Synchronized candle blowing!

Here is Sterling blowing out the candles with one of his favorite friends (Brynley) who has the same birthday as him, but was at HIS party!!! So CUTE how excited he gets about sharing. I love that kid!

ps- don't listen to my voice...I cannot do more than one thing at a time and I was taking pictures-ha ha

Happy Happy Birthday Sterling Dear!

Sterling Daniel Sorensen turned 6 TODAY!!

and it was a day of PARTAY!!!!
I don't know how many of you get woken up to a hot air balloon pretty much in your backyard for your birthday...but STERLING sure did!
I kept hearing a funky sound from my room
So I threw open my shutters and threw out the sash
and what to my wondering eyes did appear..a HOT air balloon flying SO NEAR
(The air filling up the balloon can be quite loud! )
We had a breakfast of donuts while watching it follow the river by our home--
and float away out of sight!
IF that was not the best day ever....Aunt Cara came over the day before and helped mommy make 23 ice cream cone cornucopia's for Sterling's class. Cara's looked prettier, so she did a majority of em'.
They turned out looking pretty yummy if I do say so myself!

of course, Sterling got the royal treatment at school. With the class cake at his place all day, a birthday sticker, and new sunglasses!

Mommy came into help in Sterling's class that day as well.

I pulled Sterling out of school after for lunch and took him to McD's for a happy meal!

What a glorious day...

ONLY for Sterling to come home from the school day less than an hour, AND go to another friends b-day party (Riley Bliss). The boys are only 3 days apart.

While he was party'ing mom was busy making sure the Turkey cupcakes were iced & finished... and party bags filled--before she headed out to Sterling's party

WITH his friends (they invite the number of kids according to the age they are turning...he invited 6) at the local ceramic shop! Including a surprise appearance from Grandpa Sorensen (who drove over and hour to be with Sterling on his birthday)

Everyone painted ceramics, except mom (including Dad and Grandpa)

and opened presents and cake and drank Punch.

Sterling even got to add his hand print to the famous birthday wall in the back of the shop!

Incidentally, one of Sterling's favorite buds who has been one of his friends the longest (Brynley Taylor) shares the same birthday as him. He has always taken her flowers for her birthday-(despite them moving farther away and not getting to play as often)! She came to his party, and Sterling LOVED sharing it with her (check out the video clip I included)

oooh...but don't let the fun end there. We drove everyone home and then returned home to PARTY with the FaMilY (who had to wait very patiently w/ Aunt Cara for us to return) They had painted their own little pumpkins and wrapped all the presents.

One last round of cake, singing, and presents and we called it a night....

Sterling said it was the best day of his life!

And I Cried!!!!

Thursday August 6th was the FIRST day of SCHOOL! This year I sent 2 boys off to school. Sterling went into Kindergarten and Colton into 2nd. They were soooooo excited! There was not a minute of remorse or sadness from them. I felt the same way, I was excited FOR them. I felt like I was prepared since I had already done it with Colton for two years now. I dropped them off just fine and did not even feel a little sadness, especially when I saw how excited and ready they both were for this. They were in good hands.

BUT THEN I GOT HOME! I had not really understood the place Sterling has played in our family's autonomy, until he was gone. It became evident when I got home. I missed his presence. I was looking forward to having only two home--which has been a LONG time coming. BUT I did not realize the make up of our family that was left at home. Ryland has followed his brothers since the day he was born. Dacie and him rarely associate. Dacie follows me around.There is a little over 2 yr. difference in their age, and they are both hitting two milestones in their play that are the exact opposites!! Ryland is building and Dacie is tearing down. It is going to take a little bit to learn about each other. Even when Sterling was in preschool last year Dacie was taking 2 naps and was asleep for a majority of the time.

Sterling is the ultimate helper and cleaner around the house. He always has been. It helps a task driven mom who appreciates a clean house when they lay down for naps, picking up toys and putting them in their proper place, strapping Ryland into his car seat,or needing a diaper, or taking out a dirty diaper... I did not realize how helpful my two older boys were. I asked Ryland to get a diaper for me and it took him 45 minutes of serious whining and him telling me, "mom, stop making me panic!"

The boys were my extra set of eyes as well. IF they saw the younger ones doing something naughty they would tell me or stop them. BUT with them gone... in a manner of minutes after getting home Dacie had the left over rice krispy cereal left in the box out of the trash can and all over the carpet, couch and her.

The two kids followed me around most of the day and cried. I could tell they felt out of place. Ryland just wanted to eat all day because his playmates were gone and Dacie was SUPER jealous to have someone else vying for my attention. Ryland was super needy and needed me to look at him in the eyes and let him know he was heard. He showed me every cheeto he ate at lunch. I had to look at every single cheeto because it was skinny, or fat, or funny. AAhH! I missed my boys.

I did not just miss their help, I just missed them. They complete our family and it just felt awkward. I missed their little personalities with me. So at one point during the day I lost it. I just started sobbing. I could not help it. I wondered if this ever gets easier-for missions, college, marriages. They are all necessary and good things...but it does not mean I don't miss them.

Poor Ryland did not know what to do when I started crying. Him and Dacie immediately came over and were kissing and hugging me. Ryland asked me, "whats the matter? Did Daddy ruin your life?" (where did he get that from?) I smiled amidst the tears and told him that I just missed Colton and Sterling to which he replied, "why mommy are they going to live in a different house?" Then he started getting teary-eyed. I told him they were definitely coming home I just missed them during the day while they were at school. At this point I needed to pull it together for the babies at home. So I distracted myself by making a cake that looked like a bus for dinner to celebrate their first day (thanks for the idea Grandma H).

I was always close to tears for most of the day...BUT then they came home! I got to hug and tell them why I missed them. They told me about their wonderful days... and the fighting started. We were right back to normal!!! Today has gone much better. It is hard growing up!

Bye Bye T-Ball!

On Thursday Eve (5/22) Colton and Sterling had their LaSt T-BALL game of the season! So the whole family went to cheer them on!
Sterling had a GrEaT hit..after knocking down the T a time or two
Colton kicked into high-running gear as he headed for home!
and as the LaSt high five's ended...
the team ran over to the park for trophies and root beer floats
The mini-party ended just as the rain began, that had been threatening to come all evening--Afterwards, we sat as a family under the pavilion at the park listening to rain hit the roof as we ate dinner!
Go Mariners!!

First Swim (and final farewell) of the Season!!!!

Sterling sitting next to one of his favorite preschool aids, Ms Erica after getting his scrapbook-they are in blue front and middle!

Sterling's Preschool did their Final "Ta-Da" at one of the teachers' homes (who was incedentally one of our first freinds here in Cottonwood)...The Backus's. They have a beautiful home and backyard, and we enjoyed the comforts of that home, as we held a pot luck there Wednesday (5/21) evening.

They had a beautiful playground, trampoline, field, horseshoes, gazeebo, fireplace, swimming pool....

Colton climbing down from the playground-far right in blue

After the food was devoured, scrapbooks handed out, and gifts given...they opened up the pool. They had told the kids they they were going to do this at preschool, Sterling had passed the news along to his siblings...so there was NO talking my kids out of it, despite the weather (the clouds and wind rolled in w/ on and off rain). Dan and I enjoyed getting wet watching on the sidelines as they enjoyed their first swim of the summer!!!

The Last Days of School!

It being the last day of school, with it raining and Sterling's water day at preschool cancelled. I thought I would take the moment to celebrate this momentous day and share a few specimens of the LARGE amount of papers, drawing, journals, and projects that came home this week! (I wish I had a paper recycling box, that was free and easy)This is one of Colton's first journal entries. He was right on track for a first grader (capitalization, complete sentence, punctuation)...but notice how short, amount of misspelling, and style of handwriting.
This was Colton's journal entry about spring break. Check out the length (they had to add more papers for his journal every day as he was writing more then there was space for), he had a title for the entry (I cut off), and very few misspelled words, as well as his own self corrections and a The End--like a story.
Here is one of his very last journal entries. I am impressed particularly with his neatness of handwriting. It looks as good as a teachers, when we (teachers) had to take handwriting classes in college, and practiced on lined paper. Not bad for a boy! Colton is a neat and precise little guy! Yeah Colton...our new 2nd Grader!!!!!
I picked 2 of my favorite journal entries for Sterling! He had much less journal entries..but it made for a shorter show-and-tell that day for me (much needed this week with all their work coming home).

This one is a picture of Yoda--ha ha ha. I have to giggle so hard at the ears on Yoda and his green light saber. Can you tell the boys are into Star Wars around here?

Last, but not least...Is his journal entry about the chick dying. I wondered out of all the boys if this little experience had affected him at all, because sometimes he can be reserved or react differently than most children w/ serious things. But, this journal entry gave me validity that it had made an impression on him, as he rarely wrote about things that took place at home in his journal (he preferred holidays, spiders, blocks, and things at preschool). You have to look carefully at it as the picture on the other side is 'bleeding' through, but he did color his (brown) and Ryland's (blue) eyes the right colors to differentiate between the two.

Sterling is obsessed with calendars, dates and looking forward to events that are upcoming. He knows that he will be a kindergartner on August the 7--not a day sooner or later! Ha ha-I love that little chump!

IT'S OFFICIAL!

I am a WITCH--- (with pink hair might I add)

Sterling was so proud to show off his picture when I came to pick him up from preschool...because it was a picture of his MOM! I was thinking how kind it was, as I noticed my name in big letters at the top MOM...AND then I read the bottom -It's a witch. I asked him if I was a witch and the response was AFFIRMATIVE.

Bet you wish I was your MOM! ha ha ha

HaPpY EaSter!!!!

Easter Sunday March 23, 2008We LOVE this time of the year where life begins to peek out once again, and we remember that all will live again!

(our backyard nectarine tree always adds some color to our day)

The Easter Morn Sorensen Kids-

(L to R) Colton Ray (6), Ryland Kent (3), Dacie Ann (1), Sterling Daniel (5)

The Whole "blue" FAM!

I'm Blue da de de da de da

Can't get enough pictures...just to be sure!

This picture is a 'feat' in itself considering it was taken BEFORE church (which starts at 9am) and we were on time! (thanks to the egg hunt note left by the Easter bunny)

AND because we had such a busy day-the day before, on Saturday: We cleaned the whole house from recent company leaving, watched three other kids for a few hours, and went on a date out to eat and play games w/ three other couples (Trezises, Rabans, and Bargars) to celebrate some of their birthdays. It was a LATE night for the Easter Bunny!

The Easter Bunny MADE IT...barely!

Because it was such a late night for the bunny's "helpers", there was NO candy left in the store. BUT his helper did have some serious detective skills and she was able to find some stashed packages hidden in the store shelves, AS WELL AS get creative with pink juice and pastel 'regular' candies...at least the umbrella's had already been bought!
The 'helpers' were not neglected either!

The kids keeping asking when it is going to rain....NOT VERY often we keep telling them. It looks like we may have to wait until monsoon season to get good use out of their umbrellas! We rarely need them, so we don;t have them...but when you do need them it is inconvenient to not have em' . THANKS BUNNY!
A little candy to get us through church!

Allot of Dan's family had unexpectedly gathered down in Phoenix together. We did not want to be the lone man out AND we did not want Easter to be the only day we did not attend church (as a friend of mine put it). So after sacrament, and after I had turned over all the games for singing time, we snuck out of church and headed down to the valley.

Dacie got in a little cat nap and beauty rest on the way!

So IMMEDIATELY upon arrival the patient boys followed the Easter Bunny's note and...
FOUND the eggs!






While Dacie got in some quality cousin time (the ONLY cousin on Dan's side!)
I am surprised that they are not in matching outfits, as we seem to always get them together to take pictures whenever we connect across states.
I hope they are always close little girly cousins

Lola sharing her Easter basket w/ Dacie
We also enjoyed a yummy dinner,
and Colton cheating in a game of battleship with Grandpa (who said you cannot move the ships half way through the game?)
Uncle Russ (the only Sorensen sibling not home, out of the 6) called to tell us that he got ENGAGED- he got Colton on the phone and told Colton to tell everyone who had gathered in the room. This is Grandpa talking to him on the phone about his future June wedding!

One last fling with the basket ended our day as we drove back home to Cottonwood to begin a NORMAL week-bummer!

Oh yeah- and some of the Aunts BLiNG completed Dacie's celebrations! What a GIRL!!!
We hope your Easter was full of loved ones, spring color, blue clothes (ha ha), food, safe travels, eggs, church, and remembrance of our Savior.