The Halloween Fun Begins

It snowed all day yesterday, and it's been freezing here! I was sitting on the couch with Sam reading a book and he said, "Mom, I can hear jingle bells! Is Santa coming?"
We started reading Danny The Champion of the World and Sam loves it! It's so fun to read a chapter book with him. He's really getting into the story, and it's some great special time for us when the other kids are asleep.

Our ward trunk or treat was Wednesday, and the kids had lots of fun. I forgot the camera, so I had to take pictures of them when we got home. They wouldn't all look at me at the same time.

Mike had the most amazing costume. Ever. Complete with all the cowboy accessories...bolo tie, belt buckle, boots, and cows! And such cute cows too! Molly looks exactly like Sam did when he wore that costume 4 years ago. I love it! Sam absolutely loves Transformers right now, so he was pretty excited to be Bumblebee for Halloween (along with half the other boys his age). We got some good use out of the costumes this year. We also wore them trick or treating at my sister's office, at a care center, and then of course around the neighborhood. I love getting my money's worth out of something!

In the last couple of years, Halloween has become one of my favorite holidays. I love finding fun treats to make, and this is always everyone's favorite! (Check food blog for recipe) The mummies we made yesterday were pretty fun too! We've made lots of fun stuff this month, and we're not done yet! Plus we have an awesome monster on our front door, I'll post those pics soon. Fun!

My little monsters. I love girly Halloween clothes, is she not the cutest?! Sam and Will love practicing their scary faces!

Speaking of scary, when I got Will out of bed today after his nap, his backside felt unusually not padded. I looked down and saw his diaper on the floor! He took it off, threw it, and then put his pants back on. What a monkey. At least the diaper was only wet!

Molly started cutting teeth about a month and a half ago (at age 7 1/2 months). They're still not all the way out, but one is close. The way I found out she was teething was when my friend was watching her while I was at the dentist (ironically), and she asked when Molly's teeth started coming in. I didn't even know! I don't routinely put my fingers in her mouth, so I'd never felt them. She was a little fussy the day before, but I thought she was just hungry because she was fine after I fed her. Apparently she was getting her first tooth! Talk about an easy baby! She's been sleeping through the night since she was about 2 months old (and by that I mean all night...not 6 hours like some people consider sleeping through the night). She's currently sleeping 12-13 hours at night, napping twice, and she almost never cries. She loves to sit and play with toys, but she's not interested in crawling yet. And she's finally eating solids! for months she just wouldn't do it, so we're happy that she finally caved. Perfect baby.

Sam still loves Transformers, so he had a blast playing with his buddy Max that also loves Transformers. He's doing great in preschool, and loves reading. He read an entire story book to his older cousins the other day. He says all sorts of stuff that makes us laugh and keeps us on our toes!

I went to lunch with my sisters, and it was so much fun! I have the greatest sisters! We talked and laughed, and I had 3 big lemonades by the time our food came. Great way to not be hungry when your food comes.

Melissa and I were sitting in our booth talking while we waited for Jennifer to get there when a couple came up to our table and asked if I was Becky Foutz. It was the people I used to babysit for back in the day...14 years ago! I had a standing Friday night babysitting job, and sometimes another time or two during the week. I babysat for them all the time for about two years (until we moved). The little boy I babysat was 6 when we moved, and his sister was 2. Now he's 20 and on a mission, and she's 16! There's even a little brother I never met. It made me feel so old! I can't believe they remembered me after all those years. It was so fun to see people from (what seems like) a whole other life.

Good News!

I decided there was a chance the memory card got recycled after garbage day last week, so we dumped the can...and found it!!! We already bought a new one (figures), but I'm so relieved to have my pics back!

Lessons Learned

I've learned a few things this week. Important lessons learned mostly by trial and error. And by having kids.

• Don't put the memory card on the kitchen table. It will get recycled with the newspaper. But you won't realize it until after trash day.
• During errands, when your two-year-old hands you an apple, don't put it in your purse thinking he'll want to finish it later. Apples are heavy. Apples will fall to the bottom of your purse. You will forget about it because you can't see it at the bottom of your purse, and even though it's heavy, it's not as heavy as the can of Costco weight loss shake that is also at the bottom of your purse. As you clean your purse out only monthly, the apple will sit in your purse. At the bottom. With stuff on it. Decomposing. I was baffled as to how I could have had a fruit fly in my car. I am baffled no more.
• On the day you're still recovering from a cold but decided to exercise (and not shower) before going out, realize that it's the day you will probably run into several people you know but don't see very often. Their memory of you will be in exercise pants and a sweater with a hat that doesn't match. And you're sick and haven't showered. Lovely.
• On said day, don't be afraid to ask if that person you think is a childhood friend that you haven't seen in 14 years, really is. I got the name wrong, but hey, she's a twin and I guessed her sister. It was so fun to see a friend from half my life ago! And she lives only a few miles away from me now.

And so I don't forget, Sam prays for some really awesome stuff at night. I'll update as I remember more of what he's said. Most of it is Transformer related, but I'll have to ask Mike because my memory stinks now.

• Please bless the Decepticons to turn into Autobots.
• Please bless Will not to want Sideways (a decepticon).
• Please bless the earth to keep spinning.
• Please bless gravity.

*Note: The apple wasn't totally rotten sitting in my purse. It had a big squishy spot on it, but was probably much less gross than I let on. Gross, but not fatal.

I have a 5 year old!!

You can't go wrong by starting the birthday celebrations with the oldest and youngest members of the family, especially when they're just so darn cute!

Sam and Papa celebrate their birthdays together since they're only a few days apart (with Grandma Tigger's in between!).

Grandma gave Sam a really fun animal game, but it paled in comparison to the tape measure! When he opened it his eyes lit up and he ran over to Grandma and Papa, gave them a big hug, and said something like, "Thanks guys, how did you know I always wanted one of these? I love it!" He was so grateful, it was really sweet...and hilarious!

On Sam's birthday we had a few friends over for a little party. Mike was too efficient for me, he'd already removed the "Happy Birthday" candles by the time I was ready for a picture. Sam wanted a Transformer cake, and it was actually a lot more work than you'd think by looking at it. I cut the fondant very carefully. And I made it grey, but it turned purple overnight. Sam didn't seem to notice, and the kids still ate it!

I thought I was buying noise makers, but they weren't! They were just blowers. What a great birthday surprise for Mom and Dad!

The kids all loved them. It didn't take long for the boys to turn them into weapons though. It never does. After cake and ice cream and opening some super cool presents, we headed down to a place called Bouncin' off the Walls. The kids LOVED it, and they were totally exhausted by the time we left. All in all, a great birthday!

Will wanted to play basketball the whole time. He is obsessed with balls. All balls. If something is remotely circle-shaped he calls it a ball. And tries to play with it like a ball. (We were just in St. George for the marathon, and while we were down there he discovered that he could put a golf ball in a sock and then swing it around. He swung a little less vigorously after he hit himself with it. He's such a funny kid.)

This was everyone's favorite, and I have to admit, it is pretty fun! I think they went down this slide for a solid hour before they did anything else.

Molly and I hung out while all the kids played. Mike dressed her for the party, headband and all. She probably has about 50 different flower clips, I love them! And since they're so easy and cheap to make, why not?

We had such a fun day with our Sam, we're so glad he's been with us for 5 years! He's a SMART kid, reading everything (and I mean everything) in sight. He loves learning, and he loves going to preschool. He can't wait for kindergarten, especially since he missed the cutoff by one day. He's a fun older brother, and he's always so sweet with his baby sister! Will misses him like crazy when he goes to preschool and he'll ask me, "Is Sam here?" They're best buddies! And their favorite show to watch with their dad is Ninja Warrior!

Sam, aka Monster Man, aka Rocket Fire, aka Punching Tiger Man, aka Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon Fire Breathe

August Bear Lake Trip

We had a great little trip up to Bear Lake at the end of August. The Nielsens and Ences came up with us, and we had a blast! Minus a set of car keys making it to the bottom of the lake, and us leaving the other families at the cabin by themselves for an unexpected extended vacation, everyone had lots of fun! Jami and I saw this old school bus that was converted into an RV. You have to wonder how cost effective that is. But still cool.

Ready to go find Daddy at the triathlon!

I dropped Mike off before the sun was up. I went back to bed as he was starting his swim!

Mike and Doug on the "molecule" with the little ones. They didn't love it.

The lake was really high this year, so the kids had a blast playing in the warm, shallow water.

Will and Sophie, so happy eating their chips and holding balls while sitting in the little raft. That's when you know life is really good.

Molly and Corbin will be buds, but probably not until they're a little more mobile. They're the same size and Corbin is three months younger! Molly's a bit of a chunk herself...Corbin is a big boy!

We had a little fire on the beach the first night we went up. No one else had come up yet, so we roasted hot dogs, made s'mores, and fed the birds. The boys loved throwing food at the sea gulls!

This little face makes me so happy!

Looking at these pictures, I'm not convinced I actually went on this trip. I didn't make it into a single shot! Note to self: Make Mike take some pictures too.

And of all random things, we figured out that my friend Summer had a crush on Talmage in junior high, and that I went to junior high with Talmage's cousin Liz (Summer and Talmage went to a different junior high than Liz and me). I also went to junior high with Mike's cousin Sarah. And the name of our school was Clayton Middle School.

Busy!

Mike is amazing. That's all there is to it. Today he PR'd in the St. George Marathon (3:15!). Then we drove straight home, I dropped him off at work, he came home and changed, went to the Priesthood session of General Conference, helped me get the kids in bed, watched The Office and Glee with me, then went and watched football. Seriously, who has that kind of energy?!

Plus he could still pick Will up and actually smile for a picture before getting in his ice bath.

At the end of August we took a trip up to Bear Lake for Mike's first Half Iron Man Triathlon! 1.1 mile swim, 56.1 mile bike, 13.1 mile run. That's why they call it a 70.3. I asked him how it was and he said (get this)...it was fun!

All it did was make him want to do a full Iron Man. I think he's nuts! But amazing. (That's Mike crossing the finish line) I actually really like all the races Mike does, because that means another vacation for me! And there are tons more Bear Lake pics to come. We had such a fun trip!