Just Say No

Maddie had to get some blood drawn yesterday at St. Lukes Medical Center. The phlebotomist had just opened the alcohol envelope to wipe Maddie's arm clean when Maddie shot out of the chair and said "What is that?" The women explained that she needed to rub the alcohol on her arm to get it clean before she put the needle in. Maddie then said "I don't do drugs, my church says it is not allowed." The phlebotomist explained that this was rubbing alcohol not drinking alcohol and that it would be okay to use. I stepped in and told Maddie that it was okay to use rubbing alcohol, and that I was proud of her of standing up for something that was very important. Maddie was still very worried and asked if she would have to go to the bishop for breaking a commandment. I explained again as best as I could that it would be okay. She reluctantly sat back down and let the phlebotomist go about her business, but I could hear several others in the hallway laughing and talking about how cute Maddie had been. I guess I don't have to worry about Maddie doing drugs or becoming a drunk!! You go girl!!!

Zach's Breakfast Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank you for this food, please bless it.

Please make it summer. . .again. . . right now. . .please!!

Amen


He's a boy after my own heart!!!

Snow Day

And after. . .a little hot chocolate!

Another Hilarious Story

So, Maddie has really said some hilarious things these past few days. Last month I took the kids to the pediatricians office to get their flu shots. I actually had them get the flu mist-- which if you don't know what it is, the nurse sticks a little syringe up your nose and shoots the flu vaccine through your nose so you don't have to go through the trauma of getting a shot. Needless to say, Maddie didn't like it very much and claimed she never wanted to go back there again. Well, I had to take Maddie to the doctor today. I'll spare you all the details of her visit, but as we pulled into the parking lot her exact words were, "Oh no! I remember this place, this is where they put water up my nose; what are they going to do this time give me a shot up my bum???" We both laughed really hard all the way inside.

Two Funny Stories

Saturday night we decided to take the family out to do a little Christmas shopping. Zach was sitting in the back of the car when announced, "Today is Saturday and tomorrow is Sunday, the boring-est day of all!!

Zach has never been a fan of sacrament meeting and pouts all morning while getting ready for church.


Now for the funniest story ever!!

Dan really wants a Boston Red Sox hat for Christmas. We decided to go to the mall and check out all of the sports stores. We entered a really small store--10 people would make it crowded!! It was full of BSU stuff. We start to go inside and Zach yells, "EEwwww BSU stuff, I hate BSU, I'm not going in there!" I shushed Zach as quickly as I could and told him it was okay to come inside. Maddie was inside this small store and announces to Dan as loud as she could, "Dad, I don't like BSU anymore. . .Now do you like me???" The other people in the store began to chuckle and the two guys that worked there (dressed in all BSU garb) laughed even harder. We were all really embarrassed. So to lighten the mood I replied, "Well, I guess you know our family's dirty little secret." Dan and I hurried the kids out as fast as we possibly could.

Dan has always been very vocal about his love for BYU and his hatred for BSU, but since that night he has swallowed his pride and told Maddie she could like any school she wanted and that BSU wasn't a naughty school. I could tell by Dan's face that he couldn't believe what he was actually telling Maddie, but trying hard to make it sound convincing. . .it serves Dan right!!

Top 10 Most Memorable Thanksgiving Moments

10. Thanksgiving dinner--amazing as always. I think we should eat the pies the day before because there is never enough room to thoroughly enjoy the pie at the end of such a great meal!

9. Swimming with Grandpa--a tradition the kids look forward too every time they come.

8. Baby Ashlyn--The blessing was beautiful. Ash is such an adorable baby. Good job Steph and Eric, she was dressed so adorable every day. We never got to babysit. . .maybe next time.

7. Date night with the Dunn's--Dan and I went to Centerville and met Marinda and Matt for dinner. What a fun night!! I hated to say goodbye. Friends like the Dunn's only happen once in a life-time!!

6. Dinger Desset Night/Competition--a tradition two years in the making, or is it three? Yanira's cheesecake won, but Dan said they were all really good. Even our nine year old nephew, Brandon, submitted a chocolate cake that took third place!!! Dan and I were too lazy to make a dessert this year--actually we just didn't want to steal the glory from everyone else. I missed out because I went on a birthday shopping spree with my parents--it was so much fun!!

5. Decorating Grandma's Christmas Tree--Grandma Dinger was nice enough to let her grand kids decorate the tree this year. She even had ornaments for them to decorate and put on their own tree. My kids loved it. The tree looked great!

4. Ikea--I will never get tired of that store. Dan's brother had never been so it was like watching a kid in a candy store. . .very funny! I never made it to Tai Pan, but after Ikea I was too poor to even go.

3. The Christmas House--my parents took the kids to this house whose Christmas lights are synchronized to a radio station that plays Christmas music. Cars were lined up around the block to see this house. My kids were mesmerized. It was pretty amazing, Dan and I drove by it on the way home from our date. The kids also went to Thanksgiving Point and said that it was beautiful too. My parents took the kids out while Dan and I were on a date. It sounds like they had a fun evening out!

2. Jackson's Ear Infection--11:00 Friday night Jackson woke up crying. We were grumpy parents having to be up all night until we noticed puss coming out of Jackson's ear. After a priesthood blessing at 2:00 in the morning he slept all night. We took him to an insta care in the morning and found out it was a double ear infection!! Poor kid, he felt much better once the ear drum had burst.

1. Build-A-Bear--Zach got his long awaited BYU Build-A-Bear dog Grandma and Granpa gave him for his birthday and Jackson got a black bear for being potty trained. Maddie even got a winter hat to keep her bear warm in the winter. They had so much fun. We were there for an hour and a half!! It is amazing after all is said-and-done that a dressed stuffed animal can cost anywhere from $25.00-$40.00!! They all turned out so cute!
As you can tell we had a really busy and fun Thanksgiving week! Now it is time to decorate my house and put up my tree. Time flies!

Zach's Birthday

So, I am about 10 days late, but I wanted to put some of Zach's birthday pictures up on the blog. Zach had three birthday parties!! We had a family birthday for him on his actual birthday. John's family helped us celebrate it. His theme this year was centered around sports, so his first birthday cake was a BYU basketball cake. It looked pretty good if you ask me.

Saturday afternoon Zach invited some boys from his kindergarten class to come to his birthday party. It was a blast. The boys were so nice and excited about coming to a party. It was Zach first birthday party with friends and he loved it. It too was a sports themed party. The boys played a football game that was much like pin the tail on the donkey-- but they had to stick the football in the goal post blindfolded. Then we had a ballpark lunch which consisted of Nachos, Hot Dogs, popcorn, and root beer. Then we had all the boys go outside to hit a sports pinata. Zach and Jack loved that part. Next the boys opened presents, and finally we ate baseball cake and ice cream. Zach had a smile from ear to ear all day. I think the boys had a good time, and I have decided that Zach's friends at school are such good boys!!

Last but not lease aunt Erin made a delicious roast and invited us over for a birthday lunch. Zach loved it. He got his long awaited Webkin's monkey that he has wanted for an entire year. Erin even made baseball cupcakes that were a hit!!

Zach had to wait until Thanksgiving to get his Build-A-Bear from Grandma Hansen. He specifically wanted a BYU shirt to go on it, so we had to go to Utah to get it. He was in heaven at the store and chose a really cute dog to stuff and dress up, of course with a BYU shirt. Grandma even found some cute little glasses for him. The dog even barks. Zach hasn't let Mr. BYU dog out of his sight since he got it.

I know Zach had a great birthday!!! I can't believe he is already six years old.

A Birthday Prayer

Today is Zach's Birthday, and for the past 24 hours I have been reflecting on the past six years of his life. As many of you know, Zach has had some MAJOR health issues. He is a strong kid-- and my hero because of it. Last night as I was saying my prayers I had a vivid memory. Three years ago from last night I was getting ready for bed and saying my prayers. I prayed for one thing that night: I wanted my boy to have a great birthday, with no vomiting, and no stomach problems. For those of you who don't know, Zach had been diagnosed with Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome. Our gastrointerologist said it is one of the most torturous "syndromes" a person can have, with no known cure. For Zach, every eleventh day was a nightmare. He would wake up early in the morning with horrible stomach pains. He would then begin vomiting every 9-10 minutes for a good 6 to 8 hours. It would be so exhausting for him that in between vomiting he almost looked comatose, but then he would wake up screaming with pain, and start all over again. It was so painful to watch, and yet Dan and I would lay by him all night, and all day until the vomiting would stop. It took so much out of him, that he would then sleep for six or more hours. The day of his fourth birthday marked "day 11" and I was worried that this poor little boy would be sick on his birthday. I prayed for a miracle that night. Zach woke up on his birthday feeling great. We ended up having a wonderful day. However, two days later, Zach woke up very sick and had one of the worst vomiting episodes ever. . .I think it was his body making up for the two extra days it had given him.

Today, Zach has been "vomit free" (more or less) for a year and a half. Last night my prayer was much different. I couldn't help but thank Heavenly Father for my healthy little six year old, the joker of the family, the boy who does Kung Fu Panda moves, the boy who is obsessed with BYU, computer games, and space, and the boy who never goes one day without telling me how much he loves me.

Big Guy, this family wouldn't be complete without you buddy, I love you too!! Happy 6th Birthday!

Oh, The Places You'll Go

Yesterday was our Young Women in Excellence program. It was a beautiful night!! Out theme was "Oh, The Places You'll Go!!" inspired by the Dr. Seuss book with the same title. I actually borrowed the idea and the script from my mom's stake back home. I was amazed at how beautifully the scriptures that were used went so well with the actual story. I was in charge of much of the decorating and the little gift to give to the girls. The magnets shown above are what we gave to each girl at the end of the night. I thought they turned out so cute, they were surprisingly easy too make!!I made hot air balloon replica's out of helium filled balloons. This picture doesn't do it justice. They covered all of the tables and across the stage. It looked so colorful!

Here are the Seuss cupcakes Michelle made for dessert. They took her five hours but were well worth it! They were a hit!! The tops are actually marshmallows painted with red food dye and tooth picked to each other.

We read the story and had scriptures to go along with almost every page and presented it on a Power Point program. The girls seemed to really like it. I could not have been happier with the results. It was a wonderful evening. Now on to the next big activity for Young Women's--The game of Life, in life size!!!!! AAAAAhhhhh, it never ends!

Pop Medicine

Jackson had his tonsils out yesterday, and today he is really hurting. The doctor told me that the biggest issue these next few days would be dehydration. For the past few days I have tried everything I can think of to get him to drink, but he gags or vomits or both! He also complains that it hurts to swallow. I don't blame him at all, but I also don't want him to get dehydrated and feel worse then he already does. Finally I got a medicine dropper and filled it with Sprite. It worked!! Jackson has had at least 8 ounces of "Pop Medicine" since I tried my little trick an hour ago, and now he is sound asleep. It was music to my ears as he kept asking for more and more "pop medicine." I hope with a little sleep, a little liquid, and a little sugar in him he will wake up feeling a little better. It has been a difficult 24 hours for him. When he's awake he is whimpering and when he's asleep he moans, and snores. Poor little guy!

The surgery was a success though. The doctor told me after his surgery that it was a good thing we took his tonsils when we did, because they were full of puss, and had horrible soars all over them. I hope once he heals he can enjoy the winter with a few less colds! We love you buddy!!

A Big Surprise!

Two months ago I was listening to the radio when I heard that "Disney on Ice" was coming to town November 7-9. The moment I heard it I knew we had to go (it's cheaper than Disneyland-- right??). I had Dan buy the tickets that day, but for two long months we have kept it a secret from the kids. Finally the night of the performance arrived. Dan and I had been secretly planning this night forever and the anticipation was almost killing me. Without giving them any hints during the day we simply told the kids to get in the car. The entire car ride they kept asking us where we were going. All we told them was that "mom and dad had a fun night planned and that it was a surprise." When we pulled up to the Taco Bell Arena Zach got really nervous and said, "if this is a BSU thing I am not going!!" Dan assured him that it had nothing to do with BSU, but Zach was not convinced. As we entered the front doors to the arena there were Disney things every where. Zach was the first to figure out what was going on since he had seen a few commercials for it. Maddie saw princess toys every where, so knew it had to be good; Jackson didn't figure it out until the lights went out and the spotlight went right to Mickey Mouse. His jaw dropped, and his mouth didn't close most of the night! He was mesmerized, as were the other two. We had a blast. It was a fantastic show and kept my kids entertained the entire time.

In other news, my Zach lost his first tooth. He was soooooo proud. It had been loose for a few days, and he was sick of it hurting while he ate, so during dinner he said, "Mom, just pull it out right now!" He laid on the couch, I got my trusty piece of toilet paper and with one yank it was out. Zach didn't even cry. I don't know what he was more excited about, Disney on Ice, or the fact that the tooth fairy was coming. He was over joyed!

So, the surprise was well worth the wait and anticipation. I have never heard so many "thankyou's in one night.

Zach Poop-Shoe/Potty-Glasses, Jack Pencil-Bum, and Maddie Hollow-Leg

Yes, there are a few stories behind my kids new names. First we'll start with my sweet Zach. He's sort of a klutz. Last week Dan was changing Jack's pull-up (Jack hasn't quite figured out how to poop in the toilet yet). Zach walks right on Jackson's disgusting diaper and ended up with poop all over his shoe. We were all grossed out, but thought it was very funny. Then the next day he was going to the bathroom when all of a sudden Zach's glasses fell into the toilet. Of course he was not about to put his hand in the urine water, so called for his mother to do it. The entire family had to come see this silly situation before we actually retrieved the glasses--we all got a good laugh. (of course I got the disgusting job of having to put my hand in the disgusting toilet. . .to Dan's credit he did say he would do it). Thus Zach is now known in our family as Zach poop-shoe/potty glasses.
Maddie has been given the name Maddie Hollow Leg because she is notorious for out eating her father and being skinny as a twig. She ate two huge bowls of Spaghetti and three large bowls of cereal tonight. . .this is very typical of her. We don't know where all the food goes. Dan has decided that she must have a hollow leg. I wish I could eat like that!!

Lat but not least is Jackson (never a dull moment with that kid!). Today all the kids were sitting around the bar eating breakfast. Jackson was busy not only eating, but drawing as well. His bus was only minutes away and he was still lacking pants. I tried to pull him away from the bar, but was met with quite a bit of opposition. After a struggle, the stool fell on my foot and I lost my hold of Jackers. He starting screaming, when I noticed a pencil literally sticking out of his little bum cheek. I freaked out, tried to pull the pencil tip out of his fanny, but only succeeded pulling the pencil, but leaving the lead. I dug the led out and got it cleaned up. It did puncture the skin, and he bled a little. I called the Dr. to see if I needed to do anything else, but was reassured he would be okay. He is now known as Jack Pencil Bum.

Aahh, the life of a mother.

My Totally Cute Family

Zach is always laughing and teasing his sister! I thought this picture captured it perfectly!

My three boys. . .aren't I a lucky gal?

We could seriously be twins!!

We HAD to do a BYU picture! Our blood does run pretty blue.

I had to share a few of these pictures that Kim took. They turned out sooooooo cute!
Thanks Kim.

A Twilight Test

Take the Quiz and Share Your Results!

I was hoping to be an Alice, but Esme is good too. Take the quiz to find out what your are. I really want to have a girl's night out and go to Twilight when it hits the theaters, if you are interested let me know!!

Oh No He Di'nt

Say the title of this blog in your best feisty Jerry Springer voice for it to make sense!! Last night crazy Jackson was up to his old stunts yet again. At dusk (it is important that you remember this!), Zachary came inside without his glasses on. Dan asked him where his glasses were and Zach replied that Jackson had been playing with them and threw them over the fence (Why Zach was letting his three year old destructive brother play with them remains a mystery!). Dan nor I believed that a three year old could actually get glasses over the fence, so we immediately started searching the back yard. On hands and knees we had every child skirting the lawn. Next we moved on to plants, bushes, trees, the grill, and so on. It was getting darker and darker, and very hard to see. After I took a few deep breaths I went over to Jackson and asked him where the glasses had been thrown. In his proudest of voices he said, "Mom, I threw Zach's glasses over the fence." A few minutes later Dan was trudging through the empty field behind our house; meanwhile I had been in the house grabbing lamps and extension cords. Dan and I were preparing for a long night of searching. As Dan searched, I began illuminating the backyard as best I could with lamps, which really helped because within 5 minutes Dan found the glasses. . .and yes, the boys were grounded.

Seriously, I can't be the only one with a crazy child!! I would love to hear your crazy kid stories!!

Zapped

It seems like so many of my posts are about Jackson, but once again he had a funny thing happen to him. Our church is right next to a farm. The farmer owns a lot of sheep, and often when the weather is nice on Sundays the nursery kids take a walk to the fence where the sheep are. To keep the sheep from wandering off there is an electric wire that runs across the little fence. Every time the nursery kids take a walk to see the sheep, I hear their teacher tell them to be careful not to touch the wire, and every Sunday there is at least one child who touches it . . .yesterday was Jackson's lucky day. He has been warned countless times, but Jackson only hears what he wants to hear. He got zapped by the wire and seemed stunned for about an hour after church. Most parents might feel some sympathy for their child, but Dan and I had a hard time not laughing. . .maybe, just maybe being zapped is the only way to get through to our strong willed little Jack!! The most amazing thing was that he was great the rest of the day. He obeyed, he had no melt-downs, and he was actually pleasant to hang out with. Dan and I are toying with the idea of getting him one of those collars they make for dogs that zap them when they cross a certain wire. (Merry Christmas Jackson! Look what Santa got you!) We also like the idea of a stun gun. For some reason I have a strange feeling Social Services might get called . . .maybe we should just take a walk to the farmers fence just to scare him.

Jackson had a fun field trip today to Linder Farm's Pumpkin Patch. He had a great time and picked a pretty good sized pumpkin. He has a lot of little friends, and is quite a good kid when he wants to be.

Last but not least, my kids were a little sad this weekend to hear that Grandma Dinger's dog, Aussie, was put to sleep this weekend. I was really worried about how Maddie would take the news, but after a quiet moment in her room, she seemed okay. This morning Zach and Maddie were up a little early. Zach jumped into Maddie's warm bed until I was ready to get them dressed. I over heard Maddie telling Zach that Aussie would be well taken care of by President Hinckley and "probably Joseph Smith." They both seemed comforted and moved on to talk about other important 8 year old and 5 year old stuff, (like Lilo and Stitch, and which Polly Pocket would make the best bad guy. . .Obama and McCain didn't make the cut).

I forgot to mention that we got our family pictures taken this weekend by my good friend Kim Hodson. I am super excited to see them, and will post them on my blog when I get them. Thanks Kim, I can't wait to see them!!

What Would We Do Without Jack?

Most of you know how obsessed our family is about BYU (mostly Dan!). Zach goes around the house chanting B-Y-U-U-U. Well, to make a long story sort of short, Jackson likes to "get under our skin" and tease as much as possible. Much to Dan's chagrin, he is now chanting "B-S-U-U-U!" A few days ago we were getting ready to go for a family walk. Jackson points to the BYU flag we have hanging up outside and says, "Mom, we need a BSU flag too." Dan hears my conversation and tells Jackson, "Jackson, BSU is naughty; we won't be putting up a BSU flag." (Leave it to Dan to brainwash our children!) Jackson screams "BSU is not naughty dad, I want a BSU flag!" Dan and Jackson argue back and forth for a few moments until Jackson starts bawling. (I found it rather humorous that my husband and my three year old were fighting over something so silly! What was even funnier, was that both of them were getting pretty angry with one another!)Needless to say, Jackson now chants "B-S-U" every time Dan mentions BYU, and Zachary runs to Dan's rescue and shouts "B-Y-U" to over power Jackson, so Maddie comes to Jackson's rescue, and my house just gets super noisy!!!
In other news-- Jackson has to have his tonsils out in three weeks. He has had a constant cold for over nine months and his tonsils looks pretty bad, so it is scheduled for November 11th. I will be happy that he will be feeling better, but I hear the recovery is not very fun.
Jackson was very proud of his Pop-Tart/Smartee concoction so I had to put it on my blog. He actually ate it!! He is crazy, but we love him.

Maddie and Zach are doing great. They love school, and are really excited for Halloween. Maddie quit cheer leading this past month because she wanted to try new things. She wants to start piano lessons, so we are hoping to get her started after Christmas. I guess that is all, it seems like I haven't written a post in quite some time.

Jury Duty, No School, and Movie Night

Today has been a crazy day!!! I have been on jury duty all week. Dan and I thought I had a pretty high number of 377, but by Tuesday night they were already in the high 200's. Most of you would probably be glad to serve on a jury; I however, know that it will be a wasted day when they realize my husband is a prosecutor for Ada county and kick me off every jury panel. It is hardly worth my time when I know I am going to be sent home. Plus, my kids had a short week of school so it was just my luck to have my number come up on the first day of their vacation. Luckily I was a "standby" juror and had to call in this morning to see if they still needed me. After waiting around until 10:00 a.m. at home by the phone, I finally received the call that my case had settled and I was no longer needed for the rest of the week. Hooray! I just happened to get a lucky number because only numbers in the 300's were on standby, the rest had to show up. Last I checked, they were calling numbers in the 600's this morning. For once luck was on my side. So, the kids and I went to lunch and then went to the mall and had a very fun but tiring day.

Tonight, some friends of ours (thanks Petersons) invited us to an outside movie night. It was so much fun. When it got dark, we sat around and watched "Alvin and the Chipmunks." My kids had a blast! Maddie and Zach thought it was the funnest thing we have done in a long time. They have been waiting for almost and entire year to actually see this movie. Jackson went home early to get to bed, but the other two stayed up until the end. So many families came. It was so nice to socialize, and the weather actually cooperated! Thanks Kami and Dave! That was a great idea!

Enjoying Fall

This week marked the first week of fall. The weather has been beautiful and and the trees have just a touch of color. Before the summer heat completely disappears we wanted to take advantage of the Boise Foothills-a favorite family hiking spot. The kids did great, but after almost two miles Maddie was finished! She claimed that her feet could not walk another step because she had to save her energy for the Disney Store (she's been saving for a Jasmine doll that she has had her eye on). Dan gave her a piggy back ride about 1/4 of a mile to the car. . .she is such a DIVA! The boys did great too. Jack rode in the exercise stroller much of the way because he has a sprained ankle (he likes to jump off of furniture, no matter how high it is, and he hurt his ankle earlier this week jumping off of a card table).

We discovered a new city park about half a mile from our house. I was driving the kids to school on Friday and discovered a little city park. I promised the kids we would go after school. It turned out to be a pretty great park, bathrooms included!! I think is has been around just a few months, but Dan and I try to stay away from the "snooty neighborhood" across the street if at all possible so we didn't really know it was there. Dan and I even tried to find a way out of the park without having to go through the "snooty neighbored" with no luck. The park has swings, a ginormous sandbox, slides, basketball courts, and a covered picnic area. I think we will definitely go more often . . . even if we have to go through the "snooty neighborhood" to get there. I personally think the neighborhood is beautiful, but Dan has called it that for so long that the name just stuck!

Super Funny Bush Video!

So, many of you know that Dan and I differ when it comes to politics. I have never declared a political party, but lean a bit more on the democratic side...sorry Dan. With that being said, I am super excited to watch the Presidential debates as well as the Vice-Presidential debates coming up. I want to make an educated decision come November and haven't completely decided who will get my vote, I actually like both candidates for very different reasons. I find an election year so exciting! (That's probably the history teacher in me!!) I found this video on you tube that I had to share. This sums up how I feel about our good ol' George W.. Sorry Dan-this in no way reflects his opinion.

Top 5 Memorable moments

We had a full weekend, so I thought I would share our most memorable and funny moments over the past few days.

5. BYU won again!! Yeah!!! I will admit, that I did not listen to much of the game, but I kept tabs on the score as I could hear my husband cheering on his coug's! I tried to look cool and said to Dan, "BYU has a great defensive line this year, don't you think?" Dan looked at me in total shock and said, "Do you even know what the defensive line means?" Without swallowing my pride I replied, "of course, what do you think I am an idiot?" I wasn't prepared for the next question which was, "what is it then?" As best as I could I tried to explain my version of the defensive line: guys that play defense, probably known as linebackers, guard the opposite team so they can't score. Dan just laughed at me and then tried to explain what it really meant. All I really heard was, "blah, blah, blah, and blah."


4. Maddie got to go to a fun birthday party this weekend. It was a pony party. I thought it was a brilliant idea for a party. The family rented two ponies for one hour. Maddie took four or five rides up and down the street and had a blast. They asked all of the girls to come dressed as a cow girl.


3. "Why am I always your servant?" This is Zach's new favorite saying when he thinks we are asking him to do too many chores. When he says it to me I remind him of all of the things I do for him.





2. As of last Tuesday, Jackson is now an official preschool student. It took him a few days to get comfortable, but as of late he has become the class bully and is in time-out a lot! Dan and I are super embarrassed and don't know how to get him to stop pushing the kids around. He thinks it is funny when he gets in trouble at school. Today (Monday) was Jackson's first day to ride a real bus. He was super scared to get on it, but once he relaxed I think he thought it was pretty fun.



1. The weather has finally turned to fall. . I woke up to pouring rain Saturday morning. I walked out of my room to find all three of my kids dressed in waterproof coats and shoes to play outside. The street in front of our house looked like a big river. The kids played for over an hour, jumping in the biggest puddle they have ever seen. They probably woke up the entire neighborhood with their noise, but they had so much fun! The weather has been absolutely beautiful these past few days. I love this time of year...if only we could skip winter all together!

Reality Check

I volunteer at the kids school every other Tuesday. Zach was excited when he found out that I was coming today to help his teacher; he even talked about it with me a lot over the weekend. I walked into the classroom expecting to be greeted by an ecstatic son, but was surprised to get the cold shoulder. He pretended not to see me. As his teacher was busy getting work for me to do I went up to Zach and tried to give him a hug and say, "Hi." He wanted nothing of it and struggled to get away from me. I then noticed him looking around the classroom to make sure his buddies didn't see. I thought it was hilarious. Zach's teacher gave me a pile of books to make copies from, and as I walked past Zach I ruffled his hair with my fingers. He whispered as quietly, but as angrily as he could, "Mom! Knock it off. I don't want the boys to see!" As funny as it was, I was a little depressed that my son was too cool to show his doting mother any affection. Dan's mom tells a similar story about their son James, which is quite funny, but I never thought it would happen to me. At least James was a little older--Zach is only in kindergarten!!! As I left the school, Zach's friends gave me high-fives and I got a begrudging high-five from Zachary. He is a little stinker!!I know Halloween is over a month away, but these pictures are just way too cute. We have a second-hand children's store a few miles away and I love to shop for my kid's Halloween costumes there. I can't believe how cheap their costumes are. I went to the Disney store to see what they had, and was in shock to see that every princess dress was priced at $30.00 or more. The stuff for boys was equally expensive. I paid under $20.00 for three cute costumes at this store. Maddie wants to be Mulan, Zachary is always content with superhero attire, and Jackers. . . well, lets just say that his personality fit this costume. He was adamant that his costume be scary, spooky, and monstery. I was trying to get him to try a Donald Duck costume or a Spiderman costume so he could be twins with his brother, but he was so excited about this costume, and the price was amazing, and once he had it on it just seemed a perfect match!

Maddie looks cute in anything, and when we get makeup on her and fix her hair up, you will think she is the real Mulan. She told me that she is going to ask her Dad to teach her Chinese so people think she is really Mulan. She might have us fooled by Halloween!! Hooray for bargains!