Chickens for Caleb!

For some time now my nephew Caleb has been asking to see what our chickens look like. So Caleb my dear this post is for you!

Remember when Uncle Dan first brought them home and they looked like this?

 

Then two weeks later they looked like this:

 

Check out their cute little feathers growing on their wings! They sure liked to cuddle in the corner!

 

Now four months later they look like this!

 

 

And this! Isn't their chicken run cute that Dan built?

 

He did an awesome job building them a big old coop and chicken run over in the corner of the yard where I hardly even notice them! They still like to sleep next to each other but they do it side by side stretched across the roost inside the coop now.

 

Dan also just finished building their nesting boxes so in a couple more months when they are ready to lay eggs they will have a spot.

 

Our total number of chickens is 15! I know, I know, when Uncle Dan first convinced me into buying chickens he told me 6 or 8. Then he brought home 12 and we gained a few more when his co-workers son brought home the chicks that hatched in his elementary school class and his mom said when they grew too big they had to come to the Riding's! In a couple months when we are bringing in over a dozen eggs a day our neighbors better be ready to enjoy them! When you come to visit I promise I'll make you an omelet!

Dancing Queen!

Last month Lydia had her ballet dance recital and as I went to journal about it I realized that I have done a lousy job documenting her dance history. So before I tell you about her wonderful recital I thought I'd take a little trip down memory lane and include a handful of pictures from her first couple classes.

If you know Lydia very well then you know that her favorite song is "Dancing Queen" sung by Abba. No joke, it really is her favorite and she really likes Abba especially the "Mamma Mia" song! She has spent a lot of time dancing her heart out in the kitchen and family room. One day we were driving to the store and she saw a dance studio with pictures of ballerina's and asked if she could take ballet. So before we knew it she was enrolled for a class at Westside Studio designed for 2 & 3 year olds called "Two Much Fun!"

 

It included a thirty minute dance class where they would learn to stretch, follow instructions from their teacher and dress up, dance and have a great time! Then for the last 15 minutes they would have a little tea party in another room!

 

These were some of her favorite dress ups.

 

You Go Girl!

 

The Little Mermaid and Butterfly were her favorites but I think my favorite was when they'd dance to "Hard Knock Life" from Annie. There was something hilarious about watching these little girls dance around with buckets and pretend to scrub the floor while they dance!

 

On their last day the families are invited to a little recital where they dance for us! Then at the end they all lined up to sing a song for their daddies. It went something like this, "I've got a date but I won't say who, I've got a date but I won't say who . . . He is tall and handsome too, he is tall and handsome too . . . Yes I've got a date and Daddy it's you!" Ending by pointing at their dads and melting their hearts!

 

Then they ran off and came back with little trays to serve their families snacks and have a little tea party on the floor!

 

She fed us cookies and we showered her with love and some flowers for a job well done!

 

We opted for swimming lessons in the summer and then last fall Lydia started taking ballet from one of our friends and neighbor, Trista Pitcher. Lydia loves her class, especially getting stickers afterward and her new found friend Presley. In December she had her first Christmas dance recital, remembered almost all her moves and even had Grandma & Grandpa Riding come watch!

 

Little Ballerina

May 17th was the night of Lydia's big dance recital. She was so excited she couldn't even sit down to eat her dinner and kept jumping up from the table and running into the living room to dance and practice. Her anxiety was contagious and her little brother could tell that something exciting was happening tonight!

 

Lydia was thrilled to be dancing on a "real stage" and Emmett was thrilled about sitting in his own "big chair!" He enjoyed the recital but especially seeing his sister. After her class would leave the stage he would repeat, "Where Sista? Where Sista?" over and over again until her next number!

 

When the Tarzan music came on Lydia was right on cue and remembering all the moves. Then about thirty seconds into the dance, Lydia suddenly stops dancing and bends over to pick something up off of the floor. It must have been something really exciting because she proceeded to spend almost the rest of the dance picking up more and more of them. Then she joined in at the end of the dance with her one hand clutching something very tightly.

 

Afterward in the dressing room we asked her what had been so intriguing on the stage and she said, "They were sparkles and I was picking them up for mommy!" Apparently some sparkles from the costumes had fallen on the stage and sweet little Lydia decided that she'd surprise her mommy with them!

 

For her second number they were butterflies and this time she only stopped once to pick up a sparkle but for the most part kept on dancing! Especially at the end of the song. All the other dancers skipped off the stage when it was time but Lydia kept on dancing out in center stage by herself until the music stopped. It was rather adorable!

 

It was also rather adorable to watch Lydia in the dressing room. She thought the mirrors with big lights were amazing and was pretty cute admiring herself in the mirror!

 

Lydia really did a wonderful job and besides dancing on a "real stage" she was also rewarded with a rose from her teacher and flowers from the family!

 

Congratulations Lydia, our beautiful ballerina!

 

Memorial Day 2010!

I've always loved Memorial Day and taking time to think about family members who we love and have passed on. I also tend to feel really patriotic and especially grateful to all of the valiant heros who have died fighting for our countries freedoms. Another aspect of Memorial Day that I love is that Dan gets a holiday from work and we get to spend the day as a family!

 

We spent the morning enjoying a beautiful and tough bike ride as a family. Then that evening we joined with the rest of the local Riding Family for a fun family BBQ and fishing at Baker reservoir.

 

I loved this picture of Emmett, his shirt just says it all!

 

Lydia also cracked me up insisting that she wear her "boots" since we'd be in the mountains!

 

On top is Dan, Mike and Marley, and the bottom pictures are of Brock and Bob making a little BBQ and my cute sis-in-laws Kriss and Trisha.

 

One of the funniest moments was when the kids were all trying to catch Lizards. They had successfully caught a big blue belly lizard and had brought it over to show everyone when it suddenly leaped out of the bucket. Brayden looked down and realized it had landed on his behind! Everyone was screaming for him to not move while my little nephew Garrett crept up behind him and then Whack, slammed the bucket onto his butt holding it over the lizard. We were dying laughing and Brayden was thinking, "great, now what's the plan?!" They finally scooped it off and slid a paper plate over the bucket but I think I got a side ache from laughing so hard!

 

My other favorite part of the day was watching the kids go fishing with Daddy!

 

They were naturals and I played the paranoid life guard mama ready to jump in after them sure they would fall at any minute! Luckily they did not!

 

Lydia could have stayed there all day!And Emmett was so cute saying "Here Fishy, Fishy, Fish!"

 

In case you couldn't tell by their fishing poles they didn't catch anything . . . except for each other!

 

What a great day! Thanks for the memories my sweet little family!