SNOW

Parker and Tucker could not wait to go out and play in the snow!  We had the biggest snow storm ever......something like 18 inches.  It was sooooo cold but boys being boys they  didn't care at all.  They got all bundled up and headed out....making snow angels, throwing snowballs, eating snow, and trying to build a snowman.  Lots of fun for two adventurous little boys!

Christmas Highlights....

They just had to have Santa hats.......and boy did they wear them!

Making Christmas cookies...very messy, but lots of fun!

Making gingerbread houses & meeting Santa at the Ward Christmas Party.

Christmas Eve program and party at Papa & Grandma's house.....a family tradition.

New Christmas pj's from Grandma  Brenda......so cute!

Finally the day has arrived......& smiles all around!

Oh Christmas Tree........

The kids were so excited to put the Christmas tree up....we didn't even make it to December and it was up!  That's a first for me.  I have never even thought about putting the Christmas decorations up before the actual month of December.  But when you have 3 adorable little kids so ready for all the festivities to begin, it's hard to resist their excitement!  As you can see by the pictures, they did a great job decorating the bottom half of the tree.  I just let them do their thing and then after they went to bed I adjusted the ornaments so the top of the tree wouldn't be bare.....so cute!  And now that it's all done it feels pretty good to have everything decorated.....now we can sit back and enjoy the Holiday Season......(well--kind of--there is still so much to be done, but you know what I mean =D )

Halloween

The kids had a great time Halloween.  They even talked me into dressing up!  How could I refuse those sweet little faces =)  We went trick-or-treating and the kids collected quite a bit of candy.  They were so excited to get home and dump it all out and see what they had.  

Leaves

Who doesn't like jumping into a pile of leaves?

Pumpkins

This year was our first year to carve pumpkins.  In the past few years it just seem too much to even think about carving pumpkins with 3 young children.  The kids were really excited and weren't really sure what to expect.  At first they didn't like the smell of the pumpkins and the slimy stringy stuff inside.  Eventually they got use to it and were really great about cleaning them out.  I then had them tell me what kind of face they wanted on their pumpkins and did my best to give them what they wanted.  They were just very simple faces but the kids were happy with them and thats all that counts.

Hats

Found this great tutorial on one of my favorite blogs and knew I had to make them for the kids.  They were so much fun to make and I think they turned out super cute.  Would you believe they were made from old t-shirts?  I just love the idea of re-purposing old clothes!  

Not feeling so well.....

Well, it finally happened.......the kids were all sick at one time!  We have been pretty lucky that they usually will be sick one or even two at a time and that is something that we can deal with, but this time they were all sick with the stomach flu.  Needless to say, they were all in their beds with wet cloths on their foreheads and a trashcan right next to the bed.....just in case the unthinkable happened.....the dreaded throwing up!  And boy did it happen....a lot!  The next day they all seem to be better, but then I came down with the dreaded thing!  It was a good thing I didn't get sick when the kids were.  I don't even want to think about how horrible that would have been!

It's raining, it's pouring........

Doesn't every child want their own umbrella?  Well my kids certainly did.  It was a very happy day when they finally received one of their very own.  On the way home from the store, they each had their umbrellas up and open in the van.  I'm sure we must have been quite a sight!

New Set of Wheels!

Before Daddy went on his business trip he surprised the kids with new bikes.  They were so excited and it didn't take them long at all to just take off.  Our front porch is just the right size for them to ride down and turn around. I was kind of afraid that someone would actually ride right off of the porch down the steps.....the boys never even came close to that.  But Emma on the other hand, somehow managed to do it not once, but twice!  Poor little thing!  I think it scared me more then it did her....she's quite fearless when it comes to most things.  Needless to say, they love their new set of wheels!

Cupcakes

Grandma gave us a cake mix for Halloween cupcakes and the kids couldn't wait to make and decorate them.  Unfortunately, the day we did the cupcakes Parker was really sick and couldn't participate with us.  So we saved all the stuff for him to decorate his cupcakes when he felt better, which ended up being the next day.  I wasn't able to get pictures of them all together, but at least they all got to have fun making their own cupcakes!

Emma's creations

Tucker's creations

Parker's creations

Soccer Ends

Our last soccer game was bittersweet.  The boys had improved so much since that very first game and they really look forward to each practice and game.  It has become part of our routine and now it is over, which is kind of hard for them to understand.  I'm kind of glad that the end is now here, just because it has started to get pretty cold at the games.  The thing which helped ease the pain of their last game was that they each received a trophy.  They were super excited about that!(and of course have been carrying them around for days)

Dressing Up

Emma

Parker

Tucker

Parker

Emma

Tucker

These 3 kids just LOVE to play dress up!  It doesn't really matter what the theme is, they love to dress up.  Since it is the Halloween season there are all kinds of costumes to be had.  I came across the pirate accessories at the Dollar Store and just couldn't pass them up.  Next I found all the Spiderman outfits at Walmart and thought we might actually use those for Halloween, but then I changed my mind.  (I decided to make their Halloween costumes and you will just have to wait and see those in a later post.)  Needless to say, the kids have had a great time playing with their new costumes.  Never a dull moment in the land of imagination!

Package from Daddy!

Sometimes the next best thing to having Daddy home is having him send you a package!  The kids were really missing their Daddy while he was on his work trip.  So he thought it would be a good idea to send them a little something to let them know he was thinking of them and missing them.  They were so excited to receive the big, brown box they just couldn't open it fast enough!  Emma got a Strawberry Shortcake doll and the boys each got an Iron Man figure.  They loved them all and it did help ease the pain of having Daddy gone...for a little while anyway. =)

Dance Class Cutie

Showing us her dance moves.

Getting ready to leave for dance.

This is it....

Meeting her dance instructor,
Miss Becky.

Emma has only been talking about this day for at least a year now.....going to dance class!  We went and signed her up and bought all of her dance wear.  Every night until the class day arrived Emma slept with her ballet and tap shoes.....yes she did!  Now, that is excitement for you!  She was so happy when class day was upon us....I was pretty excited, too.  When we got to the dance studio I didn't know if she would get nervous and not want to go in, but in true 'Emma style' she waltzed right in like she knew what to do.  It was really cute to see her with all the other little girls.  First she had her ballet class and next it was tap class.  She had a great time in both of them and was definitely not ready to leave when her classes were over.  As we were getting ready to walk out she sat down in the lobby, crossed her arms and gave me a sulky sad face...I asked her what was wrong?  She said she didn't want to leave, she wanted to stay!  Oh Emma, you are so cute.....next week you will get to do it all over again.=)

Practicing new moves with Miss Becky.

Learning the 5 positions of ballet.

Ready for tap class. =)