Pumpkins and costumes

I LOVED our costumes this year.  They were pretty much the best costumes I have ever participated in.  I am so glad that Mark was wiling to join in. He doesn't really like to but if I pick something simple enough he will go for it. We didn't make the costumes but we made the cute kids! And we are pretty awesome chefs when you look at it that way...

*Its funny for us to take this type of  picture because I really like them but they really showcase our height difference, you can't even see Mark's waist!

 Cutest cheeseburger and cupcake I have ever seen.  Don't you just want to eat them up?

"I Scoop the Goop!" . 

Mark and Jared carved this bat and I made the understated, yet stylish one below.  And Easy did I mention it was easy?  Every year I pick super complex patterns and they take forever! This year I went free hand and used this idea I saw on Pinterest.  I like it. It may now be my go to pumpkin design.

I am so glad we went to the Zoo to trick or treat.  Our plan for tonight was to go to the church for a Trunk or Treat but Lydia had other plans.  She seems to have gotten Jared's illness from last week. Poor little girl. So we stayed home and the boys went out. I was really disappointed to not get to go out all together in our so fun costumes. Oh well.  And then I locked Mark out of our house  unknowingly.  He was pretty irritated (rightly so). He kept ringing the doorbell but I just figured it was some obnoxious kids because Mark should have his keys since he drove to the church and our house key is on the car keys. So it couldn't be him.  Unfortunately I locked the awesome storm door he installed and we don't have those keys on our key rings.  Note to self: add storm door key to key ring just in case.  Luckily he has now forgiven me.  Now its time to find some cute Thanksgiving projects for Jared and try to convince my parents to come out! Happy Hallowen!

Boo at the Zoo!

We had so much fun at Boo at the Zoo tonight.  At first Jared was a little hesitant to wear his costume but he quickly got over it and ended up liking it by the time we got into the zoo.  How could he not like being a cheeseburger?  The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is literally in the mountains so while it was sunny and like 50 degrees at our house 25 minutes away at the zoo the sun had gone behind the mountain and it was chilly.  Luckily both kids costumes are fleece and pretty warm.   They looked so sinking cute!  Lydia was a cupcake but she spent most of the night in the stroller with a blanket on so you couldn't really see her costume. As we walked through the Zoo so many people commented on how cute they were.  It made me happy.  We hadn't been to the zoo in awhile so Jared was excited to be there.  He didn't seem to remember Trick or Treating from last year so we practiced at home and he was quite the pro once we started.  He is looking forward to Halloween night.  Mark and I will dress up then too. We are going as Chef's.   I love theme costumes and this may be the only time I get to do one with all four of us.  Jared will probably have an opinion on what he wants to be next year but maybe I can figure out a theme to go with his, we have all year to figure that out so no worries. 

 

 

Freezing Waiting patiently at the entrance. Jared loved pointing out the other kids costumes. I don't really think it has ever occurred to him that he could dress up like other things. He only got scared by one kids costume. In his defense it was pretty creepy...

Adulthood

How did it even all fit in there?  I love throwing stuff away.

I think that Mark and I are entering a new phase in life.  We are maybe real adults now.  There are a few things that have taken place in the last couple weeks that have made me realize this.

1.  We filled out a living will/trust.
2.  We bought Life Insurance
3.  We paid off our credit cards (thanks to the frugal living and good planning of my Grandparents)
4.  We are looking for alternative retirement funds besides just PERA, the retirement plan for CO teachers
5. We have owned/lived in our own house for 2.5 years
6.  We have been parents for 3 years

Today I went through our little filing cabinet and cleaned it out. It felt great to get rid of old stuff and make room for new stuff like retirement plans and life insurance.  I think it was buying the life insurance today that really made me come to this conclusion. It was strange to meet with the agent and talk about what we would do if either Mark or I passed away unexpectedly. The thought of Mark or I passing away anytime soon feels me with such sadness I can't even begin to describe it. It is not a fear of death but rather a fear of missing out on so much and not being there for each other and Jared and Lydia.  We have got a really good thing going and I am so grateful. We are so blessed to be where we are. 

* As a side note all of us are perfectly healthy, we are just planning ahead and being responsible.  Like adults right?
*Also if you don't have life insurance look into it.  We got policies for $250,000 each (a stay at home Mom is totally worth that) for 20 years, for 32 dollars a month, total for both of us. It can be affordable and even more so when you are younger and healthier. (We used Banner through AXA) Just do it!

Jared at 3 years

 

Jared had his three year check up today.  He did great.  He was cooperative and helpful. I was answering questions about Lydia for her check up and Jared went calmly with the nurse to be measured and weighed with no problem.  He is growing up, last year he was terrified! He weighs 32 pounds (54% this is the highest he has EVER been in the percentiles) and is 39.5 inches tall (90%) When the Doctor came in Jared was a little apprehensive but warmed up quickly.  He is healthy and right on track. The Doctor mentioned how clear his speech is.  He said typically he looks to be able to understand 75% of what a 3 year old says but with Jared he could understand it all. While the Doctor was examining Lydia (who was not so cooperative but still pretty good) I asked Jared if he could sing the "Itsy Bitsy Spider" to her and he did which was so sweet.  Jared adores Lydia and is always trying to help her or play with her. I love watching them interact. She thinks he is pretty great too.  Her whole little face lights up when he comes into the room. He knows all his letters and how to spell his name.  He can almost count to 20 I sort of stopped at 10 for a long time then realized I could probably teach him more.  We are working on writing the letters in his name and recognizing numbers written down.  He loves to read books with us and play with his train tracks or new dump truck.  Anytime he gets the chance he wants to be outside preferably at a park. He has sadly started playing less with his CARS cars and moved onto Thomas the Train. I was surprised at how sad I was when he started preferring Thomas.  (I find Thomas and Friends rather annoying and way over priced and CARS were his first "thing") It all started a few weeks ago when we asked him if he wanted new CARS underwear or Thomas underwear.  I totally expected him to say CARS and when he didn't I really just wanted to buy the CARS anyway but didn't. I can't believe he has been potty trained for a year now!

Jared is such a pleasant little boy he totally has his moments of irrationality and whining but his pleasant moments completely outnumber those times.  His Nursery leaders loves him and tell us how sad they are he will be leaving soon. I am too.  I think Nursery is so much more fun then Primary. We have been going over the rules for Primary (Do we touch the Piano? NO.  Do we try to use the microphone? NO.) and having him practice raising his hand. I hope that the transition will go smoothly. It's hard to believe its almost that time.

He loves this backpack that Mark's sister Cathryn sent him.  It's Thomas the Train and he wants to wear it all the time.  There is nothing in it, he just loves it.

Helping Grandma Sue with her suitcase. He had lots of fun with her last week and was sad to see her go. 

LOVE this little boy.  He is my favorite three year old.

3/4ths of a year

Lydia had her 9 month check up today.  She is healthy and adorable.  She is wearing mostly 12 month clothes but is really low in her percentiles.  She is 15.5 pounds (6%) and 27 inches (36%).  She is becoming a champion crawler, making it harder and harder to get pictures of her. She just figured out how to put her puffs and yogurt bites into her mouth by herself this week. (pincer grasp). She got her first tooth last week on the 14th. Even though she is low in her percentiles her Doctor was not at all worried.  I asked him about them and he told me when he walked into the room, saw her he knew she was healthy/doing fine. As a side note I love our pediatrician.  He was Jared's Doctor for his first 3 months then took a 2 year leave to go volunteer/work in Africa and just got back this summer.  The Doctor we saw for the last 2 years was fine but I love this one and was so happy to meet with him today. 

 

We bought Lydia this blanket a few weeks ago. We mostly bought it because anytime Jared left his blanket alone Lydia would go after it which Jared was not okay with .  Now that Lydia has her own blanket Jared is trying to get her to love it as much as he loves his.  We don't necessarily want that because Jared is obsessed very attached to his but at least now she can have her own.

 

This little girl brings us so much happiness.  We are so thankful she is in our family. I can't believe her next check up will be her one year mark!

 

 



Latest Home Project

Looks awesome right?

 

For the longest time I have wanted a Storm door. I love them. Last week we went to the store and picked one out.  The employee asked us if we wanted to pay the installation fee.  I asked her if she recommended it because really we are not that handy and she highly recommended it. We always put our best effort into projects but it ends up being pretty frustrating. Mark decided he would ask a friend of his who has the same door if he thought Mark could/should do it himself. The friend said yes but it would take a long time.  Mark decided to just do it himself. We learned two things in the process.
1. Our door is not at all square. (which would have been nice to know ahead of time)
2. Just pay the installation fee if you want a storm door.

Mark worked really hard and with the help of me, his Mom and two friends he got it done. I am so thankful that I have a husband who will do these projects for me. It has a retractable screen so you can open it for fresh air but don't have to see the screen. Super cool and I love opening our front door and letting the sunlight warm up our front room.

Happy Birthday Jared!

 We had so much fun for Jared's birthday! The night before his birthday I bought some helium balloons and then at 5:00 in the morning Mark and I snuck into his room and placed them all around so he could wake up to a decorated room.   I think I was more excited then he was!  When he woke up he said "Mommy! There's balloons in my room!" It was so cute.  He loved it and was so surprised! It was awesome and so fun.

Still waking up

Then we went downstairs for his birthday breakfast of donuts and chocolate milk and his birthday interview or 20 questions. I plan on asking him these same 20 questions every year on his birthday.  (And Lydia too once she turns 3) It will be so fun to see his answers change.

20 Questions:

1. What is your favorite color? Blue
2. What is your favorite toy? Thomas (The Train)
3. What is your favorite fruit? Strawberries
4. What is your favorite movie? CARS
5. What do you do well? Walk
6. What do you like to do with Daddy? Trains (make train tracks)
7. What makes you happy? Garbage Truck
8. What is your favorite scripture story? Jesus Christ walking on water and “Hurt Jesus” (crucifixion) 9. What is your favorite animal? Monkey
10. What is your favorite song? “Storm Song” (Tell Me the Stories of Jesus)
11. What is your favorite book? Lucky Puppy
12. Who is your best friend? Lydia ♥
13. Where is your favorite place to go? Church
14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Ride Bike
15. What is your favorite drink? Chocolate Milk
16. What is your favorite holiday? Halloween
17. What do you like to do with Mommy? Play games
18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Oatmeal
19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? “Noodles and Sauce” (Beef Stroganoff)
20. What do you want to be when you grow up? Go to School

Next he opened his present from Grandma Sue (train tracks and a Thomas train) and they built a "tricky" (to quote Jared) train track.

 

After dinner we ate his cake, which he said was his favorite part of his birthday (insert proud feeling from me) and opened his presents from Mark, Lydia and I.

 

Jared helped me mix up the cake the day before. I had never made a "fancy decorated" cake before and am really happy with how it turned out.  Far from perfect but it was perfect to Jared and that is what matters.

 

We got him a garbage truck and some Thomas socks.  The funny thing was we totally forgot to give him his presents. I put Lydia to bed and came back downstairs to get ready for the cake and Sue asked us what we got him.  I couldn't believe we forgot!  Jared loves watching the garbage truck during the week. He will stop whatever he is doing and run to the window to watch so when I asked him while ago what he wanted he said very strongly that he wanted a garbage truck. He LOVES it!

 

We had so much fun celebrating this sweet little boy.  We are so happy he is ours.  Its amazing to think we have been parents for 3 years. We are so lucky that he made the transition into parenthood so easy for us. Jared is sweet, thoughtful, silly, and easy going.   I love traditions and can't wait to to continue these with Jared and Lydia over the years. 

Sibling love (again)

 

I can't help it. Jared and Lydia are just too cute together.

 

 (She was perfectly happy and safe in these pictures)

 

 

She can do it!

Lydia got up on her hands and knees and moved forward just a little bit on Wednesday (October 09) and by the next day she just took off!  Jared had fun crawling all over the downstairs to show Lydia how to do it.  We had a long talk about how he needs to be really patient with her because now that she can crawl she will go after his stuff so if its really important to him he needs to put it on the couch or stairs.  I am hoping this doesn't put a damper on his love for her! It's fun to see her moving all over.

 

 

Jared's train tracks, his new favorite thing won't be safe or awhile.

 

Teacher's Aide

 

Mark had some super long tests to grade this weekend.  Jared decided to help him finish grading (I did too and was relieved that I knew the answers on the test). It's ben a busy 6 weeks for Mark at school.  He has parent teacher conferences this week (yuck) and then his 2 week fall break starts.  He volunteered to call lines at his school's volleyball games on Mondays' so he never got home before 5:45- 6:00 which is really late when you are used to someone getting home at 4:00 ish.  He was also asked to be on some IB panels to help plan assessments and he was asked to do some IB training and technology trainings for the staff.  We are really happy that his school is realizing what a good catch he is.  The first year there we think he had a target on his back and the admin was always after him, last year he just sort of flew under the radar and this year he is like their go to, all star teacher.

Or maybe Jared just wanted some of Mark's Hot Chocolate.