Halloween Part I

Happy Halloween!! Our school does a Halloween parade about 15 minutes after school starts in the morning. They set chairs out in the lunch room/gym and the teachers lead their class, snaking through the maze. They start from youngest grades to oldest. The kids go through so fast that it's hard to take pictures, so I took video instead. I did get some pictures taken before school though. Each class will have a Halloween party at school. I'm Kendall's class room mother, so I'll be in charge of his party today. Fridays are early out day, so there will be plenty of time to get excited (and ready) for trick-or-treating this evening. The kids are all soooo excited!! It's been fun "practicing" with Jenna on what to say. Basically she'll say, "Trick or treat" and "Thank you."

Jarren decided he wanted to be either Jango Fett or Anakin Skywalker (Star Wars characters). He has a full Indiana Jones costume and we also have a fireman outfit and a few other Star Wars characters. I guess I thought I could convince him to be something we already had, but yesterday discovered that it wasn't going to happen. I had to run to the store to get some material and I made a very simple vest to go over some brown clothes and he is in heaven!

Jenna goes back and forth between a witch and a dog. We'll see what she does for tonight.

Kristen is a dead bride. She hated her hair the way it turned out, but I thought it really fit the costume.

Kendall is an army man. It's too bad we don't have some of his uncle Matt's accessories.

And I'm a witch, in case anyone couldn't tell. :)

I had anxiety nightmares all night--forgetting to wake the kids up early enough to get ready; forgetting part of the game for the party; forgetting the spooky music; etc. I'm already tired--but it WILL be a great day!

Big Helper

I was looking some stuff up on the computer a little while ago--I have to teach a lesson on Sunday for church--when Jenna started calling me. I told her I'd be there in just a minute. She kept saying she needed help with her diaper. Boy was I in for a big surprise when I finally got around to going into her room! She had decided to change her own poopy diaper. She did a pretty good job, containing the mess to a changing mat and herself! I know....I really need to just set aside a few days to just potty train her, but I've honestly been so bus lately--I don't have a few hours, let alone days. Maybe she'll just do it herself. :) Yeah, right...wishful thinking.

Pumpkin Carving

Last night, Jon and the kids carved the pumpkins. They had a blast scooping out the guts. It almost looks like Jarren could crawl right into his pumpkin. Kendall was a big help in carving them--he immediately outlined the face when we bought them. The kids couldn't wait to get the candles in them--Jenna thought it was great fun to blow the flames out, which made Jarren mad. Just a few more days until the school parade, class parties, and the trick-or-treating.... I love this time of year!

Weekend Fun

We got to go visit family this weekend. We were able to visit with everyone on my side of the family, except for my sister (who is out of state), and Jon's mom.

The leaves are really falling now and the kids had a lot of fun building leaf forts at Jon's parents' house. The kids loved to jump in the leaves or have Jon throw them into the pile. They also really enjoyed the big tree swing, especially Jenna, who went higher than she ever has before and couldn't quit laughing in delight.

Bedtime at my parents' was a musical bed event, as usual. But the kids settled down pretty well, once they decided where they were sleeping, and were so excited to have a sleep over.

There is a fun event near my grandpa's house every year near Halloween--the Pumpkin Walk. Every year people make scenes using pumpkins and other props and we haven't been to it since Kendall was a baby. The kids really enjoyed looking at the different things.

My brother is an amazing photographer!! He was nice enough to do some family pictures of us that I'm sure will be wonderful! Jenna is his new little buddy.

It was really nice to spend some time with family.

Flag Football

Kendall's season of flag football is over and done with now, which is kind of sad because he had a really fun time this year. Here's a picture of the trophy (all of the boys got one) and Mr. Tough Guy:

Pumpkin Patch

I can't believe it--I forgot to bring my camera along to the pumpkin patch last night! But this picture reminds me of Jarren and Hooie (his raggedy blue blanket), so I guess it will work.

We took the kids (for the first time ever) to pick out their own pumpkins. This pumpkin patch was sooo neat! They had a corn maze for the kids, old tractors for them to climb on, a tractor pulling a hay-filled wagon for kids to ride in, and of course, rows and rows of pumpkins to choose from of all shapes and sizes. The kids had a blast! This is one tradition that we want to keep going. I sure do love this time of year.

Snow and Opinions

We had our first snow of the year last weekend. We woke up to a little dusting, but it didn't last. It looked strange because we still have leaves on the trees and flowers. Kendall was thrilled to build a fire in the fireplace and Jarren and Kristen had fun playing in it (the snow, not the fire). Jenna liked putting on everyone's boots and hats. Yeah...I'm a little late getting these pictures up. I've been busy. :)

It's a lot of fun to see Jenna develop her personality and her likes and dislikes. She has such a strong opinion on some things--and she's only two! I buy drink mixes (Crystal Light and the generic Walmart brand) and she has decided that she does not like the peach flavored. She lets us know that at least several times a day--"I do NOT like peach juice. Blah!" she says. Jenna also HATES to be in the tub long enough to get wrinkles. She can't stand to have wrinkled skin. She looks at her hands all the time to see if they're wrinkled. And Jenna cannot drink anything (milk, water, juice, etc) unless it's warmed up. She hates it cold!

Webelos Award

Kendall got his Webelos award for scouts this week. He's worked hard and had a lot of fun in the process.
I had to go up and have him pin the Mother's pin on me. I tried to hug him afterward, but he pulled away from me. I guess he's at the age now where it's embarrassing to hug your mom in public.

Silly, Crazy Kids!

Last night, the kids got really riled up for some reason. They were kind of crazy all weekend, so maybe it was just a carry over from that. We got some cute pictures and some really silly ones.
Here's a little update as well:
Kendall is still playing flag football and his last game was great! He had some really good plays and is enjoying it a lot. He is a good kid--really playing with his siblings and helping out a lot. Well...at least more than he used to.
Kristen finally got to take her earrings out and immediately lost the studs. With the help of magnets, combing through ever inch of her bedroom floor, we managed to find one of them, but the other one is still MIA. The store said that they'd replace it though. Phew!
Jarren is still building Lego Star Wars ships every single day. He's doing a lot of it on his own and has a great imagination. He gets his thrills from the building, not really the playing. He is improving leaps and bounds with his writing skills.
Jenna is obsessed with bears and dogs. And she still loves books, especially the Berenstain Bears. Papa Bear is her favorite character. She'll look at pictures of him and laugh and laugh. She just discovered some old baby toys the other day--one of them is a bear chew toy/rattle and it goes EVERYWHERE with her. She told me last night that it looks like Brother Bear because of its red shirt.

Crazy, Random Things

I got tagged and I get to come up with 7 crazy, random things about me that I am willing to admit. Then I get to tag people.

1. I hate driving next to a semi truck on the freeway. I will speed way up to get past it--going 15+ mph over the speed limit if I have to. I get so nervous of them moving over without seeing me, or if it's windy I get nervous that their trailer will sway into me.

2. (Monica, I'm exactly like you on this one)--I can't wear anything around my neck. Turtlenecks make me gag. Even if I wear a t-shirt with a neck that's too high, I feel like I'm dying. Anything (necklaces, shirts, etc) that touch above my collar bone do this to me.

3. When I sleep, I have to lay curled up on my left side with my right foot hooked out around the blankets so it's sticking out. Even when it's cold I do this. I feel like that's my "airway" when I sleep.

4. I always have to read at night before I go to sleep. It doesn't matter if it's only for 1 minute or 1 hour, it's just something I have to do--part of the routine I guess.

5. I hate to spend money. I used to have extreme panic attacks when I went to the store just to buy groceries (I do better with spending money on the necessities now). I hate spending money on myself and I hate spending money on the house. I want a beautifully decorated house, but I don't want to fork out the money to do it.

6. (Again, Monica, I'm like you. Wow! We have a lot in common.) I like to read about celebrities and the dumb things they do.

7. I hate to drive in the dark. I keep imagining things jumping out in the road in front of me and it's especially bad if it's raining/snowing. I can't see the lines and I just get too nervous.

I am tagging Jen, Teresa, Leslie, and Charisse (and anyone else who wants to do it).