Cell Phone Dump

Chuckee Cheese

Cupcake Date

Ridin' Lightning McQueen at Toys R Us

The Sleeping Princess

Magelby's Fresh, I think.

Conference Craziness

Iron Men Spotted at Walmart

The Pumpkin Patch

Every pumpkin patch needs a llama.

Ben decided the maze was too challenging, instead he just enjoyed walking on top of it.

Sylvia and Pyper petting the baby kangaroo(!)

Sylvia taking the tractor for a drive

Anyone who knows me knows that I don't buy pumpkins. No, that would just be too easy! Nate and I have grown our own pumpkins for the last five years, and it is MUCH more fun than buying them around the corner at the grocery store. The kids really enjoy watching the pumpkins grow throughout the summer, and they love helping Dad pick them when they're ready to harvest. Also, there is so much more variation in color, size and shape when you plant your own pumpkins. A few of ours this year are speckled green, and they're beautiful!

Anyway, even though we grow our own pumpkins, it is still a lot of fun for the kids to go to the pumpkin patch, so we go every year. This year, a neighbor of ours had a birthday party at Jaker's Pumpkin Patch here in Springville, and fun was had by all. Of course, I was really too busy having fun with the kids to take decent pics, so these are just a few that I caught with the cell phone.

This is a Calepitter, Mom!

This week has been so nice-rainy and cloudy, just the way that I like it. But, the kids haven't really had a chance to get out and run around for a few days, so they definitely started exhibiting signs of cabin fever. There was a sliver of blue sky this afternoon, and of course, Sylvia managed to find a fuzzy friend to play with. She was really proud of this little beauty, but surprisingly, I don't think she named it...well, not yet, anyway.

I don't think I want her to handle this little bugger anymore, though. Thoughts that it may be poisonous? Not sure, but I googled it, and this guy could possibly cause a rash for those with sensitive skin. Still, quite a pretty little specimen!

Ben's Birthday!

Ben wearing his special birthday crown from preschool

Fun at the Brookside Fall Carnival

This boy is in heaven!

Sylvia being very brave on the rock wall

Time to blow out the candles...

Sylvia couldn't wait until we finished singing "Happy Birthday" to blow out all of Ben's candles for him. This is her face when she realized what she'd done! The funny part is, we didn't even get mad at her or yell at her at all. She's just mad at herself!

Happy Birthday Benny! Being 4 is totally awesome!

Soccer! (Part Deux)

Goooooooooaaaallll!!!

Soccer!

The air is crisp, the leaves are beginning to change color, and you know what that means--it is Soccer season once again! Nate has been talking about coaching the kids' Soccer team since June, so we were all excited when September finally rolled around. This year, we snuck Ben onto the team, since he technically doesn't turn 4 until September 30th. We just couldn't have him sitting on the sidelines watching Sylvia play for yet another year. We have a mixed bunch on the team this year--some kids are real hustlers, and others are content to just run around aimlessly on the field. Our kids fall somewhere in the middle of the pack. The kids are so fun to watch, and as long as we keep cheering Sylvia on, she will run after the ball and do her best. Ben, on the other hand, is making us nuts. He gets upset and runs off the field whenever someone "takes away his soccer ball." Isn't that the whole point of the game?

Gone Fishin'

We don't take these kids fishing often, unless we're fishing from land. My kids wouldn't last five minutes on a boat! But, Nate goes fishing with his Grandpa, Dad and brothers as often as he can get the chance. This fish is one of the many big trout that Grandpa Bill caught while the boys were up fishing at Strawberry Reservoir a few weeks ago. Four and a half pounds, twenty inches long to be exact! My kids were so excited about this whopper of a fish that Nate made sure to take a picture of them with Grandpa Bill and his catch of the day.