Payton's first day of 1st grade

Aug 13th, 2009 was Payton's first day of 1st grade. It was just a half day and then the next day and every day after is all day!! This truly is a day that I thought would take a lifetime to get here. I could not wait for this day but now that it is here and really happening I have to say a little part of my heart is aching. I am happy for her and am ready to see her grow into the person she is meant to be, but I still am a mom that wants to protect her. I know this moment will pass and I will soon enjoy having some free time, but for now I am sad and am missing her. In a couple of weeks I am pretty sure there will be a post about how much she loves school and how much I am loving some mommy time! I hope she has an amazing year and really grows emotionally and socially! I have to say that I have been so lucky and grateful to have the job that I have. Being a nurse and working 10 days a month allowed me to be home and not miss much of her first 6 years. It has been so important to Stan and I to have me here as much as I can be.

Two things she is going to miss and really should not have anymore, the thumb and blanket

Just being silly.......

The Diggs Family Reunion in St Louis

This past weekend we headed to St Louis for Stan's family reunion. It is a pretty significant event. They host a reunion every two years and is a all weekend event. We got down there Saturday afternoon and then headed to the dinner that evening. It was great. They had a really nice dinner with a dee-jay and lots of dancing. Do you think my girls go out and danced??? Heck no! They dance all the time at home but get them in front of an audience and they just shut down. Then on Sunday was the big family picnic. It is at Forest Park at the zoo. It is a big pavillion that is filled with so many people from Stan's family. It was a blast! Great food, lots of beer, and kids just everywhere! They had a clown there this year that did face painting and balloon making for the kids. My girls really liked this addtion. It was a quick trip but really worth it. I just love being around all of his family. It is loud but so much fun!

I just love this picture of us. I have no make-up on and hair is not done, but I think we all look great.
Here is Stan and his mother

Here are the girls enjoying what little girls love....cake.

Here is Stan's nephew Cortez, and his mother

Let the face painting begin

Me and Ave

The girls and grandma

My 3 favorite people

Welcome to Hollywood, what's your dream??????

I think these pictures and this moment with Avery will go down in the history of the Diggs family. I have to give all the credit to Payton because she is who glamified this little beauty. They were upstairs playing and this is what those two little girls were up to. I have to say she looks pretty darn cute if I can say so myself. Man that lipstick could not be brighter, but she wears it all pretty well. Hmmmm, what do we have in the works, fashion designer and a model...not sure....cannot wait to find out!! Stan is going to be in for quite a ride, I am sure he is wishing he had kids when he was little younger. These little ones in your 40's, he is WORE OUT!!

This is what we do when it rains.....take pics!!

So really nothing too new to report since the birthday weekend. Today I think we are all recovering. My nieces ended up staying the whole weekend so come Monday, everyone is pretty tired. Here are just some new pics we took today since it rained. They are cute huh??? At least I think so..........

Avery just being plain silly

There both are being silly

Happy 6th Birthday Payton Diggs!!

Yesterday, July 17th Payton Diggs turned 6! We had yet another great party with friends and family. This year was pretty low key but still a great time. We had pizza and cake and then just hung out the rest of the evening. Of course their cousins stayed the night so it ended up being quite the evening. Payton's big gift this year was a TV for her room. I know crazy huh??? Stan said that when he was at Costco buying it the guy said I never got a TV when I was a kid let alone 6!! My girls really do not watch that much tv, especially Payton, but she really wanted one for her room so that her and Avery could watch TV before bed and in the morning. Look it makes every one's life a little easier. We are always up for that!! I have to say I was a tad bit emotional this week to my surprise. I still remember 6 years ago giving life to this child and now she is 6 and is heading to first grade. It truly does not seem possible. I have been so blessed to have such a sweet, kind, sensitive child. She truly is a gift and I so grateful that she was given to me!!

I wish that I could take credit for this cake and cookies but I simply cannot. It was the cutest cake I had ever seen and the girls went crazy over it!!

As you can see High School Musical was the theme

From napkins to plates to cups and of course a pinata

Here are the cookies up close. They tasted oh so good too!! Such detail, Payton loved them....

Miss Avery eating her pizza

Bring on the gifts of course. She got some pretty cool gifts this year. One of her favorites was a remote control car. That was from Grandma and Papa. She says that she is really into boy toys right now!! Hey whatever is fine with me, the babies and the dolls get a little old.....

Opening the TV

You cannot go wrong with a pinata. It was filled with candy, gum, whistles, yo-yo's, toe rings and rings. That is always a hit with the party.

Last but not least we ended the party with cake and ice cream. Here is Payton getting ready to blow out the candle. I hope her wishes and dreams come true!!

Plain ole' summer fun

Not too much has been going on in the Diggs house so far this summer. We have been spending time at the pool and Payton has joined her first t-ball team. We are hoping that this will help bring her out of her shell a bit. I think it has already. She really enjoys it and better yet, she is not too bad at it. We were suppose to have her first game last night but it got rained out. Hopefully next week will be better. Not sure what else lies ahead for us this summer. Payton will be turning 6 in July and then will be heading to first grade in the fall. We are just going to enjoy the summer and relax! Here are some pics on how we spend our free time. Enjoy!

This is Avery for you! We have some sidewalk paint and she wanted to paint, so I say sure. Got a bowl with some water and all her brushes. Leave her for a second and this is what I come back to......did you mean fingerpaint Avery??? An artist in the future...who knows

Here is the lawnmower that Stan just had to have last summer. No we do not live on a farm, an acre or even half an acre. But look how much we get out of it, or at least Avery does. He always has to take her for a ride after he cuts the grass.

Our trip to St Louis

Over Memorial Day the family headed to St Louis for a mini vacation. All of Stan's family lives there so obviously we travel there often but we seem to never take advantage of all the sight-seeing. His mother got Stan and I tickets to the Cardinals game that Saturday. They were actually playing the Royals. We had seats 11 rows behind 3rd base. They were pretty amazing. We had a great time. Then we headed back and just hung out and had dinner. On Sunday we ventured to the famous St Louis Zoo with the girls. They had a blast. We were there about 6 hours and I think we saw everything. It did rain on us a little but it cleared up and turned out to be a pretty day. Stan played some golf, I went to the casino--not a big winner, and we had a big cookout on Memorial Day. All in all it was a great get away and the girls had a great time. It was nice to actually stay there for more than 2 days and enjoy some of the attractions St Louis has to offer. We are going to try and do this at least once a year for sure!

Not my favorite picture, but he is my favorite! We really did have a great time!

The monkeys and the chimps were probably a family favorite