Weekend Getaway

Since the older kids had no school for a few days, we decided to brave the trip to Idaho Falls to visit B & Nat's family for the weekend. It has been three years since the last time we all made it up together. We had a great time chatting, chasing cousins Jake, Brock, Troy and Ivy, eating yummy food, going to the zoo and park, staying up way too late, and enjoying the unusually warm weather. Thanks so much to B and Nat for being so hospitable and accommodating. I know it isn't always easy to take on 5 extra people! We had a blast!

And for your reading pleasure- the infamous knock knock jokes told by Ethan and Erin for hours and hours on the way home:

"Knock, Knock"
"Who's there?"
"Kentucky."
"Kentucky who?"
"Kentucky Fried Chicken, that's who."

"Knock, Knock"
"Who's there?"
"Freep."
"Freep who?"
"Free poo, no thanks!"

"Knock, Knock"
"Who's there?"
"Boo."
"Boo who?"
"Don't cry, it's just a joke."

They found these so hilarious they just kept repeating them over and over (even though we didn't even eat at KFC, or get free poo).

Grandma's Halloween Party

The kids had a great time at grandma's annual Halloween party. They got to paint pumpkins, decorate popcorn balls, make crafty witches and Frankensteins, and hear lots of scary stories. They also had fun running around with their cousins. Sorry to all those who I didn't catch on camera. I was a little slow with the camera that night!

Davis as Indy and Ethan is a Clone Trooper.

Melanie the ladybug and Jonathan the fireman.

Katelyn with Aunts Jennifer and Suzy.
Zach the racecar driver paints his pumpkin too.

School Pictures

Back To School

Today I hurry off to school,

To work and learn and play.

I'm in a brand new grade this year.

What a happy day!

The kids got their new school pictures taken. I thought Ethan looked the same as last year, but when I got the pictures and compared them side by side- he has grown up a lot! He is loving third grade- learning cursive, memorizing times tables, and making even more friends. He is so responsible. I love seeing him grow and learn new things. He really is an amazing kid!

Erin is loving kindergarten. She has learned all of her letters and sounds and has moved on to reading books. She is so excited to bring them home every day and read each book three times. She is very good at remembering to do all her homework and showing me all her papers that she brings home. I am really glad that she has such an excitement for learning. She is still my helper mouse and both Katelyn and I miss her while she is gone. I am grateful for two great kids in school- and one more at home to keep me company!

Taggle

So, Julie tagged me. Now you get to find out 7 amazing things about me that you never wanted to know. Don't be too scared!

1. I love thunderstorms. Like real east coast thunderstorms. Bucketing rain, thunder, lightning. It makes me feel calm and in awe. I also like the smell of rain. It is so clean and crisp. I can enjoy a cool fall rain smell even if there is no lightning and thunder.

2. I never order milk at a restauraunt. It is always too warm. I like my milk icy cold.

3. I am total remote hog. I like to watch at least two or three shows at once and I always flip channels on commercials. At night when the kids are in bed Jeff always hands me the remote and does something else on his laptop. I don't even know why I do it because then I end up missing part of something I wanted to see.

4. Forks scraping a plate are like fingernails on a chalkboard to me. It brings me right back to my days in braces. It makes my teeth hurt just thinking about it!

5. I make up words all the time. Like taggle... I think that my hubby is finally getting used to this, but I still get teased for it. Needless to say I am not very good at scrabble. (What? Toink isn't a real word??)

6. My belly button is extremely sensitive. I hate having ultrasounds when I am pregnant because they put the gel everywhere and shove the wand thing right into my belly button. Yeek!

7. I am not really a shoe person. I would rather be barefoot, or in the winter in some cozy socks. But the shoes come off when I hit the door usually.

Okay, that was way easier than I thought. I guess I must more quirky/wierd than I even knew.

Thanks Grandma!

THANKS Grandma Hutzley!

We love our new dresses and we are so excited that it is finally cool enough to wear them! We miss you and love you and grandpa so much-

Hugs and Kisses from Erin and Miss K

Wordle who?

So, after checking out my friend Christy's blog, I decided to create a wordle of my own. I loved it so much that I am now using it as part of my header. It basically takes words from your blog, and the more times the word appears, the bigger the word is. Really interesting to see what may be most important in your life. So go and check it out if you want- and make a wordle of your own! (www.wordle.net)

The Two Wheel Wonder

Yesterday, Erin wanted to learn to ride her bike two wheels. She's had her training wheels up high for a while, but they were still keeping her from biffing it on sharp turns. So yesterday I took them off. (Somehow this is the second time of mom teaching the kids to ride without training wheels. Jeff must be smarter than me and gets to avoid all the backaches and running- or I am the one home at the right moment?) She was doing okay, but only made it a few feet before she put her feet down. Today, however, was a whole different story. After taking her little pink bike out with not much success, I wondered if it might be easier for her to ride on a bigger bike. (You know- where her knees weren't so close to the handlebars with every pedal...) Maybe bigger tires would equal more stability. So we busted out Ethan's old classic-- and away she went. Her first solo ride lasted 15 feet. But she kept improving. In a matter of 20 minutes she was riding around the park like a pro. She still needs help getting started, but it took Ethan a while on that one too. So we officially have two two-wheel riding kids in the house now!