Halloween Week

Happy Halloween Week!

The boys are off of school till Monday so we are going to try to cram in a week's fun into a long weekend. Priority number 1 is to visit the tiger cubs at the zoo. Then...museum, mall, probably a Target, Walmart, Kohls, grocery store visit too. Wish me luck!

Happy 7th Birthday!!!

Happy 7th Birthday to Tyler and Jacob! Today is their actual birthday but tomorrow we will be having their birthday party. We celebrated as a family by taking the kids out for dinner, complete with a big birthday sundae!

Jacob showing off his seven fingers and Tyler showing off his sundae.

Boys are all about really good smiles!

Not wanting to miss out on the excitement, Haley shoveled in some whipped cream.

Till tomorrow.......

Fall Fun!

I had such a wonderful morning that I just had to share my morning pictures with you. After Haley, Isabella, and myself took the boys to school we headed over to the Milwaukee Zoo. What a beautiful day! It climbed into the 50's with alittle sun, blowing leaves, and colorful trees. Here is what the girls did today...

Checkin' out the pink flamingos from their side-by-side seating.

This was a first for us...The lion was pacing in front of the viewing window! Haley was not a bit scared! Sorry for the reflections, the sun was on the rise.

I think he likes the looks of Haley for a morning snack!

After that we were on to the cheetah's!

Aren't they cute!

Well we waited by the tiger exhibit for the baby tiger cubs to come out onto display. They only come out after 10:30am. This is one of the two with mommy in the background.

Here is proud mommy.

Here is another of the cubs. They were running and wrestling with each other just like my boys!

After a big morning of fun and fresh air, cousin Izzy gave in to a brief cat nap!

It is so nice outside today that I am hoping that the kids and I can get a bike ride in on our newly paved street!

Pumpkin Patch

We made our annual pumpkin picking trip to a new place this year. Very basic patch without the fancy jumping inflatables, concession stands, and gift shop but really, really big pumpkins. At most pumpkin patches they charge you a certain amount of money by the pound but at our new place every pumpkin fell into a $1 - $5 range! This place also had the BIGGEST pumpkins I have ever seen and they were only $5! So, the boys had the freedom to choose which ever pumpkin they wanted and Haley said she wanted "a little one" which was very hard to find!

Here is Haley checking out the durability of this one.

Jacob was on a mission to find a big, round pumpkin so he can carve a wolf into it.
Take note of how big the pumpkins are around him! ($5! I love a deal!)

Tyler was looking for a big and slightly tall pumpkin to test out his carving skills this year.

We tried to get a "kids at the pumpkin patch picture" but, no one wanted to sit still!

Brian is carrying the winning pumpkins for the boys.
We will carve them next weekend and feast on roasted pumpkin seeds for weeks to come!

More Potty Mouth

In continuing with the last blog entry...I picked up Haley from the Y childcare after working out and here is the conversation I had with one of the workers....

"Haley had an accident."
Me, "What, how, what kind?"
Her, "She wet her pants."
Me, very confused, "Did her diaper leak?"
Her, "No, she said she had to go to the potty and we let her."
"We thought she had undies on then realized too late that she had a diaper on."
Me, "Mmmm, ok. And why is she wearing someones shorts?"
Her, "Sorry, we didn't have any extra pants, but hers are in this plastic bag."
Me, "She is NOT potty training!"
Her, giving me the are you crazy look, "She might be ready!"
Me, deep breath, "Thank you, have a nice day!"

On a side note, we have been hit with our first official illness of the season. Jacob is home today and tomorrow with strep throat. Just can't wait to see who pulls the short end of the stick next!

Potty Training Princess

This picture was taken back in August. After dinner one night Haley proudly proclaimed that she "had to go potty!" "Oh ok," I replied and daddy carefully put Haley on the potty while I ran to find the Dora special seat.

As she sat there thoughts of losing my baby came streaming into my head. Potty training...she's only 2! The boys were well into their 3's before I even came to this bridge, but I heard girls train faster...blah, blah, blah.

See how proud daddy is of his little girl growing up!

Every time I bring her to the gym or to church, she tells the childcare workers that she "has to go potty." She is always going for them, I mean they do have the cool little kid potty! Haley probably also heard another child want to use the kid potty so she said she does too ( I might have some problems with her when she grows up!) She doesn't do any of that at home and is completely happy filling up her diapers for me. Which I am ok with!!

I am in denial. I refuse to potty train my baby! Haley is our last child and potty training her would mean that I would never be able to take a shopping cart through the diaper aisle again! She would become this "big girl" that I am not ready to let her be. I know, I have issues. I just want to keep my baby, my baby for a little longer....or maybe just till Kindergarten :)