trunk or treat 2008

Last night was our ward trunk or treat and chili cook off. Halloween is Brayden's favorite holiday so he has been looking forward to it for at least 6 months. Kaity and I went as witches and Travis and Brayden both dressed alike as vampires. They were really cute. I made a cake that was supposed to be graves in a cemetery. I won the scariest cake award which was nice since I thought that there was a lot of fabulous cakes to choose from. We had a great time and now we are looking forward to Halloween tomorrow.

Happy 30th Birthday Wendy!

I'd like to welcome you Wendy as the newest member of the old ladies club! Happy 30th birthday! Now I have had to think hard and edit A LOT to come up with a few of my favorite memories involving you. There are sooo many, I have had a difficult time narrowing it down but here goes.
1. Remember the "skinny" mirrors in the shoe department of the super Kmart?! We always knew right where to take the other if one of us was feeling badly about ourselves.
2. Skipping first period and hanging out at the public library, cracking each other up over exerpts in the romantic novel section. (How were we never thrown out of there?)
3. Laughing uncontrollably in the middle of every Friday night! Remember our dance parties in your room with the curtains open? I LOVED your room!
4. eating stove top stuffing with sour cream and half baked brownies as a midnight snack was delicious!
5. Remember when I ran into your dad one morning while I went downstairs to get the jug of milk. He couldn't figure out why we didn't need cups!
6. Remember how much I hated Don Richards for you!
7. I loved how we could start your white car with a fork when your dad took away your keys for not attending seminary!
8. I remember sitting in your bathroom hours before church dances started while you curled your hair. Oh the fun we had at those!
9. I remember my long distance phone bills to you when we were in college. OUCH!
10. Remember how we used to model our crazy outfits that we found in your moms closet in the window of the FISH store?! Remember how Pam was too embarrassed to join us?! I know there were video tapes out there. I sure hope they were destroyed!
These few memories don't even scratch the surface. I am so blessed to have you in my life! We may not be sisters by blood but you are my sister in every other way! I love you Wendy! I hope that you have a great birthday that you fill with many new memories!

Girls' night out!

Tonight Kaity and I went to see High School Musical 3 at our local theater. I was dreading the evening, not because I didn't want to spend time with Kaitlynn, but because I am really not a HSM fan. Kaity woke up this morning yelling "wahoo! It's HSM day!" She has been working hard for 6 weeks at school earning good behavior points that she redeemed for the movie. (Yes I believe in bribery) I surprised her after school with her new High School musical outfit- complete with new hair ribbons and glitter. She was ecstatic! I have to admit I had a blast with her tonight. I have never been to a movie theater when it was completely full of girls ages 5- 14. It was a whole new experience for me. Every little girl knew EVERY word to EVERY song and clapped and sang and DANCED along with the characters on the big screen. It was a zoo in there. The movie was so cheesy, I was wishing that I had brought along some Ritz crackers! :) But the evening was a memory that I will cherish forever!

pumpkins

After many hours of searching the internet for fall festivals, I finally found a corn maze, wanna be pumpkin patch and hayride in Zellwood. This past weekend we thought that we would surprise the kids with a trip to this adventure. After a lot of hype and secrecy we arrived at the farm... along with thousands of other floridians. Long story short, we decided against waiting in the 2 hour long line just to pay to get in, and went on a hunt for a new pumpkin patch. We found a church selling pumpkins on their lawn and decided that was more interesting than just picking up a couple the next time I hit the local Walmart for laundry detergent. The kids were thrilled just to get pumpkins and really didn't know what they were missing out on. (I feel so bad for them. Some of my fondest memories are of apple hill in the fall. I am sad that they don't get to experience that.) Brayden knew right away that he wanted a white pumpkin, but Kaity had to have the biggest one she could find. After much searching she was content with her pick. We may not have cool pumpkin fields, but we do have fantastic weather. I must look at the positives in life!

Family night

This week family night was on Wednesday in our house. Kaity has been asking to make homemade pizza for quite awhile now so I decided that we would do it this week. It turned out really well and I came away from the experience with only a slight headache. I did have to wash Brayden's hands 8 times in 5 minutes, so my patience was wearing a little thin by the time we were finally done. It was worth the aggrevation. The pizza was delicious, and once again I am a cool mom in Kaity's eyes.

Mac & Cheese

Tonight was a milestone in Kaitlynn's life. She made her first box of mac and cheese. She has been begging me for quite some time to let her cook, and I have been dragging my feet on the issue. Tonight I decided that it was time. She felt so grownup as she followed my instructions and helpful suggestions. Dinner turned out great much to Brayden's delight!

park play

This week the weather has been beautiful. I love the days where the humidity is low, the sun is shining and a light breeze blows. It is perfect park weather. The other evening we hit the 7-11 for some slurpees and took the kids to a new park not to far from our house. We had a blast just hanging out together. Oh I love my little monsters!