I know, I know . . . .

We are leaving in about 6 hours to go to Grandma Eva's house.

The insulation guy is coming (should be here by now) to insulate the space above our garage (aka the floor of our freezing bedroom.)

I need to take Christopher to preschool in 1 and 1/2 hours.
I need to get packed.
I need to clean.

I need to give the boys a bath.

I'm procrastinating.

So, while I am procrastinating, I will wish my baby sister a Happy Birthday (it was on the 2nd)!
She's 21 years old.
Amazing!
I still think of her as a little girl.




I made her this chair for her birthday.


I'm sure it was what she has always wanted ;)
I had fun making it for her.

Love you Jamie!


(found this picture on your facebook, Jamie. Andy saw it and said "JJ!!" So, I figured it must be a pretty good representation ;) )

Okay. Done procrastinating.
What are you procrastinating (while reading this post)??

Good times . . . .

Don't you hate those braggy blog posts?

The "We have amazing lives!" and "Don't you wish you had as much fun as we did?" posts.
Puh-lease!!

This post is about

HOW INCREDIBLY AWESOME OUR HALLOWEEN WAS!!!!!!!

Ya, you heard me. We are awesome.
Okay, maybe not.
But, our Halloween was seriously really fun.

Davin and I love the Amazing Race tv show.


Have you seen it? It's, well . . . amazing!
Teams racing around the world, completing tasks to win a million dollars.
It's intense stuff.

Our neighbors hold an annual Halloween party - Amazing Race style.
Picture 90 people in teams of 3 couples, racing around Blackfoot ID.
SOOOO much fun.
The neighbor is the head of the Chamber of Commerce so he has a lot of ins with the businesses around here.
There was a lot of digging, running, speeding (luckily no tickets), yelling, and laughing.
Such a blast.
As you can probably tell from this picture,


by the end of the night we were exhausted.


Christopher had a Halloween party at his preschool.
He was so excited to take treats to all his little friends.



We carved pumpkins with some very fun people.



We had a Halloween party at our church.
I didn't take any pictures because I was busy reminding myself why I don't like taking a child with severe sensory issues to an event with candy-hyped children, carnival games that he insists on doing perfectly, and balloon popping games (ugh, his worst nightmare!!)
Was that sentence long enough? :)
We always end those nights with us running out of the building with a screaming child.
I really could write a whole post on how sad this makes me, but I really am trying to stay positive about our situation.
We will try again next year.


We had a blast trick or treating.
Andy was so excited this year.
Christopher's job was to ring the doorbell and Andy's job was to pound on the door until they opened it.


Lovely.
I'm sure the neighbors loved that.
We loved walking in the cool night air with our boys and waving to all the friends and neighbors on our way.


We had fun.
Did you have fun???

Oh, the suspense!!!!

The results are in!

The nail biting is over.
The What Are My Kids Going To Be For Halloween poll has officially closed.

Thanks for voting on this important issue! (even though your vote didn't really matter???)
I had no idea I had 28 people who read this silly thing.
Thank you 28 people!!


The results were interesting . . .

The winner of the poll was Buzz and Woody.
Cute idea, right?
Especially with the Toy Story 3 movie out.
Unfortunately, we are cruel parents and haven't taken our usually Toy Story loving kids to see the new one yet.
Sorry. No Buzz and Woody costume.

I'm surprised that not many people picked Scooby and Scrappy Doo.
You probably figure my kids are too hip and modern to like the classics.
Au contraire!
Christopher is OBSESSED with Scooby Doo.
OBSESSED!
Unfortunately, Mommy could not figure out a way to make the costumes cute AND affordable.
You people who voted for it have no idea how close you really were.
Props to you!

So, no more talk.
Let's do this thing!






Meet Christopher the pirate


and his lovable, sometimes cranky parrot!




Arrrrrgggghhhhhh!!





Congratulations to you 5 lucky voters!
You get to brag to all your friends about how you were the amazing winners of the What Are Some Strange Lady's Kids Going To Be For Halloween poll.
Lucky indeed!!


Happy Halloween everyone!!!

What we are up to . . . .

What HAVE we been up to??

Not much. Nooooot much.

We've been enjoying the last little bits of fall.
What a great autumn season this has been for our lil' Idaho.
Idaho doesn't usually believe in fall.
This year she was more in the spirit. Hooray!

The boys enjoy riding their bikes together in this crisp fall air.


Christopher likes singing as he rides.


Andy likes practicing his mean biker face.




I had some leftover apples and decided to make some applesauce.


So yummy!
And, the aroma it creates in your house is perfect for a crisp fall day.



I've been learning a lot about Christopher and his challenges and his many strengths. I've been reading a great book that has FINALLY been positive and has given me something to be hopeful about.
Most others are pretty gloomy if I do say.
It's called The Out of Sync Child.


Wonderful.
If you have ever had any concerns about your child and their sensory issues it is a wonderful resource.

I've been refurbishing some old tables for our bedroom. Just because we don't have money RIGHT now for bedroom furniture doesn't mean we can't have some semblance of a bedroom!

I transformed an old side table that I got from my grandmother's house when we first married.


Lots and lots of dents, dings, scrapes, and MEMORIES.
I couldn't bear to part with her.

So after a little TLC, some paint, and a pretty glass knob,


she is looking so lovely.


My parents also gave me a table they had had in their home for a long time.
Sorry, no before picture.
It also had some issues, but after some paint she was looking bright and charming.


So, our bedroom has some new life.
Now we just need bedding, bed skirt, lamps, dresser, etc. etc. etc.
Ha ha.
We will get their someday.


Davin has been fitting comfortably into his football watching.


Christopher was asking me the other day what holiday was everyone's favorite. His was Halloween (whatever holiday is the closest). Mine was Christmas (even though everyone knows I am a lover of all holidays). Christopher said that Andy's favorite holiday was probably Christmas too. Then, we got to Daddy. Hmmmmmm. "I think Daddy likes football holiday." Yes, Christopher, I think you are right.

What's your favorite holiday??

Holding on . . . .

Slipping through my fingers all the time
I try to capture every minute
The feeling in it
Slipping through my fingers all the time
Do I really see what's in her mind
Each time I think I'm close to knowing
She keeps on growing
Slipping through my fingers all the time

Sometimes I wish that I could freeze the picture
And save it from the funny tricks of time
Slipping through my fingers -

from the musical, Mamma Mia




This was the song I had running through my head Saturday afternoon.
I was making a pie with my boy.



His little hands and face were covered in flour.


I can remember making pies with my mother.
I remember the way she rolled the dough, the way she pinched the edges shut.
I hope my Christopher will remember the times his mommy made pie for him.
I hope I can remember making them with him.



I want to remember what he looked like, how tall he was.


The sound of his little voice.
His funny conversations - something about feeding the extra dough to the birds outside and how they could find berries and make their own pies.
I told him that could definitely happen.


I want to remember his anxious little face


waiting for his little creation in the oven.
Extra pie crust cut into the shape of a motorcycle.
Awesome.


As soon as it is out of the oven it is already on a plate and in his mouth.
He runs off to start a new adventure and all that's left are a few crumbs.


I try so hard to soak up all these precious memories,
but this little boy is seriously slipping through my fingers all the time.

What memories are you trying to hold on to??

Please try to contain yourself . . . . .

It's that time of year again!!

The annual GUESS WHAT MY KIDS ARE GOING TO BE FOR HALLOWEEN poll (on the right side of my blog).

You're excited, right??!!

I knew you would be.

Go for it!!

Things We Love Lately

I love that it is pumpkin and gourd time!!!


YES!!
They are so beautiful and they are already scattered around my house.

I love that while returning with clean towels, I found these two practicing their prayers in the bathtub.


:)

I love that anytime I try to take a picture of Andy he grabs the camera and pulls it close to his face and says "Dare (there)!"


He likes a closeup.

I love these things.


L-O-V-E them.
I'm drooling right now just thinking about them. Grrrr.

These boys love their guns.

Spray guns that is.
They go outside and shoot each other all day long.
I love Christopher running through the door shouting "I deaded Andy! I dead him!"
Awww. Brotherly love.

I loved the harvest moon on the first day of fall.


They say this hasn't happened in over a decade!
I hope you got to see it.

I love that Halloween is coming.
Soooo excited!
I asked Christopher what he wanted to be for Halloween and he said Wall-e . . . . . again.


Most moms would say Yay! I don't have to make a Halloween costume this year! I am a different story. I love seeing them dress up and finding ways to make cheap, fun costumes. I have some ideas for this year.
Bet you can't wait . . . .

What do you love lately?