We Love Challenger Summer Camps

Several years ago, Curly had the opportunity to try one of the week-long Challenger soccer camps. He loved it so much that the next summer we enrolled him again and we also let Scout play. Challenger does such a great job and I think that is mostly because of their amazing coaches. These people honestly care about teaching the game of soccer and it is clear that they love the game and they are good at it.

Curly and Scout hadn't played soccer since they were little, but during that week, they both remembered how fun it was and Curly became quite an accomplished goalie. That is why I was so excited when US Family Guide wrote that we were partnering with them again. It's Baby Doll's turn!!

What could be better than giving your child the gift of soccer this Christmas? We are all so tired of COVID-19 restrictions, and the summer sun and fresh air would be amazing about now. (Instead, we have snow flurries today.) And if you sign up in December, you get a custom player poster, a jersey, a t-shirt, and a soccer ball!! 

If your kids are anything like mine, they will love it! Just go to their website at Challenger Sports and sign up. This is what mine looked like when they were playing the game. So much fun and such great exercise.

Guest Blog: Family Update by Princess

My mom asked me to give y’all an update on our family. I decided I could kill two birds with one stone and just share our family Christmas letter with you! 

 Wow, what a year it’s been! Things started off great! We took a trip to Disneyland! Came back and found out we were pregnant! A couple weeks later, the pandemic closed everything down. The Frog started working exclusively from home and we all stayed put as much as possible. And that went on… and on… and on… So, what did we do with all of that home time?

The Frog worked a lot. He is leading a team on a special project and helping with his old duties as well. Thankfully, he is able to do everything remotely. A common phrase in our house is, “Shh, daddy’s on a call.” The Frog also did some schooling online. He probably should have done that from the beginning because he did fabulously! He has one class left at BYU to finish his degree and will be taking it online next semester. We have been doing at-home church since things started shutting down, but The Frog does an amazing job as our family pianist and priesthood holder.

Princess did the pregnant thing again this year. Third baby in a row! When she wasn’t resting her back pain away, Princess was crafting. She continues to post on her blog and Instagram and has even started making a couple YouTube videos. While she loves crafting, her favorite use of her time is with her children. When she’s not reading books, singing primary songs, or cleaning up toys, she sits on the couch snuggling one (or two… or three) of her little ones. Her ‘church assignment’ is to say the closing prayer. (Tadpole refuses to mix it up.)

Tadpole turned two at the beginning of the year. His hobbies have changed some during the year but a few things have stayed the same. 1. He loves anything that spins in circles and that includes himself. He probably spins for 5-10 minutes each day. 2. He loves helping. Tadpole is the sweetest big brother. He loves to help both of his siblings! He absolutely loves doing chores (as long as they are on his terms). Seriously, taking away chores is a punishment at our house. Tadpole has grown a lot this year, especially when it comes to talking. Though his vocabulary is seriously incredible, his favorite thing to say is, “Why?” Tadpole’s ‘church assignment’ is to give the opening prayer. 

Polliwog turned one in March. He is kind of an adrenaline junkie. He loves to climb things, ride his bike, flip off the side of the couch, etc. Thankfully, we have yet to see him do anything too dangerous but he has definitely had his fair share of scrapes and bruises. Polliwog isn’t much of a talker, but he knows more words than he will let on. He still speaks a lot of nonsense but on occasion he will just throw a random word out that we’ve never heard him say before. Lately, his favorites are: Santa (accompanied by Ho, Ho, Ho!), dump (truck), and apple. Polliwog absolutely loves his siblings. He thinks Duchess is the coolest thing ever. He will randomly run to her and point with a giant grin on his face. His ‘church assignment’ is to stand next to the person saying the prayer with his arms folded. Of course, no one has ever told him to do this, but he does it everytime.

Duchess was born mid-October and is growing so fast! She has measured in the 90th+ percentiles for every category at each doctor’s appointment. She sleeps really well at night which makes having so many young kids a lot easier. She loves her brothers just as much as they love her, but her favorite person is mom. She loves back pats and listening to music. She absolutely hates the car seat and anything other than being held, so she gets held for 90% of the day. Mom is building some serious arm muscles. 

While 2020 didn’t go exactly as we planned, it was still an amazing year! We are loving watching our little family grow! 

 

Merry Christmas!

Princess & The Frog Family

Review: Kiddy Crawlers' Crawligator

 I was surprised when the box arrived; I was expecting it to be much bigger. Although why, I don't know; most babies aren't that big. You know I have lots of children, but Baby Doll is 10 years old now and way too big for something like this, so it's a good thing I have so many grandkids!

I didn't have the perfect size baby to put on the Crawligator on exactly the day I needed to write this post, but I did have Little Warrior and Little Squire. They have been hanging out with us during the day while their parents are working. It seems that someone related to their daycare got COVID and they shut everything down for a couple of weeks.

But I digress...

Right out of the box, I could see that the Crawligator was quality and well-made. We read through all the instructions just to make sure we knew what we were doing, and then we convinced Little Squire to give the Crawligator a try. 

As you can see, size-wise he is pretty close to being perfect for the Crawligator except for his long legs. He is small for 20 months, but he can walk just fine. Before I turned the camera on him, he was able to pull himself forward with his hands just like a smaller child would do.

In fact, he was having so much fun that Little Warrior just had to come over and see what all the fuss was about. You guessed it! It wasn't long before he had to have his turn...

Oh well, now you can see how durable it really is, because this 3 1/2 year old didn't do it any damage at all. I can't wait until we have a little one that truly needs this because I am excited to see it work. Princess's baby is two months old now and according to her mama, "She is huge!" This sweet gal weighs a whopping 17 pounds! She just might need a little help learning to crawl. 

And Bossy is having a baby boy in February and rumor has it this summer we might be having another little one. Who do you think the parents might be?

Anyway, if you know someone who would love to have one of these fun developmental toys, check out this link from our friends at Kiddy Crawlers. They are offering free shipping and as long as you get your order in by Dec 18, they can get it there in time for Christmas.

***We received our own Crawligator for our honest review.***

Traveling Together: Kolob Canyon

Our last day in St. George; some had to hurry back home and others wanted to see a few more things. My sweetie and I ended up in a car with just Baby Doll and Curly. We wanted to finish the last Evil Librarians book together and make one final stop.

I had heard of Kolob Canyon, but I don't remember ever going there. My sweetie had heard that it was well worth the detour. 

We were definitely not disappointed! Their Visitor's Center was closed and there were signs posted that said they were not taking fees, but I would have gladly paid.

The view was stunning!!

The kids went on a short hike and we took some time to enjoy the view and read the signs. 

God has given us such a beautiful world! I'm so grateful for our opportunities to see it and share it with our children.