Sierra Elise, Kindergartner

Well, folks, she did it! Thanks for praying for us. Her first day of school went very,very well. She was up and ready early and ANXIOUS to be on her way. My sweet sister, Susie, offered to come and watch the other two girls so that I could take Sierra to school without having to worry about them. It was a good thing. Sierra got a little overwhelmed when she saw all the kids on the playground, but she bravely marched into her classroom when it was time to line up. No tears. For Sierra, that is. I cried like a baby all the way to the car and all the way home. Again, it was a good thing that Susie was here. She's a good comforter.

My good friend, Kelly, brought her kids and some delicious blueberry muffins over in the morning to cheer me up as well. It was just what I needed! The time flew by and before I knew it it was time to go back to pick her up. Sierra had lots to say about her day: there are more boys than girls in her class, she was an excellent listener, there was one table group that didn't get any points, she knows the sign for "bathroom", she sat on the carpet 3 times and at her desk 4 times, they read "The Kissing Hand" and did a little craft, and she didn't make any friends yet. That will come, little girl.

Ready to go!

(This picture makes me sad.)

Proud mama.

Ponderosa Elementary

Lined up and ready to go inside.

School's out!

The welcome home gang!

Telling Grandpa and Grandma all about her first day.

Ready or Not - Here She Comes!

Sierra starts Kindergarten tomorrow.

As much as I've tried to prepare myself for this new phase of life, I don't think that I will ever feel totally ready. Oh, Sierra's ready. It's this Mommy who wants to stop the clock. Sierra knows her letters and numbers. She can't wait to use her new backpack and Princess folder. She's excited about meeting new friends. She thinks her classroom looks really fun. It's me that doesn't want to let her go. I'm the one who's crying because school is about to start.

I have come to the conclusion that it's just a territorial issue. She has been with me for five years and now I have to turn her over to someone else for a few hours every day. Someone else will have to open her milk. Someone else will put the Band-aid on her skinned knee. Someone else will button that stubborn button on her jean shorts. Someone else will give her praise when she's doing a good job or encourage her to keep trying. Someone else will turn on those light bulbs in her brain.

Funny how that "someone" who I didn't know last week is now near the TOP of my prayer list. Mrs. L is my new best friend....she just doesn't know it yet. Now I understand what all those parents were going through when I, as a young Kindergarten teacher, was trying to get them to leave my classroom on the first day of school. I promise that won't be one of those moms who tries to peek through the mini-blinds all day, but I finally get it!

So pray for me tomorrow, will you?! And pray for Ally too. She's gonna miss having her big sister and best playmate around all morning.

Alright, I'll stop now. Otherwise I might fry the laptop. Tears in the keyboard are not a good thing. I'll be back with pictures of the cutest Kindergartner in Meridian tomorrow.

Carpe Diem

As members of the Dead Poets Society would say, we're "sucking the marrow out of life." These last few weeks of summer vacation and freedom have been full of fun and excitement. I'll let the pictures tell the stories.

Valerie is growing and changing. The "Bumbo" is a great place to watch the world.

We've scheduled several play dates with cousin Annie and friends.

Valerie's first experience in a swing at the park.

Believe it or not, she enjoyed it!

The look on her face would suggest otherwise, but don't be fooled.

Marc gets a free ride to the park. His legs were "too tired."

Sierra gets her first "real" haircut (not by mom) in preparation for Kindergarten.

Major RIP OFF - even at Great Clips with a coupon.

Valerie spends some tummy time with her toys on these hot August days.

Ally loves to color now and will sit at her desk for long periods of time with her Elmo coloring book.

Sierra's favorite game is LPS Guess Who?

(Mommy kinda likes it too!)

The big girls got to go to the Caldwell Night Rodeo with Daddy, Grandpa Cook and the Becks.

Morning snuggle times are the best!

Shhh! Don't tell Marc that I posted this one. (Hee. Hee.)

He'll do anything to make the girls laugh.

Sierra loved feeding all the animals in the petting zoo at the Western Idaho Fair.

Valerie wasn't too impressed with Billy.

One more Monday trip to the cabin.

Three girls on "Papa Bear's Chair."

My Prayer: Empty Me

Empty me

of the selfishness inside,

Every vain ambition

And the poison of my pride,

And any foolish thing my heart holds to.

Lord, empty me of me

So I can be

Filled with You!

This is the chorus to a Chris Sligh song that I really like.

It has been a prayer that I have repeated often lately.

Uh-Oh

Look at what Valerie has just discovered!

Looks like we have another thumb sucker on our hands! This is about the age when Sierra started sucking her thumb and wouldn't you know it, here goes Valerie. I started noticing a trend on Friday and she has been doing it a lot since then. I'm a little torn about what to do. It's just so stinkin' cute! Sierra really only sucked her thumb when she was tired, so I hope that Valerie will be the same. I don't really want to use a pacifier either. We'll see how long this lasts.

Check this out!

My brother, Chuck, normally works behind the scenes at Channel 7, the local NBC affiliate. He goes between "master control operator" and "director" for the evening news programs. Last night, however, was a different story. Check out his skydiving video here. He rocks!

My Summer Vacation

(Since Marc officially went back to work this morning, I decided to give myself a "back-to-school" assignment for the blog.)

My Summer Vacation

By: Serena Mouser

Age 33

This summer was a very busy one...in a laid back sort of way. First of all, I gave birth to this little person:

Valerie Joy has been a great little baby. Although she spits up (A LOT!) and still gets a bit fussy in the evenings, she has already brought us so much happiness. After a rough start, she is as healthy as can be! In other words, she eats like a little piggy. She has been very flexible with our crazy summer schedule and has already started sleeping through the night on occasion. (Unheard of at this age with the previous Mouser girls.) Valerie is a very smiley little girl and LOVES to watch what her big sisters are up to. She'll babble your ear off if you stop to listen and make faces at her.

Another major accomplishment was potty training this little spit-fire:


Ally was very stubborn about using the toilet for a long time, but this summer she decided to give in to our valiant efforts to get her out of diapers. We are so proud of her, in spite of several embarrassing accidents.

The rest of the summer has been filled with lots of fun family activities. We always enjoy the movie nights at Settler's Park:

And, of course, we spent lots of time playing at the river:

A recent highlight was a visit from Marc's oldest brother, Steve, and his family. The girls don't get to see their new big cousins very often, so this was a real treat:

Now it's time to get back into a school time routine. I'm looking forward to that in a way. I'll miss having my best friend around all day, but we have lots of good memories to look back on. In a few more weeks some more big changes will take place. Our oldest is heading off to Kindergarten.....AHHHH!

Ally, the Artist

A couple of weeks ago when we took the girls to get their check-ups, Dr. Welch asked us if Ally was drawing stick figures yet. Marc and I looked at each other and then said, "Nope." Well, she has since turned into quite the little artist. Most of her people have very prominent noses with "lots of boogers." I'd say that girl has a fixation!

Made You Smile!

You're grinning, aren't you?!

BLING!

After being on the fence for quite some time, Sierra finally got up the nerve to endure the pain and get her ears pierced on Saturday afternoon. She was so brave. (Wish you could have seen Marc, though!) Instead of anguish on her face you could see the pure delight. This is just one more triumph for this girly-girl!

Waiting for Mom to get out of the way so that the piercing could be done.

She wanted an up-do for church today so that she could show off her new pink, flower earrings.

The expression, pose and bag say it all!

And this one has nothing to do with earrings, but I just had to add it:

Looks like Valerie is using her teddy mobile as a revolving punching bag, doesn't it?

I love this girl!