Finally caught up!!

Ahhhh! That feels much better!! I hate that thought every night of needing to get caught up on my blogging, but it is so not my priority! So here it is, at least for the next few days!! Enjoy! 5 posts!!!

Halloween!!

I am so not a holiday person and therefore, my kids suffer because of it. Sorry kiddos!! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE the family get togetherness, but the decorating and everything else is just not my thing, but I do try a little. This year, Lindsey got to be either Sleeping Beauty or Ariel, because we already had the dresses and why buy another one. Taylor got to be a dog, because we already had that costume too from Lindsey. So, nothing creative, but the kids don't care, which is awesome!! This year, was a pretty low key. Katie and I decided to make dinner super simple, so we had an easy meal and then got the kids ready to go trick or treating. They looked so cute and had so much fun!! The Jacob's Family from our ward joined us unexpectedly and we are so glad that they did! It was fun to go house to house with all of the kids! I think Nick enjoyed having another boy with him! The kids got tons of candy from just going on our street, I am going to have to hide it for sure!

The cute little dog and monkey

Sleeping Beauty

Serious Princesses...this picture kills me!!

Just a little better....

We forgot to carve the pumpkins, so Russ came home a little early from work and he carved it then. He asked Lindsey what kind of pumpkin she wanted and she of course said, "horse." So, her amazing dad got an image online and copied it onto the pumpkin. At first we couldn't really tell what it was, but when he brought it in later and took a picture of it in the dark, I can for sure tell what it is! Good job Russ!!

Lindsey also had a preschool party that she got to wear her dress to earlier that morning, she chose Rapunzel (sp?) so that she could match Alli. I was at a work meeting, so I wasn't there to monitor and get her ready, but oh well. Those two are quite the pair. We also, had a ward Halloween party and Chili cook-off, but I was working that Saturday, so there are no pictures from that either. I think Russ was doing good to get the kids there with their costumes. I heard it was a fun time, I was sad to have missed it. Hopefully, next year I can finally go!!

Parmesan!!

We gave Taylor a bottle of Parmesan cheese to keep her quiet one night at dinner and this is what happened next.....we thought she was just going to open and close the lid, we should have known better!! (Lindsey was there in seconds trying to get some, I am pretty sure it is her favorite cheese :/ )

Another visit to Grandma and Grandpa Plowman's!

My wonderful grandparent's spend half of the year in Colorado and the other half in Arizona, so we had to make one last trip up to their house to see them (and their horse) before they left us for Arizona again!! We miss them so much when they are gone, but I completely understand not wanting to be here during the cold months!! I got the day scheduled and then was talking to Katie about going up there and she decided to join in on the fun.

We managed to get all of the car-seats and booster seats in my van (it was a very tight fit) and then we headed up I-25 to their house. When we got there, we enjoyed some socializing, as much as possible with 5 kids to watch very closely. We brought a picnic lunch for the kids to eat outside and we enjoyed a beautiful fall day. Then the kids played a little more and we tried to eat lunch just as adults...that never happens. :)

And then, it was finally time to go down to the barn and ride Pete, the horse. My grandparent's friend, Anna, called at the perfect time and so she was able to come and saddle up the horse for my grandpa and then take the kids for rides. That was a huge help, thanks Anna!! Lindsey of course went first and then her and Nick rode together. Alli wanted to ride with Anna. Then, Lindsey decided that she wanted to ride with Anna and they got to trot, as Lindsey says "trip." Lindsey loved going "fast" on the horse, it was so cute. Taylor got to ride with Anna too and she was enjoying the ride. I think she would have rather climbed the corral or run out in the weeds! Then Grandpa took all of the older kids on a ride in the Gator and they went exploring all around, so much fun.

Taylor being Taylor...

Looking good Lindsey!!

Makenna doesn't like big animals, so she was velcroed to Katie the whole time.

Taylor being Taylor again!! She did climb to the top and she is only 17 months!!

Anna and Alli

Off they go!!

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for such a fun day!! We loved it and so did the kids!!

Double Trouble!!

These pictures explain it all!! Makenna is a pretty well behaved little girl, but when she has Taylor's naughty influences around her, things change a little. Taylor teaches her how to play in the toilet, get out ALL of the wipes, tap on the water dispenser that is on the fridge to let all of the water come down, etc.... This particular morning, Katie was teaching preschool, so I was watching Makenna. The girls needed a snack, so I popped some popcorn and gave them each a bowl. I guess the bowl wasn't good enough and they had to climb up on the table and get some more. These two girls are going to be trouble!!

Fun Weekend with siblings!

Really?!?! Has it been that long since Trevor and Brittany came to visit? They came the weekend of September 17th, WOW time goes by a little too quickly for my liking! We had such a fun weekend with them, here is a rundown of what we did....

Friday afternoon they got here and we got a babysitter, so that we could go downtown and enjoy a nice meal without kids! (My favorite thing in the world). We went to Maggiano's and had a great meal. I of course ate a little too much and felt a little sick afterward (this is pretty normal for me). Brittany was a little scared that I was going to throw-up on her on the way home. But, we got home without any problems. :)

Saturday morning, Brittany and I took the girls to the Downtown Aquarium and had fun showing the girls all of the underwater animals. Taylor had a blast getting away from me and running away. I thought I lost her a few times, but she made it home safely with us. Then, we treated ourselves to some AWESOME Wahoo's for lunch. LOVE that place and so does Brittany. I got her hooked once before and now whenever she visits, we have to go there. Not a problem with me.

Trevor and Brittany's little girl, Ashlyn, being crazy at our house!! Such a fun and cute little girl!

We then came home and put the babies down for a nap. I had promised Lindsey earlier in the week that I would take her to ride a pony at Karl's Farm Dairy during their Harvest Festival. So, we picked up Alli (Katie thought I was taking her to King Soopers to ride the 1 cent horses, haha). The girls each got to ride a pony twice, go to the petting zoo and feed the animals some grain and then get a ballon dog from the clowns. (They were a little scared of the clowns). They had so much fun!!

Saturday night, we got another babysitter and went to the Rockie's Game!! Rayann and Ethan were able to join us this night, we had so much fun with almost all of the brother's together. As soon as we parked the car and started walking, the rain decided to start down-poring!!! Seriously, by the time we walked to Coors Field, we were 100% soaked!! Which, was fine at first, but then the sun went down and we were not yet dry. It got pretty stinkin' cold, so Brittany and I decided to go spend some money and buy some warmer clothes. I got socks for Russ and I and we got the boys matching fleece jackets. They were glad to have something warmer to wear. The socks made a HUGE difference! The Rockie's lost, but we still had fun!

The soaking wet brothers!! (Russ, Ethan, Trevor)

Our AWESOME and warm socks!!

Russ being slightly crazy! (with Rayann and Ethan)

Trevor and Russ in their matching jackets, Trevor loving on Russ...

Brittany and I...not the best picture of me, oh well.

Sunday, they packed up the truck and headed out of town. We hope they visit again soon, we had so much fun!

Lindsey

Lindsey is growing up so fast! When I look at her recently, I see this maturing little girl...it makes me sad. Lindsey in in LOVE with horses right now, we have had a few tantrums recently about her wanting a horse that walks. Sorry to break the news to you Lindsey Lou, not happening! She has a rocking horse, but desperately wants the horse to not "rock." She cracks me up (except when she is having her tantrum). Recently, we visited my grandparent's up in Berthoud, CO. They have some land and a few horses. Lindsey was really excited to see the horses, but didn't really want to touch them at first. Then, we went down later to see the horses again before we left and she was a little more brave and touched them. However, she did not want to get on the horse, because it didn't have a saddle. Grandpa said that he would saddle up the horse next time we came to visit, so we will have to see how she does then.

Lindsey with her Great Grandpa Plowman (being shy)

Every morning when Lindsey wakes-up she comes into my room and asks me what we are doing that day. Somedays she is disappointed, like on cleaning days. We do try and have fun a few times a week. Lindsey can be super sweet and tells me she loves me several times a day. But, if she doesn't get what she wants, then she turns into a pretty nasty little girl. We are working on this....hopefully we will have a little attitude adjustment. Lindsey loves any movie right now that has horses in it (Tangled, Mulan, Toy Story II, etc). She love to dance, sing, and tell me what a "great job" she did with anything.

Lindsey absolutely LOVES her cousins. They have the best times together and are starting to play a little better together (nicer). They still have their moments and nasty Lindsey comes out occasionally. Overall, Alli is her best-friend and she really does love her.

This was taken right before her first day of preschool. My sister and I are doing a co-op preschool with a few other mom's from our stake. Lindsey is really excited to be doing school again and I am excited to have a few hours a week with just Taylor and I. She is getting to be such a big girl.

I love this beautiful, sassy, sweet, smart girl of mine!!

Taylor

This is definitely my most mischievous little girl. I seriously don't have words to really describe all of the trouble that she can get into in a day. Recently, I was trying to clean (and had just cleaned my floors) and Lindsey really wanted a snack. She found Cheetos and I thought what the heck, it will keep her quiet for a few minutes. Of course, Taylor wanted some, so I put her in the highchair and then moments later she was trying to climb out. This is so typical these days! So, I got her out and then went and did something else. Well, she somehow reached up and got the bag of Cheetos and decided to have a "Cheetos Party." It was beautiful on my nice clean, floor. I haven't had a boy yet, but I am pretty sure that she is right up there with the boys. I am pretty sure she takes after her father in these qualities that she has. I have heard a few times that Russ was a pretty difficult/mischievous child, but he did grow-up to be an incredible guy, this gives me hope! :)

However, Taylor seriously makes me smile so much everyday! She has the most amazing smile and it is so contagious. I have the hardest time getting mad at her, because she will just smile at me and show me the great time she is having. Taylor loves to laugh at Lindsey and is always watching her. She often tries to mimic what she is doing. Taylor gives the BEST hugs! She is also in LOVE with WATER, no exaggeration!! Yesterday, we went boating with some friends and Taylor got in a little wet suit (wish I had pictures) and life jacket, then Russ laid her in the lake and she had so much fun. She just kicked and kicked. So stinking cute! Whenever, I water outside, she will always find the hose and end up soaked. (The toilet is still a frequent hit too). She is learning to say some more words and just recently learned a lot more of the animal sounds. Oh how I LOVE this little bald ray of sunshine!!

We went to visit my grandparents recently....my grandma said that she thinks Taylor will be a tom-boy, pretty sure I agree with this! We will see what happens, but she sure loves rocks and dirt!