Halloween 2010

For Halloween, the kids had a Halloween parade at school. The afternoon kindergarten had their own because the parade was in the morning, so we went over to the school twice. The above video was taken while we were waiting for the kindergarten parade to start.

Westley as Buzz Lightyear

Caleb as Woody

Carving the pumpkin

The finished product

Halloween was really celebrated on Saturday here in Utah. On Saturday, Corey worked all day, so he wasn't home, but the kids and I baked Halloween-shaped sugar cookies. Here are some pictures of them rolling and cutting the dough. It was messy, but they sure had fun!

Travis and Caleb flour up in order to roll more dough

Westley and Eliza (who joined us after her nap)

Eliza had a lot of fun playing in the flour

And of course, the costumes:

Eliza, Snow White

Travis, black Spider-man

Caleb as Woody

Westley as Buzz Lightyear

Announcing...

Today we had our ultrasound to check the baby and make sure everything looks good. The tech couldn't really tell us any of that, we have to wait for a call from the doctor to tell us any news, good or bad. Most likely, if there's nothing to worry about, I will just get the news from my ob/gyn at my next appointment, which is in three weeks.

Anyway...the tech COULD tell us one thing--the sex of the baby! We are the kind who HAVE to know ASAP, so we couldn't wait to find out.

I felt deep down that it was a boy. Corey didn't have a feeling either way. Westley and Caleb REALLY wanted another sister. Travis thought it was a boy. Eliza, well, she doesn't really get that I have a baby in my tummy (and she keeps walking around, pushing her tummy out, claiming she has a baby in HER tummy too!).

The results are in.

We are having another...


BOY!!!

First Snow of the Season

Yesterday we had snow, the first snow of the upcoming winter season. Summer sure seemed very short to me--with the last snow at the end of May and it being cold into mid-June! But when I checked my blog, I discovered that we had snow last year on the Monday right after the fourth weekend in October! Last year the snow came on October 25th, this year, the 26th. Right on time.

When Westley left for the school bus, I got all the snow gear out for inventory, and the kids were all trying it on. Since they had it on, we trekked over to the park across the street and played in the snow for a little bit, then came home for hot chocolate. We built a snowman, something we never managed to do last year (the snow was always too dry!).

Westley's Flag Football

We signed Westley up for flag football through the city. The season was short from the middle of September through last week. He seemed to enjoy it. We'll probably do it again next year for both the older boys. Westley is the one in the picture in the middle, slapping five with the coach.

Ward Halloween Activity

On Friday, October 22nd, we had our Ward's Fall Festival. The kids were excited about it. I made my crockpot chili and the kids all dressed up and we went over. Corey met us over later, because the party started at 6 and he didn't get off work until after 6 pm. There was a dinner with soups and chilis, rolls, homemade root beer (of course!), and desserts. Then there was a costume contest and then carnival games for the kids. Caleb got his face painted, and they all tried the donut on a string and did the fishing and the bean bag toss and darts. There were some other activities, but we left around 8 pm.

In the picture: Caleb is Woody (from Toy Story), Travis is Venom (actually, black Spider-man, but he insists he is Venom), Westley is Buzz Lightyear, and Eliza is Snow White.

First Lost Tooth

On Tuesday, October 19th, Caleb lost his first tooth! Unfortunately, we think he must have swallowed it because he had it before breakfast and it was while he was brushing his teeth after breakfast that he noticed it was missing.

Fortunately, Westley wrote a note to the Tooth Fairy explaining what had happened and put it under Caleb's pillow. Unfortunately, the Tooth Fairy forgot to come to our house. Fortunately, the problem was solved in that we realized the Tooth Fairy needed parental proof that the tooth was actually lost, so Mom signed the note and the Tooth Fairy came the next night.

Caleb Turns Six!

For Caleb's 6th birthday, we decided to let him have a party, since he hasn't ever had one before. He chose a football theme and invited the boys from his primary class, one boy that he's friends with who is the son of one of my high school friends, and a boy from his class at school.

"Pin the football on the football player"

Decorations (the white banner you see says "Happy Birthday Caleb" and was made by Westley)

Behind the computer you can see the gift bags for the guests and the footballs they used in the "pin the football" game.

We made football-shaped Rice Krispie treats out of Cocoa Krispies and used white frosting for the laces

The boys enjoying the treats

We didn't do Caleb's cake until after dinner, so that's why we did the Rice Krispie treats at the party, since we weren't doing cake. Corey actually baked and decorated the cake, I only made the frosting.

Six Things We Love About Caleb:

1. Caleb is eager to help out and tries hard to be obedient.

2. Caleb has a great imagination.

3. Caleb is usually happy and upbeat.

4. Caleb loves to learn new things.

5. Caleb is a real sweetheart, very giving and caring.

6. Caleb always tries to be funny and loves to make us laugh.

Happy birthday, Caleb!

Zoo Day

The older boys had a school break where they were off October 14th and 15th due to U.E.A. weekend here in Utah (Utah Education Association)--a break for kids but not for teachers. Anyway, the weather was beautiful, in the 70s and even up into the 80s for a lot of it, so we took advantage of the nice weather and went out. On Thursday, the 14th, we went to the Museum of Ancient Life at Thanksgiving Point. Corey had the camera with him at work that day, so I didn't get any pictures.

On Friday, we went to the Hogle Zoo. We got there early and saw a lot of the animals out and about. They were all very active, and that was exciting to see. Even the animals in the reptile house had just been fed, so they were moving about and one snake even slid right up to the glass glaring at us. We went to the children's discovery land playground after viewing the zoo and then took a ride on the train.

Caleb--Star Student

The week of October 11th, Caleb was the star student in his kindergarten class. He got to make a poster telling about himself and I helped him with it. This is the end result. He also got lots of privileges, like being the line leader and wearing a crown. Since it coincided with his birthday, we took in treats for his birthday and he got to also wear a birthday crown one of the days.

Preschool Sports Class

Because Westley and Caleb were in school and Eliza naps during most of the afternoon, I decided that Travis needed something just for him. So I signed him up for a preschool sports class that meets once a week at a nearby rec center. He goes on Thursday afternoons and the class runs from September through November. In September, they learned about football. In October, they've been learning about soccer. Next week they start basketball.

Travis has really enjoyed the class and it has been great to see him really exhibit his athletic ability. So far, he has the most of the three boys, at least the most natural ability. It's fun to watch, when he's paying attention anyway. In the picture above, they had to run the ball and then hand it off to the coach before grabbing the flag off the dummy. I didn't get any pictures of soccer, but I'll try to get some of basketball.