Halloween Highlights

Since it is Thanksgiving in an hour, I guess I should post some Halloween photos. Lily wanted to be Sleeping Beauty (I guess we've officially entered the princess years). So I thought it would make sense for Sam to be an owl...it wasn't until the costumes came in the mail that I realized they didn't quite go together (should have done a Briar Rose costume for Lily instead). But anywhooo...it worked out just fine and it was a great Halloween. Lily is really getting the hang of trick-or-treating and is already talking about what she wants us all to be next year (right now she wants to be a swan, and it would be awesome if she stuck with that and we could make her look like Bjork). But for this year, here are some pics:

"Little Haunts" at This Is The Place Heritage Park (where I was once again reminded I would have never survived as a pioneer). Trick-or-treating in a down pour, scary stories from a real witch, a train ride, and a costume parade made for one fun family day. But the highlight for sure was the candy cannon (and then all the candy tasted like gun powder).:

p.s. Sam was really there with us too--just all bundled up in the stroller...

Halloween at the office with dad:

Ward Trunk-or-Treat at the church (with a visit from Grandma and Grandpa). Lily didn't want to part with the ladybug Rose ladies. And Beau and Emily made the coolest robot costumes ever! Then we went to Mimi's (where she had some awesome lips that evidently were NOT candy) and did more trick-or-treating:

Needless to say, it was lots of fun and the costumes have already gotten plenty of mileage out of them (stay tuned for photos of Disney on Ice).




Happy Thanksgiving...hope to post photos of that before Christmas!

11.19.09

for my dream man:

hope it rocks

love you oh so much

Ar{mani} you kidding me?!?!?!?

VOTE FOR MY SISTER!!!!

Heather entered this photo in an Armani Exchange "Create Your Own Sunglasses Ad" competition. It has been chosen as one of the Top 10 entries!!! Now she needs votes to win the top spot and have her ad shown on their website. Please go to this website to vote for her! You have to fill out a little bit of information (just to make sure noone is cheating) and then you can vote for her once a day until Nov. 27th. Please take the time to vote for her if you can!!!

Hef, I'm so proud of you! Awesome things are happening for you in NYC!!!

"mi parainfamilia"

I went downstairs and found Lily coloring this all by herself.

And writing our names (all of which she's figured out by herself).

A perfect family portrait-

though I'm not quite sure where the kids are (maybe I just don't appreciate her artistic style quite yet).

We may have to use it for Christmas cards this year.

On a sidenote, Sammy went to the doctor for his 9 month check up yesterday-which was ironic since he's the healthiest in our family right now.

22 pounds 12 ounces of kissable goodness.

We've all been sick this week, and I think we're getting a little sick of being sick.

Perhaps the illness is being represented as the monster in Lily's drawing?

hmmm...maybe I am starting to understand.

niner niner

november ninth

the boy is nine months old today

and as the old saying goes, these last nine months have gone by a lot faster than the nine before that

right now, some of our sammy boy favorites are:

• the one word he's mastered is 'mama'. depending on his mood and how hungry he is, it can be a sweet 'mama' or an angry 'maaaamaaa!' he's also working on 'bahb' (not sure of the definition yet)and 'whoaa'.
• he loves being close-ever since he was a newborn baby. sometimes he just needs a snuggle or a hand on his face.
• his binkie is his best friend (kevin claims they could sell those things for millions and people would still buy them). he's figured out how to put it in his mouth, and if it's backwards, how to turn it around and put it in the right way.
• that smile and that laugh....and oh, those dimples.
• he is perfectly happy just sitting with toys. he doesn't roll, he doesn't crawl, he just sort of sits. that and...
• he shakes it on command (i'll need to post a video soon).
• he loves to eat big boy food. he eats cheerios by the fistful (and he loves to drink water out of a cup).
• he loves his sister. she was the first to make him laugh and she continues to do so daily.

we love you sam-o. what did we ever do without you?

what a special night it is

"Have sweet dreams, mom" Lily said tonight as I tucked her in. Followed by what she tells me every night, "I'll dream about you and you dream about me."


Kevin gives Lily the 'warm blindfold'...a nice warm washcloth over her eyes along with a hand massage before bed. He asks, "where do you want to go tonight?" and she responds with either the beach or the jungle. Kevin then whispers a story about a little girl who journeys off to distant lands to meet wild creatures and other exciting (yet calm and relaxing) adventures.

this all started as a way to get her to keep a washcloth over her eyes while trying to clear up a stye. she would love to have kevin do this every night, but he has told her it's only for special nights. so pretty much every night she says, 'dad...what a special night it is' in the hopes that he will give in.

We read 3 books before bed--because Lily is 3 years old--but she always wants to read more than that (and gets to with new books from the library). Then I hear her reading to herself...and after hearing it once, she can pretty much read a whole book by herself.

(picture above is from this summer when Kevin and Lily built a fort in the front room. and slept in it together--all night)


bedtime is the best time.

Having one of these days...

...where I'd like to just stay in p.j.'s and do nothing today. And I probably would, too--

if it weren't for this girl:

Who went in her room, picked out her clothes, and got dressed all by herself.

Her shirt was on backwards and she put her pants on upside down

(and came to me giggling like she had done the funniest thing ever).

And today, it sort of was...and now I'm going to go shower.