Boo!

I have to say, Neil is the pumpkin carver in our family! He loves it, and does an amazing job! I however, don't love carving pumpkins (I know! It's weird, I just don't enjoy it so much). So, Neil bought a pumpkin the day before Halloween, and had a ton of fun with the kids!


The night of Halloween, EmmaLee picked out a Halloween Mac and Cheese. Which I was happy with because it was easy to make and the kids ate all of their dinner. Also, I think it was only like $0.62! I knew they were going to eat a lot of candy, so I figured as long as they had something else in their belly, they'd be good. I just remember when I was growing up, I was so excited to go trick-or-treating, I didn't want to eat because I just wanted to leave. So, maybe we'll make this a tradition, who knows?

Carter was enjoying his meal! They seriously, between the two of them, ate the whole box!

EmmaLee as Cinderella. She kept wanting me to take a ton of pictures in all different poses!

The night before Halloween, Neil and I went to an amazing Halloween Movie that some of our friends put on and he won this sweet "This is it" Michael Jackson shirt. (The movie was awesome by the way!) So he of course tried to dress up as MJ. What do you think? I happen to love the white socks with black pants!

I didn't dress up too much, Neil just gave me some stitches on the forehead. Good enough, I guess.

The pumpkin! We didn't have a candle, so Neil stuck a small flashlight in there. It luckily stayed lit all night.

Here are our friends Joel and Kenzie the cat!

Here they are, off in the RAIN!! It rained the whole time they were out. But loved every minute.

The load of candy!

Wow!

Oh, where was I? At home in the warmth, passing out candy of course!

This was actually taken on October 31st, Halloween day. Since we live in Utah, we celebrated Halloween on a Saturday. What handsome boys!

Every Sunday EmmaLee gets out the play dough after church, while Carter is napping. She is getting very creative. I still don't 100% trust Carter with play dough, since we have carpet under our table. I'm such a mean mom!

As you can see, EmmaLee and Carter are playing in their car seats. Car seats in the house, you might ask? Yes, our white car broke down. We were on our way to the store when our car just went out. Luckily our neighbor's Joel and Kellan were home to come and pick us up and tow our car. Thank goodness! However, the bad news is, we still don't have a working car and have to check to see the price on fixing it. I'm worried since we just spent a ton of money in May on fixing the same car. It's so frustrating!! But I guess we'll figure something out. It's never fun, but it always seems to work out in some way or another.

The Weather is Changing...

So on Monday when we woke up to snow, I was excited for the kids to wake up to see what was outside! (Even though I'm not a huge fan of the snow for long periods of time.) I brought Carter to the window and had him look out. He had a confused look on his face, obviously he didn't remember what snow looked like. I said, "Carter, look at all of that snow!" Carter looked out, "Eeww? Mama?" "No," I said, "Cold!" Then he looked at me... "Oh." It was just so sweet and innocent, I wonder what he thought it was? Something disgusting, I guess!
The picture above is of him at our Ward Chili-cook off. I finally got him to smile! (Oh, and I won second place for my White Chili, Wahoo!)


Here is all of the princesses!

Neil and I TRIED to be vampires from Twilight. I was trying to look like Victoria and Neil, Edward! Ha ha, just kidding, he didn't want to be Edward because he didn't want everyone to make fun of him. I, of course, thought he looked amazing all sparkly! We are still finding sparkles all over our house! Next year I'm going to see if he'll be Jacob! We'll see.

Yesterday when I was in my room for a minute I came out to find EmmaLee doing the dishes all by herself! I thought it was so sweet, I had to capture the moment. She had soap and water everywhere, and the water was freezing cold! But I politely thanked her for doing such an amazing job, and cleaned up after her later. I love that girl!

Neil has been working so hard in school lately with all of his Research he's been doing. Yesterday he presented his Research to a panel of professors and he did amazing! He exceeded their expectations! So because of all of his hard work and long hours we decided to celebrate by going out to eat. We ended up at Red Robin. It was delicious.

What we've been doing this Fall!

Can I just say how much I LOVE my sweet kids! I've been thinking about them a lot and how lucky I am to be their mother. However, because of that I also have been thinking how hard it is to be a Mom, and to make sure all of their needs are being met, and I'm raising them to be the best they can be. So much PRESSURE!


They have been learning to play together so well! It makes me so happy when I see how happy they are when they are together. Don't get me wrong, they also know how to push each other's buttons!

Best friends!

EmmaLee was invited to a birthday party where they painted faces. She loved it!

EmmaLee and Carter were fighting about who got to wear the Hot Pad around their foot. EmmaLee won in this picture.

Also in October, EmmaLee had her first Primary Program. She had one line to say "God is the Father of my Spirit". She said it over and over to practice. To be honest, she is pretty shy and I wasn't sure if she was going to make it up on the stand in front of all of those people. But she did AMAZING! It made me cry to watch her being so brave and so grown up. She also knew every song and she sang her little heart out. It made my heart melt. I just can't believe my little girl is growing up so fast! The other day she told me that she wished she was a mom so she could hold and hug her little babies in her arms. I told her that she has 14 babies of her own (dolls) to hold and hug. She said.. but mom, those aren't real! I hope she can wait 20 more years! She loves those babies.

We were fortunate enough to go to Cornbelly's. It a great place to celebrate Fall! Neil loved to hang out and play with the kids in all of the activities.

They have huge jumping pillows there and you can jump for five minutes. The kids loved it, but we had to wait in line for fifteen minutes and Carter was getting very impatient. I don't know what we are going to do with him when we get to Disneyland next year?

Riding behind a tractor, in a fake cow! What more could you ask for?

Everyone enjoyed it!

We got to go on a Hayride. Which, I think, is the ultimate fall activity.

Neil, Kellan and Andrew. They were racing on these adult, tricycle tractors! I think Kellan won. But they had fun, none the less!

The Doom's in the corn maze. Thanks to Suzy, we made it out!

Nicole and I! For some reason, my camera was picking up all of the dust articles in the air. I couldn't get a clear picture. It was a little frustrating.

For some reason, just lately, Carter will not pose for pictures. I hope it's just a phase.

Our Family in the corn maze!

EmmaLee got to dress up as a princess and play in the princess land. She loved it. They had a horse and carriage just like Cinderella's.

Some of our sweet neighbors planned a fun Halloween party for the kids. We headed over to the church since none of our houses are big enough. Here are a few pictures of the event. Sorry, I couldn't get everyone. It was a lot of fun! Grant is pictured above with his adorable alien costume!

Katelyn, Nicolette, Danika and Issak!

Kristin, Ethan, EmmaLee, Skyler and Amy!

Nicole, Marcy and sweet baby Emily!

Carter, who again, wouldn't pose for a picture. He also has just recently started biting his fingernails. I don't know what made him just all of the sudden start chewing? Anyway, his hands seem to always be in his mouth. That won't help the colds this coming season. He already has a runny nose, that I just can't seem to get to go away! It's a little frustrating. Actually, it's a lot frustrating! I don't know what do to. Those darn colds!

Abbey, Aliyah, EmmaLee, Alyssa, Liriel!

The Princesses, Cinderella and Belle. Oh, I mean EmmaLee and Lydia!

Neil surprised me last week, and I walked into the living room and there were bikes! I was shocked because I have been trying to get him to buy us bikes for years! Anyway, come to find out, there are very generous, sweet people who gave him the bikes at no cost. I will forever be grateful to them and their kindness. So, he had his brother Ben help him fix up the bikes and he went looking for a bike seat for Carter. (If you ever need anything fixed, Ben is the best person to go to, he is always so very helpful! Thanks Ben!) Two weeks later, Neil found a seat and we were able to hit the road! Thanks Babe!! I LOVE YOU!

It was so fun to ride as a family, especially since EmmaLee has learned how to ride. She did get very tired on our first ride. She cried the whole way home. But I can't blame her. She has to petal ten times more than what we do, since her bike is so small. Hopefully someday we can upgrade her bike. Or, I have a better idea, a double bike trailer! Ha! Ha! I'll have to work some more on Neil for that one!

Our sweet Carter! He fell, running on the sidewalk. If you look him up and down, you will see that he plays very hard outside. EmmaLee was never like that. But you can tell he is all boy! He loves to kick balls, throw Frisbees and anything else sports. But I do have to say that today while EmmaLee was at school, he took four of her baby dolls and put them down for a nap in his crib. He also got out the wipes and the diapers and changed the dolls. He is definitely in touch with his feminine side, thanks to EmmaLee. He might just be embarrassed at a later age, when he finds out all of the stuff that EmmaLee taught him how to do. Oh well, I think it's cute!

First Day!

It was EmmaLee's first day of preschool on Wednesday! With all of her worries and my doubts, she did completely amazing! We had long talks at night time to ease all of her fears, and I thought she might be a little upset to leave, but she wasn't. It was nice to have friends and neighbors there to help her feel more comfortable. As she walked in the the school, standing there with all of the other sweet little kids, with their cute little backpacks, so innocent, I couldn't help but hold back the tears. My sweet girl is growing up!
In the above picture is McKay, Carter, Tanner and EmmaLee all excited for preschool!

Neil had them roar like a dinosaur, but as you can see, EmmaLee was the only one in this pic. The day before she went to school, I had a Doctor's follow-up appt for her UTI. It has thankfully gone away, however as we were talking we decided that it would be best to have her updated on all of her shots. (Kindergarten shots) That way, I wouldn't have to make another appt, and I could just get it all finished at that one. It sounded good at the time, but they gave her five shots! I felt so bad! The Dr. said that it could possibly give her a fever, and of course when she woke up, she had a fever. I felt so bad, that on the first day, her legs hurt from the five shots and she had a fever! (it wasn't contagious though, thank goodness!) So I gave her some medicine and she did great. However, note to self, don't give your child shots the day before their first day of school!

Here is all of us walking to school! Julie in the back with McKay, Tanner and Grant. Jessica in the middle with Brandon, Liriel and Derek, and us. It's like a parade, the preschool parade! I guess it's about 3/4 of a mile there, so a total of 1 1/2 miles, each time we go. We drop them off and pick them up, for a total of 3 miles. It's been a great workout! Especially since I haven't been running lately.

McKay and EmmaLee, so excited to go into class for their first day! Hold it together Mom! Thank goodness for McKay who has been great friends with EmmaLee over the past few years, it really helped to have a good friend to help her feel not so alone.

We drop of the kids at the door, after we sign them in. The teacher said that it helps with separation anxiety when all of the kids are all dropped off at the same place, and they all wait together to go into the classroom all at the same time. Makes sense to me. So far it's worked with EmmaLee. Now, I'm a little worried when it starts to rain or snow and we're all standing outside waiting for our turn to sign in and out. I guess that's what umbrellas are for... !

I love my sweet EmmaLee and can't believe she has already started preschool! I feel like I'm getting so old. (No offense to those of you who already have kids in school!) It's just a new phase of our lives, but change is always good if you can make the best out of it.

Our favorite past time, as a family, has been playing outside! We just love the fresh air, playing with friends and talking with neighbors. It has been great to live in a community where we have gotten to know so many people and their children.

Our favorite playground! Oh, how it will be missed when there are piles of snow on it!

Carter has grown up so fast lately, to me! He is such a sweetheart, but yet really knows how to test me! He's in the terrible two stage for sure! Luckily, though, his sweetness out weighs all of his curiosity and trouble making ways. Oh, how I love that boy!

Starting to end...

It's not a secret that I LOVE summer! I love the warmth of the sun, I love being outside, I love the green grass... I could go on. Sadly, as it happens every year, it's coming to an end. Don't get me wrong, I do like fall, I just don't like to be cold. Here is EmmaLee jumping on the trampoline with the sprinklers at our sister-in-law Amanda's parents' house. So much fun!


Carter loved it too!

Long story, but Neil broke his arm while long boarding. He has a glow-in-the-dark cast. The kids love it! The first thing he asked his doctor, when he got a cast was... "Can I still play sports?" And yes, he still plays basketball, Frisbee and everything else.. just left handed. I am actually AMAZED how well he can play with his left hand. That's how you know how much he loves sports, not even a cast can stop him!

The kids and I got stuck in the rain, while at the zoo! We dropped Neil off at the U of U, and it was beautiful weather. The clouds were a little dark, but I didn't think we'd get a monsoon! (well as monsoon-ish you can get for living in Utah!) I was completely unprepared, when it started to rain we were enjoying the tigers, and it hit. We hid for about 10 mins and then made a run for it! The kids and I were soaked, so luckily I had these blankets in the car to dry off.

My hair went pretty frizzy, after the rainstorm. Even though EmmaLee was crying the whole way through, and saying that we should never come back, we'll always remember that trip to the zoo!

Here is one of my family's favorite meals to make lately. If you've ever been to Rumbi Grill, it's just like their rice bowls. Anyway, we made it the other day, so I thought I'd share the recipe since it's really easy! This is how I make it anyway:

I put two cups of rice in the rice cooker, and while that's cooking I steam Carrots and Cabbage along with the rice.

On the grill or in a skillet I cook broccoli, summer squash and zucchini squash with salt and pepper and some spray butter.

Also on the grill I cook either chicken, pork, or steak. Which ever you like best, or all of them for a variety.

Then, I use a great teriyaki sauce from Bowles packaging , who actually used to make the sauce for the actual Rumbi Grill (Thanks Ben and Amanda) however, you can't get that in a stores so another great option is the Panda Express Mandarin Sauce. Which I've found at WinCo, and is also very delicious.

You can obviously make this dish however you'd like, depending on what veggies you prefer. Some other options are: Celery, Green Pepper, Red Pepper, Mushrooms.

Eat how you like and Enjoy!