Welcome to the Smith's!: May 2015

May 25, 2015

May 2015

May is flying by! It seems like every day brings a new adventure!

Soccer has finally ended for all three kids! The last set of games were rained out (bizarre for AZ, I know), so they were finished the following week. Laila, Kenadi, and Dustin have all received their trophies and are looking forward to their next season already! Instead of taking individual photos this year I opted to have one photo of the three kids done together. I have one to frame and a few for family. It turned out better than I could have ever hoped for! It was a long season of practices five nights a week and games nearly every Saturday, but I'm super proud of how well the kids did! We made it!

Spring Soccer, 2015

School is also over for the summer! The day before school was released I attended an award assembly for Laila. She has worked very hard to keep her grades up and it shows! She received an award for the Principals List (all A's, all semester) and she also received the President's Education Award! How phenomenal! She couldn't believe it was actually signed by the President of the United States! Starting in 4th grade the award is available. She said only a few kids in the entire school received them, and she was surprised to hear her name called. I don't base her achievements on letter grades, I tell her as long as she does her best, I'm happy. She sure is a smart cookie!

Principals List! All A's!

President's Award!

We usually celebrate the end of the week with "Sonic Friday", I drive the kids over there for Happy Hour, half price drinks! It's just a fun way to let off the stress of the week and prepare for the weekend. School let out on a Thursday, so I knew I had to do something special! Starbucks it was! My kids are coffee junkies (decaf, of course!) like their momma, so it was only fitting to celebrate the end of a great year by spoiling them with a special treat.

Starbucks for the girls!

School and soccer are over? You know what that means! Time to stock the kitchen! The kids are growing like weeds and it's hard to keep up! My regular shopping store has become Sam's Club! I buy as much as I can there in bulk to save on the cost, and the kids went with me this time to help!

Take a look at that shopping list!

My super shoppers!

Stay tuned for the "25 Adventures" we're doing this summer, #smithfamilyfun if you're on Facebook! I've planned 25 different things for us to do in the valley this summer to that we've never done before! I promise to spare you a thousand photos and just do one photo collage per event. May, June, and July is ours for the taking!

May 12, 2015

April Recap: 2015

Just when I thought things couldn't get any more hectic, April rolled on in with a fury! Between soccer practice 5 nights a week and 3 Saturday games, this momma is wiped out!

The kids have done exceptionally well with soccer this season. They've been such troopers sitting through each others' practices and games!

Go Team Lightning!

Go Team Firehawks!

Go Team Lions!

Laila had her quarterly endocrinology appointment and things are still going fine. It's hard to believe that in September she will have had diabetes for 5 years! Anyway...at Laila's appointment, Dustin taught Kenadi to tie her shoes. It literally took one try and she had it!

Way to go, BooBoo!

April brought with it some seriously warm weather! The kids took their first swim of the season and loved it. I stayed on the side the whole time and still haven't taken a dip in the pool yet. Nothing more than my feet have been in. These pics were taken at my friend's house, her pool has a built in jacuzzi. Fancy!

Laila!

Kenadi!

Dustin!

Last fall when Jenn and I saw the Counting Crows (a dream come true, that was!), a band we've never heard of opened up for them. "Daniel and the Lion" played a few songs and after their performance, met in the lobby. Jenn and I each bought their cd and chatted with a couple of the band members, Jimmie and Makayla. They both autographed our cd's and promised to return to Phoenix one day.

As promised, they came back! As soon as we saw the tour date listed, we bought our tickets! They performed a few new songs and a few songs off their album, Death Head. After the performance they met with the fans and chatted a bit. I bought copies of their other cd's, all EP's and only 4 songs each. They have been rotating through my car cd player all month. Love it!

Jenn and I were able to chat with each of the band members and they all signed one of my cd's. Everyone's really great and personable, and so humble. Here are a few photos from our night out:

Daniel and the Lion

Jimmie!

Daniel (he's the only one who doesn't sing)

The band, minus Daniel. Bizarre, right?

April brought with it another accomplishment. I completed my very first 5k! I didn't train to run, but I did run about a third of the race. The rest I walked with my friend Billie Sue. We had a great time in the bubbles and even though they made the ground a little slick we made it out alive!

My goal by the end of 2015 is to be able to run an entire 5k without stopping. I have a ways to go but I'm working on it!

My first 5k!

That's me, and Billie Sue!

Goodbye, April! See you next year!

Girls Weekend!

I felt like I was truly losing my mind. My stress level was off the charts and I felt like I was suffocating. Drowning. Losing myself. I needed a break and didn't know what to do, so I text the one person who I knew would understand, from experience, the life of a mother. The sinking feeling of not being appreciated, unnoticed, of the relentlessness of being tired.

Nessa. My best friend in Nevada. She was feeling the same way, I just knew she'd get it. We take turns visiting each other, it's not much more than a 4-5 hour drive between us. Our last visit was spent together as 2 families, something we've never done. It was a great time, but neither of us got a break-which was the sole purpose of our weekend getaway.

I sent Nessa a message and explained just how desperately I needed to get away. We quickly agreed an outing was in order. She needed a break, and why should one of us miss out? Flagstaff, here we come!

We met up on a Friday evening and the rest is history. We laughed until we cried. We made memories I'll never forget. We shopped, ate, drank, relaxed and explored. We talked, laughed, cried, and made memories. I left that weekend in a puddle of tears knowing it'll be months before I see her again. No amount of time spent together will ever be long enough.

Below are a few of my favorite snapshots from the weekend. I took over 50 photos! Flagstaff was beautiful but my company was what made the trip phenomenal.

We made it! Let the fun begin!

Snuggling. Laughing. Friends.

Bottle 2? 3?

Bottle 4. It was for sure bottle 4.

Did we really drink all that?

The view was breathtaking.

The little things. Like a coffee with your bestie.

Love. This. Chick.

Soap!

She brings out the best in me!

Breakfast!

Best. Crepe. Ever.

Wine tasting!

Mmm...Moscato.

We went crazy in the candy store!

How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.

Tucson or Bust!

Dustin and I managed to sneak away for an overnight trip to Tucson. It was quick, 24 hours max! Thanks to our amazing friends Jenn and Mark, they stayed with our kids for us! They brought their son, Nate, and their quads with them and all camped out here at our place.

Dustin and I had plans to see Sturgill Simpson in Tucson and since it was a late show, he booked us a hotel room and we stayed the night, heading home early the next morning. The kids were in great hands, I can't ever thank them enough for taking such good care of my kids!

We were well on our way when I received this in a text message:

L to R: Laila, Dustin, Nate, Kenadi, Jenn
Thanks, Jenn!

On our way!

Sturgill Simpson!

Sturgill Simpson!
It was an awesome show!

D, K, and L sitting in the truck bed!

Laila and Kenadi on the quad!

Peace out!

Dustin ready to ride!

Dustin and Nate! Best buds!

It's rare we get a date together, so a night away was amazing! Dinner, drinks, a concert, coffee in the morning, it was well worth it and much needed! I had a great time and look forward to when we're able to do it again!

March Recap: 2015

March was yet another crazy month. We sure do keep busy around here in the Smith house!

This month starts soccer season for not one, not two, but all three kids! This is Laila's fourth season, Kenadi's second, and Dustin's first. Here's to hoping I maintain my sanity with practice 5 nights a week!

My son has officially started speech therapy! He goes every Monday from 8:30-9:00 am. He will only get about 9 sessions before school lets out, but he will resume again when school starts in the fall. Did I mention he'll be in KINDERGARTEN in August? I can hardly wrap my mind around how fast he's growing.

First day of "school"

An amazing friend of mine sent me a little care package. She sure knows the way to my heart! Chai tea, dried strawberries, and chocolate? What more could a girl want?

Thank you, my beautiful friend!

An old friend from High School's mom and I have kept in touch over the years and she was visiting AZ with her husband. She sent me a message to let me know and I was able to meet up with her for the afternoon! We had a great time shopping and talking, and ended our time with some delicious lunch and drinks! I'm glad after all this time she still thinks of me!

Me and Stephanie (Matt's Mom)

Whole Foods has an awesome kids club I signed my kids up for. Every couple of months they do an activity and March was an outdoor event! There were all sorts of things to see and do, and it was all completely free! (Thank goodness, that store gets half my paycheck every month anyway!)

Checking out the crocodile!

Face Painting!

Chandler Fire Department!

Laila's class field trip was to the Pueblo Grande Museum in Phoenix. I was lucky enough to be able to go with her class. They did an archaeological dig and we toured the grounds. They had a few exhibits and replicas there, and it was extremely hot!

Laila was digging!

Laila and her posse!

Laila and her friends.

March also brings with it the hot weather I've been talking about! And you know what comes with hot weather? The ice cream truck!! We have a really creepy van that drives through our neighborhood, but the guy is usually pretty well stocked and very friendly. We're the first section he rolls through so the kids get their pick.

Low blood sugar = Ice cream treat!

Bratz!

Despicable Me!

The Renaissance Fair was here and I was able to finally take the kids! We had all sorts of fun visiting the different vendors and sampling all sorts of things. I bought some soap and tea and threw a tomahawk! The kids tried an archery gun and Laila played a didgeridoo!