Swim lessons

Last summer my sister and brother in-law moved back to Augusta and into their new home. Since they have a pool, Kailyn and I planned on spending quite a bit of time there. After only one time of having to use her floaties, Kailyn decided that she was big enough to swim without the bother of floaties. So, in early June, my sister started teaching swim lessons and Kailyn was proud to be part of her class. It was crazy, just after one lesson Kailyn could jump off the diving board and make it to the ladder! Needless to say she LOVED swim lessons with Aunt Sarah and by the end of the time she was a little fish. She even was swimming in the deep end and diving to get things off the bottom as well! She is quite literally our water baby. She loves doing crazy jumps off the diving board, swimming in circles, diving and even has tried a bit of free style swimming! Of course Tony and I love that she can swim and are both so proud of all her progress!!!

Happy Summer!!!

Yeah…SUMMER!! As with every summer, we are exstatic to see this one come…although, I must admit I am a little sad. This is the last summer before Kailyn starts school! I can’t believe in a mere few months our baby starts school!!! Ahhh….well, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it! However, for now we are going to enjoy our lazy days filled with family time, swimming and laying out at my sister’s pool! So, here’s to a great summer…WE LOVE THE SUN!!!

No more preschool...yeah

So, Kailyn finished going to her pre-school…or Ms. Solde’s as we call it. She is very excited that she is big enough to go to school and can’t wait for her first day! And though this is a wonderful new chapter of our lives, I have to admit I will miss her old school and her simply wonderful teacher. I asked her the other day if she would miss it and she just responded, “No, I am a big kid now. I will never go to a little school again.” As I sat back, a bit astounded, I looked at her and realized…she’s right! She isn’t our darling little girl anymore…she really is a big kid! What a bitter-sweet moment!

Daddy's hair

So, you know those moments that happen and you wish you could just freeze them or take a picture, but you have no camera! The moments that one day when your little daughter grown up you’ll smile and say, “I remember when…” Those simple and sweet little moments that make up our everyday lives. One of these such moments happened in Church a while back and I hope to always remember it. As I said, we were in Church and since Kaliyn’s legs apparently don’t ever work Tony was holding her. She had both her little arms wrapped around his neck and her cheek pressed to his. As if this wasn’t cute enough, she gently put her hand on his head and rubbed it back and forth. She then looked at him gave him a little kiss and preceded hugging him and rubbing his head. I thought it was so cute! Since then she will often just be talking to Tony and start rubbing his head. Intrigued, I asked her one day if she liked daddy’s hair. She simply replied, “Yes, I love it.” I think the fact of the matter is that she loves everything about Tony and I find that simply wonderful!

i have a surprise for you...

So, if you haven’t figured this out yet, we have the sweetest daughter! I know everyone probably thinks that…but we really do! Last night, Kailyn and I were eating dinner, just the two of us because Tony teaches class three nights a week. She came bounding into the kitchen and settled quickly in her seat. As she started eating, I asked her if she liked it and she said, “Yes!” Then she got up came over and gave me a big hug and kiss on the cheek and said, “This is so yummy, thank you mommy!” Now I’ve been cooking dinner for roughly four years and never gotten that reaction…ever! (I’m not counting the first year we were married because we mostly ate at my parents and out…I know it’s hard to believe but I didn’t really know how to cook…haha!)

Earlier this month she did something similar. I told her we were going to do something she really liked and she smiled happily and said, “I have a surprise for you.” She then proceeded to give me a big hug and kiss followed by, “You’re the best mommy ever!” Like I said, I am sure most people think there child is the sweetest, but these random “I love yous” and “you’re the best mommy ever” paired with big hugs and kisses make me believe she really is the sweetest!

Princesses, Ponies, Pet shop…Star Wars, Indiana Jones!

As Kailyn and I sat on the couch playing Lego Indiana Jones yesterday I started thinking of all the phases she has gone through and how different each could be. We’ve gone from flowers and butterflies to dirt and animals, from princesses and ponies to Star Wars and Indiana Jones and a bit of Littlest Pet Shop scattered in there. Sometimes she almost seems girly, but then she usually busts out some Kung Fu moves or pretends to be Indiana Jones and the girlyness vanishes. At the least, she is very diverse in her likings…a little of everything. One moment she is prancing about the house dancing in her ballerina tutu and the next she is swinging from her bed post pretending to be Indiana Jones in the Temple of Doom…in her tutu. She loves to have tea parties and also loves to practice her intense Kung Fu moves. She likes to believe she has not only mastered all the names of her ponies and pet shops, but the art of Kung Fu and the light saber too. I have to admit it makes me rather happy that she is so diversified. When she started forging her way into princesses and ponies I was a little worried, as I previously stated…it was uncharted territory, but as we entered the Star Wars and Indy phase I felt a little more comfortable…I knew all about these guys! So here we are now, smack dab in the middle of her newest phase, Indiana Jones. She loves to play the Lego Indy game and daddy actually let her watch one! As I have stated almost every time I write, she is ever-changing. And as she grows she opens up so much for Tony and I; we are continually amused and taken aback by her creativeness and enthusiasm!

Running

So, it’s that time of year again…Glory Run! This year, Tony and I decided to take Kailyn up to the place where she was going to race and let her run it a few times, just so she could be familiar with it. Now I’ve been telling her about it and she helped me prepare the letters asking for people to sponsor her a few months back…so she knows all about it. Actually, she has become rather excited about it. So when we told her we were going to walk down and practice, she was so excited we ran the entire way down! She then went on to run the short route twice back to back and wanted to run it more, but we made her rest. I was blown away, could this be the same girl that begged me to hold her last year and told me this was just “too much work?!” Crazy!

Now the course was all marked with a start and finish and a little yellow line to just let you know where to go, Kailyn thought this was awesome. We started heading home and before we knew it we were running again! When we got home, she told me “Mom, I like running. Can I have a racing track?” I told her she would have to talk to her daddy about that. (We all know the answer to anything Kailyn asks daddy… “Of course baby!”) Needless to say Tony said yes, and he would make one the next day. That following day after Tony got home from work he and Kailyn talked about what kind of “track” she wanted. After a moment it was decided she would have a diamond. After a few minutes it appeared. A bright orange diamond with an S at the starting line and an F at the finish! I didn’t think something so simple could make someone so happy…she was ecstatic! We raced around it a few times…even Cole jumped in. Let me tell you, she is faster than I thought…that’s my girl! After a bit of running, Tony and I decided to teach her kick ball…since the shape of the track was the perfect shape for a kick ball field. This was so much fun! We spent the next hour in the back yard playing three man kick ball and just having fun. Like I said it’s amazing how a simple can of paint can bring about so much fun…and wonderful family time.

In regards to the race Kailyn did amazing! She finished second, but just by a few feet. It was adorable to see her so focused! Her head straight and her eyes set on that finish line! When she was done, Tony and I couldn’t stop telling her how proud of her we were. Beaming she replied, “I didn’t look at all the people just at my race.”