First day of kindergarten

This is Taylor.  She started kindergarten yesterday.  We have really been looking forward to this day for some time.  She is ready to do the big girl stuff and I am ready to have her ask someone else a million questions all day.  Some of her favorites, "Why does he wear glasses?" "Why does she have short hair?" "Why does he have his ears pierced?" "How old are you?" "How old will you be next year?" "Why do I have to wear short sleeves?"  You get the idea.  I am going to miss her though.  She is a great shopping partner (minus the million questions) and is wonderful at playing with Avery.  I only cried a little when we left her at school.  Not like the sobfest on Brady's first day.  Oh speaking of Brady, here he is on the first day of second grade.

The first day was just a 2-hour orientation type day.  When I picked Taylor up she said "Aw, I didn't even have lunch or recess yet."  Brady said all they did was label folders.  He said he is really looking forward to his first full day on Monday.  So am I kids!  Let the school year begin!

Highlights from our trip to California

-Finally meeting cute little Elise.  She is our new niece and is only 5 weeks older than Avery.

-Spending the day at the beach.  

-Leaving Legoland.  That place is up to no good.

-Watching my kids play with their cousins.  Hearing Taylor tell me that Elena is her "best friend."

-Playing cards every night!  

-The produce.  My dad cutting fruit non-stop.  The peaches from his tree were delicious!

-Pool parties at my parents' house.  Watching Taylor become a stronger swimmer.

-Hanging out with some college friends and their kids.  Boy are we getting old!

-In-n-Out TWICE!  Rubio's TWICE.   My dad's steaks, my mom's pies, my sister's bread.  Not so much the five pounds I gained though.

-Spending time with sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, cousins, parents.  We both have great families.

And now some 4th of July pictures...

We had a great weekend.  Full of BBQs, water parks and of course fireworks.  Here is a recap of the festivities: 

Brady and Taylor having fun at Splash City.
Hubba hubba and chubba chubba.
They don't get much cuter or much more patriotic than this one.
Waiting for the fireworks to start at the St Louis Arch.
Avery watching her first fireworks show from the comfort of Deor's lap.  She was very interested and alert.
Taylor and her friend Jenna enjoying the fireworks.  That look is priceless!

Happy 4th of July from the Cimas!

And now some Brady news...

Brady ran in a 5K last weekend.  His time was 39 minutes and 42 seconds, not bad for his first race.  Of course he loved the attention while crossing the finish line with everyone cheering.  He wore his number the entire day and told anyone who would listen that he ran over three miles.  He is already looking forward to his next race.  I am so proud of this little guy.

Speaking of running, Brock ran in the Country Music Half-Marathon in Nashville.  

I think he might be crazy because he is wanting to do another one this fall.  What's up with all this running?

One more thing about Brady...he finally lost his first tooth!  It was high drama because he was at school and dropped it in the gravel on the way out to the car to show me.  We looked for a while but all of the little pieces of gravel looked like baby teeth.  He got over it when the tooth fairy brought him $5.  I guess she is a sucker for a crying kid.  Come on, look at that face.

Yes, this is what I do late at night while my kids are in bed...

I watch ridiculous things on youtube.  Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lj-x9ygQEGA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgEHOM21j3s

My little TayTay

Since Shelby's fake post about Taylor's birthday promised details, I guess I better come up with something.  I love this little girl. 

I am excited that she is five and will be going into kindergarten.  She is quite independent and will love doing the big kid stuff.  I took her to have lunch with Brady in the cafeteria a few times before school ended and she was enthralled by all the choices (although the spaghetti is YUCKY!)  For her birthday she brought Krispy Kremes to her preschool class and then we went to a Cardinals game that night.  But the biggest hit of the day was the pink scooter her best friend Mason got her. 

She is just happy to ride that little thing up and down our driveway and the sidewalk in front of our house.  She thinks she will be riding it to school next year, but she must have me confused with the mommy who isn't yelling at her kids every morning to get in the car because we are late.  Poor girl.  Some things I love about Taylor are:

I love that she wants to smell everything.  Especially since I do not have a sense a smell.  Everyday she asks to smell the baby's cereal and then she promptly gags.  I guess she doesn't want to miss the day that it suddenly smells good.

I love that she is clumsy like her mama.

I love that she is athletic (unlike her mama).

I love that she watches the same movie over and over again for a few weeks, then moves onto another one.  After the tenth or so viewing, she will walk around the house quoting lines.

I love her little faces and blank expressions.  One of her summer camp counselors said "oh, I know Taylor.  She's the one that sits and stares at you."  Yep, that's her.

I love that whomever she is playing with is her "best friend."  

I love that she likes to collect rocks while she is outside and then brings them inside and puts them in a bowl of water.  Did I mention she is quirky?

Avery loves it when Taylor sings her songs from preschool complete with the hand motions.  I'm not sure what Brady would say he loves about her.  They have a pretty typical big brother/little sister relationship.  Maybe he loves that she is always willing to do whatever he wants to do.

And maybe someday I will even love how she screams at animals, poops her pants and has to know what everyone will be wearing before she'll get dressed.  Someday, right?  Right?

Sometimes I can't stand how cute this girl is!

Look at our little 7 month old!