Rug Smiles

I can't help taking pictures of this cute face.

This is her pretending to be Buzz Lightyear ;)

I can't help that she is so cute.

And smiley.

And...  All mine :)

Carving Pumpkins

We carved our pumpkins a little bit early it seems.  They looked great for a bit, but we had to throw them away after only a few days.  Which stinks (literally...  get it?!?! :)  ...but, lesson learned.  I only bought 2 pumpkins, and then we shared them.  The boys working on theirs.

Kari designed her own, and proceeded to cut it out, all by herself.

Dylan didn't cut anything out, but he drew quite a bit.

None of the kids would help me clean them out, big babies.  They didn't want to get slimy and dirty.  

Love this goofy little face.  Don't know what he is doing, but it is cute.

Kari's finished product.  It says "Happy Hallween" with a ghost underneath it.  It also has a few of these peg thingys in it that allow you to basically turn a pumpkin into a lite bright.

Dylan's finished product.

Kaitlyn's finished product.  I helped her do quite a bit of the cutting, but she picked the design from a book that had these cool eyes.  Then she added her own ears/nose pegs.  Over the years I have amassed quite a few designs and pumpkin additives by buying them 90% off after Halloween.  It makes for cheap carving and fun designs :)

With the lights off.

Hubby's finished design.  Pretty cool!  

As a side note, I read somewhere that if you cover the cut and not open parts of the pumpkin with Vaseline, that it makes the jack-o-lantern last longer.  I think it has something to do with air flow.  So, the girls slathered their pumpkins with Vaseline, but hubby refused, and I wasn't about to try to get into all those small areas.  So, I used some cooking spray figuring it was kinda the same thing.  Ironically, his lasted a full 2 days longer than the kids.  Maybe it has something to do with preservatives?  I dunno...  

School Lunch

The last day they were here, we took a field trip to the girls school and ate lunch with them.

Nothing says cool like sitting at the kiddy table.  Too bad Danny Boy was the one taking the picture...  It was interesting to see his tall frame in the little stool ;)

Aaaaaaand, we didn't get a picture with Kari, but we sat by her too.  I took the girls out after lunch, and we went to a park.  Check out this cool shot Thompson got!

Tire swing.

Fully loaded!

Unfortunately, after this, things went down hill.  Thompson and her family had to come back to the house and pack.  We had one last evening together, where we acted like teenagers and talked until the wee hours of the night.  In the morning, they left to go home.  We miss our playmates, and wish we lived closer.  But, it was super great to have the opportunity to visit for the time we did.  Until next time!

In which technology plays a part

The W's brought with them the best toy ever.  Ben!  I mean, the iPad!

My children, apparently, don't ever get to play with technology, so it was perpetually entertaining when they pulled it out.

Looks like baby Kelsey even got in on the action. 

I kinda really love this picture, by the way :)

Columbus Museum

The first day the W's were here, we all just kind of relaxed.  They had been travelling and I had been cleaning.  But it was kind of nice to just breathe the same air again.  The second day, Thompson kicked my hiney into gear and we actually left the house.  :)  We went to a local museum that had a kids room, and played for an hour.  Which is not bad for two three year-olds, and an 18 month old. 

My most favorite part of the hour was when they found the stage, and put on a production for us. (Check out Dylan's face!)

They seemed to like the attention.

Even cute Kelsey got in on the action.  Please note the alligator behind her as a buffer.  Amen.

After we left, we went to a truly southern fast food restaurant and ate lunch at Zaxby's.  And, lemme tell you, I have never eaten there, but due to my new found love of buffalo wings, I really, really, really liked it...  then we went home and spent the rest of the evening together, enjoying each other's company.  And thus ended the second day.

Fall Festival

Last year, the stake held a Fall Festival at our building.  They did the same this year, and I am super glad we attended both.  This year was much better attended, and we probably should have gotten there a tiny bit earlier, because some of the things were running out.  Which was a shame because one of the things Kaitlyn really wanted to do was the sand art again....  Too bad :(  Kari, however, really loved the bull.

While she stayed on :)

Dylan got on, and then immediately off again.

I think he thought that was the point.  Hubby took his turn pulling the ropes.  He actually stayed there almost the whole time.  I think he enjoyed getting his work out in, while knocking people on their butts ;)  Good job honey!

Kari did the donut on a string thing, while Kaitlyn (again) stayed at the coloring booth for almost the entire time.

They got their faces/hands painted too!  (Again with Dylan's face...  Kinda loving it :)

There was also a haystack where the kids found some fangs.  Dylan had a hard time getting them into his mouth.  But with a little help from hubby, he made it work :)

Kari, however, didn't suffer from the same problem at all.  She knew how those bad boys worked!

Arg!

During the Day

I couldn't take the girls out of school for any significant amount of time, but I think that is ok with them.  How bad is it, that when offered the chance to stay home with cousins or go to school it seemed to be a toss up?  I guess it is good, right?!?!  Hopefully that school loving enthusiasm won't fade too quickly.  Thankfully, I am a fruitful baby momma, and was able to provide McKenna with a playmate still at home.  These two cute kids are 5 months apart, and they played pretty well together.

 I think it might have been because they played in the girls room.  All new toys for McKenna, and forbidden toys for Dylan.  Does he look forbidden-ly pleased, or what?

 And I just have to show how this dog works.  And how much Dylan played with it.  In his backwards camo shirt and too short camo (but not exactly the same camo) pants with red socks.  Food goes in...

 Then it comes out.  Circle of life, my friends.  Heaven Forbid we not be biologically correct in this house.  My main problem with the dog, however, is that the food/poop is reusable.  That's right my friends!  He poops it out, then eats it again....  Thanks very much to my MIL who gave this to Kari (I think).  However, you have to know my MIL to know just how much she would NOT have given this to the girls had she known what it did.    Love you Nana!

Toy Story + Barbie Horse =  1 Happy McKenna :)

 Benny Boy was there too.  Hanging out and doin' his thang.  I took this picture because I liked how big Danny Boy looks sitting on the fabulous purple bed.  But I also like the look on his face and Benny standing on his toes. 

A good time was had by all :)

Hamburgers and Fries

We interrupt this parade of cuteness to bring you some musings, again, of a nursing mother.

Yesterday was our 7 year anniversary.  Wait, you say.  Haven't you been married for 10 years?  Indeed, I have!  Yesterday was the anniversary of the day that we embarked on a lifetime of massages and doctors visits, skin grafts and surgeries.  7 years ago yesterday, we were standing in my mother in laws kitchen, making dinner.  We had planned to eat hamburgers and fries, and were waiting for the FryDaddy to heat the oil sufficiently so we could fry the potatoes. 

I am not going to go into details again.  You are probably sufficiently familiar with the background, and if you aren't, you can go back around this date every year and probably find something. 

We began a tradition in our family, beginning on her 1 year anniversary.  To show that we aren't afraid of french fries.  To show that we know it was an accident.  To show that we are extremely grateful for all the support we had from church members, family members, as well as the eventual (and continued) support of the Shriners.  So we eat hamburgers and french fries every October 22.  I would usually cook these things, but yesterday I was a bit worn down, so we enjoyed our delicious Wendy's burgers.  We blessed the food, then I took a quick minute to explain to children why we had picked this particular meal.  I don't think Kaitlyn and Dylan really cared, but it appeared that Kari was listening.  And that was kind of  it.  No big deal.  Just Gratitude.

Fast forward through finishing dinner, putting children to bed, going to bed ourselves, then nursing a sleepy 8 month old Kelsey a little before 5 in the morning.  Because my mind had no where else to be, it dredged up old feelings from that night 7 years ago.  Memories of thinking that I hadn't thought we needed an ambulance; which turned into wondering how the night would have completed had we not called and gone directly to the hospital.  Memories of standing in the driveway dripping water on the concrete because I had stepped into the shower fully clothed trying to offer some relief to my screaming child.  Memories of swinging my own arms around wildly, because the wind or momentary lack of blood made the burns on my own arms feel mildly better.  Memories of feeling inadequate when I couldn't make my child stop screaming in pain.  Memories of joy when I finally could hold Kari again, a few days later.  Memories of fear when, after a debridement session, they said that it was time to contemplate surgery.  More fear when we loaded up in a Lear jet to go to Cincinnati, and more relief when hubby could accompany us.  And, finally, memories of acceptance: life had changed.  But we could do it.

All these memories while I was nursing my 8 month old.  Who, coincidentally, wore the same outfit yesterday that Kari had worn to take her 9 month pictures that my SIL brought to me in the hospital.  Who is only slightly younger than Kari was when this all happened.  It made me want to hug her and hold her and never let her go.  Never let her grow up. 

So, happy Hamburger and Fries day to you!  May you never forget how precious things can be.  As I have never forgotten the prayers and support we received from you.  We love you Kari!

Cousins

The same weekend that we went to Flat Rock Days was the weekend of my little sister's 10 year high school reunion.  And wouldn't you know it, that she bought an additional plane ticket and stopped at my house on her way home.  It had been since Ben was a few weeks old that the kids had seen each other, and it was super fun for them to be able to hang out with each other again.

As you can tell, little Benny has grown just a bit :)  So has Dylan....

This was Danny Boy's first chance to meet little Kelsey.

She loves her cousin!

They loved to eat dinner together.  It was a bit hectic at times, but we got them all fed.  I think.

McKenna even did well holding little Kelsey.  I love how wide her eyes are!

The rest of the visit was fun.  More to come :)

Flat Rock Days

Down in Pa's neck of the woods, they have a local fair/festival once a year.  We have been able to go in the past, and made an effort to go this year, even though we knew we wouldn't be able to stay overnight.  As in years past, they had a blow up slide, but thankfully this year it wasn't a water slide. 

Kari took Dylan down the first few times.  Look at the joy on their faces!  Then he figured out he could go down by himself, and away he went!

Kari spent her time in the "petting zoo."  

It took her a while to screw up the courage to reach out and grab one.

 

Baby chick! 

 Kaitlyn spent a majority of her time at the coloring booth. She had several pictures to pass to various people when it was time to go home. 

 

Kelsey was there too.  Doing her thing.

To each child his own!