Trick Or Treat

Halloween morning Tom's parents headed home. We loved having them here. We got ready for the big sugar extravaganza later that day. I swear Halloween is my kids favorite holiday. They still don't totally get Christmas, but Halloween they get. Ella went as a butterfly and Audrey as a giraffe. I think Audrey's face looks so tiny in this costume. It is amazing how much more like a baby she looks when she doesn't have hair showing. This year we both took the girls and just left the bowl on the porch. That is pretty common on our street with so many young kids.

Here are the girls getting ready to set out and watching all their friends come by. Ella loved handing out candy.

Daisy watching everyone come by and hoping someone drops some candy on the ground. **No sad face here Lorilee**

Here are the girls heading up to get some treats. I wish you could see how big Audrey's rear end really looked in that costume. It was so cute. It was at least double her body size.

The girls checking to see how they fared.


Ella with her favorite...M&Ms.

Not long after we got home we decided to run and grab some dinner so we wouldn't have pure sugar on empty bellies. It started downpouring right as we pulled out of the driveway. It was flood type rain. When we got home our candy bowl was completely empty. Since Treat or Treaters had given up with the rain, I am sure some teenagers just came and dumped the entire bowl in their bags and ran. Good thing I didn't need anymore sugar in the house. We had plenty.

Super STAR

At the mall near us, they have put the Build A Bear right next to the play area. (Super smart marketing and location!) Ella saw a Pink Unicorn she HAD to have. Well, like most kids their age, our kids have way more toys then they need. So instead of running out and getting her the Unicorn, we told her she could earn it. We created a Star Chart and she earned a star whenever she helped clean up, was nice to her sister, helped her mom and went potty. I wish I could say Tom and I were more consistant with actually giving her the stars but she really did good and she had a GREAT attitude with helping. She earned her last star right before Grandma and Gramps got her so we loaded everyone up and headed to the mall. Ella loved the whole process of choosing the unicorn, the sound button, watching them fill her with LOVE aka stuffing. Audrey just wanted the finished product without needing to interact with anyone she didn't know.

Choosing her sounds button and having it put in the Unicorn.

Ella got to push the pedal to fill her up. She actually ended up filling up Audrey's bear too. Notice Audrey clinging to Grandma in the background.

Here we are registering, naming and getting their birth certificates. Ella named the Unicorn Sweetheart and Audreys bear is Ted Bear. (I know original but she wanted to name him.)

Here they are with their finished product. We were so glad that Tom's parents were here to see the joy in Ella's eyes. Well, and to hold and shield Audrey from any strangers. She will warm up people outside the family some day.

Playing Favorites....

There is only one thing that both my kids totally agree on and it is their very favorite thing... Above Nick Jr, bottles, princess gear, I think even above chocolate and that is saying A LOT. It is their Grandparents. They look forward to visits here or there. They love to play with them anywhere. (Too many bed time stories tonight - sorry)

Tom's parents found a great deal again this year to come out in October. They came the last week and left Halloween morning. We actually made it out to the zoo this year. The NC Zoo in Asheboro is pretty amazing. I really only remember going to the Hogle Zoo as a kid and this is so much better. The animals even have room to move! It is a lot bigger then the zoo in Columbia, but that also means a lot more walking. It is HUGE. It was a little cool the day we went so we practically had the zoo to ourselves.

We try to always get pictures of Ella with her Ella-phants. So if you feel you have seen this backdrop before, you are probably right.

The girls also love giraffe and zebras.

We decided to check out the newly re-done play area. The girls had a blast and it was a fun break between North America and Africa sections. Tom said that only in North Carolina would they segregate a zoo.

Ella loved showing off our new Halloween decoration. Patty Pumpkin Head Princess. Since she looks a little like Nightmare Before Christmas we had to name her so the girls wouldn't be scared of her. Ella named her and kept adding on until it became Patty Pumpkin Head Princess. Both girls love her mostly because she is about their height.

The night before Grandma and Gramps left we had our Ward Trunk or Treat. The girls loved finally getting to be able to dress up. Audrey decided to wear the kangaroo, even though we had another costume for her that she wore on Halloween.


Even Daisy got into the spirit this year. This girls are still trying to get her to still wear her costume around. We had a ton of fun with Grandma and Gramps as usual. I have a few more pictures of another fun thing we did with them, but it will its own post.

I may still be in October but at least there is progress so enjoy catching up because it may take me a few days to get the next batch out!

Top Chef

Well, my family has become cookie making experts. Tom happened to already have been a cookie expert but the rest of us are now certified. We made our first batch of sugar cookies for Halloween as a FHE night. A week later I got called as Primary President and our cookie making skills have been put to the test. We had the Primary children do an activity at the Ward Christmas Party where they got to decorate their own cookies. Tom whipped up over 100 sugar cookies and a few pounds of frosting for me. And then in January he made his own cookie cutter to be able to make cookies in the shape of an 8 for our 8 is Great program. We put the cookies on wooden sticks and made them into a cookie bouquet. I wish I had taken a picture of them.

The girls sure love to help, especially if it means eating the rest of the batter or frosting.

Yikes!

Okay after starting to look at all my pictures I am realizing HOW far behind I am. Sorry dear family and friends. I thought I would post a few just fun pictures that we took this fall. These are all from late September and early October.




All the girls hanging out. I thought I better capture the moment since Ella is actually in pants. It is one of the very few times we have gotten her in jeans. We only can get her in pants maybe once a month and even then it has to be something pink, but this time we got full fledged jeans, but we did need a pink shirt.




When Audrey was about 9 months old she starting climbing everything. Tom and I laughed that one day Ella would be the mastermind and talk Audrey into climbing to get what she wanted and then she would be smart enough to open it. Well these pictures are pretty much that coming to fruition. The only difference is that Ella actually climbed the counters too. The picture on the left is the girls getting into "hidden" halloween candy. On the right Ella is eating half a pan of brownies that I told her she couldn't eat. Where was mom I am sure you are thinking. Both of these pictures were taken while I was showering. I am working on getting up before the kids to shower now.

Both girls got a pair of these super cute brown boots this fall. Audrey calls them her Boots the Monkey. I seriously love this picture.

The girls outside enjoying one of the last enjoyable fall days before it started turning cold. I have such prissy girls but I sure do adore them. I know that these days won't last much longer. Ella is starting to loose her baby face. I still love to sit and stare at Audrey's baby hands and face since I know it is going to be gone way too soon.

Still In Hibernation....

Tom was at the gym late last night and ran into our next door neighbor. Guiermo asked Tom if we still even lived here since he hasn't seen us since October. Not even Daisy! YES, we are still here. In the winter, it is hard to find us. It is both mine and Tom's very busiest season for work. It doesn't really slow down much until middle of February for us. The girls have practically lived at Cassie's lately. It is a good thing she loves them and they love her. (Audrey wanted me to hold her the other day and I said I couldn't hold her while driving. She thought for a minute and then said, ok mom. Cassie will hold me.) I also got called as Primary President in October and so I have been juggling that whole responsiblity and work. It has been a lot but I feel our family has really been blest. I know I am super behind on my blog and of course like everyone have great intentions to catch up but I came to a bump in the road because I am missing our cable to the camera. I even have a few of these and I can't find a single one. I promise I am working on it since Halloween pictures haven't even been posted yet! I just wanted to let everyone know we are still alive but may not be out of Hibernation until spring.

Along that note, in spring I would really like to take a family trip somewhere we haven't been on the East coast. So for my East Coast friends, let me know what you like about the area you live, or your favorite place here in the East, what there is to do there and of course great restaurants. If we choose your location you may even get a visit from the Hindmarshes!