First day of school 2008

Here are Kevin and Emma on their first day of 1st grade and 3rd grade. Kevin was a little nervous; mostly about lunch for whatever reason. I think he was also worried because he didn't know very many kids in his class. Emma on the other hand had several from 2nd grade in her class. This first picture is of them sitting on our front porch.

This one is in the shade of a tree in our yard. Still it was too bright for Emma and she had to squint. I can't wait for her wedding pictures!














Here they are walking to school. I think we have "walking to school" pictures of all of the kids.














This is Kevin and I on the playground.














This picture is of Emma and her two friends, Bailee and Katelyn. I hope their teacher can handle the 3 of them.














This is Emma just waiting at her dot. (Each classroom is numbered, and a corresponding numbered dot is painted on the playground near the doors. The kids line up on their dots when the bell rings and the teachers come out and bring them inside.)














This next picture is Kevin and his friend, Jessica, from his kindergarten class. He was sure happy to see someone he knew!














And finally, Kevin's class going inside. They both had a great first week, although Kevin came home and crashed on the couch a couple of days. All day school is hard! I should remember to take pictures of the big boys, too. Maybe I'll snap some this week.

Before...

The day after we took Tara to Cedar City, we tore into her room to remodel for Emma. These are some of the before and during pictures. We tore out the carpet first. After 10 years and several children (mostly teenage girls) living in there it was DISGUSTING!
We painted the walls this way for Tara, but I never really liked it. Sorry, Tara. She loved it, though. She had this whole tropical look going on.
The closet had never been painted since the home was built, so it really needed it. Now the whole room looks like a big, pink, cotton candy room. Emma loves it!
I'll post some after pictures soon.

NOT Captain America

Although the square jaw might make one suspect that Steven was really Captain America in disguise, it's simply not true. He's just plain old Steven a few days after getting his wisdom teeth removed. Pooooor Stevie! He swelled up really bad and stayed that way for about a week. He's feeling much better now, but I think he misses the smoothies! We're just glad to get this out of the way before we even start thinking about his mission.
As a side note: Tara had her wisdom teeth out in April, Rebecca in May, Steven in August, and a week later in August Craig had 3 teeth pulled as part of his braces/dental work. Leave it to the Jex family to keep all medical personnel in Las Vegas happily employed!

Swimming Lessons

After 2 weeks of swimming lessons, Emma and Kevin are FINALLY not afraid of the water and can actually do a few basic swim moves on their own. Emma figured out she wouldn't drown while backfloating, especially since she could touch the bottom of the pool and keep her head above water. Kevin still struggles with the idea that he can float on top of the water. (They had a very patient teacher!) I have these scrapbook magazines and a recent layout was titled "The REAL Lifesaver." It was all about how swim goggles saved the day. It was SO true for Emma and Kevin. Who knew that simply wearing goggles would make them more brave? As soon as they had the goggles they started progressing immensely. I just love how they look in them, too! I also just HAD to include the picture of Kevin standing between the same two girls from the "last day of kindergarten" post. Coincidence?!? I think not. ;)

Tara's at SUU!

It's been a crazy couple of weeks and I've gotten behind in my postings. Craig, Logan, and I took Tara to Cedar City on the 18th. Craig took the back seat out of the suburban and it was still clear full.

We wondered if we could fit it all in her dorm room, but somehow we managed.

We found her room and were surprised to find out that my niece, Suelyn, is right next door. What are the odds of that happening?!?

Tara's roommate's name is Skye, and they seem to be getting along very well.

It was nice to have Logan with us as the comic relief. He helped us keep our emotions in check. We all were fine by the time we left Cedar.

I thought it was going to be harder to leave Tara there, but I think the fact that her roommate was already there made it easier. Now if we could just get her to remember that she's there to study...and by study I mean books not boys! We love you, Tara, and hope you have a good experience.

Kevin's 6th Birthday

Kevin turned 6 on the 10th of August. After Emma had her birthday party, he kept saying, "This was the best party ever!" Then he started telling me who he was going to invite to his birthday. I finally had to tell him that he wasn't going to be having a birthday party, just a birthday. He was a little disappointed at first, but when I explained that Emma had one because it was her special birthday, then I think he was feeling a little better. It was still fun for him, though, because Grandma and Grandpa Jex were here for it!
He had an Indiana Jones birthday cake. (Not homemade...Wal-Mart.) He thought it was pretty cool! Emma gave him candy, which is always a big hit. Tara gave him a Webkinz Clydesdale pony. He named him, what else, Clyde. Craig and I give the children books every year for their birthday and Christmas. This year's book was a Marvel Comics heroes mix-and-match book. He's really into superheroes right now, so this was a good choice for him. Logan gave him a Transformer. He thought that was awesome! Steven gave him a new light saber. He loves Star Wars and uses the force whenever he enters a building with automatic doors. "Yes! I used the force!" All of his other light sabers had seen better days and had been retired (thrown away) some time ago, so he was really excited to get this one. Last of all, Craig and I gave him Planet Heroes stuff. (Do you see a pattern here?) He got a DVD in the mail about a year ago introducing Planet Heroes toys from Fisher-Price. There's a hero from each planet in the solar system, and they all help each other fight the evil Black Hole. He has loved the movie, so we thought he would enjoy the toys. He got Ace from Earth, Gustus from Jupiter, and a space ship. These are super fun toys that he hasn't stopped playing with yet. They also came with a new DVD, so that was an added bonus! All in all, I think he had a wonderful birthday.

Emma's Baptism day

Here is our pretty little Emma on her baptism day, last Saturday, August 9, 2008. She is wearing the same dress that Rebecca and Tara wore on their baptism days. I didn't even realize that I had kept it until about a week before.

She was absolutely glowing in anticipation. She was so ready to be baptized! During the meeting, she looked like she was about to cry. I asked her if she was okay and she said she was just tired. I think she was totally having a spiritual experience.


She had Rebecca give the opening prayer, Tara gave a talk on baptism, Steven talked about the Holy Ghost and Logan gave the closing prayer. Craig baptized her and George and Grandpa Jex (also named George) were the witnesses. It was a very special day for her.

During the closing prayer, Logan asked that the refreshments be blessed, which was funny considering we hadn't taken any to the church! However, we had ordered Subway sandwiches to pick up on the way home, so we were covered.

We had quite a crowd at the house, which made the day even better. Emma's guests, besides family (which also includes grandparents and Jared and Halle), included the Lainharts, Taylors, Rowleys, Tidwells, and Ryan Moreno. (Steve Tidwell and Ryan are our home teachers.)

We are so lucky to be blessed with good friends and wonderful family. We love you all.