Halloween 2012

The treat I made for playgroup we had at our house right before Halloween. White chocolate pudding with some green food coloring in it and topped with crushed Oreos.

 Our pretty little butterfly.

 Our handsome little devil.

 The whole crazy crew.

 Sweetest reaper.

 Happy, funky witch.

 Time for trick-or-treating. Olivia made it pretty far. She was a trooper.

 Our jack-o-lanterns all lit up.

 Checking out the kids loot.

 This is the candy we ended up with between my parent's ward trunk-or-treat and then actual trick-or-treating.

 This is what was left after I cleaned out all the weird, gross candy and all the stuff no one will eat. We still had two huge bowls full.

Pumpkin Carving

I love Halloween. It's my second favorite holiday to decorate for and one of my all time favorite moments all year is carving pumpkins. It's just such a fun family activity for me (great Family Home Evening). Everyone gets into it and enjoys it even if they do have to be coaxed into it at first. It's always fun to watch people think up their jack-o-lantern design then make it happen. Then of course the satisfaction of the final product, the result after the thought and effort put into it. I just love it! I am always the last one done because I help everyone else but I like it that way. It's just how it is. The big kids did awesome this year and were able to do a lot of theirs all on their own. Aunt Jenn and Grandma and Grandpa get forced into the action too and they love it. If they deny it, they are lying. It was a fun time as always. I look forward to it again next year.

 Jay had the mustache idea in his head all day and executed it pretty well.

 I even like digging out the guts.

 My beautiful pumpkin. I almost hated to carve it. . .almost.

 This was Olivia's first year really getting down and dirty. She did an awesome job. 

 Aunt Jenn let her draw the face on and then helped her carve it just as she drew it.

 Grandpa had the best idea this year. 

 Olivia and Jenn's

Noah's

Mine. By the way, all the 7 year old girls in playgroup liked mine the best so that makes me cool.

 Zoey's with detail just as Zoey would do. Eyelashes and sculpted lips, so her.

 Jay's

Jenn made Frankenstein treats with mint chocolate chip ice cream and crushed Oreos.

Yay for pumpkin carving!

We took a first try at making ice cream with the ice cream maker Zoey got for her birthday. We tried twice and both times the ice cream completely, ridiculously froze to the drum. The second time at least we managed to get them a little bit of ice cream to eat. Aunt Jenn looked the maker up online to look for advice and we have a couple things to try next time. So, our first attempt was a complete fail but the kids had a fun time trying.

Future Trumpet Trio

Jay's trumpets from high school were out in the garage and the kids really wanted to try them out. When Jay got home from work he pulled one out and let the kids all have a stab at trumpet playing. They all did a pretty good job, better than me for sure. Jay can still play pretty well considering it has been years for him. The kids had so much fun with it and were all very upset with me when I said it was time to be done.

Garage Clean Up

With the weather finally being bearable we tackled the task that was cleaning the garage. Not only did it need organizing but we had to seriously clean it. We were having mouse issues out there and they had made a mess. I took pictures of it but it grossed me out so I didn't post them. We moved everything though and swept and cleaned the floor with Clorox per advice from our pest guy. Here's hoping it's taken care of.

In the process mess.

 All clean and tidy. Feels great!

Crazy boy got restless in the swing and when I finally looked over after he settled this is the position he settled in. Silly kid.

Zoey drew this during her primary class time. She came home from church and set the table for dinner without being asked or anything. She definitely has her wonderful moments.

I was breaking eggs in a bowl while I was making dinner one night and this is how they broke in.

I broke another one in and it added a nose. It made me laugh. I couldn't do it if I tried.

9 Months Old

Our littlest man is 9 months today. He's standing up, crawling like a pro, has two teeth, and will eat everything in sight. Really, he eats anything, food or not. He doesn't sleep through the night anymore which is annoying but if that's the worst thing than I will take it. He is content to just wander the house most the time but he still loves to be held and snuggled. He makes his siblings happy and puts a smile on their grumpy faces. Aiden is an absolute joy and we love him to pieces.

 He is a side and tummy sleeper, even in his swing.

This was one of the fabulous ways my rotten day started. I pulled out a box of cereal and a thing of oatmeal fell from the top shelf. Ugh!

Squidghetti

I was having an off day and my wonderful husband planned dinner. He had been wanting to try this for the kids. It was simple but made for a fun dinner.

 Hot dogs or sausage boiled with noodles stuck in them. I added the face with mustard for picture purposes.