Summer 2012 Photo Project

I am SO excited for the summer this year!  The kids are finally old enough that I feel like we can venture out and do fun things without having to lug half the house with us.  So, with that said, this summer I am going to attempt to document each (week) day with a picture of our "adventures".  Brookelyn got out of school on Tuesday, so we had a short week this week.

Wednesday I made the kids a "water blob" (thank you Pinterest) to play with while I continued pressure washing the deck.

Thursday the kids discovered the video game system Santa brought them two years ago.  It is now the coolest toy in the Bates house.  They had so much fun playing against each other!

Friday we implemented the "Summer Jar" where each day the kids pick an activity out of the jar.  Braedyn was the first to pick.  He drew the library.  We had a wonderful afternoon all reading together.

Can't wait to see what fun next week holds!

How time FLIES...

Brookelyn's Kindergarten year has been amazing! She was blessed with the most loving, nurturing teacher a student (and mommy) could ask for, and to say she has learned a lot wouldn't even begin to describe how much she has soaked in this year! She can READ now for heaven's sake!

Here is she is on her FIRST day of Kindergarten:

And, here she is this morning on her last day of Kindergarten!

It is crazy to see how much she has grown and how that sweet little face is growing into a "little girl" face.  

And, look at her "model poses" from the first day and last day:

What a difference nine short months makes.  And, in five short weeks we will have a FIRST GRADER! Our baby is growing up so fast and we are loving every minute of it (well, maybe 99.9% of it--I could skip the talking back)! We love you, Brookelyn!

Brookelyn Graduates Kindergarten!

Last night was Brookelyn's Kindergarten Graduation Celebration! She had been practicing their little songs for weeks, and I couldn't wait to see all the little kids up on stage together!

Brookelyn and Braedyn posed for a few quick pictures before we headed to the auditorium.

Isn't she getting big?!  And, she was wearing the super-special charm bracelet Aunt Jenna sent her!

And, of course one shot of the little man!

Look at all those kindergarteners! She is in the front row all the way to the right next to the little boy in the red and black striped shirt.

They announced each kindergartener, so she felt really special in front of all those people!

And, here is Brookelyn with THE BEST kindergarten teacher EVER, Mrs. Scott!

This is Brookelyn's little crush--Evan. Isn't he just adorable?

A family shot is so rare, so I was thankful David took one for us!

 Gramma and Grampa also came to support Miss Brookelyn!

And, Emily and David were there to cheer her on too!

Such a special night! We are so proud of you, Brookelyn! Onward and upward to FIRST GRADE!

Brookelyn's Dance Recital

Miss Brookelyn has been SO excited for her dance recital! A couple of days before the big day, the girls had dress rehearsal.  It actually worked out perfectly because we could take pictures at rehearsal; whereas, at the actual recital, no pictures were allowed.  

Here she is all ready for her first dance:

Can you tell Braedyn is THRILLED to be in the audience? Honey and B did a great job of keeping him busy!

Can you tell which one is Brookelyn? She is the little one in the middle!

Her little dance was just adorable!

Then, it was time to change for her next dance!

Braedyn was having himself a grand ole time:

She looked so cute! (And, yes, I admit I might be a tiny bit biased!)

Here she is on stage for her second dance:

Saturday was the big day! Here she is right after t-ball already quick-changed and in her rollers! 

We were so excited Honey and B could fly in from out of town to make her special day!

Up next for the tiny dancer...Dance Company try-outs! We have a parent meeting at the end of the month and try-outs the next day.  

Brookelyn's Professional Dance Pictures

A couple of weeks ago, Brookelyn had professional dance pictures taken.  We got them back right before her recital, and they turned out super cute!

This is her tap outfit for her dance to, "Broadway Baby".

And, the class shot.  She is front, center:

Here she is in her ballet costume.  They danced to a very pretty song, "Go the Distance".

This is the same little group of girls.  They were so adorable! Brookelyn is front left:

Brookelyn's (early) Birthday Party

Since Brookelyn's birthday is in July when school is out, we decided to have her party early.  So Friday was her special day to celebrate!

Here is her posing before school:

She knew for months that she wanted a few girls to spend the night.  So, while she was at school Honey, Barby, Emily, and I got things ready.  We made the table look like a bed, Emily brought the Hello Kitty balloons, and we filled the girls' "swag bags" with goodies.  Here are some pictures of the table:

Each little girl got a bag with her name on it filled with girly goodies.

Brookelyn made hostess gifts for Aunt B, Honey, and Emily.  Don't they look cute in their aprons?! They were such a HUGE help at the party.  They painted nails, served food, cleaned up, and made all the little girls feel super special!

Uncle David joined in the fun too--he dealt a round of cards to the girls!

Here are the girls eating dinner.  Aren't they adorable! Brookelyn is so lucky to have such great friends!

The boys ate out on the deck.  Daddy joined them when he got home from work, and then the boys went down to Uncle Davids to play Wii!

After dinner, it was time to get beautiful! Here is Aunt B painting nails:

I did everyone's hair.  They were all so good to sit still and let me give them fancy braids.

 Honey also painted nails:

Emily helped the girls dry their nails extra quick with the blow-dryer:

Here is a "wide view" of all the fun:

Then it was time to decorate the cupcakes! The girls used rainbow nerds and strawberry shortcake and cotton candy flavored icing.

Here are the "Hello Kitty colored" cupcakes.  I initially planned for Walmart to make them, but they couldn't do multi-colored cupcakes, so Pinterest came to the rescue.

After the cupcakes were heaped high with icing and nerds, it was time to sing to the princess!

She made a big wish... 

Here are all the little divas (I had their shirts all made and delivered to them with their invitations):

Funny faces:

They were all just so adorable and polite! Here they are in their pjs getting ready to settle down, watch a movie, and go to bed:

I had to include this photo...check out B-Man on the couch.  He had returned from Uncle David's and wanted to participate in all the fun!

The girls were all asleep by 10 and awake at 6:15 the next morning.  I thought that was pretty good for them being so little.  Breakfast was little cereal boxes (they made the spoons as a craft the night before), pancakes, hash browns, and fruit.

Everyone was gone by 9:15 that morning, and we were off to Brookelyn's t-ball game and then her recital at 1:00 (another post to follow soon).  Happy (early) Birthday to the most amazing, smart, perfect little princess a Mommy and Daddy could hope for! We love you more than you know, Brookelyn!