The Spokane Fair and Rodeo 2009!

Sofia, 3 1/2, Audriana, 6 1/2 and Maria, 7. Aren't they beautiful?!?!

These girls are ready for a day of fun at the fair! So many things to see......

First stop.....the Ag barns -- big pumpkins (actually, huge pumpkins!), tall sunflowers (actually, extremely tall sunflowers), bees making honey, fruits and vegetables.....oh my!

Artisty by the 4H clubs -- all made out of beans and dried fruits and veggies!

Next stop......the animals! This was the girls' favorite part!

Those are mules behind Audriana, Sofia and Maria!

This little dude was only 7 years old and was manning his family's booth. They owned these amazing little ducks that walked upright on their back 2 legs -- sorry, I can't remember their formal name! Audriana got to "pet" it....

A beautiful pheasant -- did you know that they were not native to North America? They came to us from Europe.....

Ready for lunch.........and ready for ice cream!

Ok......so we went home and the girls napped for a couple of hours so that we could all come back refreshed and ready for the rodeo! Notice that Audriana wanted to wear her Hannah Montana cowboy boots and a hat! So cute..... Notice that Sofia kept on her pink skirt and pink shirt, but added her sparkly gold princess shoes. God, I love them!


At the rodeo with Daddy, Grandma, Grandpa, Mommy and Aunt Kristi...

......hard to see, but that is 2 buffalo on top of that trailer, as well as a 1-armed rider on his horse!

We had such a fun time this year. It's been a tradition for as long as I can remember, and now it has certainly turned into a tradition that my girls have come to love.

Labor Day Weekend 2009!

THANK YOU MOM AND JAY FOR ANOTHER VERY SPECIAL WEEKEND!

Our annual trip up to Jay's cabin on Lake Pend O'Reille was great -- but definitly not the same without the Sandberg's. Scott, Lisa, Ryan, Noah, and Micah were missed so much by all of us. They just moved into their beautiful new house and really needed the long weekend to get organized and unpacked. We completely understood -- but we still missed them. We love our traditions, and it just wasn't the same without them. The girls had a fun time, but spoke often of wishing the "boys" were there.....

The weather wasn't so great -- we got a big rain storm that produced hail and thunder on Saturday afternoon. We happened to be up at Priest Lake visiting LaNae and John at their cabin. Just before the huge storm (that knocked out their electicity for 7 hours!), the girls had fun playing in the sand and with the hose that John had hooked up to warm water! Sofia even went in swimming, while Audriana opted for a leisurly canoe ride with Grandpa. We had a nice dinner with their family, then drove back down to Jay's cabin on Pend O'Reille lake (after the storm passed). Sunday and Monday were quite cold, so we filled some of our "indoor" time playing dominos. This was a great game for us because it was easy, fun, and even the girls could play. Audriana turned out to be an awesome player, and by the end of the weekend, little Sofia almost needed no help at all! Kristi said she could have stayed another day just to keep playing! It was a lot of fun. Here's a cute video of Sofia showing us that she can swim -- Priest Lake at John and LaNae's cabin on Cavanaugh Bay.......

It happened to be Cameron and Care Bear's birthday, so we helped the girls celebrate up at the cabin. Aunt Kristi even brought the Easy Bake Oven so she could bake a cake with the girls. She also brought a gift for the girls to open up for their bears. She's the best Aunt!

Lake Coeur d'Alene with the Meadows!

A day on Lake C d'A couldn't be any better without our good friends, the Meadows family. Seriously, the girls woke up at 5:30 this morning and had their swimsuits on by 5:35am! They were so excited to go out to the cabin and swim with their friends, Justin, Jakey, and Chelan.


We even got Kristi out on the boat -- I know she really enjoyed it, sweater and all!



Our awesome driver -- Matt Meadows (who also showed off some fancy wakeboarding skills!).

Angie and Kristi enjoying the ride. Angie and her family are such gracious hosts! Thanks!

.......Jakey was there one second, and gone the next.....that's another story. He's fine! :-)

Seriously, the girls love to go tubin'!

Me and my angels.......

Daddy and the angels.

We were so glad that Aunt Kristi could come out with us! It's always more fun when Aunt Kristi is there! :-)

My sweet Sofia..........who is swimming like a little fish! It was so cute to see her flailing her arms and kicking her feet so hard and popping her head in and out of the water! She was working so hard, but hardly moving an inch! She really wore herself out and by the time we were in the car heading back home, she had fallen asleep (5:30pm) and she was out for the night. What a fun day..........lots of great memories for the Alfaro family again!

First Day of School for Audriana and Sofia!

Oh my gosh. I just can't believe that these girls are growing up so fast before our eyes. Martin and I look at them in absolute wonder and are so very grateful for the wonderful people they are and for the gift of them. Truly....they are a gift.....a gift for us to nuture.....a gift that will continue to amaze us as each school year comes and goes. Here they are standing so proud together, dressed in their "first day outfits" that each of them picked out and feeling so excited about the day ahead of them.

Sofia ready for Montessori Central Preschool!

and

Audriana ready for First Grade at Mullen Rd Elementary!

Audriana was so lucky to get into Mrs. Soderquist's class! I've heard many wonderful things about her from other parents and liked her the minute I met her.

Because Audriana has spent the last 4 years at Montessori Central, her learning style is very different from the public school way. I'm nervous about that. I will need to make sure that I stay in close contact with her teacher to ensure that she is being challenged and moving forward. She's my quiet and shy girl who will not tell the teachers what she knows unless she is asked or prompted. I wish she would speak up more!

Here she is giving Sofia a hug goodbye. I was so proud of her -- she went right into her classroom, sat down at her desk, and began the color-by-number worksheet that was there for her. She is so focused! Even in a new environment (new teacher, new school, new surrounding, new classroom with new items to get familiar with) she sits down, focuses on what she should be doing, and gets it done! I love her!

As I walked out the door with Sofia, I turned around and took this picture looking back into the classroom. Notice Audriana already at her desk hard at work! :-)

Now that Audriana is set......it is time to take Sofia to her school -- Montessori Central!

I always took a picture of Audriana on her first day here in front of these red doors, so of course I had to follow suit with Sofia's first day here.

Even though the weather forcast called for mid-90's temperatures for today, Sofia insisted on wearing her new outfit that Grandma bought her yesterday - she did not care that it was long sleeves, long pants, and black!). The first thing she showed her teachers was the little gemstone heart that is on her shirt (on the white bow just off to the side).

Sofia taking her street shoes off and putting on her slippers. She then closes her box and puts her street shoes on top of her box. Notice her new gold fancy shoes?!? Aunt Kristi bought them for her and she has worn nothing since getting them.

Sofia with Mrs. Pipella -- deciding what lesson she was going to choose. She finally settled on "plunking" work, which is a tray that consists of about 25 toothpicks that the child must pick up one at a time and "plunk" them into the empty shaker jar by dropping them into the large holes in the lid (similar to a parmasean cheese jar at a pizza restaurant).

She was all smiles when I left -- although, as a mother, I could sense that she was a bit nervous. I know she'll do great in this environment. I love the Montessori philosophy and know that she will learn and grow just like her big sister did here. It gives Martin and I so much satisfaction knowing that she will be experiencing all the wonderful things that we know are in store for her here!

GOOD LUCK THIS YEAR IN SCHOOL, GIRLS! WE LOVE YOU AND ARE SO PROUD OF YOU!

Swimming Lessons 2009

Before pressing the arrow below to start the photoshow, scroll down the side bar to pause the blog music.

The Jodster!

Jody Rullman (Colglazier) and I went to WSU together (1986-1990). We met that first week of our Freshman year because we lived in the same dorm on the same floor -- Stevenson East 8th Floor. What a crazy few years. So much fun and soooo many awesome memories. She lived with Kari and I lived with Corinne Seifert and the 4 of us became fast friends. Jody and I have always stayed in touch via Christmas cards, but our families had never met. When I found out that her and her family would be in Northern Idaho camping at Farragut State Park for the week, I knew we had to go out and visit. Her family is beautiful and her husband is such a nice guy. Jody hasn't changed a bit -- she still make me laugh so much that my gut hurts. I love that even though it has been over 20 years that we can still pick up and be so comfortable with each other.

The kids met each other and they took off playing while Jody and I caught up with each other. Her daughters are adorable -- Camille is 9, and Annalise is 6 1/2. In fact, she was born just a couple of weeks after Audriana was! Kellen is 4 and kept us laughing while he ran around the camp site in his Spiderman outfit.

This is a great picture of our 2 families together. It was a wonderful morning and I was so happy to reconnect with such a wonderful friend after all these years!