Hoping we are all on the good list this year

This big girl is hoping for a gear bike

So is this big girl

Middle girl has asked for a Playmobil house, she thinks it come with all the accessories. I mentionted those may make good birthday presents

Little one wants a "prize", that should make life easy for Santa

Reason for the Season

I am slowing down this year,
doing less
choosing the important
years past have been so crazy, fun, but crazy
this year I hope is different

The Past Week

We have been busy...


flipping

climbing

clowning

eating, yumm!

couponing

creating

operation shoeboxing

http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/occ

goofing (the big girls thought I would be fun to have a "brother", J loved the tie)

Two year old

Some two year old isims for the week...

I fixed a book that Jo had broken, in her sweetest voice she came up and gave me a giant hug and said, "mama, I'm so proud of you! I love you!"

Driving home from church on Sunday we passed a yard with 4 or 5 deer out front. Rob from the front seat said, "Jo, there's some deer out your window."

She replied, "I hate deer!" (not sure who she learned that from?)

Leaf Pile-up

Going...

Going...

Gone

Halloween

We continued the yearly tradition of a family theme

"Grease"

wish I had taken more pictures, wish I had started on the costumes earlier, sometimes wondering why I make their costumes each year :)

thankfully the girls loved the night, school party, fluffy skirts and pumpkin picking

Where life goes

in a blink...

summer has become fall and is quickly becoming winter


here were a few pics I never got around to posting


Aubrey was giving Jo scooter lesson,


"chin up, look ahead, be brave" she was repeating to Jo

Are you a gerbil?

Our good friends introduced my kiddos to a "gerbil" ball

Each individual cell is filled with air

the kiddo climbs into the middle and

can somersault or be rolled around the yard

Each one loved, especially little J

NY Moments

The girls and I returned from our annual NY trip
It's always an exhausting, fun, busy week
We went to the usual spots
Ate at a few new places
and were able to get tickets to view this
So worth it
What a feeling
This was my eighth trip to NY
Trip one provided a view of the WTC from the Statue of Liberty
Trip two was a year after the 9/11 attack, a visit to the church next door left tears in my eyes
Trip five, Rob's hotel was two blocks from WTC. Every morning we walked to the metro and peeked through the construction fence. It was a giant hole
Trip seven, movement was happening...things were being built
This trip, there is an eighty foot building next to the footprints of the WTC. There is a giant American flag draped over the building. There is purpose and energy
The memorials are beautiful, the flags and pebbles again bring tears to my eyes
Next trip the building will be even taller

Camping Fun

Took a weekend away a little bit ago
enjoyed being away, sleeping in a tent, cooking over a fire
the kids loved playing in the dirt
hiking a few trails
and chasing trains

106 miles

I should have posted this three weeks ago...
Rob and I rode the CWC (Civil War Century)
I completed a century, 106 miles to be exact
on a bicycle
It was hard!
It was challenging!
It was rewarding!
It was HARD!
I had been training all summer for this day
This is a before picture, I wasn't so smily after the race

Parenthood

Being Mom is hard

I always thought I would do things differently when I grew up

I think we all did, right?

You never appreciate your parents until you are in the midst of parenthood yourself

I was walking into Costco this past week w/ Jo-Jo

A man collecting carts said, "you have a big helper w/ you"

I, with a little sarcasm said, "yes, a great help!"

He then said something to which I had no reply.

"The best help we've ever had is our children."

Hmmm, thanks for the humbling Costco man

I'll try to take a two year old's help with a little more gratitude, knowing she won't be two for long

First Day

Last Monday was the girls first day of school
they were SOOOOOO excited
I was not sure it was going to happen
a lot of the county including our house did not have power (Hurricane Irene)
power flicked on at 3 a.m. and school was open

(cute outfits from their Utah trip, compliments of Grandma)

Summers End

A few pics from our last days of summer...


flying kites

M at a nature center not far from home. It was our last field trip of the summer. Lots of fun looking through the museum, riding the tram around the grounds and seeing/being in nature

little one LOVES pockets

little stinkers waiting for the tram

Chopped

Samantha took the plunge
cutting her long beautiful hair and donating it
She told me, "mom, it's going to grow back" as I took the first cut
It does look cute and is easy to keep up
Now Madison is the Rapunzel in the family

4-H

M, S and A have participated in goat 4-H this past year
No, we don't have a goat, I would love a goat or two
Rob is pushing hard on this one...we have to get a dog before a goat
The girls loved working, learning and playing w/ the goats this past year
Their hard work and practice paid off and they were able to show their goats
This was my first time at a fair so it was new for all of us

M and S were showing in the novice division

Aubrey is a clover and was not official this year

At the end of the day M and S were involved in dairy promotion


They each had to write a script about the benefits of dairy goats and create a costume that was related to their script.

It was a day full of fun, ribbons and trophies

All is Well

After an eventful week we are returning to normal

Happy to report that the girls went to school yesterday,

I was worried Sunday evening when our power was still out and 1/3 of the schools were still without power

I told Rob that the girls would be bouncing off the walls

Awoke at 4 a.m. Monday morning when the bathroom light and fan came on

Yahhh for power

No major losses to the yard, a few broken tree limbs, all things we are happy to deal with in comparison to our neighboring states