It's already started...

Well, Cole has officially shot his first gun. Daddy did some target practice with a BB Gun in our back yard. Cole thought this was the most wonderful thing in the world. He actually hit the paper that the target was on too. I thought that was pretty good for a four year old. I of course hit the target right on. I even did better than Adam (on the first try at least.) This was a fun family activity (minus Ariah...we made sure she was down for a nap.) Lots of supervision and gun safety was taught. It was fun.

No! Absolutely Not! No Way! This is the Last Straw!!!

My little girl is losing her teeth. She already went to kindergarten - isn't that enough!! She is getting too big and I wont allow it any longer. On Sunday, she lost her first tooth, HUGE! Then on Monday, during family home evening, while we were bobbing for apples she lost her 2nd tooth! She is so stinkin cute I can hardly stand it. She thinks she is so big. Here she is missing two teeth!

Cole LOVES to bob for apples. He is so good at it and he knows it too. Mom can't do it, Ambra cant' do it, and Ariah cant do it, so he always tells us how kind and loving he is and that he will get our apples for us. It is the one thing he can do that no one else can (besides dad). So fun. (This gets to the point of flexing muscles and "Ya Baby")

Yay daddy!

Ariah got about this far.

Here is first missing tooth! For the first one, the tooth fairy brought a dollar and a note welcoming her into the tooth club. For the second tooth, she got something extra special. Fairy Dust! The note said that only very very special children got fairy dust and that it was magical. All she had to do was sprinkle a little in mom or dad's hand and ask for any treat she wanted, and they would magically want to get it for her that day. She asked for a lollipop. The dust was good for two times and the other time she could ask for mommy or daddy to do something with her - anything she wanted. She of course thought this was the most wonderful thing in the world and used her fairy dust faithfully. I got to color with her that day. I love it. Children are so fun!

and finally... HALLOWEEN!!!

Halloween was sooo fuuun! We started out with our traditional dinner in a pumpkin with witches brew, and orange cream jello (salad and garlic bread too yummmy). Then we went door to door trick or treating, then to the trunk or treat, then we got the car and really raked it in. This is the first year the kids were like totally gung ho to the point of overflowing the pumkin bags. Wow, we raked in some serious loot. Especially Ariah, people didn't seem to mind the one year old going in for second and third handful helpings of their candy. Sweet stratedgy baby!

So this is phase two of the halloween costume. I finally fit into my cheer duds and had to wear them (plus I couldn't wear the witch shoes trick or treating...tennis shoes are much better.) Adam was so cute. We got home and put the kids to bed and he said "OK lets go!" I was so shocked, he had his brother come up to babysit while we went to a Halloween dance at the institute building. It was SO MUCH FUN! We pretended we were dating in college and danced our little hearts out. I was wringing sweat by the end of the night. Then we went over to the neighbors house and at soup and breadsticks till one in the morn. I totally felt like a college roomie again. It was so fun! THanks for a fun surprise honey!

Ambra and all her loot.

Adam is a mechanic if you didn't guess it.

Little ladybug and cheer mom.

Trick or treat.

Here is our dinner. We did it by candlelight. Such a fun tradition.

Halloween party number.... oh six or seven... something like that!

My good friend Kandice was so wonderful and had a Halloween shindig at her house Halloween morning (the kids were out of school)! It was SOO FUN! We did a prize walk, bingo, made little ghost suckers, and had homemade soup and rolls. Kandice makes the best rolls ever and we all ate like little piggies. (PS she is taking orders for her wonderful rolls for the holidays. Get it in soon or you'll be left to the not even half as good rolls from the store.) In this picture I suggested the kids have a leaf fight until I realized that Ambra's hair had to last the whole day. THis is Halloween ya know. Belle hair is not easy.

Ariah and Cameron. They are a week apart in age. So cute.

Jenny, me and Chalyce. We braved the costumes.

Pretty little Belle.

Wow, look at that handsome group! Brave Kandice having all those kids at her house!! You rock girl. Good thing the weather was so wonderful and we could have it outside. Thanks a million! So fun.

Halloween Parties Four and Five!

Of course I dressed up! I totally love it. I should probably feel geeky, but I never do. Maybe one day, who knows? I had to dress up for Ambra's school party that I helped with and this is what I came up with at 10 the night before. I'm like a clown witch or something.

Ambra's grandma stayed at our house Halloween week, so she got to come to school with us. It is Grandma (witch), Mrs. Hardy (teacher), my cute little Amrba (they weren't allowed to dress up at school LAME!!!!!!!!!!! can I put enough emphasis on lameness!), Annie (room mom), and me. I was in charge of the craft. We did puppet spiders. It's so fun to be in her class. I am totally diggin it.

Cole's little preschool Hallowen party. Two of the kiddos were sick. Darn. They can't be sick near Halloween!

Me and Grandma with the kiddies.

Party number three!

Group kid picture gone bazerk! I had a little party at my house with my roomies from college. It was so fun to see everyone. Between the eight of us we had 11 kiddos there. 5 kids and 6 babes.

Emily, Amy, me, Emily, Mindie, Alisa, Cheryl, Kamie. We had a blast. We have figured out we need to get together again though since we were so busy doing a party and entertaining 11 kids we didn't get to talk to much.

Kamie put together a craft. The kids made darling little halloween frames.

The two oldest of the bunch. Ambra and Kamies daughter Mariko. They are dining on their cupcakes from the cake walk.

Kiddie picture minus Ariah. Anyone surprised? She was over messing around in the fire pit. Anyone surprised again? Figures.

Halloween Party!!! or should I say parties...prepare for many!

My little nephew Joshua turned one!!! We went down to Springville for his little birthday party. He is the one in the engineer costume. It was fun. Grandma came up from St. George for the party. It was on the 25th and thier ward was having a trunk or treat so we got to go to that during the party. Fun.

This is at the pumpkin walk in Syracuse. They have like a million carved and shaved pumpkins. Those things are so professional. There are like temples and scriptures and faces carved into those things. They really took it to the next level.

Every year Layton puts on a Halloween Bash. It is free and there are games, blow ups, treats, cake walk, costume contest etc... It was fun. We came here with bunch of friends and their kids and then headed on over to the pumpkin walk.

This was the first time they really got to put on their costumes, so we had to do pictures by the pumpkins.