Self Manager

What does it take to be a self-manager? 
                                     You have to be safe, respectful, responsible and follow the rules of the school.  Your reading, your writing, your ELD(English Language Development) and your Home Room Teacher all need to sign off on your behavior.

Once you are a self manager, you get to:
Help the teacher
Get in line first on PE Days
Get a drink in the back of the classroom during study time
Go to the bathroom without a pass(You still have to ask the teacher though)
Help pass out papers
Erase the board when the teacher says

Leila tried really hard last year to be awarded a self-manager badge and did not get it.  This year she did and is very pleased with herself.  We are too. 

Good Job Leila!

Nov. 5th, 2011

Our sweet Leila was baptized as a member The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. 

Congratulations Big Girl!  Thanks to our amazing friends and family who joined us in supporting our girls decision of baptism.  We have so much support and love in raising our children, its quite a blessing. 

8 is Great!

Sept. 4th marks the Day when Jeremy and I became parents!  What a wonderful and blessed day that was!

I always tell Leila that in the months before having her I would have very vivid dreams of her.  I especially liked the dream when they would bring her to me the first time and our eyes would meet.  I always tell her when that happened, it was my biggest dream come true.

Leila is very excited to be 8! She said on the way to church she was starting to feel like an eight-year-old. She is very kind and compassionate, always want to help out those who aren't feeling well. She is sassy and wants what she wants, but she knows what is right and always makes the right choices.

We had a very laid back picnic with our family and some friends at a local park. The kids had a blast and Leila enjoyed herself immensely. Thanks to everyone who supports and loves Leila. Thanks to everyone who supports and loves Jeremy and I and helps us to be better parents to this amazing little big girl!

We love you our BIG GIRL!  So glad to have you in our family!

Last Day of Scool Celebration!

I am sure if you have been around the Conser home for the last year or so you have heard the discussion of the "Big Top Cupcake".  My kids saw the commercial and were relentless with their pleas to get us one!  A Big Top Cupcake is basically two cake pans, one in the shape of a cupcake bottom, and one in the shape of a cupcake top- you use one cake mix to bake one.

Fingers showing their new grade!

SO- my gift to the kids was a BTC Party!  I made them each their very own Big Top!  Nathan was thrilled- he told me he was going to smoosh his face into his!  That he did- check it out:

Leila's last week of school was good- except she was pretty sick.  She stayed home her last Friday and her last Monday.  Party in Reading(which is watching a movie-- how many movies do they watch that last week?) was on Tuesday so she refused my taking her temperature.  She went and had fun.  Wednesday night she was up in the middle of the night with ear pain.  I got her drops and got her back to sleep.  The next day, Thursday(last day), around 11:30 I get a call from her teacher.  Leila had been crying the past two hours, but was refusing to go to the office because she didn't want to leave school early.  So I dropped Kathryn off at my neighbors(thanks Erica!) and went down to talk to her.  She decided she didn't feel good enough to stay and it was OK if she went home, they had a little party(They watched a movie- the latest ice age).  So we got a frosty and she napped all afternoon.  Poor sweetheart.  She asked me if she would still get her very own Big Top since she came home from school early.  I said:  Absolutely!  You finished 1st grade, even if you came home early on the last day!

Me and My Big Girl

Dasiy Day - June 4, 2011

Leila and I are having a blast with Girl Scouts.  I am not sure I am such a good leader.  Thankfully the other people in the girl scout organization are very patient with me.  And the other Mom's in our troop are amazing and I am so glad I am getting to know them better.  There are a few more rules and regulations that I want to follow... and a few too many deadlines I can't seem to keep straight.  But like I said, so far everyone has been nice and have let me make things work, even when they probably shouldn't have.  Its for our girls though... they are worth it. 

Brook, Peyton, Jordyn, Leila, Alora
Troop #45507

I love my little troop.  And its been really good for Leila and I. 

I love my big girl!  Can't wait to see what her future holds!

Cookie Season is OVER!

Leila had a successful Girl Scout Cookie season!  Thanks for everyone who supported her- she sold 250 boxes and is very excited at her success!  As for me-- this Cookie Mom was almost GIDDY with excitement when I went to bank to turn in the last of our money.

A sincere thank you to our friends and family who supported Leila. 

Yep- this is A LOT of cases of cookies!  We SOLD THEM ALL!  In total our troop sold 758 boxes of cookies-- not bad for our first year and not knowing what to expect!

Thin Mints are Leila's Favorite!  We had Thin-Mint Milkshakes for dinner one night!

Our troop had three booth sales- and boy was it COLD!  But Leila was a trooper.  Here she is with Peyton in front of Thriftway.

All about GIRL SCOUTS!

Leila- Daisy Troop 1st Grade

Our house is full of sales!  Our little Girl Scout has been selling cookies like crazy for her first year of girl scouts.  We really have no idea what to expect or where to set her goals, so we are just going with it- and having fun.  Pre-sales end tomorrow(but sales do continue through Feb), so if you need a few boxes of cookies, please call us!

I took her to the store yesterday to get her uniform and gave her a choice between earrings and the little beanie.  She chose the beanie-- which I am very happy about because it is so darn cute!  Leila becomes an "Official Girl Scout" on Wednesday at her Investiture Ceremony, which should be a lot of fun. 

Girl Scouts have been around for a very long time with the confidence and self-esteem of girls as the first priority.  Our girls are special.  They are capable of doing anything they choose.  They are delicate creatures and do require special handling so they are as aware of their specialness as we are.  As a parent of a girl the responsibility it great to raise her to understand her value, her worth, and how incredibly amazing she is.  I am glad we are involved in this organization.

Leila and two of her favorite things

Or Kathryn and two of her favorite things....

Saturday Morning Video Games

First Day of SCHOOL!

The kids were so excited for school!

Well... Leila was. Nathan wasn't so much.  I couldn't coax a smile out of him for anything.  He and I went and got donuts for breakfast for the family this morning, and that certainly helped.  I am thinking this might become a tradition- he is our early riser and we have plenty of time to go pick out a dozen donuts and be back before the others are up.  

Nathan thinks Kindergarten is boring.  In his words, the only good thing about kindergarten is they got to go outside and play.  Leila thinks 1st grade is just a little bit harder than kindergarten, but mostly the same.  She LOVES it, as we knew she would. 

We took our annual walk down to the school, with all the cars backed-up we are glad we are able to walk to school on first days(and any other day when it doesn't rain). 

It will be a fun year to see how they both settle in.  I can't beleive I had a 1st grader and and kindergartener!  Nathan is going half days thru next week, then he will be in full day kindergarten.  He was also accepted into the two-way immersion program, so expect my kiddos to be speaking some spanish to each other soon!

I love these kids-- LOVE THEM!

Sweet Seven

Our sweet Leila turned 7 today!  Its hard to believe I have now been a mom for 7 years.  Its even harder to believe how beautiful she is and how much she has grown.

I always wanted to be a mom.  The weeks and months before  Leila was born I would dream about the moment we would meet face to face.  In my dream my husband would bring her to me and her eyes would look up and lock on mine. 

On Sept. 4th, 2003 that exact thing happened.  She is simply my dream come true.

Happy Birthday Leila!  You are our Angel Girl!  We are crazy about you!

The New "Do"

She grew out her bangs for a long time... and now she has a new do to show for it.  Just in time for a new school year, and a whole new age.

Isn't she LOVELY?

Girl in the Tree

My little Leila loves going to Grandma and Grandpas house. She loves it best in the summer because she can climb their apple tree. When we get there she immediately goes out and climbs- sometimes she doesn't even say hello, that is how excited she is to get to that tree!

This reminds me of my Sister Bethany- she always climbed the trees when we grew up.

Run for Congo

My sister by marriage invited me to join her in the Run for Congo 5K June 26th- a cause she was very excited to support. And of course I said yes! Not only have I been enjoying my own competitive running, its even funner doing it with someone you enjoy being around.

The run was at Macleay Creek Park- in forest park- and was straight UPHILL to the halfway point. Then it was straight down hill obviously to the finish line. My thighs were killing me the next day- I guess running down a dirt/rocky trail uses different muscles than my usual route which is on a sidewalk and much more gradual hills.

The highlight of the event for me was my amazing daughter. She joined in the kids run and RAN THE WHOLE THING! I still haven't figured out how long of a run she did- but I am thinking it was around a mile. She was trailing several boys that were probably around 10. As I was running down the hill(Tamara let her sprinting genes take over and quickly out ran me- although we did stick together UP the hill) I noticed this sweet little girl heading towards me. I was so excited to see her! I asked her if she wanted to turn and go around with me, and she said no- she needed to see where this ended! A bit further down Jeremy was walking with Carina and he was stressed because Leila had gotten away from him(he really needs to take up running). But she was OK. She told me people were "talking" to her- and asked her how. She said they were saying good job and stuff. She then asked me if it was OK that they were talking to her, and I said in this situation yes, it was OK. She wouldn't want to walk off with anyone, but we were all here for an event and it was OK that they cheered her on. Nathan seeing my reaction to Leila wanted to run it- so he and I headed up the trail to find Jeremy and Carina- and there they were- so he technically crossed the finish line too.

What a fun event! Thanks for inviting us!

Odds and Ends

Pictures from the last month that I wanted to share.

I am thinking $3.00

Leila's tooth has been hanging on by a thread for weeks! Finally a few nights ago she pulled it out. She brought it in and told us: I am thinking $3.00.

Yay for toothless smiles.

A few of my favorite people

Our Angel Girl

Leila is just my sweet girl. I think I am amazed a little every day at how much she is growing up on me. She is so capable of so much. I really rely on her to help with the baby, keep peace with her brother, and just hang out and make me laugh.

My friend who has spent time giving service in Africa talks of the children who are raising children. Little girls around Leila's age are raising younger brothers and sisters because their mothers have passed away. Not only are they taking care of children while they are children, they are often in extreme need and poverty. I honestly can not imagine how stressful this is for them and feel so blessed I can provide and care for my children.

I used to look at her and think there was no way she could handle this kind of situation. While I don't think she is really capable of raising a family of her own at the tender age of 6 1/2 (that half year is very important to include), I realize she has the potential in her to care and love and make the world easier for others. Easier for her brother and sister, her friends and teachers, and especially her parents.

She has realized her role of comforter and caretaker and uses her abilities to smooth out my rough edges. She helps me be a better person. She is simply a blessing to have as my daughter.