A visit with the cousins

Yesterday the kids and I loaded up and went to Harrison to visit my SIL Chanie, and her sweet little girl Chanie Kate. Chanie lost her mom to cancer a week ago Sunday so Chanie has been in Harrison helping get things in order. We don't get the chance to see each other that much since they live in Houston, so I thought it would be a good chance for the kids to play and for Chanie and I to visit. I think it was more chasing kids and meeting needs than visiting, but it was still good to hug her neck and love on CK. We drove through Wendy's and went to a local park in Harrison. Kids had a great time even though it rained part of the time.




















These two are going to have fun together in a few years!




It's a little hard to see here, but Ian had ringlets from the steamy weather. I had never seen his hair so curly! Aunt B might have to give us some tips on curly hair in a couple years. Ha!

Pickin pumpkins

Monday my neighbor Beth and I took our kids to a little pumpkin patch in Tonitown. It was fun to watch the kids run around in search of the perfect pumpkin. I can't believe that it's that time AGAIN! I was able to get some really great shots of the kids as well as a take home a few pumpkins. I love this time of year. Fall is my favorite season. I am have several activities I want to do with the kids in the next month. Here are a few shots from the day.






























This is one of my favorites! This tells all about Ian. He loves to laugh.


This one sums up Peyton. Always trying to get to the next thing and exploring using whatever may be laying around.


Found it!


Giving the ole' tractor a spin.

Stencil me silly

Last weekend I decided to tackle the task of stenciling the hallway wall. After 5 minutes in I realized that this was going to be no small task! I'm not sure how many hours this "little" wall took but let's just say I won't be stenciling for a while. The stencil was a 2x3 so it had to be moved and aligned frequently. It had to align in 8 places and be checked with a level on every move. It took about 20 minutes to align the stencil every time I moved it. blah.... This was a project in patience! I am pleased with the way it turned out though so I guess it was all worth it and hrs of sleep I lost from staying up WAY too late in the evenings.
Progress.....





Finished product. I need to figure out what the put on the walls. This wedding photo collage was previously there.

Shake it up

Ian is my non-eater. For the most part has no interest in eating. I find my self getting really excited when he decides to eat. He would rather just drink milk most days.
Today I decided to try a smoothie with our $400 blender that we never use! (We received the blender for FREE by doing a review on it.) it was success! He loved it! I'm not going to give him smoothies all the time because I don't want him to only drink smoothies, but every couple days won't hurt right ;)











The pictures say it all!

On.the.go.

Ian started taking more than just a couple steps on August 23rd. Ever since then he hasn't slowed down. He is always on the GO! I haven't been able to get many photos because he won't stand still enough. Usually, these are the way the turn out.








Over the past few weeks he has come a long way walking. He and Peyton practically chase each other around the house. Two boys 18 months apart is going to get quite "tricky".

This little guy turned 15 months on the 19th. I can't believe that he's almost a yr and a half. He has started saying several words from mamma, dadda, ball, thank you, juice, as well as "uh-oh begetty-oh". His personality is really starting to come out. He is really into sports equipment. Maybe it's a sign that he's going to be a sports player.

Lemon bars!

Totally random, but I've been craving lemon bars ever since I had a lemon filled donut last weekend with dad.
I grew up eating lemon filled donuts with my dad at Shipley's. At first I think I just ate them because dad did, and I wanted to be like him. After awhile I got to where I really liked them, and now I eat them because I still like them and they remind of those special times with dad. Love you dad. Thanks for all the sweet memories you made with me at Shipley's! I still love going there. Oh, and it hasn't changed a bit in the last 25 years! Eek!
Well I wasn't planning on writing all that about donuts, but it just came to mind when I started writing.
Back to the lemon bars......
I made lemon bars from scratch yesterday because I was wanting something lemony. I was excited for the kids to try them. Lets just say they weren't quite as impressed as I was hoping for. They left Peyton running for the nearest trash can and grasping for a glass of water. Faith had about the same dramatic reaction. Guess lemon isn't their "thing". Then Lee came into the kitchen in which I promptly offered him a lemon bar and he politely turned it down, saying," nah, I don't really like lemon stuff".
So there I was left with a 9x13 pan of lemon bars all to myself. ;) After non-stop nibbling on them for the rest of the evening, I decided that I should share them with the neighbors, so that's just what I did. Thanks neighbors for saving me a few calories. Ha!




Anyway, they were really good. If you're wanting to give them a whirl, here's the recipe!
Lemon bars!

Peyton's first dentist visit

Last week Peyton had his first dentist apt. last week. He started off really well and relaxed. The hygienist was able to clean his teeth as he watched the movie Cars. A little boy came in pretty worked up and crying so it stirred Peyton up a bit and he wasn't as cooperative the rest of the visit, but I'll take what I can get. I got one picture when he was watching the movie waiting on the dentist.