Clara and Clay got to dress up for preschool yesterday. My friend Melina made Clara's tutu and Janie will wear hers tonight. I love them Melina- thank you! They had a Halloween parade and then my mom took the kids to the park. They were covered in sand when they got home, but loved every minute of it!
Every October we attend the annual Buddy Walk for our favorite buddy, Parker. It's a HUGE event and it's always so much fun. By 10:00 a.m. we had all eaten Krispy Kremes, Jamba Juice smoothies, Blue Bell ice cream, cotton candy, and snow cones. Yum. We were lucky enough to have Kelli come from Utah too; although it was too short a visit, Kel!
Last night we had the pleasure of attending the Hinze's annual Halloween party. It was a success, as always! I didn't used to be one for costume parties, but it's been fun trying to come up with new ideas. I think this suits us well. 
And I think Candice might have been a bit too comfortable as Oprah.
Today I went with Clara and Clay's preschool on a field trip to Mother Nature's Farm. It was kinda hot and kind of a mad house, but the kids enjoyed it. They have pumpkin decorating, hay rides, a petting zoo, a hay maze, and an air bounce. If it would just cool down a few more degrees, we could spend all day outside!
Because while I was adding a new post, Clara learned how to take off the safety gate that's usually up to keep the kids from going into the guest room (which right now is the catch-all) and they made an even bigger mess of it.
Of course when I went to see what they were doing, Clara and Clay were nowhere to be found, but I heard a squeaky voice from the closet saying "Let me out!" in between sobs.
I opened the door to find Janie with black permanent marker all over herself and the closet door. Luckily it's on the inside where nobody can see it. Maybe I should wait until the kids are sleeping before I get on the computer.
Quick update on the kids: Clara's obsession lately is helping me in the kitchen. Every time she sees me in there she asks "Can I help you make something?" It's been a good motivator for me because I want her to love to cook so I've been trying to increase my cooking and baking skills. Which reminds me, if you haven't looked at mine and my sisters' cooking blog there are lots of delicious recipes so check it out here!
Clay is into Transformers right now. It's all he talks about morning, noon, and night. He got some photo album boxes out and put them on his feet and walked around the house saying he was a Transformer. At least it makes Christmas shopping for him really easy! He loves, loves, loves preschool and has grown up so much these last few months.
These girls have the best bedhead of anyone I know. This picture is actually mild compared to what it usually looks like! Janie is at SUCH a fun age! Her vocabulary is excellent and she is almost always sweet and happy. When Clara and Clay are at preschool, Janie makes a great shopping partner. She been showing some signs of interest in the potty training area, but I haven't been very faithful about it. On Sunday she told us she needed to go potty so Derek put her on her potty chair and she went pee and poop, a first! She hasn't done it since, but she was sure proud of herself!
I never really thought about a garden probably because I do NOT have a green thumb and cannot keep plants alive for longer than 2 days, but Derek has wanted one for a while and it's finally become a reality! Monday night for FHE we planted the seeds; if we can even get one good vegetable from it, I'll consider it a success!
I am definitely investing in one of these roller coasters- it was by far the kids favorite!
Candice made this little book for Janie with pictures of our family- could she be any more creative?
Every Sunday we go to my parents house for dinner so we had another little party over there. She made out like a bandit!
Happy Birthday to my sweet Janie Jane! I can't believe she's already 2. She's looking and acting more grown up every day. Some things I love about Janie:
If you haven't already noticed it on my sidebar, my sisters, mom, and myself started a cooking blog. We decided to call it 'Hold the Onions' because whether we're making food or ordering it, we leave the onions out! Hopefully you'll enjoy the recipes even if you like onions- you can always add them yourself!
