I am truly Thankful

50's Day at her school

Having fun at the park

Look! My very first haircut!

Enjoying a Saturday afternoon

Happy Thanksgiving!

Sometimes we just need to let things go!

Sometimes it's difficult to understand why people do certain things. Perhaps it's not our job to understand. Instead I need to keep reminding myself that it just isn't worth it. As much as it hurts or just plain sucks I need to remember to let it go. ahhhhh!
I have so much to be Thankful for!

October Fun

October was a very busy month for the Russell family. Three trips to Disneyland, a trip to the Pumpkin Patch and Halloween. The girls had a great time getting ready for the festivities and dressing up. And what's a Halloween without a Princess in sight? This year we had three Princesses (although Tinker Bell isn't technically considered a Princess!). Miss M decided to re-use her Snow White costume (which made us excited not to have to buy a new one this year!) from 2 years ago, Miss I dressed up as Belle and Baby K was Tinker Bell which Miss I wore 2 years ago! They had a blast!
Halloween was spent with good friends including their Auntie and Uncle. The kids made their own pizzas and the adults noshed on tasty appetizers. Then all 18 of us trekked out for over an hour Trick-or-Treating. We couldn't believe how easily Baby K followed the kids. She really knew what to do and couldn't wait to get to the next house. It must have been so exciting for her to get something from every house!

Miss I is doing great in preschool and we were lucky enough to have a beautiful day to enjoy the Pumpkin Patch. She had a great time with all of her friends and her little sister. It was too bad that Miss M was in school and couldn't join us.
All in all in was a great October!

The girls all dressed up

Never seems to be enough hours in the day

I wish the day could just be a few hours longer. Now that we have two girls in school and after school activities, I now understand all those little yellow signs hanging in car windows in the early 90's stating "Mom's Taxi." I always thought they were pretty lame but can appreciate it much more now that I am a mom who practically lives in her car! Don't get me wrong...I love bringing the kids here and there but to get other things done such as grocery shop, bank, cleaning the house, etc... it's pretty difficult. And throw in working and it never gets done! How do mom's who work full-time and have 4 or 5 kids handle it all? Kudos to them! I admire their ability to do it all. I'd love some pointers if they got em!

Who can ever get tired of Disneyland?

Not our family! We spent another beautiful Sunday at the Happiest Place on Earth! Everyone in the car by 6:30 am and we arrived just as they opened the gates. I swear, we never get tired of this place. The girls have an absolute blast and it's been such a joy watching Baby K discover all that Disney has to offer. It is such a magical place for these girls and watching their smiling faces and eyes light up brings tears to our eyes. It reminds us how precious and how short childhood really is in the grand sceme of things. They will have plenty of time to be adults and do adult things when they get older. It's so important for them right now, to just be kids and have fun doing it! Going to Disney and doing other kid things is what they will remember. We are so blessed that we are able to make these memories that will last a lifetime!

P.S. We're going back this Sunday! =)

Smooches in Toontown

Cotton candy face

With Cinderella

On Tower of Terror.....Miss I is our brave one!

Why oh why can't things be put away?

After dropping the girls off at school today I go home and make a quick phone call. I notice Baby K is unusually quiet so I go check on her and this is what I found. This is what happens when her big sister doesn't put things away! But boy does she look cute!
She definitely keeps us busy! She is into everything and starting to enjoy some of the things her big sisters are into. She loves playing with babies and pushing them in their strollers, she loves to dance (look out Simi Dance Center!), and apparantly she loves to color! If only it were on paper and not on herself! =)

We have a preschooler!

Today was Isabella's first day of preschool! She was soooooo excited! For the last two weeks she kept asking "how many more days till my preschool?" The countdown began and before she knew it she was there! This morning she even told Maddie "Now we're both gonna go to school!" When we got there we found her cubby and immediately sat on the carpet to begin her day. She was a bit shy when she met her teacher and even sitting on the carpet she was more reserved than I thought but I knew she would have no problems. So while other children were crying because their parents were leaving....I was the one crying as I left my middle baby.

She had a great day! She played on the playground, washed babies in their bathtub, made a calendar, read a book about letters and a coconut tree ("Chicka, Chicka, Boom, Boom), and ate snack consisting of rainbow goldfish crackers, cheese, and apple juice. We are so proud of our little girl and can't even believe this day has come! Why do they have to grow up so fast? We are excited for all she will learn and the friendships she will make.

Here's a couple of pictures from her first day!

Happy first day of Preschool, Isabella!

I took a picture of Izzy and next thing I know Katie walked right up so she could be in the picture as well. She is such a ham!

Outside her classroom

Sitting patiently (and quite happy I might add) on the carpet waiting for class to begin

She was so excited to show us her calendar she made with her picture on it!

Izzy already knew how to write her name but I've never seen her Z's look as good as they look here! Amazing!

We have a 1st Grader!

I know many of you have seen most of these pictures on Facbook and pretty much know what is going on in our family, this is for those of you who have not entered the oh so exciting but addicting world of Faceboook!

Well, the first day of 1st grade went off without a hitch! Madeline got up extra early that day as she was excited not only about school but about wearing her new clothes and bringing her new backpack/messenger bag and lunchbox to school. It's funny how her clothes resemble that of my Catholic school uniforms......and she picked it out! Must be in her genes!

We can hardly believe we have a first grader! We are so excited about all she will learn this year (although she did get a head start with all the 1st grade materials I brought home last year when I was teaching! oops!) She has become such a good reader and everyday we are amazed atw quick of a learner she is. She seems to like her teacher and is very comfortable at school.

In addition to school, she and Izzy have dance every Monday and Thursday. She's also in a Daisy troop which meets every other Tuesday and CCD will be held every Wednesday. Needless to say she'll be one busy girl and I'll be one busy taxi driver!

We are so proud of her!

With her sisters

Ready to start 1st grade!

Is it really September?

I have got to get better about blogging....and if it weren't for my friend who started blogging on her blog I might not be doing this.

Can't believe the summer has come and gone! What a great time for our family. We kicked off the summer with what else?....but a trip to Disneyland with all the cousins. From there we headed to Scottsdale, Arizona for a few days of relaxing. The kids had a great time swimming in the pool and we had a great time hanging out watching their smiling faces. We also got a chance to visit one of my good friends from High School and her family. All 6 girls had a great time playing and getting to know each other. We also went down to the beach, took a day trip to Legoland, and had many a barbeque!

Miss Maddie participated in Vacation Bible School and Busy Izzy had 4 weeks of private swimming lessons. She is a little fish! We can't believe how good of a swimmer she has become in such a short time. She is comfortable jumping into the deep end and Lee and I can breathe a little easier as well. Baby K is already 20 months! Where does the time go! She had a great time swimming in the pool over the summer. She is a very busy toddler and loves climbing! She's getting better going up and down stairs and is quite the little runner. She definitely knows when she shouldn't be doing something because she will run away with the cutest little laugh. It just tickles her little black heart to get into mischief!

That's it for now! I promise I will get better about posting on the blog and if I don't feel free to call me out on it!

xoxo

Spring is here even though it feels like summer!

I know, it's been quite a while since I've posted anything on the blog. Life sure has been busy in the Russell household! Last Thursday was my last official day as a long term substitute in a first grade class. I started the first week of November so between working and taking care of the family I was extremely busy! Now I'll have more time with the girls but will certainly miss my students.

Madeline is doing amazing in Kindergarten. She is reading and loves to write! We are so proud of what she has accomplished. It truly is amazing! She has been taking a weekly hip hop class for the last 2 months and loves it. She'll be in the recital performing her dance on July 25th so we are looking forward to that. Two weeks ago she also learned how to ride a two-wheeler! She just asked me to take the one training wheel off and off she went. She is now comfortable turning around without having to stop the bike first and can ride standing up. It looks like she's been riding for years! We are also anxiously waiting for her two top teeth to fall out. They are quite loose! She has already lost her 4 front teeth on the bottom! Not that I want her to lose any teeth, nor do I want her to grow up (it's happening too fast) but it is pretty gross how loose they are!

Isabella is doing great! She is quite the ham. She too is taking a weekly hip hop class and loves it! She sure knows how to shake her hips! We decided to hold off having her do the recital until next summer but are now not sure if we made the right decision. She loves getting up in front of everyone and putting on a show. She knows all her letters and letter sounds and loves working on 25 piece puzzles. We're hoping to get her into a preschool program in the fall. She is so ready for it!

Kathryn is growing like a weed. She has been walking for the last month. The next thing we need to work on is her speech. She's really not saying much and just grunts when she wants something and growls when greeting people. It's actually quite funny, she must get it from her Daddy! She understands a lot and can shake her head yes when you ask her if she wants something but doesn't quite have the words. I guess she doesn't really have to talk since she's got two big sisters to talk for her!

Here are the girls on Easter.

We've been slaving away in our yard (with the help of my Dad). We dug trenches and laid a new irrigation system complete with sprinklers and bubblers. Now we're just filling in the trenches and will soon begin planting grass, flowers, and plants. We are so excited and can't wait to see the final product! Lee has worked his butt off and has done a great job!

We hope everyone is doing well! I hope to post more often but you could always check facebook for updated pictures of the girls. We'd love to hear from you!