Isabelle turns 6! (Take one)

Where oh where has the time gone? Our little Jelly turned SIX years old in March and went from a toddler to a little lady over night!! Isabelle was so excited to share her birthday with her school mates this year and began planning her ultimate birthday party weeks in advance. Ben and I figured that this was the year to have a big bash since our little socialite was so excited to be the birthday girl and desperately wanted to invite all of her little girlfriends to her party, so we threw all of our time and energy Belle's direction and let our little party planner go wild. Isabelle's ideas ranged from a Dr Seuss party to a kite flying party at the park to a garden party with Barbie and so on but eventually she landed on a plan that stuck which was an "Almost Barbie Slumber Party" at our home complete with pajamas, glitter, make-up and all things pink and fancy. March 23rd was on a Friday this year so it was the perfect day for celebrating. Ben, Olivia and I met the birthday girl for lunch at school and brought cupcakes for all of her classmates to enjoy. Meanwhile, Grammie picked up the Barbie cake and balloons and put the finishing touches on her new silky nightgown while Alee and Co. drove down from College Station, picked up the ChiCk-Fil-A nuggets and made 2 dozen cupcakes. It was a family affair and I was grateful for all of the help I had to make this party just as special as our sweet Isabelle. Ben was shocked when I told him he would be too busy to work that day and looked at me like I was a little crazy when we asked him to get out his full size ladder to hang party decorations, but he was the good sport he always is and spent the afternoon hanging pink lanterns from the ceiling and filling the pinata. Soon enough school was over and the sun began to set and it was party time. We had decided that Belle should invite all of the girls in her Kindergarten class as well as her Girl Scout Troup but I was sure I would not have more than 10 or so RSVP. Boy was I wrong, the doorbell kept ringing and soon we had all 16 Kindergarten girls dancing and running wild in our house in their pjs. The party went off pretty much as planned. We ate yummy food, broke a pinata, painted nails and had glitter hair. We had a fashion show, played pillow games and ended the night with a diamond hunt in the backyard complete with 16 pink flashlights and 16 very happy little fashionistas. It was definitely a birthday party to remember and Isabelle was over the moon with all of the fuss. Of course Olivia thought she was the most important guest at the party and loved all of the girls and glitter and fun. I had great help from my parents and my sister Alex's family as well as my neighbor Kathryn and friend Shelly. They say it takes a village to raise a child, right? I think the same can be said about a 6 year old girl's birthday party!

Round round get around, I get around...

There is no rest for the weary, isn't that how the idiom goes? That is definitely the case for parents of small children. It seems like we are always on the go and thankfully my smart phone captures some of our adventures along the way. So lately, we've: spent a Saturday at the Children's museum, mowed the grass, enjoyed family movie nights, went to the ENT for the 1000x time, climbed, dressed up, colored on paper (and walls, tile, toys, etc.) and played "beauty salon" at home. We've drove fire trucks, had breathing treatments, gotten real haircuts and spent lots and lots of time being silly. With only 24 short hours in the day and so much in the world to discover and do we have to make the most of our time. We would hate to ever slow down and take a nap....zzzzz.

Soccer is the ballet of the masses

Isabelle has taken an interest and classes in many hobbies in her short little life, to name a few... basketball, cooking, gymnastics, ballet, tap, swimming and the list goes on. But so far none of them bring her quite as much joy as SOCCER.

Thankfully soccer starts really early in the year in Houston to avoid the heat, so our spring season began the first of February and wrapped up a few weeks ago. Isabelle was on the team with her B.F.F. Paloma and the two had a great season running, kicking and cartwheeling around the field. It was their first season with goalies and referees so the games were intense and some of the soccer moms were too.

We were on team Salt Lake and although we made a conscious decision for Ben to NOT coach this year with his new business taking up all of his spare time, somehow Coach Ben got the job anyway and once again had a great season with his little girl. Olivia was the best cheerleader on the sidelines often running onto the field to get that ball and eating the team snacks mid-game.

I'm not sure if we won or lost more games, it didn't seem to matter, because Isabelle couldn't wait for practice each week and loved when it was time to suit up for the game. She cried when the season ended but alas we promised it would be time for soccer again real soon and cheered our little sport up by reminding her that tennis started in just a few days. Isabelle loves to be busy and we love our little athlete.

Whose your daddy?

Ben was the Watch Dog at Isabelle's school for the day. He and Belle wore matching t-shirts and had to be at school early. They had a schedule for Ben to follow and he was in all sorts of places in the school helping out in a variety of ways but his favorite part of the day was spending time in Isabelle's classroom and also eating lunch with her in the cafeteria. All the kids knew that Belle's dad was the Watch Dog that day since she had on the special shirt and she has never been more proud. Now their picture is hanging up in the Hall of Fame at the school and Ben is forever a hero to his daughter! Well done Dad!!

Kissing Cousins

Max and Isabelle aren't really kissing cousins...but they sure do love each other. They had so much fun on his visit and Olivia got to know Max better too. It was painful for them to all say goodbye when it was time for Max to head back to the airport but we promised them all that they would see each other again real soon...and we plan to make good on our promise!

Creekfest 2012

We have really been pleased with Isabelle's first year of school as a Kindergartner at Creekside Forest Elementary. I have become very involved volunteering in the classroom and also working with the PTO. I think it is a mix of our intense parenting mixed with my public service gene that has caused me to be at the school almost as much as Isabelle some days and I have been very lucky with Ben's new work schedule to allow it to happen.

Creekside is a new school, only opening 3 years earlier, and they are starting some wonderful traditions as a school. This spring the PTO hosted a huge school fundraiser called Creekfest 2012. We happened to have cousin Max in town visiting so our busy week was double the fun with Belle and Max hand in hand. Creekfest began early Friday morning with a 1 mile run that Isabelle raised sponsors for. She called her grandparents and aunts and uncles asking for money for her race and raised beyond her goals for Mrs. Grimes class. Isabelle was excited for the run and completed the mile without stopping to walk once. Olivia and dad were there to cheer her on while I worked the race and tried to keep 600 kids running happily and safely.


That night they celebrated their victory with a party at the school. We rode ponies, jumped in bounce houses, watched a magic show, ate lots of yummy pizza, tacos, cupcakes and cotton candy and danced, danced, danced. Isabelle, Olivia, Max and her friends did the YMCA, chicken dance, conga, and every other DJ'd dance possible. Isabelle had high hopes of winning one of the raffle prizes (especially the American Girl Doll) but sadly her name was not picked out of the bucket. We went home from a busy and fun event sweaty, dirty and tired. And the school raised over $40,000 profit to spend on all sorts of fun things for the school! It was a successful night on all accounts!