Pumpkin Carving

Every year, we carve pumpkins with the kids.  And every year, we regret it.  It sounds like a fun idea that will bring good memories, but usually this is how it goes:  The kids are excited to pick a design for their pumpkins and then when the top of the pumpkin comes off and they have to get their hands gooey and gross, they lose interest so Adam and I end up finishing everyone's pumpkins while they destroy the house.  Soooo, this year we decided to just color on the pumpkins.  We got some permanent markers and I cut out some jack-o-lantern vinyl. They loved it!  And so did we. 

Then Bridger had a daddy and me pumpkin carving day at school and we, being the awesome parents that we are, totally forgot about it.  He was a good sport about it and said he had fun doing it with a friend and his friend's dad but we felt like total losers. He really wanted to carve a pumpkin with Adam so we sucked it up and got the knives out. 

This time they were total champs!  Bridger was still a little squeamish but they all did it mostly on their own and they had a good time.

School

I feel like I'm always playing catch up.  I used to be so good at blogging and I'm not sure why it has gotten so much harder to get it done.

The boys started school at the beginning of August.  Brody is in 2nd grade and Bridger is in Kindergarten. 

I'll be honest- I was a little worried about how Bridger would do with behavior and with learning new things.  Whenever we tried to work on him with learning to read or letters, he seemed uninterested and would get frustrated easily.  I guess we're just not good teachers or good at finding ways to make it fun.  He LOVES school and is doing really well.  He is learning to read quickly and has amazing handwriting.  When I dropped him off at school, I walked him to his class and he clung to me for dear life. I had to pry his fingers from me and then he ran out of the classroom and I had to chase him down and stick him back in class.  It was heart-breaking but also, in my head I was like, "Dude.  You're 5.  Stop it."  His sadness didn't last long and he has loved it ever since.  His first progress report was very complimentary.  His teacher loves him.

Brody has always loved school and learning and done really well.  This year is no exception, although he is responsible for more things than in previous years, which is an adjustment.  He is kind of a forgetful little boy.  He has a good attitude about school and loves math and reading.  The boys ride the bus together and get to sit together every day.  I love seeing them as best friends.

Penny gets to stay home with me.  She is potty trained now (YAY!!!).  She was such a champ.  I thought it was going to be a nightmare but she got it down in 3 days and is now learning to go less than once every 20 minutes.  We play with friends, run errands, play play-doh, color and read books.  She loves watching anything with a princess or someone wearing pink.  She'll even choose power rangers because there's a pink power ranger.  She's as girly as they come, which is what I always wanted, but it also means psychotic meltdowns, like when she has to take her princess nightgown off when it's time to go to the store, for example. She loves to sing and dance and eat sugar.  She's a lot like her mama.

Bye-Bye, Binkies!

She looks really happy, right?  That's because she has no idea what is about to happen.  Not really.  A while ago, we decided that Penny was old enough to get rid of her binkies.  For the longest time she only had them in bed but we figured if we didn't do it now, it would just get harder to wean her.

We rounded them all up and put them in a little bag that she decorated with stickers.  She was so excited!  Then we went out to the mailbox so we could send them to the binky fairy.  Turns out the fairy takes binkies from big girls and takes them to little babies who need binkies.  Sounds so gross and unsanitary (plus it's a lie) but it seemed like a good story at the time. 

A few hours later we went back out and she found her prizes from the binky fairy.  A little barbie girl, some princess stickers, and a shiny pin wheel.  She was so happy and excited.  She wanted to sleep with her new doll that night. We tucked her in bed with her favorite blanket, bear and new doll and sang her a song.  She smiled and then when we were ready to leave the room, she got a confused look on her face and said, "Binky?"

Ummmm....weren't you there for the last 5 hours when we were doing this? You got the doll.  The binkies are gone.  She was so so so sad.  She cried and cried and there was nothing we could do to comfort her (besides give in and give her the binkies back, which trust me, I thought about it).  She cried for over 2 hours and it was heart-breaking.  I went in after 2 hours because she was not breathing right because of all her crying.  Once she calmed down, she fell asleep.  So sad.  The next few weeks were rough.  She didn't cry a ton, but she didn't love bed time like she always had. 

Eventually, it passed and she's a happy little sleeper again. Hallelujer!  So we're binky free for a few months until the next one comes and we force them into a binky addiction.

Audrey's Visit

 My sister Audrey hadn't come and visited for a while so it was SO FUN to have her here for almost 2 weeks.  I got to meet her yummy sweet baby Remy and get to know him.  Unfortunately, I was gross sick with my pregnancy for most of the time she was here so there was a lot of lying on the couch and doing nothing.  I also felt bad because there were times when I felt like helping her with the baby but I was just too stupid sick. 

We had a lot of fun despite feeling gross and having a baby's schedule to work around.  We laughed so hard so many times, which felt so good!  She is so funny and makes me laugh.  I love the comfortable feeling I have being around my sisters.  It's a natural friendship that I'm so grateful I have.

I love your face off, Audge!!!

Brody's 7!!!

How do I have a 7 year old?  I remember when Brody was a baby and I couldn't imagine what he would be like as a toddler.  I wondered what his little voice would sound like and what querks he would have and what his personality would be like.  He didn't disappoint.  His voice is so soft and sweet and listening to him talk makes me happy.  His personality is all a mom hopes for.  He's kind and grateful (he thanks me for dinner almost every night) and he still loves to hug and kiss us. 

So for his birthday, we told him he could invite a friend somewhere fun to spend the afternoon.  I've decided to only do big birthday parties every other year.  He chose to take his buddy Kade to Adventure Crossing.  They played laser tag with Adam and then rode the go carts.  Turns out Adventure Crossing without coupons is as expensive as throwing a party.  When all was said and done, we had dropped $80!! Ridic is what that was.  Oh well- lesson learned. 

 Look at that dimply smile.  Seriously.  He was so happy.  He really looks up to Kade, who is about 18 months older than he is, and Kade is the perfect boy to look up to.  I'm so glad they're friends.

 I love love love this picture.  Brody loves his dad so stinkin' much.  He loves to do everything Adam does and wants to wrestle with him any chance he gets. 

 Brody asked for chocolate cake and chocolate icing- both gross in my book.  So there was a lot left over.  Haha.

 This kid couldn't pack it in fast enough.  None of my kids have sugar thresholds.  They could eat it all day long and not ever stop.

 Brody has been wanting Beyblades for a long time so Adam and I finally had to go to the store and figure out what the heck he was talking about.  Turns out they're a lot of fun to play.  We had a Beyblade championship game and I totally kicked trash.  I got pretty competitive considering it's a little boy battle game.

 She's a charmer, huh?

 Oh- so while Brody and Kade were doing laser tag, Audrey and I took the littles out to ride the dinky (expensive) rides.  He loved the carousal.  And so did Penny.

I wasn't feeling so hot so Audrey was kind enough to take Bridger on the mini roller coaster.  Bridger was scared out of his mind.  It's a slow and short ride, but he said he never wanted to ride it again.  The picture is crappy quality but you can see his little terrified look.  Audrey comforted him the whole time.  What  good aunt!

Bridger's Pre-K Graduation

 I think graduations are kind of silly- until you graduate high school.  It reminds me of an episode of "Everybody Loves Raymond" where he was making fun of his daughter's 5th grade graduation.  I can't remember the exact lines but it was hilarious.  It's true- all you have to do to graduate from Pre-K is show up and not bring a knife to school. 

 Nonetheless, it was cute to see Bridger singing his songs and loving the attention he got with me being there.  They had a little ice cream party at the end and he smiled the whole time.

 This is him getting his "graduation certificate".  Even he thought it was lame.  It go thrown on the floor of the van right when we got in.

This is his teacher's aide Mrs. Johnstun.  She is so sweet.  His real teacher had a baby right before school got out so she didn't get to be there. 

Bridger learned and grew a lot this year.  He is starting to read and is learning to follow rules and respect others so much better!  He's such a good boy who is kind to others and always willing to help.  And look at that smile- it melts me.

Marine Mud Run 2012...Kid Style

 I've done the Marine Mud Challenge twice now and although I have had a lot of fun in the past (mostly), I have been really sick from my pregnancy and know I would want to die if I did it.  My kids really wanted to do it this year and I was so excited for them!  But also nervous because I wasn't sure how they'd do.  Sometimes they freak out and don't want to try new things.  Turns out I was spot on in Bridger's case.

 Brody loved every second of it.  He was smiling in every picture.  Bridger, on the other hand, was happy until the first muddy hill came and then he started crying and got scared.  We convinced him to keep going and our neighbor, who was there with his son, took Bridger under his wing and stayed with him to keep him feeling safe.  So nice.

 It was a 1 mile run with a few obstacles in between.  Crawling through muddy water, climbing over muddy hills, crawling through cement tunnels and running through tires.  I love seeing Brody's happy brave face.  And I think next year Bridger will be more ready to handle it.

 Due to Bridger's hesitance, he stayed pretty clean.  Brody was covered in stinky orange mud and was thrilled about it!

They got medals just for participating and Brody wore his to school the whole next week.  I love them so much!