We've got a 6-year old now!!!

 Happy 6th Birthday Loppan!!!!

I believe that EVERY birthday (mine included :) should be celebrated.....you should feel like numero uno on your birthday, and I want Izzy to feel that way too, so I always start with birthday donuts.

I also had some trick candles this year that wouldn't blow out as easily :)

This birthday girl wanted her hair curled, and she wanted to wear her new outfit.

After school was over, we invited the neighbors over for cupcakes and popsicles!

We took a selfie in the car before swimming lessons.

This was the last lesson of this session, and she did great!

And there was a gorgeous sunset to boot!

And she still had a few more presents to open when we got back home!!!

I'm pretty sure she had no idea why we got her the safety gear....

Until she saw this!

She wanted one last year but I wasn't sure she was ready (or that she remembered) so I was happy to see the smile on her face as she was practicing in the living room ;)

I really really think she had a great birthday!!!

Swimming Lessons!!!

Izzy started swimming lessons a few weeks ago, and she absolutely LOVES it!  It's incredible to see how far she's come in just a few weeks.  Here's a kid that hated getting water in her ears when I'd wash her hair, who is now jumping into the pool all by herself!  This place is incredible!!!

Oct 15 2012 - swimming with the barbell from Jenn Trunk on Vimeo.

Oct 15 2012 - swimming with the noodle from Jenn Trunk on Vimeo.

Oct 22 2012 - Izzy jumping into the pool from Jenn Trunk on Vimeo.

Time at Grandma and Grandpa's pool

On July 4th, we headed up to my parents house to go swimming.  We didn't make it up there last year...seemed like we were so busy.  I gotta tell ya..our trip to Sweden made me really think about things.  I mean, I'm always busy, but I have a choice, and I'm trying to prioritize Izzy a whole lot more.  She's always right up at the top, but it's the type of time I'm spending with her that I'm working on.

Hnyway, enough gibberish...photos and videos!!!

She wasn't too excited early on, so she sat on Pappa

I don't know what it is about my Dad, but she warms up to him instantly now...Awesome.

Is this not the biggest cat you've seen?  It's like Beetlejuice...tiny head, big body.  Funny thing...that cat's name is Runt.  Yes, it was the runt of the litter...couldn't tell that now though :)

I was surprised at how quickly she did take to the water...jumping in from the ladder first

We had some pretty funky weather this day.  Occassional rain storm, then sunny skies...these were beautiful!

and the jumping in from the side with hands, to eventually jumping in without any hands at all :)

Here's an awesome video I took of Bri underwater!

There are a few things I miss about living in the country.  I miss how you can see storms moving across the sky.  I miss how the air smells when the rain is coming, and then immediately after the rain.  I miss being able to walk around in my swimsuit without fear of the neighbors seeing me :)  I miss gettin' dirty

And this is Izzy on the way home...interesting way to sit in her seat, wouldn't you say?

Brianne's Birthday

Ok, so I'm TOTALLY behind on this one, but I wanted to make sure I posted this because I know that my little sister looks on here, and I want her to see the photos.

So, her 11th (yikes!!! can't believe it!!!) birthday was back on September 20th. We had a nice little party with family at my parent's house. It was a little chilly that day, but you'll see that it didn't stop the kids!

Here's the birthday girl and her niece...

The girls (Taylor and Bri) were having so much fun playing with Izzy, and from the looks of the smiles on her face, she was having just as much fun!





This is my nephew, JT..trying to look like a thug..:)

Opening presents....of course there had to be SOMETHING in regards to the Jonas Brothers!

I have no idea what she was doing here

Here she is trying on JT's trucker hat

So, even though the pool was only 78 degrees, the kids wanted to go swimming. Amazingly enough, they stayed in there for quite a while!

Here's JT doing a somersault...pretty nice

Why do Cheetos and swimming always seem to go together for kids???

Here's a little mommy time

She was eyeing that water though..she REALLY wanted to get in

Joacim got this one...nice expression, JT!

Then, of course, they wanted Joacim to throw them into the pool...I think this is Taylor flying through the air

And now Brianne (this was a LOT easier when they were younger...they're almost too tall for it now!)

Finally Izzy gets her turn

Here's Bri's yummy cake!

And here's Izzy with her Grandpa....she LOVES her grandpa...doesn't matter how much time goes by between visits...

This MIGHT be part of the reason why :) (look at the expression on my dad's face!)


It was a great day!!!