Trick or Treat...

And what a treat it is to see these kids in their Halloween costumes. Wyatt and Henry were NASA Astronauts and LC was the cutest little Ladybug you ever did see. This is probably the last year that Wyguy will be wearing this costume, but as you can see Henry has a couple to go in his.

They are all out right now with their dad walking the 'hood while I sit waiting for the doorbell to ring. We were out for an hour together and they just dropped me off at home so I could pass out our own candy. I asked if anyone wanted to stay home with me to help but they all, including LC, opted to go with daddy to more houses. Needless to say, I am not surprised at their choice.:)

It's such fun to watch them have the confidence to walk up to the houses and yell "Trick or Treat" and then so nice to hear them say, "Thank you" just as loudly. They are having a blast and I love seeing that.

Here's a pic of the back of LC's costume. I bought it on Monday at the new Old Navy for $11.00 She absolutely loves it and has worn it all day.

Swimming Lessons...

We signed LC up for her very first swim lessons a couple of weeks ago. This is about the age we started Henry and after a couple of incidences of LC being a little braver than she should have been over the Summer, we decided to do it earlier rather than later. I am of the strong opinion that swimming is not an extracurricular activity but rather a life lesson that must be taught as early as possible. Henry and Wyatt's teacher has been bugging me about getting LC signed up for about a year now, and I decided that now is the right time.


The teacher is a 60 year-old woman who is also the coach of the local swim team as well as running the swimming program at one of the local high schools. She has been teching lessons for over 40 years and doesn't take any guff from the kids. In fact, her favorite saying is "dry it up" when the littler kids get whiny or teary over doing something they don't want to do. I love that about her.

LC was a little unsure at first but after her initial anxiety she became all smiles and even jumped in at the end. I think it helped that her older brother was in it with her and was able to show her how it's done. It is amazing how well he swims for being only 4. The kudos all go to BJ for having the patience to teach the kids as young as they are.

Christmas Card pics...

It is that time of year, again, when the family makes its pilgrimage to local spots to try and get the perfect picture for our Christmas cards. Last year's cards are going to be hard to beat, if I do say so myself. I absolutely loved them with the way the kids looked, the background and the blue cards...they were beautiful.

This year, we went back to the State Park since it is a natural backdrop and we also tried out Illinois Beach State Park. That was a trial. It was warm at home, but once we hit the beach, it was cold and blustery. Poor LC was shivering by the end of it but all the kids were such troopers about it. There was little complaining and valiant efforts at holding poses and smiling brightly.

I am bound and determined to get my cards out by the first of December, so the hunt is on for the perfect one. I am scouring the internet and have 3 possibilities, I think.

Here's a taste of one of the pics. It is not the one we are using but is still one of my favorites...

Harvest Fest...

Yesterday was Harvest Fest at the boys school and we had a BLAST! It is the first year they have done something like this and it seemed like a huge success. Usually the school sponsors a Halloween Fun Night the Friday before Halloween and this was so much better. There were horse-drawn wagon rides, pony rides, a petting zoo, face-painting, a cake walk, 3 bouncy tents, and games galore. The weather was great for it.


Some pics of the kids from the day:





And some more:





That pic of Wyatt is one of the only ones we have since he was off and running with his friends.

Cousins...

Heather, Justin and Olivia came for a visit this week and my kids are in heaven. If they could keep her here forever, they would. Vivi is smiling up a storm and cooing all the time so it is really fun to interact with her. But, while it is nice to get a baby fix, it is even nicer to either hand her back or roll over in the middle of the night knowing I don't have to get up.;)