October, 2016

The month of October this year has been everything that Fall should aspire to be - warm, colorful, and overflowing with activities.  We had a busy month making plenty of great memories.

Luke played his last game of his first soccer season.  He has learned a lot of skills and has gotten really good at "big kicks".  The goal for next year will be to help him figure out how to be more aggressive.  Mostly, I think he loved the chance to fun around and play with so many friends.

Evelyn has been his soccer and preschool buddy this year.

He was pretty impressed with his certificate and medal,

The certificate was immediately hung on the wall.

Luke and Ruby has spent a lot of time at Miss Nikki's house lately and have loved every minute of it. They have suddenly figured out the fun of playing at a friend's house and now beg constantly to either go to Drake's house or have him come over to play.  I love watching them all interact together. 

For the month of October, the daycare at the gym designated Fridays as day that the kids could wear a costume.  You better believe that my babies took this very seriously and made sure to dress up as often as possible.  We saved their "official" costumes for Halloween, but they have plenty of others.

The last time we went to Cornbellys was two years ago and we spent most of the time trying to find shelter after a freak storm rolled in.  This time the only shelter we could have needed would have been from the sun.  The weather was beautiful and we spent the afternoon roping steers, trick or treating, going on hayrides, mining for treasures, jumping, and pretending to be a princess on a carriage ride.  We did have one rough spot - after we got the kids out of the carriage, Luke literally just disappeared.  For a moment I was calm as we both just glanced around expecting to see him, then full panic set in.  Tim immediately went and stood just outside the entrance to make sure he didn't leave and I frantically started to look.  Just as quickly as he had disappeared, there he was again.  He was a little concerned about where we were, but didn't fully know he had been lost.  We hugged him tight and I was once again reminded how lucky we are to have been blessed with these little ones.

Luke's preschool teacher arranged for the kids from his class to go to the play Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory at the Scera Theater. She asked for some parent volunteers and I was thrilled to be able to take him to his first life theater.  We were at a showing that was done early in the day and just for schools and children.  It was perfect for his age and he seemed to really enjoy it. 

Tim and the "big boys" decided to take advantage of the great weather and spent a weekend exploring Moab.  They took the jeep and were able to explore some trails that weren't really accessible to a car. They loved discovering dinosaur fossils, and exploring canyons, but I think their favorite was the hike to see Delicate Arch.  

Luke was lucky enough to have two field trips this months with his preschool.  For this adventure they went to a local greenhouses to learn more about plants and how they grow.  Tim and Ruby were able to go with the class and of course, Ruby loved being a part of the party.  They spent time in the "jungle" where they grow tropical plants - Luke was especially fascinated with the information about bamboo plants since that is what pandas eat.  He listened well and later was able to tell me all about the bamboo, how it grows, and what part the pandas like best.  They each planted a flower and brought home a mini pumpkin.  After the lesson portion, they were able to explore all of the Halloween activities - their favorite was definitely the corn box but they loved the entire experience.

No great pictures, but the kids went to an art class at the BYU museum

Spaghetti for lunch

Halloween training

Poor Tim hurt smashed his thumb and ended up at the doctor's office for stitches.  He was in the process of fixing a stove and something happened with the door - he ended up getting his thumb smashed and cut.  The cut was clean, but deep and bled a lot.  Time bandaged it and tried to keep it elevated, but when it was still bleeding after a day, he decided he better go get it stitched.  

Luke is so good to work on his online preschool without any type of prodding.  In fact one day he woke up and went out the kitchen and signed in and started working before anyone even realized he was awake.  Ruby usually always pulls over her chair  and I think is picking up a lot of what he is learning...and a lot of times she just plays.

Thrift store buddies, I think it's genetic

Friday afternoon at the temple, it was peaceful and exactly what we needed