The last 5 months...

Yes, I have been a slacker. Yes, I have picked up on the subtle and not-so-subtle "update your blog" hints. Since Ty lost his job in January, we have been spending a lot of time together as a family and just enjoying the girls. I wouldn't say the job loss has been a good thing, but it has brought us closer as a family, and for that I am grateful. I know to some it may seem that we have disappeared from the radar, but I assure you we are here - healthy and happy.

So what have we been up to the last 5 months, you ask? Well, if you really want to know - read on...

First up, we went to Disneyland. We found a killer online deal and literally decided to go about two hours before we left. We made it into a road trip - stopping in Vegas each way to break up the drive. The girls LOVED the fountians at the Bellagio, and the fun rooms we stayed in (New York, New York on the way and the Luxor on the way home.) The girls were great in the car, and we had some fun rest stops along the way. However, Disneyland was definately a dream come true. The girls were awesome - we didn't even have to rent a stroller. The girls got to meet a lot of characters and they LOVED the rides. Ky especially loved Splash Mountian (which she called "log") and Savvy's favorite was the Teacups. Ty and I loved watching the girls faces and the Monte Cristo sandwiches. Since Blogger is not friendly when I try to upload a lot of pictures - you can see them by clicking HERE.

Second, Ky's test scores came in and she is going to be moved into a "diagnostic kindergarten" next year. This is good news - she knows almost all her letters, colors, and shapes! However, we still are facing some counting, vocabulary, and speech issues. So, it is kindergarten - just with a smaller class size and a speech therapist. Savvy will be moving to the four day a week preschool program next year - she is so excited since she is a little social butterfly. I am also working on another summer preschool program, so hopefully the 2010-2011 school year will be the best yet! The girls have been asking for karate, ballet, and swimming lessons... we'll have to look into that as well.

Third, Ty and I were able to get away for a night without the kids - we went with Misha (one of my best friends) to see the Runaways. I think we all agreed it was beyond brilliant. We made it into an entire weekend of fun - we took the girls to Nicklecade, went cosmic bowling, and I got a tattoo. It was something I have wanted to do for a really long time and Ty helped design it - which was extremely special to me. The design was inspired by the book Breaking Dawn and the girls. It is on my back and reads "plus que ma propre vie" with two stars under it. The quote translates from french into "more than my own life" and the stars represent the girls. If you want to see it - there is a photo HERE.

Fourth, Ty got into a car accident. Luckily, he was fine and he was the only one in the Jeep. Some idiot turned into him while he was going through a light. The girls were very sad though - they wanted the "Jeep-Jeep to go to the doctor and get a BIG band-aid." Sadly, it was totalled. Luckily, we had rental insurance - so we are riding around in a brand new 2010 Jeep Grand Cherokee for a month while we find a new car. We are hoping to get a Honda Pilot, but it's proving harder than expected to find one. There are pictures of the Jeep post-accident are HERE.

Fifth, we were lucky enough to have Ty's little brother Garet and his girlfriend Ingrid come out for spring break. Ty went with them snowboarding and we did a bunch of fun stuff together. The girls especially liked going to see Alice in Wonderland in 3D and eating at the Mayan. The visit was way too short - hopefully they come out again soon!

Sixth, we went to the Nelson family reunion in Georgia. Ty's parents and siblings were all there for a fun-filled week on the lake. We went boating, tubing, fishing, and played all sorts of games. The girls both went on the tube with Daddy (Savvy went once and was "done", but Ky could have lived in the water.) They both also caught fish - although they were a bit sad that they had to put them back. Ky posed for a picture with hers, but Savvy was scared of her catfish. The girls were very good at putting on shows and entertaining everyone. We had a great time seeing everyone again and relaxing on the lake. The girls especially liked their new cousin Emmie. It was the first time they had met her and she is a cutie! The girls got so spoiled by their Grandparents and the Powells - we actually had to borrow extra luggage just to get home. All the fun was captured in pictures that you can find HERE.

I am aware that I missed adding Christmas and Easter to the list - they were both oodles of fun, but I can't seem to find our pictures of them at the moment. So anyway, we are around and enjoying life. Ty is still looking for a job, but he has several promising leads and hopefully he will be employed soon. The girls are set to graduate from preschool later this month, and I am working on catching up on the house. So lookey-there... blog updated!