Starts with a...

Tickle

And a bath right after an explosion...

Get out those punkins ladies & gents...

It's time to paint & carve!
Holy, what is that?!
I think I'll eat it!
(If i was a true blogger, I would
have gotten the picture before I
scooped the paint out of his mouth!)
Painting like crazy! Tray, face, arms, hair & all!
And a little bit on the pumpkin!

Finished products!

(As noted there is one more pumpkin than people.

That would be because I had a tantrum. Isaac

carved his while I helped the kids paint & I didn't

want to carve one by myself:) )

Also, these are our 2nd batch of pumpkins...

our 1st met the street the week before!

Perfect

Morgan Mae did it perfectly.

For those of you not familiar with our church, once a year the kids who are 12 and under have a program where they each say a little part & sing church songs.

Last year we were in Disneyland(I know the pits, right?:) Before that she was a bit too little. So, this is the year. Her 1st year she was able to participate. She did beautifully!

We started working with her 1st sentence about 2 weeks before(with Aunt Elyse's help finding the signs--thank you! She's also the one who paints Mo's fingers & toes so cute:)) & the 2nd about 5 days before. She picked it up so fast & hardly any confusion!

Isaac went up and held her on the podium so everyone could see her & she started signing as he whispered the words in her ear..."Father in Heaven loves me. He answers my prayers." Then she started clapping & saying "Yey!" There was not a dry eye...Momma & Papa most definitely included. Afterwards, everyone came up with tears telling her how well she did . She didn't love the hugs & attention at all:). Thank you Uncle Eli & Aunt Jenn & family & Aunt Elyse for coming! We love you guys!

We are so proud of you Morgan Mae! You are such a sweet & smart girl! You touch so many people's lives. We are so lucky & blessed to have you in ours!

HEE HAW FARMS FIELDTRIP

On Wednesday, October 22, 2008, Morgan Mae's kindergarten class went to Hee Haw Farms. She had a blast! They...

Rode the bus! She still loves the bus!

Just not that camera flash!

Hang out with Papa! SO cute of Papa!

Play in a corn maze. Which was so much fun until Isaac walked 5 feet away to take this picture!

Pick out a sweet pumpkin!

Checked out all the bunnies at Bunnyville!

Saw Leroy, the famous 1200 pound PIG!!!

Isaac said he never moved:).

Got to pet some fun critters. Morgan was brave
& actually touched the pig! For those of you who don't
know, she doesn't like slimey tongues & noses. When I
was pregnant wih Noah we took her to Thankgiving Point, a
calf licked her & it was about the end of the world.

A PONY.

Slide down a sweet 30 ft Haystack slide!

And watch the other kids slide down. That's one
of the many super fun things about Morgan, watching
the other kids is just as fun!
Play in a whole bunch of corn!
We found that for days around our house & in her chair!


And hang out with Papa. Isaac went on this
field trip & I got to hang out with the Noah man!
I think he had just as much fun as Morgan:).

Papa that is!(Well Noah & I had fun too:))
And as you can tell by the look on that
little girl's face, that Papa of hers, IS the
best part of her day. Papa looks pretty
content too I'd say!

I'm so glad they got to spend the day together! Thank you Isaac for being such a terrific Papa!

Kindergarten, Turkey & Stay Tuned...

Another thing that I didn't realize is that when your child goes to school, being kindergarten & all, that I would have so much homework. Come on. Morgan signs. I worked on a poster for her for school today until 3:30 in the morning!!! I forgot & things have been crazy with Isaac gone. So I've been even more forgetful than usual!!! I did not want her to feel left out. Well I don't think I've ever been so happy that I stayed up so late. Her teacher wrote me a note today that said "... she was very excited to show everyone & do the signs to all of her favorite things:)." She had so much fun showing the class her poster & signing all of her favorite things! Some of those being: BUTTERFLIES, BALLS, PHONES, CARS, HATS, OREOS, CHEETOS, POPCORN, etc. etc. I'm sure she also had fun when Ms. Thurlow, her teacher, talked about what else was on her poster, ROLLER COASTERS!!! Morgan Mae loves them!!! I am so relieved that I remembered!!!

Morgan Mae's class made red hats for red ribbon week at school today & Morgan won a prize for having one of the best hats! A Hello Kitty bag with little notebook paper in it!! So fun!!! How much do you think she loved that?! It of course was red & had butterflies on it & to top it all off....it was a HAT!!!

A new Noah story... One night last week, we were eating dinner pretty late & it was bed time. Right before bed is crazy time in our house....probably thanks to me:). I love chasing them around at night, it's so stinkin fun to get them laughing so hard!!! Anyways, Noah could not sit still. Grabbing onto his tray, shaking it, beating it, laughing, kicking around...being super silly! So, I took him in the bathroom to wash his hands & face & he was literally climbing up my side laughing hysterically. Grabbing my shirt & shaking me( you know, kind of like the Jack-Jack in the Incredibles, when Syndrome is trying to take him away, on the plane, away from his parents.) So I'm laughing hysterically too trying to wash him up over the sink & he is trying to turn around & crawl up me & do the Jack-Jack again. I told him" Dude, you're being crazy. You are such a turkey!" No joke, he turned to me, gave me a slobbery kiss, started laughing & said"tuuuu--key!" I was in total shock, laughing. And I asked him if he really said turkey. He said it 2 more times & hasn't said it since. I was seriously dying. Kids are so fun!!!

And last but not least, I finally got more pics to post from this summer(Thanks Mom:)). Morgan's bday, Vermont trip, Santa's Village...and lots of the pool. Stay tuned for more fun pics! And a little tribute to Morgan, it being her 5th birthday & all:).

Hogle

Miss Morgan, Noah, & myself all went to Hogle Zoo a few days back. And we had cousins with us! Yey! McKenna & her 2 kids Payson & Jack.

The 1st things we saw were these cute monkeys looking at each other through the ropes.

I promise, Noah & Morgan did have a fun time. I just didn't capture it on film:). It's way hard when your by yourself to get good pictures & show them all the critters! Jack & Noah did have fun jumpin up & down in their seats & hooting at the monkeys! Miss Morgan didn't care too much about the animals this trip. All she wanted was to eat Payson & Jack's snacks:).

If any of you have been to Hogle Zoo, you've probably seen this tiger pacing back & forth at the top, licking his chops watching those sheep.

It was so fun watching this little momma monkey & her baby. She would just hold out her arm so he wouldn't fall while he was playing on the rocks & continue to eat & go on with her business. It seriously is so similar to us! Very cool to watch!

What cute kids! This elephant spooked them a bit when it shot the water out it's trunk & did it's elephant sounds. Morgan & Noah were not sure how close they wanted to be to it:).

Noah also at one point was allowed to escape the stroller & helped me push & chased the turkeys & peacocks....then started running the opposite direction down the hill laughing.

Thanks for the invite McKenna! We had so much fun at the zoo, eating lots of pizza & playing at the Herring house with you, Payson & Jack:)!

Cute Little Tales...

YUMMY BALL
I heard Noah in the other room saying "Ball. Ball. Ball. Ball....Yum. Yummy. Yum. Yum." So I was thinking what in the heck spilled on the ball. I started into the living room to check things out. He found a box of tomatoes, given to us by our sweet neighbor Pauline Kummer, that I had left on the landing. Obviously, he decided to put it in his mouth, like everything else, and take a couple bites. He found out that it was the best tasting "ball" ever!!! "Yum. Yum."

SHAKE IT BABY! SHAKE IT!
And this afternoon, I was getting dinner ready & I started hearing a toy hitting a table of some kind, and waited a second to evaluate the sound & decided it sounded safe. Then Morgan started squealing & laughing hysterically & then shouting out encouraging "Whoo-hooos." At that point, I should have realized that Noah was doing something naughty. Morgan loves watching & egging on Noah getting into mischief and of course laughing hysterically too!! Like me having to chase him in church is so hilarious! Anyways, I come around my kitchen wall & find Noah standing on top of the kitchen table! He immediately sits down, because that means what he is doing is ok, but continues to shake the pepper shaker everywhere & eat it. He had already handed the salt shaker over to Morgan. They were shakin' 'em everywhere baby. In this house he knows if he has 2 toys, he should give one to Morgan. He is such a sweet boy, even shares in his michieviousness! It was seriously so hard to tell him "No." and not to just laugh & join the the fun!

Amazing

Noah and I walked to Petco and to the Post Office with our little dog Niki this morning. And it was one of those days when I realized how happy I am. How amazing life is. I just sat their staring at all the wonders thinking how beautiful everything is around me! I noticed the leaves are changing on the mountains, the sky radiating the most amazing blue, and the weather, well, it is absolutely perfect.

I can breathe on my own, I can see on my own, I can smile, and walk. And I have this sweet little boy who is taking everything out of his diaper bag & gibber gabbering up a storm on his little play phone. He's laughing, & Niki's sitting right next to him in the jogging stroller, smiling away too.(Yes, dogs smile:)) Morgan is at school, by the way, she loves it! Every morning she starts yelling "Hi!" down our driveway to the bus & bus drivers, smiles & laughs, so of course they do too, and once she's up the little wheelchair lift, she turns around and tells me "Ah-Ma, Bye. I Laaa Ooou". ( love you.)

So yes, some days as a momma are hard. Some days I just don't feel like I can hear "uh-oh" one more time or feel like I can't handle Noah exerting his independence by throwing himself on the floor or making his body limp when I try to get him to follow me or hear the noise Morgan makes when she doesn't feel like signing but wants something desperately. And worse of all, there are those days where I just can't fathom having to pick her up over & over again. Not one more time. And that is an awful, selfish thought. Some days it's hard not be selfish too.

Then, some days are perfect. You've found the perfect balance. You got good sleep and your kids might not be on their best behavior, but the day is just perfect. Of course, it's always nicer when they are on their best behaviors:). I love the evenings, right before bed. We run around, playing peek-a-boo, hide & seek, have tickle fights(it's the best when me & Noah gang up on Morgan), chase each other growling, and fall on on backs laughing. And a new favorite, putting our legs up in the air while on our backs & back down again, then our arms....etc. Kind of like follow the leader, but in Morgan style:). I am finding this new love for being a stay at home mom. It's incredible to watch your children everyday. Ladies, we are all so blessed. Give those babies an extra squeeze today.

Now, if only Isaac would come home. We miss you like crazy Papa!!!