MY PLAYLIST - KIDS FAVORITES

Every year I ask the kids for their "favorites" at their present age. As Harrison is now 4 and Kenna is coming up on 6 years old and I haven't asked her for age 5 yet, I thought I'd ask the "favorites" questions, including favorite songs right now(I was a bit surprised by their answers)-have a look and a listen:

McKenna
Favorite color - red
Favorite book - Junie B. Jones loves Handsome Warren/ coloring book
Favorite toy - jewelry box
Favorite game - Mario Kart
Favorite song - Keep Bleeding
Favorite food - french fries and all the fruits
Favorite movie - Bedtime Stories
Favorite tv show - The Suite Life of Zack and Cody
Favorite thing to do - play with family and on the waterslide
Favorite place to go - Salt Lake City

Harrison
Favorite color - gold
Favorite book - Batman Vs. The Joker
Favorite toy - pirate stuff
Favorite game - Whack a Mole
Favorite song - That's Not My Name (for the record, we had just heard this song...and it was an instant hit at our house!)
Favorite food - fruits and hot dogs
Favorite movie - Pirates of the Caribbean
Favorite tv show - Spongebob Squarepants
Favorite thing to do - build snowmans at winter time and have presents from Santa Claus
Favorite place to go - Disneyworld

GRADUATION DAY

Last Friday was a beautiful spring day...the kids were dying to go outside and ride bikes. We got Harrison's bike down and realized he's grown quite a bit since last summer.

Last summer he was a little 3 year old boy graduating from a tricycle to a 10" bike to keep up with McKenna (FYI: he went from tricycle, to training wheel bike, to two wheel bike in one week!! - I am now a firm believer in "smaller is better" for beginner bikers) Harrison hopped on his 10" bike and we knew it was time for a bigger 16" bike - he thinks his new bike is AAWWWEEESSOOOMMMEE!! He calls his new bike the big brother of his old bike!!

(old bike) "Gravel Blaster"

meet your new big brother.... "Major Damage"

Just a quick peek at McKenna on that same beautiful day of sunshine...Kenna and her friend even needed shade because it was too hot!!

THE SAGA CONTINUES....

Today McKenna came home from school happy, singing, and skipping around (picture Ariel in Little Mermaid after she'd met Eric). I asked her how school was going and she said, "Luke, told me he wanted to kiss me today!" I about flipped - am I going to have to call his mother?!? Does his mother think the same of me?!? Then Kenna tells me that her two little friends are mad at her - they keep telling her to "break up" with Luke because they both like him and want to take turns being his girlfriend!!! AAAGGGGHHH!!! So I have, once again, had to talk to her about just being friends with boys and having fun right now etc. I have a feeling Karma is after me with a VEGEANCE!

FLASHBACK FRIDAY - MCKENNA'S EDITION

Yesterday, McKenna came home from school with a "gift" from a fellow student named LUKE:



That's right - her first "promise ring"?!?! Did I miss her 18th birthday already?!? I can't believe how fast they grow up these days...I mean she's only 5 years old...she's still in kindergarten!!! So, I thought I would flashback to earlier this year to tell the story of where this all began...

McKenna went into kindergarten my sweet, innocent little girl, but was quickly corrupted by some of her new "boy crazy" friends. McKenna just wanted to swing and play on the monkey bars at recess, but all the other girls wanted to chase boys. McKenna finally gave into peer pressure - now she is boy crazy!!

Her first crush was on a boy named Hyrum and he "liked" her...I still can't believe I'm already telling a story like this about my little girl!!..she came home from school telling me she was in love with Hyrum and wanted to marry him. When they received their school picture, Hyrum told her he was kissing her in the picture. I told her that was silly and they only needed to be friends. However, later that day, I went downstairs looking for McKenna - only to find her sitting behind a chair dreamily looking at her school picture and "kissing" Hyrums picture!!! I finally had to hide the picture to avoid this kind of behavior again- agh!! Hyrum promised Kenna many gifts from far away places and Kenna would come home telling me how excited she was to receive the diamonds he was apparently bringing back from his trip to Hawaii.

Well, she soon found that Hyrum liked to misbehave in class (she's not the type to go after the bad boys), so she has now moved on to Luke....I would agree he's cuter anyway... I guess he likes her too, because he's now showering her with "gifts"! She's already got the "Luke and McKenna sittin' in a tree..." song memorized and sings it all the time - what am I supposed to do?!?

As of now, things are looking promising for the wedding, tentatively scheduled for summer 2025!! and you're all invited!! LOL!!

GOOD COP/ BAD COP

Last week, McKenna went over to her little friends house. Her friend, Katilyn, is having a rough time right now because her parents are getting a divorce (whole other story) anyway, Kenna was a little nervous to go over there but I just told her to come home whenever she wanted and I'd be home.

It had been about 45 minutes when she came bursting through the door with tears in her eyes and fear on her face! I asked what was wrong. She then proceeded to tell me that her and Kaitlyn had been playing when the door bell rang. They both ran to see who it was - when they opened the door they saw this:


Well, not THIS cop exactly...so, I got nervous for a split second at this point of the story because I thought, "oh no, the ex-husband must have come over and the couple got in a fight etc..." and I was about to reach for the phone but decided I ought to question Kenna a bit more. I asked her why the policeman had come over and why she was scared. She then told me that as soon as she saw him, she ran to Kaitlyn's room and started to cry - afraid the cop was going to take her to jail!! I couldn't figure out why she would think that until....

Rewind a year or so ago - McKenna and Harrison were now in their own booster seats and sometimes would not put on their seat belts. Me, being a very smart mother, told them that if they did not put on their seat belts and we were to get pulled over by a cop, then I would get taken to jail ( I thought it best to use the scariest consequence possible).

Since this brilliant conversation with my kids, they have some how been under the impression that policemen are BAD...even when we have discussed strangers and getting lost...I've told them they can talk to a policeman in uniform if they are ever lost or feel scared. I remember Harrison then asking, "how will I know if it's a good policeman or a bad one?!?"

My mind then turned back to my little Kenna still trying to calm down and me having to explain to her that policemen only take grown-ups to jail - never kids - (unless the kids are really bad...wait, I shouldn't have told her that either!!!) Then, the phone rings and it's Kaitlyns mom asking if everthing is o.k. and I had to explain my guilt to her for scaring my children into wearing their seatbelts... the policeman ended up being the mother's friend and was just coming over for dinner. I can only imagine what thoughts went through her and the cops mind as Kenna fled the "scene" as soon as possible!


Oh, what fun it is to raise children and always have them remember the wrong parts of the "learning lesson"...so, how have you all damaged your children?!?