Remembering when Claire was little...

The babysitter we had when Claire was little sent me this video a while back. I love that she still thinks about Claire and still has videos and pictures of her! We were so very blessed to have Ms. Jen watching our beautiful little girl and helping her to grow into the amazing daughter she is today! I love this video and thought it might make everyone smile! Hope you enjoy it!

Cake wars!

Claire has been super interested in the show Cake Wars lately. Saturday evening when I got home from work I walked into a Cake Wars competition and I got to be the judge!

Jeff spent the afternoon with Claire taking turns making their own creative cupcakes within a certain amount of time, just like on the show!

 As you can see, Claire too this very seriously and had to make sure her cupcakes were perfect!

 And here are the creations I came home to! Before I could eat them, Claire and Jeff had to each present their cupcakes and tell me about them! Very creative and very interesting to taste!

Claire FINALLY loses her first tooth!

Two weeks ago Claire's two middle permanent teeth on the bottom came through but her baby teeth would not fall out. After a trip to the dentist and being reassured that they should fall out soon, we began working on them twice a day. Finally yesterday we were able to get one of the stubborn teeth out with a little yank. As you can see from the picture, Claire isn't quite sure what to think about it all!

 At Christmas, Claire had made her own tooth box to put her teeth in for the tooth fairy. She was so happy to finally be able to use it!

 Our happy girl showing off her missing tooth!

 Our very happy girl when she woke to find the tooth fairy left her $5.00!

Seeing family

On Saturday evening we made a quick trip up to Grapevine, TX for cousin Hudson's first birthday party. We spent the night in a hotel where Claire could swim for a while in the morning. Thankfully the pool was heated!

 We grabbed lunch before the party and Claire thought it was pretty cool to drink her orange juice and water together through two different straws. What this kid comes up with sometimes!

 Claire and her cousin Hudson at his birthday party! We also got to see Norma and Marcy at the party.

 Then we got to see G-Ma on Skype. Claire loves to read books to her on the computer. Thankful for this technology to keep in visual contact with G-Ma frequently!

A weekend with girl friends!

This past weekend Claire had her first sleepover. Her good friend Addisyn spent the night on Friday. The girls had so much fun playing Wii, playing board games, making a fort, and having ice cream sundaes while watching a movie. They went to bed at 9:30 pm but it wasn't until 10:30 pm before the giggling and talking stopped! Then on Saturday morning we picked up Claire's other good friend Karsen and went out for donuts. After that we played more games, made mini pizzas for lunch, put together necklaces with beads, and went to Disney on Ice! The girls had so much fun and each got to get one special treat of their choice. So fun to just sit back and listen to the conversations that take place! It was definitely a fun and busy weekend!

A beautiful day for the zoo!

We got to spend this beautiful day together at the zoo. The weather was perfect and the animals seemed to be very active as well. Claire had fun feeding the ducks, navigating her way through the zoo, visiting a special exhibit that makes art out of the trash found in the ocean, and then riding on pedal boats before heading out to diner with some great friends. Feeling overly blessed today!

Fun with MeMaw and PawPaw!

Ever since Claire donated her hair, she has realized just how nice it is to have it short. The moment it reaches her shoulders she requests a haircut. Not sure if we will ever see her with long hair again! So we began our Friday evening by getting her hair cut. I love this picture of her getting ready to get it cut!

 After her haircut, we went over to MeMaw and PawPaw's house to play games and visit. Claire had  a great time teaching them how to make fortune tellers!

 With some guidance we all were able to make fortune tellers and had a good time sharing our new game with each other! What a blessing these two amazing people have been in our lives. We thank God every day for them and for their involvement in our lives!

A beautiful day to be outdoors!

We had such a great family day today. We witnessed a friends son get baptized at church this morning! Then we went for a 5 mile bike ride, played at Claire's school playground, and washed the car. So thankful for family time together and for the beautiful weather we had this weekend.

This was the very first time Claire has been to a self car wash. She was so excited to help Jeff wash the car!

 It wasn't ok to drive home and then dry the car. Claire made sure we dried it off in the parking lot before leaving the car wash! What a great helper she is!

1st grage field day at Black Elementary

It was so much fun watching Claire and her classmates at field day this year. They did such a great job cheering for each other and staying focused. They all gave their best and had a good time.

 First was the baton relay race...

 then was the ice cream race.

 This was their break station where they got water and were able to spin the discs on their finger. 

                                                         

 Then they moved on to their favorite- flip the chicken. They had to throw the rubber chicken as far as they could.

 Claire and her beautiful first grade friends in her class.