The Pumpkin Patch

We love October because that means that we get to go to the Pumpkin Patch. And we not only go one time to the pumpkin patch, but we go as many times as the kids can convince me to go. It is actually a lot of fun, but sometimes I just get worn out in the 95 degree weather in October. We did go on opening day with our neighbors, Evelyn and Michelle.




Trip #2 was with our cousins to a new pumpkin patch where we went on the train ride and climbed on their big tall mountains of hay. They also had a petting zoo and lots of fun space to run around.

Trip #3 was with Kolby's pre-K class. The highlight of the trip was going on a tractor ride through the corn fields and getting a flat tire. Kolby thought that was the greatest thing ever! He has loved his Pre-K class and his teachers, Mrs. G and Mrs. Palmer have been so great for him.

Trip #5 was to see our cute friend Lindsay perform with her dance group. Kolby and Eliza loved watching her...Kolby's going to miss his little buddy.

Thank you to the Pumpkin Patch for providing so many fun memories over the past 4 years! And thanks for all of our friends who enjoyed it with us.

Happy 1st Birthday, Carson!

On October 3rd, our little bubsy Carson turned 1! I can't believe how fast the time went by. My little barfy baby has outgrown his reflux and become such a happy little boy. Grandma & Grandpa Downen came to celebrate his birthday and his favorite part was the balloons. He just wanted to chase the balloons around the house all day. That was all he needed, even though he did get some cute clothes and toys. He definitely didn't need the cake, as you can see in the last picture. I am 3/3 on making my kids cry on their first birthday by trying to force them to eat their cake/cupcake. Carson is a hilarious kid who is so fun and goes with the flow and he is adored by his big brother and sister. They take such good care of him and were so happy for him to turn 1 so he could start doing big kid things with them. Happy Birthday, Carson! We love you!

Brother & Sister Dance

Kolby was begging Eliza to dance with him to Radio Disney. She resisted until I said I was going to video it. (they have taken on their dad's mantra - "anything for the camera") Warning-this is a PG video cuz her shirt goes up a little. My favorite is that Kolby tries to dip her a few times. So funny.

More About Carson

Two things about Carson:

1. He is such a lovebug. It is so cute too that he loves his Dad so much. It is actually really nice that Geoff took 6 weeks off when Carson was born and now is home with us everyday and Carson definitely appreciates it. They have such a cute bond and he loves to give his Dad hugs, as you can see in the photo.
2. I found the greatest new entertainment for him...The Dustbuster. By the way, the Dustbuster has been my lifesaver since Kolby was big enough to start eating table food and we started getting messes all over the floor. It is an awesome way to do a quick clean up and last night I trained my almost one year old little boy to use it to clean up for me. He did such a great job and went all over the kitchen floor with it until the battery charge was gone. Then he threw a huge tantrum because it wasn't making the noise anymore and I put it back in its charger. Did I mention that he was so well-entertained by it that i was able to get all the dishes cleaned up/counters wiped and folded 2 loads of laundry? I love it when that happens!
   

A New Girl

Today Eliza got a big haircut. She has been wanting me to cut her hair for a while and I thought it was a great idea because she has thin, stringy hair that gets very matted and looks pretty crazy most of the time. I finally got around to actually doing it today...my first haircut in a really really long time. I planned on cutting it to her shoulders, but as you can see in the photo it ended up more like chin-length. I just couldn't seem to get it straight and finally just had to call it good before I cut anymore off. I think she looks pretty cute, but Geoff was not too happy when he saw her. The one who matters the most, though, is Eliza and she LOVES it. She was so happy and was dancing around the rest of the day singing songs and flipping her hair all around. She wanted to show all the neighborhood kids and was really excited to call Grandma and Grandpa and Ashee to tell them about her cute new haircut. I never thought it would have this affect, but it did and it is supercute to watch her be so excited about her new 'do. I'm a little nervous after giving her a bath tonight and seeing it dry by itself...you can definitely tell it is not a professional job. All I can hope is that it starts to grow fast and all my unevenness gets lost in the new growth.

Cute Little Monkey

I am definitely not in blog posting mode, but I thought I would share this really cute picture of Carson. He is becoming such a monkey...always wanted to "walk" around everywhere and climb onto things. I turned away from the dishwasher to put some dishes away and when I turned back around I saw my little monkey had climbed onto the dishwasher and was giving me such a cute little smile that said, "Aren't you so proud of me, mom? Look what I can do now!" He was so excited about it. I of course am not so excited because now it means my dishwasher using time is limited to times when he isn't around. (just what i didn't need...another excuse not to do dishes!) But of course I encouraged his "cute" behavior by taking a picture of him. :-) I LOVE this little boy. He is so sweet and I can't believe he will be one in just a couple of weeks!

Kauai, Hawaii 2008

We were lucky enough to go to Hawaii for a week without kids and with 14 other friends! It was so much fun and soooo beautiful and pretty relaxing. It was amazing to be able to get a full night's sleep every single night. And we rested easy knowing that the kids were in great hands with Grandma and Grandpa. And they had a blast. Now my parents think I am the wimpiest mom ever if I complain about having a hard day with the kids because they just tell me that I have the easiest and best kids ever. I guess that is what a life without rules turned them into. :-)

But, back to Hawaii, we did so many fun things...trips to beautiful waterfalls, cliff jumping off the waterfalls, rope swinging & surfing (Geoff), sea kayaking for 4 hours (resulting in serious prayers that the winds would change and we would be pushed into shore), Waimea Canyon, zodiak boat tour around the Na Pali Coast, zip lining, bowling, karaoke, walks on the beach and delicious pineapple.

Geoff's favorite story of the trip is this: He was surfing on Saturday morning (the day we were leaving) and the lifeguard got on his microphone and told everyone to get out of the water because he had seen a "shark thrashing around out there." Of course he got out and went to talk to the lifeguard, who showed Geoff the 2 places he had seen the shark. The 2nd spot was right where Geoff had been surfing. Kind of freaky. Glad that life insurance policy was all paid up!

To sum it up, we had a fabulous time and it was so awesome to spend time with such fun, great friends.

So that's the travel log...and here are a few pics to go along.