October photos

Here are a few of my favorite photos from October....

Tyler snuggling next to Aubrey while she naps

happy boy

my naked babies

Christmas sneak peek

Trick or treat!

Aubrey couldn't wait and Tyler had no idea what was in store for him. The evening did not disappoint. Aubrey dressed as a "friendly" witch while Tyler was the loud, roaring dragon. We walked a couple of block around our subdivision and the kids got loads and loads (and loads) of candy. Don't our neighbors realize our kids are too little to eat much candy and it will all really be consumed by Jeff and I? Our kids must be that cute!

Christmas and family photos

Here are the photos we just had taken at JcPenney's

Christmas



Aubrey at 3 1/2 years

Tyler at 21 months

The beauty and the fox?

Halloween is almost here, so it's time to carve the pumpkins. We let the kids pick which design they wanted on their pumpkins. Aubrey picked Belle and Tyler (sort of) picked Swiper the Fox. I scooped all of the guts out of the pumpkins with some help from the kids and Jeff etched the designs. Then I carved Belle while he finished Swiper. I think they turned out pretty well. The kids were in full agreement. Not bad for my first rodeo. :)

Which witch?

It was Halloween at Aubrey's school today. Ironically, Aubrey and her BFF, Tenley, both dressed as witches. Aren't they just the cutest little girls????

Day at the park

It's hard to believe that it is almost November and the weather is as warm as it is. We took advantage of it today and went to Indian Boundary Park. It was our first time there and the kids loved it! I took advantage of the beautiful scenery as a background and snapped a ton of pictures of the kids. I barely know how to use the camera and am anxious to learn all that it has to offer. I know I need to keep practicing though and I have two great targets to practice on!

Special Day

Every child in Aubrey's preschool has a "special day" and today was Aubrey's. Luckily, it was also the same day as her class field trip to Hidden Lakes/Oaks Nature Center. So, I dropped Tyler off at Aunt Gail's and joined her and her class on the trip. Let me just tell you, the kids are so cute! Also, Aubrey is so well-behaved for her teachers. (Too bad that doesn't always carry over to home.) I really enjoyed seeing Aubrey interact with her "best friend," Tenley, too. She often talks about her but it sounds as if they rarely talk. I can attest that they do interact but not many words are exchanged. I am happy that she has a good friend though. It definitely helps to get her off to school in the morning.

Even though the day was extremely cold, the kids didn't seem to mind a bit. We started the morning with a hayrack ride along the lake. The scenery was beautiful and the kids sat quietly watching nature pass by. After that, we took a walk up to the Nature Center. For an adult, this was a decent hike. It was even tougher on the little ones. But, they trudged along holding hands with their buddies. At the Nature Center, they stuffed a scarecrow and played at the Nature playground. Aubrey and Tenley especially loved peeking through the tree and then climbing on them. Lastly, we walked back to Hidden Lakes to grab a pumpkin, a snack and head home. I was happy to be able to take part in Aubrey's special day. She is sure special to us!

Roadtrip continues to Orion

After spending the day at the Children's Museum, we finished the drive to Orion. It was a typical weekend there filled with activities, family, food, fun and lots of laughs.

First on our agenda Saturday morning was going to Country Corner Pumpkin Patch. This is the third year we've made the trip. Now that the kids are getting older, they are beginning to enjoy the activities a little bit more. We, or should I say Grandpa, wheeled them out in a wagon to find our pumpkins. Then we went through the petting zoo and fed the goats, alpacas, pigs, chickens and cows. Tyler loved feeding the goats! Last, we took a ride on the cow train. Have it be known, this is the last year that Jeff and I will be riding with the kids. Our knees took a beating! The kids had a ball though so it was all worth it.

After getting pumpkins and eating lunch, we headed up to Sarah's volleyball game. First of all, she looked adorable in her spandex. :) Second, she surprised me at how well she played. It's hard to believe that she is only 9. I cannot wait to watch her grow as a volleyball player!

Then we went over to watch Caleb's football game. Unfortunately, they lost a tough one. But, I am so proud of Caleb and how well he does. I look forward to watching him play next year as a senior.

Another great weekend!

New town, big museum

This past weekend, we took a trip back to Orion via Bloomington. Yes, we are aware Bloomington is NOT on the way to Orion, but Jeff had a meeting scheduled so we all went together. While Jeff was in his meeting, the kids and I went to the Children's Discovery Museum. Three words sums it up.... We Loved It!!! We had been to the DuPage Children's Museum in Naperville several times but it doesn't even compare to this one. This museum has 3 floors and the kids were able to participate in about 70% of the activities. There was so much for them to do, it was almost like they were spinning in circles. Many times, they were running in opposite directions. I even lost Tyler for about 2 minutes. Luckily he found his way back to me with the help of another mom. Oops! I highly recommend visiting the museum if you are ever in the area. It's a very short road trip as well!

Happy Birthday to Me!

It's my birthday and we celebrated by dinner out at Maggiano's! It was delicious and even better, nice to have an evening out with Jeff, away from the kids. :) Jeff also surprised me by bringing home flowers and a delicious marble cake. I love that Aubrey can now sing "Happy Birthday" to me, too!

Family Day

Today was another gorgeous day so we took a walk to the pumpkin patch with the kids. I LOVE taking pictures of them with the pumpkins and always make it there at least once a year with Jeff. Here are my favorites from our trip....