Girls Night Out

FINALLY, a nite for ladies only! We got to celebrate with my friend, Jessica McGowan the other night for her birthday. It was a Ladies only playgroup-daddys stayed home with the kiddos...and boy did we have a blast. It was nice to get dressed up and relax with some girlfriends, even if all I could drink was water. Here are the pictures that I CAN show :)

Don't ask...

Dancing the night away...the birthday girl is in the middle.

Kamryn's 2nd Meet

Kamryn had her 2nd meet on the 11th. This time the weather was beautiful and thankfully the pool was still heated. She was nervous going in because she was afraid she'd not finish the backstroke on her back...but with some encouragement and her determined focus, she did great!

(She's on the end in this picture)

She competed in the same two events (25m freestyle and 25m backstroke) and actually beat her best times. She took 5 seconds off her freestyle (6th place) and 8 seconds off her backstroke and ended in 4th place.

What was so neat to see was her interest in the sport and what was going on around her. Between her events she would watch the other swimmers and keep track of thier times. This was with no prodding on our part. I think she has really found her niche in swimming...so far she loves it, and never complains about practice or meets. It's great!

We have a new cousin!

My brother Jason, and his wife, Leah, just welcomed their first daughter into the world! Eden Eleanor Pauls. She is so beautiful, and the kids just ate her up! Everyone had to have a chance to hold her. Pretty soon she'll be running around with the rest of them :) Poor Ty, besides his older cousins (Kilian-12, and Shepard-15), he's the only young buck around.

By the time it was Tessa's turn, Eden had had enough!

Pumpkin Patch

I love Fall! Why? Because the pumpkin patches open up and it is picture taking season at it's best!! Another tradition I have started with my friend, Dorina Gilmore and her daughter Meilani, is to go to the Pumpkin King Pumpkin Patch on a Friday before it gets really crazy. This year they invited some friends of thiers too. This day was actually a super hot day, something like 90 degrees and the kids were feeling it. We actually didn't stay very long cuz we were so hot, but we got in a few good pics.

Kamryn turns 7

Kamryn turned 7 on October 7 this year. I've started a new tradition (I LOVE traditions and will start them with just about anything) this year with bdays. I love birthdays and I think that the birthday girl/boy should feel EXTRA special on thier day. So the night before, I spend decorating the house and hallway with streamers and balloons so that they wake up feeling special. I started this with Addi's bday in August, and now Kamryn's was no different (Chris is begging me not to do this with Tessa's too...cuz he thinks she won't know the difference at 3, and it is a lot of work). :)

Kamryn woke up to a brand new bike...

and a new swimsuit (crazy to find one in October!).

Her theme this year was pumpkins, so everything was orange and black.

We celebrated with a few friends and had a wonderful time doing crafts, playing games and enjoying the beautiful weather outside. Even the adults got in on the fun!

Kim even made pumpkin cupcakes...

The night before her birthday, we also made cookies for her class. All in all, it was a pretty great birthday for the "birthday girl!"

Kamryn's 1st Swim Meet

Kamryn had her first swim meet at Clovis East on Oct. 4th. She did GREAT, but she was a bit nervous. We actually were too when we saw the dark clouds and showed up to a windy, COLD and rainy pool! We were totally unprepared for what we were in for. We saw families (who were lifers) roll up with tents, chairs, parkas, umbrellas, coolers and blankets. We showed up with....Kamryn. Luckily the pool was heated, and pretty soon, she jumped in to do warmups. The pool is 25 meter lengths. In practice they warm up with 2 laps (there and back). She warmed up with about 10 laps. She was exhausted and her legs and arms were shaking!

She did really well, competing in the 25m freestyle and the 25m backstroke. She came in 5th place in the freestyle, and unfortunately she turned on her stomach with the backstroke and was disqualified....all in the learning.

We were very proud of her and I think she enjoyed it. It was interesting seeing her go through the nerves and yet, being determined enough and focused to go through with it anyways. She's a real trooper. Way to go Kamryn! (but next time I'm bringing a hot thermos!)

Cross City Race

Chris and Ericlee ran the 10K (6.2 miles) in the cross-city race 2 weekends ago. Dorina, Meilani, the girls and I got up at 6:30 to get to the race and cheer our daddy's on!


You can see our morning eyes...



We ended up 'chasing' them...driving all over town in our girls ONLY van to try and find the guys. By the pure hand of GOD, we found them and screamed and cheered from the van..then raced back to see the finish. We missed it, but they had a great finish!


To his surprise, Chris got 2nd place in his age division! Not bad!

2 38 CHRISTOPHER SCHULTZ 404 35 Fresno 43:39

They had great time!!
Way to go DADDY!!

Saroyan Olympic Carnival

The first big event of the year at Saroyan was the Olympic Carnival. My dad, sister Kim and her kids and the girls and I walked over to the school for a bit of fun that evening. We did the cake walk and enjoyed the beautiful evening.

As you can see...Kamryn is my character!

Mamma Field Trips

My friend Jessica McGowan has been so great about getting little field trips organized for a bunch of us moms and kiddos on Fridays. A couple of weeks ago, we had a tour of Whole Foods and learned all about the store, the kinds of foods they sell, and what makes them so different from a regular grocery store. We got to taste and touch so much. It was very informational, and a yummy place to be :)

What a fish!

Kamryn has a real love for swimming and being in the water, so we looked around for a swim team for her to join. Well, we have now gotten involved with the Fresno Dolphins Swim Team. This is her first month and this weekend she has her first meet! Her events are the 25 yard freestyle and 25 yard backstroke. We are so proud of her.





The interesting thing about Kamryn that I'm trying to wrap my brain around, is how much energy this girl has. We are right now transitioning her out of Karate 2x/week into swimming 3x/week. So, for example, on a Monday and a Wednesday, she has a full day of school, comes home gets ready to swim, swims for 1/2 hr, comes home has summer, and then we are back in the car (where she does her homework) and off to karate for an hour. Then by the time we get home, I'm thinking she has to be exhausted...no! She wants to eat a second helping of dinner, and then play...then after I put her to bed, she stays up and reads until 9:30 or 10pm.... I'm usually sleeping before she is!

Before and After

With 5 kids running around our home all the time, we get into a few messes and make quite a few messes. This is a little example of what i mean:

Here is a what i do once the girls are dropped off at school...

Can anyone relate??

Backyard fun

In the first week of school it was really hot, so we made due with what we had for "pools." And on thier own initiative...Addi and Tessa 'layed out!' Are these my kids??

New School Year

We started a new school year at William Saroyan Elementry this year. A big change for all of us, but through much prayer and consideration, we decided this was a good decision for this year. Saroyan is a great public school just across the street from our house. We walk the girls to school almost every day and they are beginning to fit in quite well. They have great teachers and so far have adjusted just fine.

I have to admit, the first day i dropped the girls off, there were tears (only from me!). As I walked away from the school, the realization that I had 2 kids in school hit me and that I missed them so much! It was a bit of an overwhelming emotion.

There is a park on the way, so Tessa and I usually play for a bit before getting on home. It does make for a nice morning for the 2 of us.

Addi is in Mrs. Nesseth's class. Kamryn is in a 2/3 combo class and is doing really well. She is excelling in that environment.

When they got home fromthe first day, I had little treats made for them (idea from Family Fun). It was really fun and special.

HAPPY SCHOOL YEAR!

It's a Girl!!

It is another girl for the Schultz family! We did have to have a moment of silence for a lost dream of having a boy in our family, but after that...we are extatic about the little saroritee (how do you spell that?) we are building here in our home :) Yes, poor Chris! But he is just as excited, of course, and is such a good daddy to our girls. If I may suggest tho...any of you with little boys running around your house, any time you want to 'loan' yours out for a couple of hours so that Chris can get in his boy fix, that would be great! :)

Our due date is Feb. 10th....we are half way there!