Random Pics from November

The kids loved having their cousin Micaela over for a sleepover while she was in town. Brynn also had fun sleeping over at their Grandma and Grandpa's house while Micaela was staying there. I don't think those girls have giggled more.

Since we spent most of November at home (in the few weeks before my due date I became quite a homebody), the kids found new ways to entertain themselves. For example, their toy tractor became the WonderPets Flyboat one day. Brynn even made the "flag" with the WonderPets symbol to go on it. Pretty creative girl, if I do say so myself!

For quite awhile now, I have been finding Collin's pacifiers left on his bed like this each morning. He HAS to sleep with two pacis--one for his mouth and one to hold. Apparently he thought these squares on his comforter are the best place to keep them when he wakes up every morning.

Brynn also hosted several tea parties for her stuffed animals.

Of course, Collin had to participate in countless tea parties as well, if he wanted someone to play with.

They also made trains out of nearly anything--our dining chairs, laundry baskets,whatever...


During a visit, My brother Brian read to his daughter Micaela, Brynn, and Collin...

Like father, like son...Collin checks out the real estate ads.

So how's that for random?

Happy Birthday to me

Yesterday was my birthday, and it was such a nice day. We didn't have much planned, which was so nice since I've been so busy with all the last minute appointments and a huge to-do list to prepare for the baby's arrival. The kids really tried to make it a special day for me as well. It was a preschool day, and Brynn did better than usual getting ready (great way to start the day!). Then Collin and I ran some errands together and he also did better than usual (ie, he only tried to jump out of the cart once, and he pretty much stayed away from the breakables in the stores aisles). Then we picked up Brynn and met Dave for lunch. After lunch, Dave took Collin to work with him, so that Brynn and I could work on a few projects together. She LOVES doing craft or decorating projects with me! She painted a frame that we are going to decorate, we made paper leaves and wrote things we are thankful for, and we started painting a little plaque that we will add her initial to for her room. That afternoon, I got my hair done (another thing to mark off of my pre-delivery checklist). Brynn spent the next hour or two giving me surprise presents. She doesn't totally get the gift-giving concept however. She raided our gift bag stash, and used the tissue paper that was out from some gifts that I had received earlier in the day, and she went around the house collecting "gifts" to give me. She gave me the wooden Daisy Duck thing she had colored. In fact, she gave it to me 3 times. She also gave me all of my own shoes from our shoe bucket. In fact, in the midst of her gift giving spree, I had to do some serious persuading that I really did need a pair of shoes back so we could go to dinner. She made me promise that I would give them right back to her after we got home, so that she could surprise me with them. I also got Collin's stuffed animal and a few of his hats and Dave's basketball. She gave me some of the gifts that some friends had just brought over for me. She also gave me her favorite stuffed animal--the cat she sleeps with every night. I thought it was so sweet, since I knew it was her favorite. When I thanked her, she got really nervous and said "Well, you can't keep it of course, because it is my favorite." She was relieved when I reassured her that I just wanted to hug her special cat and then give it right back to her. It was actually very sweet! She made up her own birthday songs for me all day and she would occasionally hide somewhere and pop out to surprise me with a big "Happy Birthday!" She definitely did her part to make it a fun day for me! Dave also made it a great day. I didn't have to cook all day, and he helped out a ton with the kids, and made sure they were treating me well. He got me some beautiful pink roses and a gift card so that I can get some new clothes after I've had the baby. He knows I am so ready to be out of maternity clothes. I also got lots of calls, visits, and well-wishes from family and friends, and felt so blessed to have so many wonderful people in my life.

Things I Could Never Imagine Myself Saying (until I had kids)...

*We don't eat snacks that have fallen onto the bathroom floor.
*The back of the chair is not a ladder.
*Please go find your brother another pair of princess shoes to wear.
*Did you pee your pants or is that your juice on the floor?
*Quit licking your brother.
*Collin, it's not nice to tackle your sister when you're giving her a hug.
*Brynn, it's not really necessary to give a play-by-play when you're using the bathroom.
*Yes, Brynn that anatomically correct picture you drew of the dog is lovely.
*Thanks for bringing me your booger (OK, gross, but really better than the alternatives, like finding it wiped on the furniture or something).
*Good job--you ate all of your chicken nuggets/mac-n-cheese/pizza!
*You have to eat more of your chicken nuggets/mac-n-cheese/pizza before you can have any more fruit.
*When I said wipe your nose, I didn't mean on your shirt.
*Collin, quit standing in your sister's throw up bowl.
*Collin, the throw up bowl is not a basketball hoop.

Happy Halloween!

The theme for the past week at our house has been candy, sugar, parties, and costumes. I'm sure most people can relate. Especially parents of little ones. Halloween definitely lasts longer than one day. Brynn enjoyed 2 Halloween parties at preschool. Since she does 3 days of preschool instead of 2, she got to do 2 days worth of the candy, scavenger hunts, and sugar cookie decorating/consuming. She loved it, and has been pretending to put together scavenger hunts with her little brother. She has also been really sweet about sharing the candy and duplicate toys she got from her parties with Collin. They loved the "scary monster finger" and vampire teeth. Collin didn't seem to mind having pink teeth. He really got into the "scary" thing this year, and does a pretty good scary face, complete with angled eyebrows.

My little monsters...
Gotta love the drool that often accompanies vampire teeth...
Collin's favorite part of his costume was definitely the foam sword. He asked me what he could cut with it, and since he is only 2, I just told him it was for chopping trees. It was funny, because he then spent the next 2 days aggressively saying "I chop da twee!" as he swung at the air, the ground, or any piece of furniture in his path. He even insisted on taking a nap with his sword for a couple of days.
On Wednesday evening, our ward had a Halloween party. A sweet family in our ward had it in their big backyard and there were several booths, a spook alley, dinner, and trunk-or-treating. It was fun watching Brynn and Collin having so much fun. The only damper on the night was that it was unusually cold that day, and Dave was just getting over a cold, so he and Collin went home a little early. I don't think Brynn minded having some one-on-one time with me though. She helped me run the fishing booth for awhile, and then helped me pass out candy during the trunk-or-treating part of the night. It was fun sitting with her and watching her giggle with excitement at the costumes and being big enough to hand out candy. At one point, she commented that "this was the best day ever" and that she wished every day was Halloween. After we unloaded most of our candy, I took her around to a few cars to do some trunk-or-treating of her own, and heard more comments from her about wishing every day were Halloween. That has to be one of the best parts of being a parent--seeing pure joy in your child and watching them appreciate the simple things of life.

My beautiful little princess and my brave knight (who actually kept referring to himself as a scary knight)...
And one of the only pictures I have of myself during this pregnancy (I am already following the stereotype of taking hardly any pictures of subsequent children. Oops) , taken before our ward party...
On Halloween day, the 4 of us went out for bagels for breakfast (yummy pumpkin bagels, to be exact). That afternoon, I took the kids to my Grandma B's for her Halloween tradition of making donuts with the grandkids and now great-grandkids too. Both Brynn and Collin enjoyed cutting out the donuts and then decorating them with chocolate frosting and sprinkles. Of course, they didn't mind eating their completed donuts either. Neither did I, in fact. I brought my camera over to my grandparents', since donut-making is something I remember her doing with my siblings, cousins, and I when we were little. However, I forgot to take a single picture. Darn pregnancy brain (yes, I will blame my bad memory on pregnancy each chance I get).

That evening, we drove to our friends Kelly and Scott's (and their 3 cute girls') house. They live on a corner with alot of fun neighbors, and they block off part of the street each year and have a potluck party before going trick or treating. This is our 3rd year spending Halloween with them and their neighbors, and we have such a good time every year.

The kids on Halloween night...
It is hard to imagine that next Halloween I will be carrying around an almost-1 year old. Only 5 more weeks left until I get to meet this little one. Oh, and we finally decided on a name. After months of indecision between the names Eden and Eva, we finally chose Eden. The kids both had strong opinions about it. Since the first time I even mentioned the name Eden (about 5 months ago), Brynn has been insistent that that was what we needed to choose. At one point, I even told her that I could get her a doll that she could name Eden if we decided to name the baby Eva. She agreed to get her own Eden doll, but would tell me that we could call the baby Eva, but she would still call the baby Eden. That girl has a definite stubborn side to her! Then Collin started telling us Eden was a good name, and he didn't want Eva. Good grief! Dave and I seemed to like both names equally, so we decided we might as well go with Eden. Soooo, after months of indecision (which drove me CRAZY), we finally have her first name. Now we just have to finalize a middle name...