thanksgiving 2009

i am finally all caught up!  yay!

thanksgiving this year was so much fun!  it was my first year to host and cook, and i think it all went rather well.  i, of course, forgot to take any pictures.  (maybe i should add "personal picture taker - on hand at all times" to my christmas wish list)  which is really unfortunate, because the table turned out gorgeous!  i might just have to recreate the whole thing, just to get a picture of it.  i wouldn't hold your breath for that, though. :)  my mom got me a beautiful fall tablecloth a few years ago for christmas, and this was the first chance i had to use it.  then i had rust colored plates, our nice utensils, goblets, and beautiful white napkins with napkin rings.  the centerpiece was a curved, lacquered branch from hobby lobby, with two candles, and colorful gourds places around it.  i was so happy with how it all turned out.

dinner - the important part - was a hit!  yay!  i love cooking for people, especially when it's well received.  i'm glad this kind of meal only comes around once a year (dave does christmas dinner - aren't i lucky?!), but it sure is fun to do!  dave's parents came over in the early afternoon, and spent the day relaxing and playing with the kids.  everyone had a great day, and i must say that i'm sad to see the weekend come to a close.  it's wonderful to relax and spend time with family.

i'm not too sad, though.  i do have fun things planned for the christmas season this year.  more on that to come!

halloween 2009

we had a great time this halloween!  friday was our ward's trunk-or-treat, and they went all out!  it began with homemade chili, hot dogs, chips, and hot chocolate.  next was bounce houses for the kids.  then came the candy gathering. :)  it was a really well-done event.

saturday afternoon we carved our pumpkins.  we hadn't had a chance to get to them before that, but no one seemed to mind.

this is dave's "why do i have to pull the goo out of a pumpkin? this is one of the most ridiculous holidays i've ever heard of, but i love you, so i'll do it anyway.  but i don't have to like it." face.  isn't it cute?!

he, he, he

he's such a good sport!  love you, dave!

here are the three finished products.  naomi chose a cat in a window for her and i to do together.  dave did the autobot symbol for chris, and chris drew his own design on his little pumpkin from preschool.  he had help with the carving part.  not too shabby!

we gathered at jonathan and katie's for dinner and neighborhood trick-or-treating.

naomi the rock star with lily the princess.  naomi had a choice of any of the halloween costumes in the store - even the princess ones - but chose the hot pink and black guitar.  so, she got to be a rock star, and loved every minute of it!

chris as optimus prime

all ready for trick-or-treating

they all had a great time, and of course, got way too much candy!

pumpkin patch 2009

mid october katie and i took the kids to a pumpkin patch.  even i can't forget to bring my camera to the pumpkin patch! :)

  

  

we had a great time, and the best part?  it was free!  can't beat that!  there were a bunch of bounce houses, cut-outs of lots of different characters (dora was definitely naomi's fav), haybale mazes, and a train ride.  a very fun afternoon.

naomi's potty trained!

this is still in the spirit of catch-up, and a few months late.

naomi is completely potty-trained (at night, too), and that makes me so, so happy!  we started with introducing the froggy potty when she was about two.  she loved it, but wasn't ready to go all the time.  she would go occasionally, which was fine with me.

then, when we were all sick in september, i decided it was a good time to get serious about the whole business.  we were stuck at home anyway, so i decided to take advantage of the situation.  she ran around without any pants or underwear for a good two weeks - maybe more.  that's the best way i've found to help them recognize the need to go.  it seemed to work for her, anyway.  then, when we were better, she wore pullups when we'd leave the house.  i got tired of buying pullups (they're expensive!), and didn't buy any more when i ran out of the pack we were working on at the time.  she had stayed dry through the night a couple times, so i risked it.  quitting the pullups was completely worth it!  once she didn't have that safety net anymore, she didn't have any accidents.  fabulous!

good job, naomi!  we love you!

christopher's 5th birthday

christopher's birthday was september 30th.  he had quite the fun-packed day.  it started out with a phone call from grandma and grandpa.  he got to open the presents from them while he was on the phone.  here he is with the rocket ship with little magnetic monkeys that fit inside.

For lunch we took him to McDonald's, and even let him play on the toys.  I'm a mean mom - the few times we go there, I never take them inside.  I hate trying to get them out to go home.  So, he had a blast with that.  When we got home, I had a surprise for him.  I had planned it so that the cartoon Transformers movie would be here from Netflix.  He loves Transformers, so he was really excited about that.  He chose hot dogs and applesauce for dinner.  Crazy kid - he could pick anything, and that's what he chooses!  Oh well, it's what he wanted, right? :)

Next Jonathan, Katie, Jacob, Lily, Donald, and Stella came over for presents and cake and ice cream.  Chris had a great time opening presents, of course!

A real guitar from Ouma.  He's wanted one for a while, but we've always told him he wasn't old enough - until now!

Hugs for everyone!

We got him Optimus Prime, which he loves.  (Score 1 for Mom!)

Then cake and ice cream!  No close up shots of the cake - it wasn't my usual time-consuming masterpiece (he he he).  He didn't care, so I didn't worry about it. :)  It tasted good, and that's the important part, right?

happy birthday, chris!  you had a busy month, and we're so proud of you!  can't believe you're 5 already!  you're such a special kid, and we love you!

star of the week

chris was chosen to be the star of the week at preschool - the same week as his birthday. i asked his teachers, and it just happened to work out that way. made for a special week for him. these are the pictures he chose to bring in.

he also filled out these two pages about himself.  i love his picture of the zebra - with stripes and everything!  we read dr. seuss almost every night before bed.  we have a collection of 13 of his stories, and chris loves them all.

we sure love christopher, and think he's an awesome kid!