Western Washington State Fair.

Today we made our annual pilgramage to the Puyallup Fair. The weather was perfect, the crowds were minimal, and the kids were well behaved.
After driving around for only 15 minutes we found a parking spot 4 blocks from the fair. This morning the only thing that got Cooper out of bed was the prospect of seeing cows, horses, and pigs. So when we finally got to the fairgrounds he was really really excited.
This year we decided to do all the mommy/daddy stuff first, so that we could just maybe enjoy ourselves a little bit too. Cooper found the biggest pumpkin at the fair, weighing 1,094 pounds. "Look a big one!"

We ran into Grama Nina, Great-Grama Teresa and Aunty Ruth. Don't know who that guy is, but it's the only picture I had with Cooper looking at the camera. Cooper was really good and didn't run off. Unless he saw his Grama.

While waiting for our lunch, Cooper found Aunty Aimee. We ended up spending most of the afternoon with Karl, Aimee, and Tyler.

Cooper was a cutie. I had to take this picture. For some reason, he wouldn't eat. He wanted to look at the cows, RIGHT NOW!

Finally the time came to go to the Cows. LOGAN LOVED THE COWS. He would bend over with his hands on his knees and pucker his lips and say, loudly, "Mooooooooo!" Then wave, and say "Bye-Bye!" Proceeding to the next cow and repeating the same process all the way

through the barn.

Next it was onto the Pigs. Every year there are only 2 thing I Have to see. 1. Baby Pigs 2. Baby Chicks. That's all I ask. It's not much.

Most important stop of the day...

Hand washing station!

We made two stops, heres, one. I didn't take pictures at the other. We tried to go and see the Monkey show, but it was way crowded by the time we got there. Cooper couldn't even see from Aimee's shoulders.

Logan and Tyler could care less, they were just having fun being together.

We tried to see the dogs, but there were none. We tried to see the draft horses, but they were roped off because their event was starting. Sooo, we had to make deal with the rabbits and poultry barn.

I found this sign completely hilarious posted next to the turkey.
"I bite hard."

I think the highlight of our animal tour came when we went to the petting farm. The boys both loved it. I couldn't get a good picture of Cooper, he was moving around too fast.

I think Logan really liked the chance to be around smaller animals. This is his first time ever in an actual one on one with goats, rabbits, and sheep.
Our next point of interest was James' favorite.

The Outdoor recreation building.

Here's Cooper doing his bear rug impression.

James always likes anything to do with the outdoors. Recently he has taken up fishing, and today he wanted to take Cooper to the fish pond here at the fair. What kind of family outing would it be if I didn't get a picture of a tattoo on one of my children.

Cooper was so patient standing in line. James on the other hand was disappointed that he couldn't go up there with him. But capturing a big smile on Cooper's face while fishing was worth it. Cooper did catch a fish, but it got away. After that, he wasn't really into fishing anymore.

Our trip wouldn't be complete without a trip to the firestation.

My little fire men.

Finally it was time to head back to the car. It took us nearly a half of an hour to leave the fair. Cooper wanted a corn dog and water, and James wanted to check his raffle ticket again.

Even outside the fair we couldn't resist a goodie. After all it was hot, and a shaved ice tasted sooo good on our walk back to the car.

We had fun at the fair. James and I are thinking about heading back by ourselves. Just so we can relax and enjoy the fair as adults.

Animals at the Fair..

1st Day of School!!!!

The first day of school has finally arrived!! Yeh! Cooper was a good boy this morning. He woke up really happy and excited to go to school. On nice days like today, we walk to school.

We went over a little early today to make sure we had enough time to take a few pictures. Cooper was running up and down the ramp, he was too excited to stay still in line.

Cooper and Ryle were anxiously looking through the window. Finally, Ms. Deanna opened the door!!
Cooper walked right in and went straight for his cubby. (He had the same one as last year at my request to keep things 'routine' for him.)
Then into the classroom and sit down quietly, so all the mommy's can take pictures.Here's Cooper with his new teacher. Ms. Deanna Holbrook.
It was like any other school day. It was a pleasant morning. I must admit though, I was ready to have my mornings back. To clean, to shop, to relax??? This morning marks the first day that I'll have MacKenzie everyday. She is such a big helper. She helped me vacuum, make the beds, do laundry, sweep the floors, & take out the garbage. Did I mention she also helps with Logan? It's nice to have another girl around the house.
After all our chores we were off to the bus stop to pick up Cooper. After waiting longer than usual the bus finally came. From across the street. I don't know if you can see it, but Cooper's waving to us inside the bus. I'm so glad he has the same driver as last year. She is so nice and friendly. She said that tomorrow MacKenzie can get on the bus to see what it looks like inside. They were running behind today.
Here' s my little man.
He is the friendliest and most polite child. As he got off the bus he said "Thank you" to the driver, and waved good-bye to all his classmates on the bus.
He was done for the day. "No more, mom!" What a big boy....next year will be harder for me to take...

Kindergarten.

Pre-K Orientation

This morning the 4 of us attended Cooper's Pre-K orientation. To say that Cooper was excited to go to school would be an understatement. We were only there for 15 minutes or so to meet his new teacher, Ms. Deanna Holbrook. Cooper did not want to go home. That's a good sign right? He starts school Monday the 8th of September. He'll be in the a.m. class 8:40 a.m.-11:15 a.m. Mon.-Thurs. at Gildo Rey Elementary.

Back to School Craft.

I wanted to do some kind of back to school craft with Cooper and MacKenzie, so I found this fun idea on the internet a few weeks ago. They each made an egg-carton school bus.

Thankfully Grama Pam pulled through and had yellow paint. We just barely had enough to paint 2 egg cartons. Our neighbor and friend, Kati, came up with the cute idea to put pictures of a driver and kids on the bus. Thanks Kati, they turned out great! Plus we had fun too!

Here's Cooper's finished project.
MacKenzie's was really diligent with her painting. She did a great job, too!
Mac's Bus. She says that the little girl behind the driver is her.
Dustin E-mailed me this picture of Cole's first day at school on Wednesday.
I added this picture of Lexie 9-15-08, We pretended it was her first day of school. She actually started 9-4-08 with the rest of the kids