Monkey Buddies

These are the best invention for school girls. They are called MonkeyBar Buddies.  They are thin little shorts that go under skirts and dresses. That way your girl can be a little monkey on the playground and  if there skirt goes up who cares. Uncle Pat got these for C 2 years ago and we LOVE them. Isn't she such a little lady?!

"Mom no more pictures! The sun is hurting my eyes!!"

They are better than bike shorts or regular shorts. They are lightweight and very thin and breathable. Go get a pair for your girl today. You won't be disappointed.

A Farewell For Beary Beary

Meet Beary Beary. This bear was mine when I was a kid. Growing up his name was Raul. Very fitting for growing up in Miami.  But once C found him she renamed him Beary Beary. Neither my mom nor I saved books or toys of mine for my future children. But this little guy got saved. He even traveled to college with me. 

You can tell how worn out he is. He is at least 34 years old. His head has almost fallen off twice. And you can tell where all the fur has been rubbed off. He now has small holes all through his body. He has been VERY well loved. 

I decided that he was just beyond repair it was time to let him go.  I took him upstairs so C could say goodbye to him.

Jeremy thought I was crazy.  But I know C really appreciated it.

Goodbye kisses.

Last photo with Beary Beary.

I was all set to take him to the trash when C asked if she could sleep with him. 

How could I say no.

I should have thrown him away the next morning while C was at school. But i just couldn't bring myself to do it. So I decided to let C have 1 last tea party for him.

I got everything set up while she was at school. Then when she got home we both changed into summer dresses. And had a wonderful tea party with the guest of honor.

We ate our finger foods, drank our chocolate milk and shared our favorite memories of Beary Beary.  I think it was a perfect way to say goodbye to such a loyal friend. We will miss you sweet Beary Beary.

Last Week Of Summer

A little late, but still worth posting. We spent our last full week of summer gearing up for school. But also trying to fit some fun in.  C was very excited to go back to school shopping. She was a little overwhelmed by all the choices.

But in the end decided on a princess back pack.

One day I was looking through the clothes in Target and C was over looking at the hair accessories.

She was very adamant about which ones she wanted. When I told her we couldn't get them because they wouldn't stay in her hair, she was not happy.

Fast forward 10 years and she's got that pouting look down pat.

Along with a back pack and some clothes, she had to get some new shoes.  I found all of these at Kohl's on sale and paid less than $50 for all of them. She was excited her PE shoes had pink on them and were Velcro.

We also got some hand me downs from Emari.  Most of those won't fit her until the new year, but it is nice to have them. Shoes are expensive!!

One morning we hosted a pool party. C helped me bake the goodies. I also made Gina's chicken salad for the moms and mummy hot dogs for the kids.  The food was a hit and there was nothing left!!

My girl so excited to have friends swimming in her pool.

All the kids and a few siblings.

During the summer we went to the library a lot. They have a great selection of books, Cd's and movies. But they are lacking a bit in the children's department for programs. Nothing like our libraries in IL. However they do have something neat. They have culture passes that you can check out. The pass will get you 2 free tickets to museums and parks around town.  

Usually the passes are all gone. But one morning I saw there was 1 for the zoo.  So I snatched it up. C and I saved $30 by using the culture pass. We got up early one morning and headed right there.

We checked out a few animals and then headed to the splash area.

It has cool waterfalls, caves and slides.  Lots of fun in the summer.

Peek a boo in a cave.  I was pretty hot that even I had to stand under the waterfall before we left.

I let her keep her swim suit on as we continued through the zoo to keep her cool.

She found some cool balance beams to practice her gymnastics on.

We made a pit stop at the carousel.

And also a log cabin.

I must have worn her out because she gave me this surprise gift later.

The night before school started we had a surprise visit. Our original neighbors in IL moved to PA about 8 months after we moved to IL.  Well the hubby got transferred out to Phoenix recently. So they were up here house hunting with their kids.  They came over to swim and check out our neighborhood.  They ended up buying a house in our neighborhood just a short 5 minute walk from us.  We are excited to be neighbors again!

Weekend Wrap-Up

I realize I have gotten behind. So here is a run down of our whole week and weekend.  Early in the week I took Jake to Petsmart to get shaved.  He was so happy to go for a ride in the car and hang out the window.

When I came to pick him up I was told he was fantastic so I let him pick out a treat.

Towards the end of the week it cooled off a little in the mornings. 

I love getting these before school pictures.

One afternoon it was kind of cool (for Arizona) so I walked to pick her up. She was happy to walk home with me as long as I carried her backpack.

On Wednesday she resumed her dance class. This semester she is doing a ballet/tap combo.  She will get to be in a real recital in December. She is excited as her favorite friends Emari and Sienna are in class with her too.

A few of the cooler mornings I met up with my friend Janie (Emari's mom) and we took our dogs for a walk. Both were so excited to get to on walks with their doggie friend.

On Saturday we got to attend a reunion for the summer camp C attended in July. The reunion was for all kids that attended that preschool for the last 10 years.

Along with the bounce houses, there were face painters, balloon makers and carnival treats.

A group picture of all the kids at the reunion. C is up front on the right, sporting her awesome shades.

C is not a fan of face paint, but she really wanted a balloon. Of course when we got to the front of the line and our turn was next they told all the kids to line up for the group picture. So I waited for the clown to make it. Is it just me or does she seem scary?

She had a grand time bouncing, jumping and enjoying some carnival type foods.  

It was really humid so after a quick lunch C and I headed to the library. C loves the computer games there. The bad thing is they only have 1 computer and there is usually a long line to play. The good thing was there was no line this day. Normally there is a 20 minute time limit. So C was happy to play on it for almost 45 minutes.

Love that look of concentration on her face.

While C played I got to browse for books, CD's and movies. I found a book I think Maya might like!

Today we invited Emari over to swim and play.

The girls were so excited when Jeremy put on the waterfall and let them jump off the rocks.

1, 2, 3...

JUMP!

I think they both did that 278 times. They loved it!  I let them enjoy some Gogurts in the pool. They thought that was pretty cool.  Afterwards we came inside and they played so well together.  She stayed for another hour or so. There was no fighting, no bickering, no arguing. Just sweet laughter and whispers.  

We drove E home and then I sent C up to her room for quiet time.  I went to check on her not even 5 minutes later and this is what I found.  This the 2nd time that she has taken a nap after playing with E. I told Jeremy we need to have E over more often!!

We ended the weekend with dinner out a BBQ joint and then watched a little Tom & Jerry. Perfect weekend. Tomorrow--back to the grind.