Natalie is 6

Our girl is 6.  It doesn't seem possible that it has been 6 years since this girl joined our family. 

She chose an owl theme for her party.  We decorated a few days before the party so we could enjoy them.  Natalie helped put them all up

For her birthday cereal Natalie chose generic Honey Bunches of Oats.  That made me giggle.

On her birthday Natalie got to go on a field trip to Schnepf Farms so it was a fun-filled day for her!

She loved all of her presents--she was pretty spoiled!

For dinner she requested a few favorite things.  Mac and cheese, grilled chicken, grapes and carrots and cucumbers.

The next day was her owl party!!

Freeze dance

Put the owl in the tree!

Forest animal charades!

Natalie and Gracie

Charley, Lizzie, Robyn, Kandice and Jilian

Natalie, Gracie, Rose and Anna

I asked Cyrena and her friend to be helpers at the party.  They were specifically in charge of the scavenger hunt---they did such a great job!

The two helpers with their goody bags.  The goody bags had little stuffed owls, owl rings, homemade owl hairclips, silly putty and some piñata candy

She was a very happy birthday girl!

About Natalie

-Natalie has a lot of enthusiasm and gets us all pumped up

-Since she has started school Natalie has received three Best Friends Forever necklaces.  She loves being with her friends.  So far she has impressed us by playing with lots of friends and not excluding anyone. 

-Natalie loves all colors, but especially red, blue, and dark pink. 

-At school and at home Natalie is a big helper and is always willing to share what she has.

-Natalie loves to try out new hairstyles on mom

-Natalie is a superb liar.  She can trick me again and again.  She has convinced me on more than one occasion that she got in trouble at school when she actually didn't!

-She is always quick to give a hug or a compliment--you can count on her to make you feel good!

-Natalie can be very very dramatic when she is in a bad mood.  The other night she said she forgot how to fall asleep and said "what do I do?  Just close my eyes and do NOTHING??!"  She has the attitude of a teenager at 6 years old

-Natalie can be very shy.  There are several men in our ward that try their darndest to get Natalie to say hi to them.  She just shrinks away behind mom or dad.

-Natalie loves movies, spending time with her family, drawing and writing

-Natalie's favorite foods right now are: Corn Chex, crackers, grapes, popcorn, suckers, and PB&J

-She loves to paint fingernails and toenails.  Her own and other's!

Fall Visitors

Grandma and Grandpa Taylor swooped into town in October and saved the day/weekend.  David was out of town for work and that weekend was the primary program practice, Natalie's dress rehearsal and performance, then the primary program.  They babysat a lot!

Evan snuggled right up to them and was giving them lots of love! 

Grandpa was trying to take a nap so Evan just kept bringing toys and putting them on his stomach

 

We went on a little field trip to Goldfield ghost town.

This place had lots of interesting things to look at.

We went on a fun train ride and learned a bit more about Goldfield and the Superstition Mountains

We went to an ice cream parlor where they make their own waffle cones.  They were warm and absolutely delicious!

One night we also went out to dinner then stopped at this new fondue place for a treat. 

We love when Grandma and Grandpa come!

Spooks de Ballet!

Natalie's ballet studio had a Halloween Concert.  She was casted as a little Maleficent.  There were lots of rehearsals and lots of anticipation!  Luckily Grandma and Grandpa Taylor were in town to catch it.  Lucky for me grandma volunteered to do Natalie's stage makeup because I'm hopeless in that department!

Little sister sure was enthralled

Natalie did such a great job--we loved every minute of it!

Here is Natalie with the Studio's owner who was the main Maleficent

Elder & Sister Lemmert

This fall we were able to help Grandma and Grandpa Lemmert prepare to serve a full time mission.  We are so proud of them and grateful for their good example!  It was fun to see all of the behind the scenes preparation.  It is a LOT of work and a huge sacrifice.  They are amazing missionaries. 

They were called to serve in the Oklahoma Oklahoma City mission.  

  We put together a photo book with all the kids and grandkids saying what they thought grandma and grandpa would teach the people in Oklahoma.

We were able to attend their setting apart then we picked up some cheesecake to celebrate.  It was hard to say good-bye but we know they are doing something of eternal importance and time will fly by!

caramel apples

For the past couple of Octobers we have invited David's work family over for dinner and caramel apples. We make delicious homemade caramel and set out all kinds of toppings. It's always fun to spend time with them!

Phoenix temple

The company David works for did all the earthwork for the Phoenix temple.  Because of that we were able to attend a 'contractor's preview' open house.  It wasn't too crowded and it was nice to take more time to walk through.  It is a beautiful place.

Afterward we took a stroll down memory lane since we used to live in that area.  We drove by the school where I taught and our apartment where we lived when I was pregnant with Cyrena.  Then we drove to the Grigg's new house and had dinner with them.  It was so fun to meet up with cousins again!

Cookie Cuties

When I was growing up our house backed a golf course. We lived right by a creek near a putting green.  My best friend lived on the golf course also and a sidewalk ran right behind her house where the golf carts passed by.  Several summer days my friend and I would sell drinks and treats to the golfers across her fence.  I have such fun memories of those days!  The golfers were so kind to us and our moms were nice enough to help get us supplies. 

I've told Cyrena this story often and promised her I'd let her do it sometime.  This October during Fall break we set it all up.  Her friend Morgan was on board and she and her mom made giant cookies.  Cyrena and I made brownies, pumpkin cookies, and some lemonade. 

The girls got together in the early afternoon and made signs and posters.  We even had a little dish of samples. :)

Treats for sale!!

Most of our customers were neighborhood friends

They even had a cash register with a calculator

They had their last glass of lemonade to celebrate their success