Preschool Halloween Program...

Thursday was Maddy's Preschool Halloween Party/Program. The kids were all so cute dressed up in their costumes! Of course I'm biased and think Maddy was the cutest! They started off with a little Halloween Parade and then sang some really cute songs. Maddy was a bit shy and didn't sing a whole lot but gave us some adorable smiles. He had a rough night last night so I think he was also tired. You can see him yawning in one of the videos below. When I picked him up after school he said "Mom it was hard for me to sing all the songs." I asked why and he said "It was just hard." I asked if it was hard to remember all the words and he said "Yes." He said he had lots of fun at the party playing and had a cupcake. And then he asked me if it was nap time... which means he is really tired. He was in better spirits later in the evening and Steve got him to sing some of the songs. It was pretty cute!

Maddy is on the top row, left side, third one in.

Sure do love this kid!

This first video is of the little parade when they walked in...



The next two are of a couple of their songs...

Sneak Peak...

Whatever Wednesday: Straight from the Closet(part 2)...

Yes, these are mine...
Yes, they are still in my closet...
Yes, I purchased them from the Men's Gap department...
Yes, I paid $100+...
Yes, I wore them (once) to a company party about 10ish years ago...
Yes, I filled them out nicely...
Yes, I'm pretty sure I thought I looked hot...
Yes, I made Steve take these pics...
Yes, Steve thinks I have fallen off my rocker...
Yes, I'm pretty embarrassed about all of the above...

No, this is SO not hot...
No, I don't plan on filling them out nicely ever again...

Yes, I'm wondering, why am I humiliating myself???

I can't bear to toss them... cause I paid $100+ for them...
Any takers??? Halloween costume???

In case you missed part one you can view it here.

To be continued...

Primary Program...

Maddy participated in his first Primary Program this past Sunday. He's been praticing his line "I can be honest" and we were so excited for him. When they asked all the Primary kids to come up he got all shy(I fear he got this from me) and started crying. I ended up carrying him up there. They had the Sunbeams sit on the front row and he stopped crying after I found him a spot by the Bishop's wife. She is seriously one of the sweetest people I know. When they had all the kids stand up to sing Maddy didn't stand up for the first few numbers. After a while he warmed up and moved over by his friends and stood up but wasn't singing... he was looking for us. It was so cute. He pretty much smiled and waved at us the whole time. As far as I know he is the youngest child in the entire Primary(he turned three on Dec. 16 and the cut off was Dec. 31.) Hopefully next year he will be singing more. I was pretty sure that when it was his time to say his line he wasn't going to do it. He surprised me however and did an awesome job! We were SO proud of him!

The Little Gym Halloween Party...

Saturday my sisters and I took the kids to The Little Gym Halloween Party in Orem. They had a bunch of games set up, Trunk or Treat and of course all the gymnastics equipment to play on. The kids had lots of fun and didn't want to leave! They also had a bunch of drawings... of course Jamie won a prize(a free pizza)-she seriously has some luck going and pretty much always wins when she enters any kind of drawing.

Maddy LOVES playing on the rings. He also really like "fishing" for prizes... Avery not so much-she wouldn't even hold the pole.

My sisters and their kids(minus Claire.)

After we left we grabbed some pizza and Jamie and her family came over to watch the BYU game... well at least Ben came over to watch the game. Jamie and I hung out, the kids watched Star Wars, Steve was in and out of the house working in the yard and stuff(he's not a BYU fan) and Ben watched most of the game... until they got too far behind and then he decided to call it a night.

Music Monday: Many Shades of Black...

Another great song by Adele...

Adele: Many Shades of Black(Raconteurs Cover)...

I Survived the Day...

... barely!

While emptying closet shelves and drawers(which I admit are in dire need of organizing) the kids found some old binkies and were pretending to be babies... which was kind of cute until I realized what they had really been up to. This happened in a matter of minutes! Don't you love how they act like I'm not even there...

*Sorry about the poor shaky video quality... I was having a bit of trouble navigating my way through the mess.

Whatever Wednesday: He Was Tired...

I took these pictures in September and while doing a little clean up of my picture files realized I had never posted them. This particular day Maddy climbed into my bed while I was busy doing something in my room or bathroom. He usually just plays and jumps on the bed. I told him I was headed downstairs and asked if he wanted to come with me. He said "No Mom I'm tired and I want to take a nap in your bed." So I was like OK(thinking whatever-he will be downstairs with me in no time.) I came back up probably about 1/2 hour later to check on him and he was snoozing away. I couldn't resist taking a couple pictures.

This is the first time(since those very early days after his birth when I dozed off while feeding him) that he has slept in our bed.

Cabela's...

On Monday my sisters and I had planned on taking the kids to the Scarecrow Festival at Thanksgiving Point. When we got there it was really windy and starting to rain. So we decided to scratch that idea and after tossing around a few ideas ended up going to Cabela's. I had never been before and I thought it was pretty cool. The kids really liked it as well. As usual my sisters and I did lots of talking while the kids ran around. They were a bit crazy as usual. I'm pretty sure that most of these places are glad to see us leave. Before leaving we ate some dinner at the eatery place upstairs.

I posted this picture as well cause I'm super cheesy in the other one but it was the only one with Maddy in it that was decent.

When we left it was SO windy my cart practically flew away... no lie! I got the kids loaded into the car quickly and headed home. Lets just say my drive home took longer then usual and I took the scenic route... not by choice. I kind of have this problem with directions and knowing where I am, I get all sorts of turned around. I know, I know, Cabela's is right by the freeway... don't laugh :(

I'm Reading this for a Second Time...

One more month to go-let the countdown begin....

Stepping Outside the Box...

On Saturday something strange happened and I decided to try curling my hair. Really, this is not normal for me... I can't remember the last time I curled my hair-it's been years. I had to dig through my bathroom drawers to even find my curling iron. I also don't own any hairspray(no lie), but I ended up finding some "finish spray" that I've also not used for years(does this kind of stuff expire?) When Steve came home he gave me the most confused look and said "Did you curl your hair?" I thought it was pretty funny and so I decided to document this monumental occasion-just in case it doesn't happen again for a real long time. :) Maddy also had a coming out of sorts...

I asked him to go get dressed for the day... this is what he came out wearing. Pajama top, sport shorts, blue socks, church belt, and Avery's striped leggings on his arms. I have to give him props for the high waisted belt.. it's so the style right now. He also wanted to pose for me on the couch... he's all about location as well. :)

Never Finished...

It seems like every time I turn around Steve(and Dan) are doing more work in our yard. They are in the process of adding and moving more shrubs and trees and talking about adding some kind of small brick walls at the bottom of the driveway. On Saturday that added a second tree(shown above) in front of our garage. I think it looks really good! Here is a before picture...

I had to take the "after" picture the next day because it was dark by the time they finished sat. night. That's why the sky is blue in one picture and gray in the other.

Music Monday: Who's Loving You...

Saw this kid perform this song during the Michael Jackson Memorial and then again recently on Oprah. Loved it! How would it be to be able to sing like that ever, let alone at the age of 12? Oh wait MJ was about 10 when he belted it out... Anyway I think this is pretty amazing!

Shaheen Jafargholi: Who's Loving You(Jackson 5 cover)...

Perfect Park Day...

Friday the weather was so beautiful! I think it was the perfect Fall day. Stacy called me while she was out running errands and we decided it was too beautiful to not be out enjoying it so we headed to the park. The kids of course had a great time! I love the picture of Avery above. It is the first time I haven't adjusted the lighting on a picture in a long time... it was already perfect! When we left it was dinner time so we decided to grab something to eat and then head to my house to hang out. We decided to try something different so we got some chicken and beef fajitas at Maria Bonita's Mexican Grill in Orem. It was really yummy, I would highly recommend it!

South Fork...

On Monday my sister Stacy and I took the kids up to South Fork(Provo Canyon.) Jamie was planning on coming as well but had some car problems at the last minute. It was such a beautiful drive! Seriously, all the mountains were covered with all the different colored leaves. I was tempted several times to pull over and take some pictures but I resisted. It was great weather as well. I grabbed a pizza on the way and so we had a little pizza picnic when we first got there. The kids had a great time... they loved the river as well as the huge pile of leaves someone had previously made. They also loved holding hands while we were walking along the path... so cute! Stacy and I enjoyed each others company as usual. I had lots of fun playing in Photoshop Lightroom, so of course there are lots of pictures...

Red leaves are my favorite!

LOVE this!

Love their shadows in this picture!

Loved this in B & W as well and couldn't decide...

Incase you are wondering, we are not holding hands. :) Maddy took this picture... I think he did a pretty good job.

Maddy found this huge knobby stick and was using it as a sword... until he threw it into the river. He was laughing in this picture because he thought it was so funny that his "sword" got stuck on the rocks.

Love this!

Here are a few outtakes...

I was trying to put Avery's flower clip back into her hair(and it was killing her to hold still)... love Maddy's expression.

They were both so not happy about this!

Another picture taken by Maddy... was almost great, but a little too much sun flair. :(

Here is a short video Stacy took of the kids while we were walking on the path. Avery is of course falling and running around-as usual, and Maddy is trying to make sure everyone plays by the rules(his rules)-as usual...

We stopped at Vivian Park on the way back because the kids wanted to play on the slide. When we got home I couldn't believe how many crushed leaves the kids still had on them(I thought I did a pretty good job cleaning them off.) Their shoes were seriously full. I had to rinse them off in the bath and then clean out the tub and then give them a real bath.

Thanks Stacy for a fun time. Jamie we missed you! Maddy kept asking why Dallin wasn't coming. He didn't quite understand why you couldn't come if your car was broke. He kept saying, "We will just wait mom."

School Pictures...

I think they turned out pretty cute!

I'm cracking up at this class picture... they all look a bit dazed. In case you can't find him, Maddy is on the second row on the left right next to his cute teacher.

Whatever Wednesday: New Do...

I wanted to do something fun with my hair for Fall and Winter. I decided to put both dark brown and blonde highlights as well as a really bright red. I put some red in my hair last year when I went really dark all over but didn't like how fast it faded. So... I decided to put red extensions in my hair so they wouldn't fade. It is my first time having extensions so it should be fun.

The pictures aren't the best because the lighting in my house sucked and it was later in the evening-making it even worse. I think you can get a pretty good idea-although the red is brighter than it appears.

Thanks Brooke! You are the best!