Pumpkins Part II

Me and the kids decided to visit my family in California and have had so much fun! On thursday we went to La Quinta to visit Melissa and Emma, who Brayden has missed badly. Last night was my brother's homecoming so we went to the football game. We've also got to see my cousin Linda and best friend Tawny (yes, the one my daughter Tawny was named after). Tonight they were carving pumpkins so Brayden got to do another one. It was stickers again, but way cooler than the ones we did at home.

School Pictures

Brayden and Tawny go to preschool/daycare every Friday while I work in the office. A few fridays ago they were doing school pictures and asked if I wanted my kids picture taken. I was in a hurry and barely heard them, but said sure and rushed off to work. I thought they would be your standard head shot. So you can imagine my suprise when this was what I was given the next week.

They are beautiful! Granted, Tawny is a heart-beat away from crying and Brayden is doing his silly fake smile, but even still I love them. The best part is that they were really inexpensive and I was able to buy a CD with all copyrights. So if any of you would like a copy of some of them, just let me know. I can print them myself for pretty cheap. And they're high enough resolution that I can print 5x7's and 8x10's no problem. Let me know in the comments or give me a call!

...And it's Gone

Well, the snow is here. We woke up this morning to a few inches of snow, and as I write this it is still coming down. My dislike of snow (or anything cold) is pretty well documented. But I don't want my kids to hate it just because they hear mommy talk about how awful it is. So when Brayden looked out the window this morning and said "Mommy come see! Come see!" in the most excited voice possible, I decided to feign excitement. When he declared we HAVE to go play it in, I was right there with him. It can't be that bad right? Especially if you wear warm clothes. It will be fun right? I had almost convinced myself. Until I opened the front door. It is absolutely freezing. But the kids had so much fun. I made what seemed like thousands of snowballs for Brayden to throw at Greg (I still can't fully feel my fingers because I couldn't find my gloves). Even Tawny joined in the fun. So I guess I'm in for a winter of loving snow. Yipee.

At first he wasn't sure about touching it...
...and then jumped right in!

Tawny thought it was great.

After our super fun snow adventure we did pumpkins this morning. We didn't carve them because Brayden and Tawny would watch for a few minutes and then go play. I guess I could give them their own knives, but as Brayden has told me before, I'm "not a very fun mom sometimes". So instead we decided to let the kids decorate the outside with markers, foam stickers, glitter, whatever the creative little hearts desired. It was a success all the way around. The kids loved it and Greg and I didn't have to spend forever cleaning out the pumpkins.

To round it up, here's some pics I've been meaning to post, but just haven't got around it it. These are all less than two weeks old. I can't help but notice that they look a little different than the snowy freezing ones above. I can't quite put my finger on it...

Tawny fed herself yogurt. What was your first hint?

Elaine, do you recognize the coat?

While it Lasts

Since we're running out of days warm enough for outdoor play, we've practically lived outside recently. Tawny loves everything about the park, especially the slide.

Under Construction

I'm trying to find a new look for the blog. I'm getting pretty tired of the old one. There's still some bugs to work out, but what do you think?

Parents of the Year

So many posts in one day. I just have lots to post on and didn't feel like combining them in one really random post. Anyways.....

So overall I think I'm pretty attentive as a parent. My kids don't play in the street, I make sure they're fed and they can't play with cleaners or medicine (I know, I'm no fun). I usually pay attention to what's going on with my kids. So I'm not sure how this happened. Yesterday I thought Tawny had something in her mouth. But when I went to dig it out, I realized it was one of her molars. On further inspection I found that ALL FOUR of her one year molars are in. Not just barely cut through, but all the way in. Here's the kicker. Greg and I had no idea she was even teething. If fact, at church on Sunday someone asked how many teeth she had and I said just the front eight. How could she get all four of her molars in and I never even noticed? What is wrong with me? Granted, she's a pretty good teether, very little fussing or drooling. But still.

Silly girl

I was cleaning the other day when I noticed Tawny wearing this...

...and this...
...I believe she was styled by Brayden.

The Camp-Out

So we stole a great idea from Bethanne and made a fun jar, which is full of random and fun activities to do. Most of them are prety simple (play hide and seek, have a water fight, play with playdo, etc.) We've all loved it. However, I think we may have got a little carried away with some of our entries. On monday Brayden wanted to pick something out of the fun jar to do for our FHE activity. Great idea. Except that he picked "have a camp-out". I could have censored it, but instead I decided to go along. I thought it would be great if we all "camped" in the living room, but Brayden was insistent that we sleep outside in the tent. I thought about saying no, but I couldn't really think of a good reason. So we did and had so much fun. We barbecued hamburgers, set up the tent and had a blast! So what if our neighbors think we're crazy. The kids had so much fun!