Hogle Zoo - June 2011

We have all been looking forward to our annual trip to the zoo. This year we decided to go at the beginning of the summer to beat the heat! It was such a nice day - clear and breezy (but not too windy) and in the mid-80's - just perfect to view the animals and enjoy being outdoors!

Our first stop at the zoo was the giraffe area. This is by far one of my favorite animals to see.


We took a wrong turn out of the giraffe building (where we had hoped to see a giraffe up close) and found a little viewing area with a giraffe right up close - it couldn't have been more perfect!


The kids were just loving seeing the giraffes, I think they liked them too!


Tate spent most of the day in his converted bike trailer stroller and wasn't sure what was going on. But he was all smiles most of the day!


Libby spent most of the day in her stroller too - and of course she was happy as can be!


In addition to having Libby and Aunt Kylie with us, Aunt Michelle, Ashton, Branson, Nana, and Papa were there too. These four cousins have such a great time together and loved running around the zoo with each other.


Zach told me the tigers were his favorite part of the zoo, that is until we went to see something else. Usually the tigers are up and out of sight or so far away that you can barely see them, but the day we were there, three or four of them were right up near the fence so that you could get a good look.


One of our family's favorite parts of the zoo is the bird show. We didn't get a picture of us because Tate was quite wiggly by this time, but here's a picture we got of some of our group. I was worried that Tate wouldn't really know what was going on and scream the whole time. By I was pleasantly surprised to see him actually watching the birds and they flew around - he was actually able to follow them - and they really kept his attention. I think he really enjoyed the show!


Of course, a trip to the zoo is complete for our kids without a ride on the carousel. Here's Ashton,


Zach,


Branson, and Hailey (notice Hailey is on a ladybug - she was in heaven!).


They also had a special thing going on at the zoo entitled "Zoorasssic Park" where they had dinosaurs all over the park that were robotic - they moved, made sounds, and some even squirted water.


The kids loved them, it was really fun to see them, they were really life-like.


At some point, Tate got so tired that he actually fell asleep when he was rubbing his eyes. It didn't last more than 5 minutes, but it sure was darling to see!


There are a few pictures we take every time we go to the zoo. The first is on this metal rhinocerous.


The second is near this sign that shows how you compare to the wingspan of a gorilla. It's fun to see how much bigger the kids get every year.


Another favorite stop is the elephants. We missed the elephant show again this year, but next year we are definitely going to make it! Unfortunately, the baby elephant wasn't out, but we did get some great pictures of the adult elephants.


And here's two little monkeys in front of the elephants!


Here's the best family picture we got at the zoo. The kids were so excited and running around having a blast, that all the others had one of them blurry. I guess we're lucky this one didn't turn out the same way!


The last stop was the camels on our way out. The kids were still in good spirits and we were able to snap this last picture of all three of them - this picture turned out great, although probably because they were so tired by then that it was easy to get them to hold still!


We had such a great time at the zoo and although we all came home tired, we are already looking forward to going again next year!

Tate Turns One!

Yes, that's right, our little baby turned one on June 3rd. It's so hard to believe it, but the last year just flew by for us. And Tate has grown and grown and grown!

We went to his 12 month doctor appointment and here were his stats:

Height: 31 1/2" tall - 91st percentile
Weight: 24 lbs, 7 oz - 72nd percentile
Head Circum: 47 1/2 cm - 80th percentile

For those of you keeping track, he actually lost 2 ounces from his 9 month visit. Boy, when kids start crawling, it's amazing how much weight they can lose! The doctor isn't too concerned, but we're trying to make sure he's getting enough calories so that he has enough to burn while on the move and to help him grow. We're all interested to see the numbers at 15 months! Who would have thought our chubby little Tater-tot would have to be chunked back up? :)

Zach and Hailey were so excited for his birthday, they could hardly wait. Tate on the other hand, had no idea what was going on and was a little overwhelmed. But depite all that, it was a fun time for all!

Tate wasn't quite understanding the whole "unwrap the paper and there's a present underneath" so Zach and Hailey were more than happy to help him.


He seemed more interested in pounding this big present from Nana and Papa than actually opening it up!


He absolutely loved the book from his Aunt, Uncle, and cousins - he LOVES books!


He's really into things that spin like wheels or fans. We found this giraffe toy with really big wheels that spin and it even makes music. He loves it and I was so happy it was such a hit.


Nana and Papa from California sent him a toy airplane with little characters that pop up when you push, pull, or twist the handles - he loved it!


And of course I couldn't resist getting him a big huge ball. He loves the one up in his room that Zach got when he was born (and we still have), so I figured it was time for him to get his very own.


Those are just a few of the presents he got and he's loved every one.

Tate's favorite treat in the world is ice cream and I was planning on just doing that for his birthday, but I was quickly informed by Zach and Hailey that he just HAD to have cake and blow out candles. So we decided to whip up some cupcakes last minute and put these fun candles on there for him to blow out. Again, Zach and Hailey were happy to help with the blowing out part!


He torn into the cupcake, but only took this one bite of it - we're still working on getting food to his mouth - funny since everything else seems to make it there just fine!


He seemed more interested in playing with it than eating it, so we just let him. Most of it ended up on his lap or the floor, but he had a good time tearing the cupcake apart. He was more than happy to down a whole bowl of ice cream though - no problems with that! (And yes, he's obviously got a non-politically correct dominant finger - we're working on that one!)


We were a bit sad that his main present was a few days late in arriving, but once it got here, it was a huge hit! Jeremiah had the brilliant idea to get him a bike trailer for when he and the kids go on bike rides. Tate wasn't really sure what was going on at first, but he still gave me a smile.


I think he was excited to see what was going to happen. He loves stroller rides and we were sure he would just love this too!


Yep, it was so much fun to watch him! HE LOVED IT!



We've taken him on many bike rides since this first one and he's loved every minute. In fact, he usually cries when you stop because he wants to go again. The best part about this trailer is that it converts to a stroller as well, so now we have a 2 child stroller that Hailey can also ride in! Double bonus!

Well, although we hate to have to admit it, our little baby is growing up, it won't be long until we're celebrating another birthday. But despite how hard it us for us to realize, he sure is so much fun and we all are having a blast with him.

Happy Birthday Bubba - we all sure love you!

Hailey's Preschool Graduation

Seems like we've had a lot of posts about Zach lately. I guess that's just the typical end of school stuff. But we definitely couldn't forget to post about Hailey's preschool graduation. She has been loving school all year long and has been so sad about being done with preschool.

Unfortunately, her graduation was in her preschool teacher's backyard and it was really windy and cold! We were all freezing the whole time! But despite the weather, Hailey was in good spirits and looked so cute sitting up at the front in her paper graduation cap.


Only 7 of the 10 kids in her class were able to be there, but they were all so darling.


They went through some of the things they did in a typical preschool day and sang us some songs. I got most of them on video, but the wind was blowing so hard, you can hardly tell what they were singing!

After they finished their little program, they had a little ceremony to hand out diplomas. Here's Hailey getting hers and giving Miss Sandra a hug.


And here she is after the program, all smiles and happy to have had such a fun year.


We were so blessed to have Miss Sandra as her preschool teacher. She lives right down the street from us and it's been so nice to have such a great teacher so close to us. Hailey has absolutely fallen in love with her and has learned so much this year!


Even though it was cold, it didn't stop our kids from helping themselves to a plateful of refreshments!


So another year down and next year she will be on her way to Kindergarten. Where did the time go? Wasn't it just yesterday we were bringing her home from the hospital? Time sure does fly by. Well, no matter how fast it's gone by, she's really grown up and has done so great in preschool this last year. Way to go Hailey, we are so proud of you!

Pinewood Derby (Rocket Racers)

Now that we have a boy in scouts, we are beginning to go through all those fun activities for scouting. Well, our ward did the annual Pinewood Derby (or Rocket Racing Derby) this last month. Zach was more than excited as he planned out in detail what his rocket would look like - the actual shaping, painting, and assembling was a little crazy as he was new to the whole experience.

But the night of the derby, he was all excited and could hardly wait to race his rocket.


I didn't get any "construction" pictures, but here's one of him and the finished product. He was so proud of his rocket, which he named the "brown shark."


Hailey and Tate weren't sure what was going on and this was both of their first experience with Pack Meeting. It was loud and crazy and kept both of their attention the entire time we were there.


They were a little slow in the going at first and we waited for what seemed like forever until it was Zach's turn. The did one practice run and the propeller broke. Heartbroken, Jeremiah and Zach had to bow out of the race and head back to the fix-it table to repair it.


Once it was fixed, they joined another group of racers and were all ready to go (this time without a practice run, just in case!). Love his smile in this picture. I was lucky to get one that wasn't blurry. He was so excited that he kept moving just as I would take the picture and I had to take around 5 or 6 just to get a good one!


And here's video of the race - his brown shark did really well and it was so fun to see him enjoy the fruits of his labors.



It sure is fun to watch him get into all of the scouting activities. He's so cute and gets so excited. Way to go Zach, that brown shark was an awesome rocket racer!

Zach's Poem Program

Although we already attended Zach's 2nd Grade Program, his class also did a Poem Play. I was extremely impressed with how well all of the kids did and all of the poems they memorized.

Of course Zach was the best and the cutest!


Here he is in one of his poems - he's the only male witch, but he didn't care. He was wonderful!


Here he is with his class reciting the entire Gettysburg Address. It was incredible to hear the kids recite it.


He was in at least 2 or 3 other poems.


My favorite by far was the one he did entirely by himself. Unfortunately, it was at the beginning of the program and I was still figuring out how to take pictures, record with the video camera, hold Tate, and keep track of Hailey all by myself. I was able to record it, but didn't come away with a picture of it that wasn't blurry.

Regardless, he was the best one of the whole program and I am so proud of all he's learned and accomplished this year. WAY TO GO ZACH - WE ARE SO PROUD OF YOU!

Zach's Second Grade Program

The end of the school year means a bunch of things. One of the most fun for us are the school programs! This year Zach's school did a 2nd grade program for all of the 2nd grade classes. Zach was so excited, he could hardly wait.


He's such a good looking boy!


We didn't find out until too late that although we were on the front row, we were clear on the opposite end of where he sat. That made picture taking and videoing him a little bit difficult. But he was darling sitting all the way up there on his little chair.


The program was put together really well. Instead of some of the same old songs, they did a "2nd Grade Review" where they talked about some of the things they learned during the year and sang some of the songs that had helped them learn different things. Here's some video of one of the songs and the actions (so cute!):



We all really enjoyed the program, although Tate was more interested in Daddy's sunglasses than almost anything else.


Zach didn't have a speaking part, but he was in one of the songs about how they learned about different jobs. He was able to be the "banker" in the line and he was so excited for this part! Here he is all dressed up in his banker hat, suit coat, and with his little notebook.


They had a little part out in front during a part of the song.


He was so proud of his part and he did a great job!



We were happy to have Nana and Papa with us for Zach's special night. He was so happy that they came and we are so grateful that they try to make it to as many things as they possibly can.


Hailey didn't want to be left out, so we had to grab a picture with her in it as well.


We had a great time watching Zach and the rest of the 2nd graders during their program. What a fun time we had. Way to go Zach, we are so proud of you!

Lunch with Great Nana

The Saturday before Mother's Day, we drove up to Ogden to have lunch with Great Nana Bybee. We have been trying to get up to see her and Great Nana Downs for over a month, but haven't been able to make it up yet. So we decided to have her meet us in Ogden for lunch. It was so fun and the kids were really good, especially Tate since he didn't get his morning nap and refused to nap on the way up!

The kids just love seeing their Great Nana's and had a blast at lunch with her. Hailey insisted on sitting right next to her and talked her ear off the whole time. It was such a fun time.

Kylie and Libby even stopped by for a few minutes to say hello. Libby was headed to a picnic for Jedd's family and since the Cubs were playing, she was in her shirt supporting her team!


Mom and Dad were there too and after lunch we had to get a picture of them with Great Nana.


The kids wanted one with her too. All three kids just love her and were so happy to be there.


And here's a quick picture of our little family with Great Nana.


We sure had a great time and can't wait to see her again.