Halloween

Halloween 2012 was a really fun holiday for our family.  The night before Halloween we let the kids carve their pumpkins.  They are able to do most of it by themselves, but little Luke always needs just a little help.

 This year was the first year in a long time that the kids could wear their halloween costumes to school.  They were extremely excited about that. 

After we got the big kids on the bus we went to the play group Halloween party at the Butler home.  Luke and Ella had a great time.  Ella, who is normally a cheerleader, was a princess for the day events because her cheer costume was in the wash.  

Then I took Luke and two of his friends to their Preschool Halloween party.  It was a day of parties.  

The kids trick-or-treated to the parents on the sidewalk.  It was great to see all their cute costumes.

After school we had a great Halloween dinner.  I made chili and beignets.  Drew stayed home to pass out candy and I took the little ones trick or treating.  I thought for sure Ella would run out of gas after a few houses, but she was going strong the entire time and by the time we got home, she was ready for more.  It was funny!

Mia loved her fake eyelashes.

The only bad thing that happened was when Drew decided he didn't want to answer the door anymore and left the candy caldron on the front porch.  Apparently someone stole the caldron from the porch. Drew was mad.  The next morning he found it empty in the back of his truck.  Darn teenagers.  

Luke's 5th Birthday

Luke, our little wild man, is now 5.

Right after breakfast on his birthday, he opened his presents.

Luke got a Dream Lite, a Mickey Mouse stuffed animal, and a snuggly blanket.  Luke loves all this soft and cozy.  It's so funny!  If ever he feels something soft and comfy, he will immediately put his thumb in his mouth and cuddle up to it.  It's one of the many things I love about him.

After lunch I took him to preschool with yummy dough nuts and chocolate milk to share with his friends.  Then after school I took him shopping to buy toys with the rest of his birthday money.  He ended up getting legos and a few other things.  That night we let him pick what he wanted for dinner and of course he chose McDonalds.  Then we came back home for cake and ice cream.

Pumpkin Patch 2012

Every year we go to Staheli Farms in St. George.  It's been a tradition for the past 4 years and my kids look forward to it.  This year we were scheduled to go on October 12th, since the kids didn't have school that Friday.  But due to some unforeseen rain storms, we had to postpone the trip until October 26th.  I was a little bummed about it, because we had Trunk or Treat that night at the church, so we knew we needed to rush back for that.  But it ended up being an amazing day.  Not too hot.  Just lovely.  And we were able to meet up with the Allreds, our dear friends that we miss so much since they moved to St. George.

Ella looks like she's not enjoying herself, but she really loved the horse swings.

But mostly she loved the petting zoo.  She's our animal lover, for sure!

We miss Aspen so much!  Mia was just thrilled to spend some time with her.

And Ammon is Luke's best friend.  The two of them ran around together as though they had never been separated.

We finally loaded up in the hay wagon and headed for the corn maze.  We always end up breaking into groups.  I was with the young boys and it took us forever to find out way out of that thing.  Next time I will remember to bring water!

The most difficult time of the day is when we have to gather up and go home.  It's like herding cats!  They just don't want to leave.  This is a tradition I hope we can keep up for years to come.

Firehouse Field Trip

On October 11th, Luke's preschool went on a field trip to the local fire station.  After we arrived, we watched a video about fire safety, then took a tour of the station and trucks.  During the tour we were hit with major torrential rains.  The worst I've seen in years.  I was worried about driving home and even had to cross a small river to get on the road.  It made it memorable I guess. 

Ella loved joining the preschool group.  We had a hard time getting her out of the fire truck.

Practice Practice Practice

As the kids get older, I feel like I spend most of my time in the car, driving them back and forth from practices, games, and other activities.

Here was our schedule in October: 
Monday:  Free Day
Tuesday:  Mia Activity Days at 4:30-5:30 and Volleyball practice from 5:30-6:30
Wednesday: Cole Soccer Practice from 5-6
Thursday: Piano Lessons from 3:45-4:45, Mia Volleyball from 5:30-7:00, and Cole Scouts from 5-6
Friday: Free Day
Saturday: Volleyball game and Soccer Game

I'd love to say that they had an undefeated season, but unfortunately they didn't win many games.  In fact, I'm pretty sure Cole's team didn't win a single game.  But they tried their hardest and they can only improve.  I'm proud of them for giving their best.  

Cole completed the Bobcat requirements and received the Bobcat pin at our first Pack Meeting.  That was a lot of fun.