own, come on by.