Kam's 1st Day of School

*This is a long overdue post so I apologize for the delay! I downloaded the pics on my new computer and then couldn't find them (along with Cooper's birthday pics!)...

We were a little rushed for bed the night before, but we had to read "The Night Before Kindergarten" to Kam. Of course, she wanted to try to read it herself but I promised her she could read it the next night. After we put her to bed, Mark and I each wrote a note to her on the inside cover of the book for her to always have. I was very impressed with Mark's note -- he wrote more sentences than I've ever seen him write before! No surprise but I cried while writing my note, reading my note to Mark out loud, etc. You get the picture!
I can't take credit for this book idea. Deana read this book to her kiddos and wrote a note to them so I wanted to do the same thing for mine. And, of course, I forgot to order the book in enough time so Deana came to my rescue again. She picked up the book in Bryant and Mark went to get it Wednesday night--just in time to put Kam to bed!

This is what Kam looked like when I woke her up that morning....
Then she began jumping on the bed as soon as she realized it was the first day of kindergarten....
I cut her sandwich in the shape of the heart and she thought that was the coolest thing. We also wrote her a note (heart shaped, of course!) for her lunch bag that she found before she left. She said, "ahhh, that's so sweet!" And for the record....she is over sandwiches for lunch now. Two days was enough for her!
When we walked out to leave, Mimi and Pop were waiting to see her off.... I got teary eyed when I walked out and saw them. It was Dad's day off and Mom will tell you that it's hard to get him out of bed on those mornings! It meant a lot that they came down although it was no surprise to me that they did.
I wanted to pick a spot to take Kam's picture every year so I could see how much she grows from year to year. Let the posing begin.....
Do you know how hard it is to get Kam to stand normal and not strike some ridiculous pose every time? But I finally got this picture....my lens was fogged but I love how sweet she looks.
A close up....her necklace says "Kindergarten Rocks!"
Kam and me.... I wonder if next year she will think she's too big for me to pick up and hold like that?
Daddy's girl....
The whole family--not looking at the camera!

Walking up to school...
We took her stuff inside and took a quick picture before taking her back to the playground....
Standing in line with her teacher, Mrs. Mac....
I can honestly say that the only time she hesitated for even a second was when I told her to go get in line. She wanted me to walk her over to the line. We got there right before the bell rang (too much picture-taking at home!) so she didn't even really have time to play or get acclimated before it was time to go inside. And because we were trying to get her with her class, I really didn't have time to hug and kiss her the way I probably would have had we had more time to hang around. I think that was a good thing for both of us.
However, I did get teary-eyed as we began walking back to the car.... I think Mark would have stood and watched longer but there weren't many other parents around so we decided it was time to go.

3:00 could not come soon enough for me because I was dying to know how the day went. Her teacher sent Mom an email around mid-morning letting us know that she was doing great. That helped. This is Kam after her first full day of school....
When she got in I asked her how it went and she said, "it was awesome!" I think that I couldn't have asked for a better response!

I'm going to be honest though... the novelty of the first day was fun but all day long I kept thinking, "do I really have to do this again tomorrow?"

The Night Before Kindergarten

Dear Kamdyn,

Tomorrow is your first day of kindergarten. You are so excited and could not wait to pack your lunch and backpack tonight. You've had your outfit picked out for weeks now. I know you are going to love kindergarten and I am so excited for you and this new time in your life.

As you know, Mommy's had a few teary moments this week about you going off to school. Tonight after one of those moments in particular, you wrapped your arms around me and told me that you promised to always hug me every day before you left for school. I'm going to hold you to that promise!!

I am so proud of the special little girl that you have become. You have so many fabulous qualities (have I ever told you how funny you are?) and I hope that these will continue to grow as you begin school. I could never thank God enough for the special privilege of being your mommy!

I love you to the sun and moon and back!

Love,
Mommy

Kindergarten Open House

Last night, we went to open house at Bismarck so that Kam could meet her teacher and see her classroom. I've heard Kam tell people she was going to the "open courthouse" and yesterday she told Dr. W that they were "opening the house tonight" at school. Nevertheless, she was excited to go and meet her teacher, Mrs. McSwain, or "Mrs. Mac" as everyone calls her.

Getting out of the car with Daddy and Coop.... don't you love the pose?
Posing outside the building.... I talked to several people outside before going in and Kamdyn was very anxious to get inside!! The new principal was at the door shaking hands and I have to tell you that I was a little misty-eyed at that point, which surprised me. I have had a few teary moments this week, but Kam has assured me that everything will be okay. I knew that I had to compose myself or else I would have been a blubbering fool the whole night.... so I got my emotions in check and carried on!!
When we turned the corner to look for Kam's room, the first person she saw was Dane, her good friend from Mae's. They literally ran into each others arms! I so wish I could have captured that moment on camera. It was priceless!
Kam and Dane are not in the same class but he quickly told Kam, "I'm right across the hall. I'll meet you at recess!" Sooooo cute!!!!
Next, we found Kam's classroom....
Kam met her teacher, Mrs. Mac (who I didn't get a picture of) and then found her desk. She even met a new little girl who was there at the same time. Most of Kam's friends are in another class, which concerned me at first, but I'm over that now. She's not really shy when it comes to making friends and this will give her the opportunity to expand her circle.
Posing beside her desk...
Mrs. Mac immediately told Kam about her hamster and Kam spent most of the time we were there playing with him (or her... I didn't catch it's name!).
Kam is a starfish....
Kam and her friend, Abby, from church. Abby will be in the first grade but they should be able to see each other and play at recess.
Visiting the library...
Cooper was typical Cooper last night. At one point, Mark told me he had his foot in the water fountain.
We checked out the playground...
After dinner, we stopped to see Mimi and Pop. Mimi bought Kam a new book "Llama Llama Misses Mama" about going to kindergarten. They had cookies while Mom read to Kam.
When we got in the car to leave from open house, I asked Kam what she thought. She enthusiastically replied, "it was awesome!" and I know it will be for her.... I know she is going to flourish at kindergarten and I love that she is so excited. I would be lying though if I didn't say that I'm a little sad. It's a bittersweet time for a momma and I am learning that this week. Today I'm just trying to soak up every little bit of time that I can with her before tomorrow!

Timber Lodge 2010

The Efird's took their second annual trip to Timber Lodge last weekend and had an awesome time! It is two days straight of non-stop play! We fish, ride 4-wheelers, swim, eat, stay up late, play in the lake, etc. and just enjoy being together.

Cooper's first fish of the weekend....
Kam liked fishing until she got something on her line... then she ran off and screamed like the girl that she is! She wouldn't even reel it in.
All the girls in a paddle boat...
Crashing into Mom, Maddie, and AJ.... not sure the little girls remembered how to steer.
Madison brought her friend AJ along and they spent many hours riding the kids around on ATV's. They are so good with the kids... they laid a towel down and arranged the kids safely every time they went for a ride.
I noticed a big change from last year with the way my kids (Kam, in particular) ran around. It was obvious she is older now because she spent more time away from me with the other cousins. Coop, on the other hand, still makes me nervous! I let him and Brax go out on the porch because the entire wall is windows so I thought we could see them. After a few minutes, Jamie went to check on them and found them at the lake! Oops!

We rent the entire place for the weekend but we always gather for meals at what we call "the big house." Mom and Dad, Mamaw and Papaw, Ronnie and Gina, and Aunt Donna stay there.
Visiting at breakfast... we had some fabulous food this weekend!
Mark tickling the birthday boy... Cooper's birthday fell on this weekend and we decided to just celebrate with the family while we were there. Cooper thinks that we all went there specifically for his birthday and I'm not going to tell him anything different!
I rented a huge inflatable waterslide for the kids to play on for Cooper's birthday. It was especially great for the little ones.... I'll post pics of that and Cooper's party later.

Hanging out at the bunk house... as the kids become teenagers, I'm sure this is where they will all end up staying for the weekend. Right now, we rotate families so everyone gets to stay in a house most of the time. We stayed in one of these last year, but this year shared a great house with Jodie and Mike and kids. It was perfect!
You would think after two solid days of non-stop play that Kam and the kids would fall out at night... but that didn't always happen. They usually got their second wind running around our cabin late at night. And I mean literally running around our living room, which was big enough to do that. Eventually, most of them passed out, but Kam laid in bed and played DS after Kamryn finally gave it up Saturday night.
The guys played poker Saturday night and I think some of them even went 4-wheeling in the middle of the night. They said they were looking for the deer we all saw earlier that afternoon....
Speaking of animals, we didn't get to feed the animals like we did last year. Kam kept asking me if we could feed the reindeer all weekend long. I still love to look out in the yard and see zebras and sheep roaming around.... and the kids love the buffalo who roams the grounds. You heard me right... a buffalo. Kam wouldn't play on the playground Friday because he was on the basketball court, which seems to be his favorite hangout spot.... but by Saturday they had named him "Perry" and gotten used to him. She's still telling everyone about 4-wheeling and looking for Perry the buffalo.

Last, but not least.... we took another family picture because we have 3 new babies since last year. I know... that's a shocker! We decided that we didn't want to get ready so we took an "as is" picture after dinner Saturday night--swimsuits, cover ups, grubby shorts, no makeup, etc. However, I think that the only pics taken were a little blurry... I'll post them as soon as I get them from someone.

I can't say enough how blessed we are and how much we enjoy this weekend together! I'm already looking forward to next year!!

Happy 4th Birthday, Cooper!

My baby boy is turning four tomorrow and I cannot believe it! He's hardly a baby, I know, but in my eyes, he will always be my sweet baby boy...
Cooper is definitely all boy! He absolutely loves cars right now and he is serious about them. In this picture, he was asking me which car I liked better--the mustang or challenger.

He has always been a "momma's boy" and I wouldn't change that for the world! Thank you, Lord, for blessing me with this sweet boy! I love you, Cooper Bear!!!

At the Office

I had to go into the office unexpectedly for a little while on Wednesday and I didn't have anyone to watch the kids so they went with me. They wanted to draw with all the markers in my desk and watch a movie.

Thank goodness we didn't have to stay longer than an hour and a half. Although they were great, I don't think I could have entertained them much longer!

Princess Party

Kam's friend, Bailey, had a royal princess party on Saturday that included dress up, a princess pageant, and games. Kam had a blast!

The girls each had their hair done before they learned proper princess etiquette for the pageant. Of course, I think my little princess is beautiful!
I've given Kam grief about her hair the last few weeks telling her that it looked like a mop (which she didn't know what was)... so when I peeked in to see how it her hair was coming along she hollered, "mom, does it still look like a mop?" Oops! On a side note, we have a hair appointment this Wednesday and I have threatened to cut it all off because she is so ridiculous about it now.

Back to the party... the girls came out in pairs and blew kisses and such while Bailey's dad talked about each girl. He had asked the girls some questions before and it was pretty cute.... who their favorite princess was, what they wanted to be when they grew up, who their teacher was, etc.Kam couldn't remember her new teacher's name so she told everyone "her mom knew that" and then Bailey's dad announced that Kam wanted to be a pedicurist when she grew up. I knew that was coming because that's been her standard answer for the last year. We've gone from doctor to dentist to pedicurist!

The crowd roared though and one of the moms there turned to me and commented how hilarious Kam was. We think she's funny but it's always nice to hear other people say that about your child. I hope she always has this crazy sense of humor!!!

And I can't believe I'm saying this... but for a split second I had the crazy idea of actually entering her into a real pageant. We've been asked before but I've never thought Kam would do it... I'm not so sure now though. She looked pretty comfortable... and she already has her model pose down perfecft!!

Kam's Last Day at Mrs. Mae's

Yesterday was Kam's last day at Fun Time (Mrs. Mae's) and I have to admit that I was sad. Kam has spent the last 3 years at Mae's and words cannot express how much of a blessing Mae and her teachers have been to us.

Mrs. Kelly was Kam's teacher this year and she absolutely loved her! Mrs. Kelly told me recently that she never once had to put Kam in timeout this year. I found that hard to believe!!
For the most part, this group of kids has been together the entire time at Mae's. We've been to tons of birthday parties with these girls and have had so much fun getting to know them and their parents.

As you can see, Kam is the smallest girl in her class!

These girls have had lots of "fun times" together...

Although Kam will be going to Bismarck and won't be in the afterschool program this year at Mae's, she will be back for a while next summer. She has learned so much at Mae's and is so ready for kindergarten. She is excited, which makes me excited for her.... but I'm not going to lie. I'm having a little anxiety about her going off to kindergarten. Mark says it makes him sad and every time he says that Kam tells us how excited she is... I think this transition will be much harder on us than her!

And because you all know that I don't handle change well.... Cooper is still at Mae's so I'm not cutting my ties there completely! I thought I would never get over Cooper leaving Mrs. Jane's.