Trick or Treat

We love our little dalmation!

We love our little princess!

Happy Halloween!

This is the week to prepare for Halloween. The pumpkins are out. The costumes are chosen. The candy is stocked. And now the fun begins. We are so excited for Halloween this year - Olivia has been practicing saying "Trick or Treat!" very loudly so that people can hear her and give her candy. She's pretty proud of herself and feels very "big" to be doing this. She will dress up as a princess, and has tried on her costume many times.

Our other preparations include a few fun snacks to lead up to the big day. Of course there is candy galore, but we needed to throw in a few healthy things to get us threw the week. These little snacks are "Ghost Toast", and easy to do. Make a piece of toast, use a knife or kitchen scissors to cut out a ghost shape, spead on softened cream cheese, and add raisons for eyes/mouth. The kids loved these this morning! Check out this link for some other fun ideas! Happy Halloween!
http://familyfun.go.com/halloween/

Recently

We returned from a little work/vacation to Des Moines, IA, which had Jake working and the kids and I vacationing. We spent a lot of time at our hotel, but our trip also included a couple of outings for the kids and I while Jake was working.

One trip was to the zoo. We loved seeing all of the different animals. Since we don't have a zoo near us, this was really a special treat. The season was winding down, which meant that some of the exibits were closed, but also that fewer people were there, which was nice for us. We were able to take our time and enjoy the experience.

We loved watching the giraffes, walking with their lanky legs and long stretching necks. When I say we, I mean Olivia and I. Wyatt just mostly cried. I don't think he liked the zoo that much.

Behind Olivia are some cute little penquins, swimming laps in their pool. Oh, they were so funny watch, diving under the water and playing together.

This, however, was Olivia's favorite animal by far. Little Llama. He was in the feeding area of the zoo, so we were able to feed him, and Olivia really got a kick out of that. She had to stand up on the stroller (which probably isn't really that safe), to reach his mouth. We fed him almost all of our food. The other animals just didn't quite make the cut.

We had a great time overall (despite Wyatt's crying). Hopefully the next time we go, Wyatt will be a little older and will enjoy the experience a little more!

Conversations with Olivia

Although we do usually take Olivia to Sunday church, I'm not sure if that's the Noah she's often talking about:

Mom: Olivia, would you get your shoes on so we can go?
Olivia: No-ah! I'm still playing!

Mom: It's time to put pigtails in your hair.
Olivia: No-ah! I don't want those!

Mom: Let's get ready for bed.
Olivia: No-ah! I'll go in five more minutes!

hmmm... is this the sassiest she'll get or might it be worse in 10 years??

Summer's End

We've been spending our days soaking up the sunshine and fading warmth. We love playing outside, and although the days are getting shorter, and the temperature is getting cooler, we are hanging on with all our might. For us, that spend most of our days at home, the chance to get outside and play makes a big difference in our days. We know that shortly we will be inside all day. And that if we do venture out into the snow, we will be bundled up in layers, and trying to figure out how to go potty AFTER the snowsuit is on! Oh, I will treasure these warm fall days for as long as possible! Gotta get outside!

big boy

Braids