Bitter Sweet Day

Today Lily started full day Kindergarten. It is kind of a bitter sweet day for me. Seems like I have been dying to have her go to school and be occupied and busy on a daily basis, but today when it came right down to it, it was harder for me than I thought. I guess I should have known when I got teary eyed from a WalMart commercial the other day about a little girl going away on her first day of school. Pathetic...I know. But this morning she was all smiles as she put on one of her school outfits, packed her lunch and stepped onto the bus. We are so proud of her and excited for her to learn new things and make new friends. Maybe by the end of the year she'll be reading me bedtime stories.


Here is a picture of her lunch. For those of you who know Lily and her eating habits, YES, that is a smoothie in her lunch. I never would have guessed we'd still be relying on the smoothies as a main part of her diet. And isn't her lunch purse cute...or as Lily would say, "it's sassy." It looks like a purse, but it's a lunch holder.

The boys started preschool today. They are pretty excited too, but Jack was pretty upset that Lily got to take a bus to school and he had to drive in the family car.

Here's to a great school year. I am proud of my three kiddos.

Baird Fam. Vacation '08

Every year Matt's family, including his parents and 5 sisters and their family, go on a family vacation. We love to head out west and let our kids reconnect with their cousins enjoy fun, sun, and relaxing. We really packed it in this time. Within a week we went to Sea World, San Diego Zoo, Disneyland, the beach, and still found time to swim in the hotel pool. Here are some pictures of our vacation. It seems like we look forward to our trips and do so much planning, and before we know it, its all over.































This picture of Jack with the 3 girls and Fairy God Mother is classic Jack. He always wants to be a part of everything. I love this picture of Cole at Disneyland with Grandpa Baird. We had a fabulous time thanks so Leslie (Matt's sister), who did all the planning. It's our turn next year to plan the trip....we can't wait until Baird Fam. vacation '09!

One World One Dream-Beijing 2008 Olympic Games

Did you see the opening ceremonies in the Bird's Nest! All I can say is WOW... AWESOME... SPECTACULAR. I guess when you have a 300 million dollar budget for opening ceremonies, nothing less should be expected. Matt and I love the Olympics , and although, sadly, it is also an event that brings propaganda, boycotts, political statements and discriminations, we try to focus on the Olympic spirit of honor, glory, fair play, friendship and peace. We love to watch world class athletes come together and compete in numerous events. Over 205 countries and 10,500 athletes will participate. Some of our favorite American hopefuls include Michael Phelps, who is aiming for 8 gold medals in swimming, Dara Torres who is competing in her 5th Olympics and is 41 years old and a new mom (also swimming), Dave Zabriskie (from Utah!) in cycling, and Shawn Johnson competing in gymnastics. Some of my personal favorite events include women's volleyball, canoe/kayaking, rowing, swimming and gymnastics. Can't wait to see how everything turns out. As I go out on my agonizing 13 mile run tomorrow AM, I'll just think of these athletes and the time and training they have put in to make it where they are. Just a few last words before the games begin......KICK BUTT USA!!!

July Has Come and Gone

Where does the time go? We have been busy having fun. I LOVE summer and we have been enjoying being together and doing fun things. Mid-month mimi and papa came to visit and we headed to Palmyra to see the Hill Comorah Pageant. This is the first time I have seen it even though we have lived this way for 5 years now. We ran into our friends, the Huntsmans. Travis was a companion of Matt's in Argentina. They have the cutest family and two of there kids are named Cole and Lily! Here is a picture of their family and then all our kids together.Then Matt and I headed to Portland on our first house hunting trip to our new...and permanent home. Yes, we have settled on Portland, and I am sooooooooo excited about it. This place is so awesome and beautiful. It has pine trees and mountains everywhere. Matt and I fell in love with it during our trip. Here is a couple of pictures of the neighborhood we hope to buy in or around. It is a growing area with two new elementary schools opening within a year. Fortunately for us, the housing market has crashed so bad, that we hope and think we will get into a home that is more than we ever could have imagined. We'll be heading back again in Oct./Nov. to look again and hopefully find "home sweet home", and then move in Dec./Jan.Jack got a new do. What do you think? We were in the process of giving the boys their new summer do's when Matt decided to stop at this point as a joke with Jack. Well, a week later, Jack still has his mohalk, but I am sure we will cut it soon. We don't want the neighbors and ward members to think we are too rockerish.We also went to this place in Erie called Waldameer Park. It is much like Lagoon, but on a smaller scale. The kids enjoyed blue slushies (as you can tell), riding rides(even Cole was brave this time and went on the log ride!), and eating too much junk food.So that is what has been going on the last two weeks. We hope all our friends and family are enjoying summer and family vacations. We are heading to New Port Beach Cali. next.

My Bliss

Matt is out of town, my kids think they have run of the house, trying to keep up with work, training for a marathon, dirty clothes..... but at the end of the day all I can think about is how blessed I am. Tonight I was able to take the monkeys to the beach to watch one of Erie's amazing sunsets. It was so nice to just sit and watch my kids find joy out of putting their feet in the water, throwing rocks in the lake, and chase birds in the sand. Not quite sure what I did to deserve them. Sometimes I feel like the wicked witch because I yell at them all day long. I am sure Jack thinks his name is "No" or "Stop it". They truly are my bliss and I love them more than I can express in words. Here are a few pictures of my blessings enjoying life.

She Did It!!

The other day we were driving down the street, and out of the blue Lily said, "I want to get my ears pierced". Matt and I have always said she can get her ears pierced when she asked. I figured most little girls start asking to get their ears pierced around 3-4. Not Lily. If we ever mentioned it to Lily, she always said, "No way! It'll hurt". I thought she'd be one of those clip on earing old ladies.
And so without much delay, we drove to the mall and had it done. Lily picked out little pink diamonds. She did AWESOME. Just a small tear and that was it. To ease any lasting pain, we headed straight to the ice cream store for double scoops. Lily thought the pain was definitely worth it for 2 huge chocolate scoops of ice cream that she in no way would ever be able to eat by herself. Way to go Lily. You put your mind to something and you did it! We love you.

4th of July 2008

Just a few highlights and pictures of our 2008, 4th of July.

The night before July 4th (fourth of July eve) we went to a minor league baseball game. It was Jack and Cole's first baseball game. They loved it. Jack even got to shake his botty with the Sea Wolf mascot during the 7th inning stretch.Next was the ward 4th of July pancake breakfast. The kids had fun just playing in the church parking lot and grass area.
Then came a bbq at the beach.And finally, FIREWORKS! We had a few families over for some good old fashion front yard fireworks. The best part was there were 17 kids at our house all under the age of 5. Lily, who is not even 5 1/2was the oldest!

Fun in the Sun

Can it be? Is it finally...summer! Today was one of the first days of the summer that were actually warm enough to go to the beach. A bunch of the girls and our kids headed out to Presque Isle to enjoy the water, sand, and sun. Here are a few pictures of Jack, Cole, and miss Lily with their arm floaties. Doesn't get much better than this!

I'm Hosting a 4th of July Blog Giveaway

Just wanted to post this here too. Go on over to Shabby Creations and enter my 4th of July blog giveaway. Tell all your friends, family, and fellow bloggers. Click HERE to go now.

Fun In The Rain

We have been trying to enjoy summer here in Erie. We had one good warm week, and since then it has still been cooler and VERY VERY rainy. The rain hasn't stopped us from having fun though. We went on a hike about a week ago, in the rain, with some friends in an area around here called Asbury Woods. Matt calls it his "little piece of heaven" in Erie. It's great for trail running, mountain biking, and playing in this fun river. As we were hiking around the other day, Jack started screaming at the top of his lungs. He was a little further ahead with Matt, so I just assumed he had fallen and gotten a little hurt. Apparently Jack had spotted a pretty big snake and Matt was standing over it and didn't even know until Jack started screaming. The snake quickly slithered away, but it gave Jack a good scare. We actually have a lot of critters and animals around us. We have seen deer, wild turkey, rabbits, and even this frog in our backyard. It's very fun for the kids. Not letting the rain stop us from playing outside, the kids each picked out an umbrella. Jack got Batman, Cole got Spider Man, and Lily of course, got a princess one.
So that sums up life in Erie. We are hoping the sun will shine soon and we can enjoy some beach days.