Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Dance! Dance! Dance!
Kaiya took a tap, jazz, ballet combo class this past year. We put her in a combo class so that she could see what style of dance she liked the best. A week before her big performance they had a rehearsal which parents could attend and take pictures (since we couldn't take pictures of the performance). I was very surprised at how well she did! There were only 5 girls in the class but Kaiya was the star! After rehearsal her teacher came up to me and said that Kaiya did really well and that she was the only kid in the class that would be ready to advance to the other class. She said that she was a natural. Here are some pictures of rehearsal.

Monday, June 29, 2009
The day we have been waiting for...
I am not sure even where to begin with this post. 4 years ago Cirdan's daughter was born. VERY LONG story short....his ex (Sarah) wanted her then boyfriend to be Ava's daddy and didn't let Cirdan see her. He took her to court and after a DNA test he was able to meet his little girl when she was about 8 months old. They fought in court and after spending over $20,000 in fees he just couldn't fight any longer. He could not compete with Sarah's dad and the money he was forking out. The last time he saw his little girl was around Sept 2006 when Ava was about 15 months. He has been in contact with Sarah over the years trying to be a part of his daughters life...but each time she has an excuse. Now's not the right time...Ava is too fragile...she has all the love she needs....etc. There is a lot more to the story but that is the basics....
WELL...
Sarah is trying to move. She wants to move with Ava thousands of miles away so they can live with her boyfriend. To do this she has to go back to court and adjust the parenting plan. This has been a huge blessing.
Another long story short...Cirdan got to see Ava on June 20th for 2 hours. This was the 1st time he has seen her in about 3 years. It was also the same weekend as Father's Day which made this Father's Day one of the best. Their visit was at the mall so they played in the toy area, ate pretzels and opened presents he had brought her because her birthday was on the 18th. He also was able to see her this past Saturday. The visits are going extremely well and Ava has definately warmed up to Cirdan.
A court date is scheduled for July 23rd to see if the court will allow Sarah and Ava to move. We hope and pray that the court will not take Ava now and they will see that all these years Sarah has withheld her from all her dad's family. Ava has yet to meet Kaiya, Ella and I. That is supposed to happen on July 18th (a week before they are supposed to move!!!). The good thing is that whatever happens Ava is now apart of our lives. If the court does allow them to move they will have to redo the parenting plan which means that Ava will be flying here a few times a year to stay with us. That isn't what we hope for though. She needs to be here for at least another year to get to know us and to be able to meet her Grandparents, cousins and all the people that have been anxiously waiting for all these years to see this sweet girl.
It has been a very stressful month but hopefully this will all work out for the best...either way we are thrilled at the opportunity to have Ava part of our family.
WELL...
Sarah is trying to move. She wants to move with Ava thousands of miles away so they can live with her boyfriend. To do this she has to go back to court and adjust the parenting plan. This has been a huge blessing.
Another long story short...Cirdan got to see Ava on June 20th for 2 hours. This was the 1st time he has seen her in about 3 years. It was also the same weekend as Father's Day which made this Father's Day one of the best. Their visit was at the mall so they played in the toy area, ate pretzels and opened presents he had brought her because her birthday was on the 18th. He also was able to see her this past Saturday. The visits are going extremely well and Ava has definately warmed up to Cirdan.
A court date is scheduled for July 23rd to see if the court will allow Sarah and Ava to move. We hope and pray that the court will not take Ava now and they will see that all these years Sarah has withheld her from all her dad's family. Ava has yet to meet Kaiya, Ella and I. That is supposed to happen on July 18th (a week before they are supposed to move!!!). The good thing is that whatever happens Ava is now apart of our lives. If the court does allow them to move they will have to redo the parenting plan which means that Ava will be flying here a few times a year to stay with us. That isn't what we hope for though. She needs to be here for at least another year to get to know us and to be able to meet her Grandparents, cousins and all the people that have been anxiously waiting for all these years to see this sweet girl.
It has been a very stressful month but hopefully this will all work out for the best...either way we are thrilled at the opportunity to have Ava part of our family.
Last Day of School...Finally!
School is OUT! We've been having so much fun this summer now that I am home and not working. The last day of school was both sad and happy for Kaiya. She enjoys going and seeing her friends everyday but she definitely needed and break and is looking forward to getting a new teacher (even though on the last day she said she wanted Ms. O'Donnell again next year....??? Weird since she didn't like her...). It's been nice to be able to sleep in, go to bed late, and not have to be home at 3:10 to pick her up from school.
On the report card Kaiya brought home her teacher had nothing but good things to say about her. The report said that Kaiya was reading above 1st grade level and her current fluency rate is 90 which is significantly higher than the 50 they are looking for. We are so proud of her and can't believe she is going to be a 2nd grader soon!!
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Happy Fathers Day!!!
Some things I think of when I think of my Dad...
My Dad is my hero and friend.
He has such a big heart and doesn't like anyone to feel bad.
The fishing trips that he took us on when we were little. I remember loading the boat up with snacks and donuts and sitting out on the lake or river with my dad waiting for the fish to bite.
Going to work with him when I was little on Take Your Daughter to Work day. He would let me play in his office and introduce me to everyone. I loved to visit him at his work.
Sitting on his lap and steering the steering wheel while he would brake and gas the car. Then when I got old enough to reach the pedals he would let me drive around the school parking lot by myself.
His sense of humor. He is always doing something goofy or acting silly. I know that when I need a laugh I should call my dad. He is so fun to make fun of and he definitely returns the laughs.
I know that when I need something he will be there. Even if he is 5 hours late. He will be there.
Batting my eyes and asking ppplllleeeaaassseee.....he would give it to me. I had to have a pager when I was in high school...my mom said no...my dad got me one. Then I had to have a cell phone...my mom said no...my dad got me one. Thanks dad!!!
Going to help him carpet clean. My job was to make sure the cords were out of the way.
He working 2 jobs when we were little so that we could have a house and have my mom stayed home with us during the day.
Being nervous and loading the van up with a TON of sandbags in case there was snow when we drove to Utah only to find not a drop of snow.
He would take videos of us with his big old box video camera. That thing embarrassed me so much when I was little but without him having to video tape every award ceremony or family function or just us hanging out we would have no videos of us growing up.
Dad - I am so lucky to have you as a dad! You are one of my favorite people in the world. Thank you for everything you have done for me and my family. You are such a hard worker and I admire you so much.

Here are some thoughts from Cirdan about his Dad...
Going to Airshows when I was little. We went to tons of those! I loved the jets and getting to see them up close and personal it was awesome...and the road trips that came along with them were great.
Going to Father and Sons camp outs. He was always the 1st guy up making pancakes for everyone, the guy helping everyone get their tents set up....and the first to get every one together to go on the zip lines, canoeing, or for a hike.
I remember hitting wiffle balls in the back yard with my dad. He would pitch to me all the time....we had to have gone through so many wiffle balls. I would always try to hit them out of the yard, across the street, and into the woods.....HOMERUN!
He was always very calm and level headed every hospital trip. Whether it was splitting my chin open, getting a 4 inch sliver in my chest or a tooth through my lip.
Lighting off fireworks. We would always go to the reservation to get bombs. Every year we would blow different things up. One year was the top of the fence another year was all the big weeds in the drive way, along with the weeds we made some nice holes in the driveway.
I remember hiking with him and his good friend Bernie. They both really loved the outdoors. Bernie would be pointing out every tree, and plant, explaining everything about them.
Saturdays going to the shooting range with my dad and his my grandpa. I can picture him laughing and my granda cracking up as I would try to stay on my feet, and not get knocked down by the kick from shooting all of their shotguns ( I think we started when I was 7 years old, and did it for a few years)
Dad, love you. Thank you for the memories! Looking forward to many more.
Cirdan
I couldn't have asked for a better dad for our girls. He is so compassionate, caring and loving. It makes my heart melt every day when Ella wakes up from her nap and yells....Daddy!
Kaiya spent about an hour the other day writing a note to Cirdan. It is so cute and it really shows how she feels about Cirdan. Every time I read it I get a lump in my throat...
Dear Cirdan you are the best mover in the world and you are the best dad and step dad! I am so proud of you.
2. Dear Cirdan you are nice to your friends and family have a good one!
3. Dear Cirdan you are good at booking jobs.
4. Dear Cirdan you make the day brighter.
5. Dear Cirdan you are good at sports!
6. Dear Cirdan you are A great owner of your job!
7. Dear Cirdan you are cool and funny.
8. Dear Cirdan you are interesting and weird.
9. Dear Cirdan you are all these thing on here. I like you so much that I am so glad you are my step dad so much. That your whole family loves you so much. Even your friends like you so much. Your whole family loves you.
Love Kaiya
By Kaiya
Monday, June 22, 2009
Ella's 1st trip to the zoo
A few weeks we wanted to go do something fun. We decided to go to the zoo. Now that we have our own business it has been hard to get away from the phones and have a little fun. Having fun is something that we definitely need to do a little more of. We decided to buy the membership.
We walked through the zoo and then stopped in the children's play area. I knew that if we had gotten Ella out of her stroller we would have never been able to get her back in. I thought this kids area was really fun for the girls!
We walked through the zoo and then stopped in the children's play area. I knew that if we had gotten Ella out of her stroller we would have never been able to get her back in. I thought this kids area was really fun for the girls!
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Kaylee receives her Green River CC diploma
Kaylee graduated from High School June 2008 and she also finished her AA from Green River Community College at the same time.. Because of deadlines she couldn't walk in graduation so when this June rolled around she decided to walk with the 09 Green River class. My Mom, Dad, Stacey, Casey, Nate, Amy, Kaiya and I all attended. It was a long ceremony but I was so happy for Kaylee and I am so proud of her accomplishments.

Words that Ella is saying...
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