First Bites

Lydia is almost six months old so we decided that it was time that we finally start her on solids. I've been putting it off, but it was time! She did great and was so excited about finally being allowed to eat "people" food (as the other kids call it).

 

Apparently, Joe as not getting the food to her fast enough!

What a cute girl!

New Haircut

Andrew got a new haircut!

 

 

Before:

 

 

 

After:

I'm pretty sure that this is the shortest it's EVER been! What a handsome kid!

The Craziest Day of the Year! (A.K.A...Halloween!)

Every year I'm amazed by how busy Halloween is! It's crazy (and exhausting!) how many things we can cram into one day. To start the day off, I made Jack-O-Lantern pancakes for breakfast. Then, we hurried and got the kids and costumes to school on time. This year I was in charge of the Halloween party at Andrew's Kindergarten class and Joe went and helped in Sam's class party. Sorry, no pictures from Sam's party because, like I said, Joe went to that one ;)

Andrew's party was in the morning, so after I dropped the boys off at school, I hurried home to finish getting ready for the party. I packed up the sugar cookies I'd made (enough for both boys' classes), decorations, ingredients for frosting, paper goods, etc and hurried out the door. Thank goodness for Melissa for watching the girls for me! While the kids did their costume parade throughout the school, I mixed up the frosting (oops, forgot the vanilla so they got butter flavored frosting..eww! No complaints from the kids, though!) The party was a success! After that, we headed home for lunch. The afternoon was filled with preparations for the evening activities. After school we went to Joe's work for the family party there.

 We won a prize the best group costume, even though our costumes weren't coordinated. I think they just couldn't resist the cuteness of the kids!

From there, we went to a party at the home of one of Sam's friends from school, David. There we had dinner and then went trick-or-treating with the whole group in their neighborhood. It was so fun!

The weather was perfect, a little cool but no rain or snow. By the time we got home, even though it was not quite 7:00, we were all exhausted! What a fun, crazy, busy, tiring day! 

Four Months Old

 

I can't believe that this cute girl is already four months old! She is such a sweet baby and has the entire family wrapped around her chubby little finger!

 

Love you Lydibug!

Boy's Day at Silverwood

All summer Joe told the boys that he would take them to Silverwood, but it never worked out. But, since he's a such a great Daddy, he found a day that would work before it closed for the year! They had a great time together with out all of us "girls" slowing them down :) Here are some cute pics from their day...

 

What a difference a year makes! This ride last year, they had to stop after the first drop to let Andrew off because he was screaming so loud! He was so scared, but now that he's five, he's all grown up and "silly things like that don't scare him, he just knows how to be brave"...or so he tells me!

Hiking in the wilderness

Yesterday we took a trip out to Couer d'Alene to enjoy this last weekend of Summer. We met my parents out at the park. The weather was nice, but a little breezy which made the freezing cold water even worse! The swimming part of the afternoon didn't last for long! Joe and the kids came back shivering and covered with goosebumps. We enjoyed burgers from Paul Bunyan's and a live band playing at the concert stage. After dinner, my parents had to leave, but we decided to take the kids to go on a "hike" at Tub's Hill. The kids LOVED it! The boys had fun following every trail and climbing on every rock. Sam was sure to warn us about poison ivy ("Don't worry, I learned about it in first grade" he told us very smuggly.) and Andrew thought that this must be like the wilderness in the Book of Mormon. They were amazed by the size of the lake.

 I told them to pretend like they saw a bear for this picture...

And of course the muscle shot...

After we got back to civilization (A.K.A. the parking lot) we decided to take them down to the dock to walk for a bit. We only made it down one side (everyone was getting pretty tired from all the walking) but they loved all of the boats. We finished off the fun evening with a stop at Cold Stone. Sam serenaded us by singing along with the radio that was playing there, he said they were playing all of his favorite songs! It was a very fun day. I love spending time with my family, especially when we get to go on new adventures!

Storytime!!

Abby got a new Princess Encyclopedia and she isn't the only one who's been loving it!  I love seeing all of the kids enjoying books together, especially now that Sam is old enough to do some of the reading! Lydia just loves to be down on their level and be part of the action. Notice how Abby got all dressed up for the occasion!

I sure do love this crew!